Inkjet & Digital Printing
Canon, Konica Minolta, Sharp And Toshiba Earn BLI “Pick” Awards For Mid- to High-Speed MFPs
Monday 29. June 2009 - Buyers Laboratory Inc. (BLI), the worlds leading independent evaluator of document imaging products and solutions, today announced its Spring 2009 "Pick" awards honouring outstanding copier MFPs from Canon, Konica Minolta, Sharp and Toshiba in the 41- to 69-ppm and 70- to 90-ppm speed ranges.
BLIs semi-annual “Pick” awards are given to the hardware and software offerings that measure up as the best in BLIs comprehensive evaluations, which assess a wide range of the most important features and performance factors for buyers.
The Spring 2009 MFP “Pick” winners in the 41- to 69-ppm speed range and 70- to 90-ppm speed range are:
Konica Minolta Holdings, Inc.
Konica Minolta bizhub 601
Outstanding 51- to 60-ppm Monochrome MFP
Konica Minolta bizhub 751
Outstanding 70- to 90-ppm Monochrome MFP
Sharp Electronics Corporation
Sharp MX-4101N
Sharp MX-5001N
Outstanding 41- to 50-ppm Colour MFPs
Toshiba Corporation
Toshiba e-STUDIO6530c
Outstanding 70- to 90-ppm Colour MFP
Sharp Captures “Pick” Awards For 41- to 50-ppm Colour MFPs
The Sharp MX-4101N and MX-5001N, with colour and black speeds of 41 ppm and 50 ppm, respectively, have each earned a Spring 2009 BLI “Pick” because of their top-notch overall performance in BLIs demanding two-month evaluation.
“We put these models through their paces and they passed with flying colours,” said Lynn Nannariello, BLIs assistant managing editor. “Sporting a distinctive design that includes a textured exterior and rounded corners, these highly reliable devices offer an array of features that make them very easy to use.” Among these are a large full-colour control panel, an optional retractable QWERTY keyboard that makes entry of e-mail destinations and index data more convenient, a remote front panel feature that allows administrators and users to view and control machine operations from a PC workstation and the ability to customize the touch screen so that the most commonly used features can be placed on the main screen. In addition, these devices, which offer an excellent security feature set, support Sharp OSA (Open Systems Architecture) so that they can be configured to integrate with customers document management and other types of applications to automate workflow. Very good multitasking capabilities and colour and black print output, plus high marks in all aspects of connectivity, also contributed to BLIs decision to give these devices “Pick” awards.
“Sharp is extremely proud to have both the MX-4101N and MX-5001N selected by BLI as recipients of the prestigious Pick award,” said Keiichi Katsuta, President of the Division Sharp Information Systems Europe.
Excelling in BLIs rigorous testing confirms our commitment to delivering products that provide a winning blend of performance, quality and reliability.”
Toshiba Raises The Bar In Business Colour
Garnering superior marks in several areas of evaluation, including excellent overall reliability, print drivers, colour copy productivity and security, the aggressively priced Toshiba e-STUDIO6530c has earned BLIs Spring 2009 “Pick” for the 70- to 90-ppm range.
“Durability is a hallmark of just about every Toshiba device that weve ever testedand this unit is no different,” said BLI Associate Editor Carl Schell. “It required no service of any kind over the course of 275,000 impressions. And because of the self-refresh developer system, which helps provide more consistent image quality throughout the life of the toner cartridges, and easy replaceable units, organizations should experience very little to almost no downtime whatsoever.”
BLI technicians were also impressed with the improved ease of use and scan functions, both of which were rated Very Good, compared with previous Toshiba-manufactured MFPs.
“The control panel has a bright, full-colour SVGA touch-screen LCD,” said BLI Technical Manager of Field Testing Ken Nardone. “Hard keys on the panel, as well as buttons on the display, which can be customized for each user via the My Menu feature, are all clearly labelled and very responsive. Meanwhile, the unit offers a plethora of scan-to options and faster than average scan speeds in colour simplex and black modes, and the new scan preview on the LCD is crucial as scanning continues to increase in importance in todays business world.”
The e-STUDIO6530c employs the companys third-generation e-BRIDGE controller, allowing for seamless integration with third-party solutions, and is packaged with standard copy, network print and scan, and Internet fax functionality, as well as optional network, PC and walkup fax capabilities. Designed primarily for general office use, the unit can be outfitted with an optional EFI Fiery controller for graphic arts environments.
“Being honoured with the prestigious BLI ‘Pick’ award for our e-STUDIO6530c fills us with great pride. It was our goal to develop a highly productive business colour MFP that impresses with excellent colour quality, outstanding robustness and exceptional ease of use”, said Sebastian Moeller, European Product Manager at Toshiba TEC. “The BLI award for the most outstanding 70-90ppm Colour MFP confirms the enthusiastic feedback we received from all over the world. It proves that our aim to develop the most innovative solutions has again resulted in a product that perfectly answers our customers needs.”
Konica Minolta bizhub 601 Scores High Marks
The Konica Minolta bizhub 601, which is packaged with standard copy and network scan functionality, as well as optional network print (Emperon Print System) and all types of fax capabilities, has taken home BLIs “Pick” for “Outstanding 51- to 60-ppm Monochrome MFP.”
Based on an engine that demonstrated outstanding reliability in its 300,000-impression test, the unit also scored well in other areas of evaluation, including excellent overall print drivers, as well as comprehensive security measures. Comparably configured, it also boasts the second lowest acquisition price in the competitive group.
“From its well-designed control panel, which features a bright, full-colour touch-screen LCD, to its simple procedures for scanning documents to various destinations, to its lower than average supplies cost per page, the bizhub 601 is a fine choice for medium-size to large offices, departments and workgroups,” said BLIs Schell.
Print productivity is another strong point for the unit, as it delivered the highest efficiency in the job stream test and when outputting booklets compared with similarly equipped monochrome MFPs in this speed range tested to date. Other noteworthy elements include 2 GB of standard, non-upgradeable RAM, versatile finishing options, scan to/print from USB functionality and bizhub Extended Solution Technology (bEST) for seamless integration with third-party software.
Excellent Reliability, Print Productivity Earn Konica Minolta bizhub 751 Honors
Following a strong performance during its 300,000-impression assessment, the Konica Minolta bizhub 751 has won BLIs “Pick” for “Outstanding 70- to 90-ppm Monochrome MFP.”
Bundled with standard copy and network scan functionality, as well as optional network print (Emperon Print System) and all types of fax capabilities, “the unit demonstrated outstanding reliability,” said BLIs Schell. “Add to that its excellent overall print productivity, including the highest efficiency in our job stream test and when printing booklets for the competitive group, and its clear that the bizhub 751 represents a very good value.”
BLI Manager of Laboratory Testing Pete Emory was especially impressed with the units RIP capabilities.
“The bizhub 751 downloaded the 15 print jobs that we use in testing in among the fastest times ever recorded,” he said. “And the unit began printing a rather large PDF file almost immediately after I sent it. Without a doubt, the bizhub 751 is more than capable of handling high-volume demands in offices, departments and workgroupswithout slowing anybody down.”
Also noteworthy are the units well-designed PCL 5e/6 and PostScript 3 Visual drivers, very good overall copy quality and comprehensive security measures, as well as bizhub Extended Solution Technology (bEST), which enables seamless integration with third-party software. Tested toner yield was not only above average compared with monochrome MFPs in this speed range, but substantially exceeded the rated yield. Furthermore, the unit employs the companys “InfoLine Design,” which helps boost ease of use via lamps that indicate whether paper or toner needs to be replenished. Scan to/print from USB functionality, 2 GB of standard, non-upgradeable RAM and versatile finishing options supplement the package.
“We are honoured that BLI has selected the bizhub 751 for Outstanding 70- to 90-ppm Monochrome MFP and the bizhub 601 for Outstanding 51- to 60-ppm Monochrome MFP in its Spring 2009 Pick Awards,” said Kevin Kern, vice president, Marketing, Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. “The monochrome office systems eliminate the need for individual machines due to their high-volume office multifunction print and copy capabilities. Winning these independent third-party awards offer unbiased and reliable evidence that our customers can count on Konica Minolta for all of their document imaging needs.”