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Industry Briefing
What We're
Covering
This guide covers desktop printers that deliver full-color
output using laser or laser-class technology. (We'll
explain in a minute what we mean by "laser-class.") All
the machines discussed are suitable for workgroups and
can be connected to a network, often as a standard fea-
ture. We use the term "desktop" somewhat flexibly:
although most of these machines will fit comfortably on
a desktop, some of them sit on stands — or even directly
on the floor — when fully configured. In fact, some look
more like copiers than printers.
Dramatic price changes
Note that prices in this industry are in rapid change mode
this year, and that many companies are either reducing
prices fast or offering big rebates.
Prices have fallen significantly in recent years, and you
can now get a color laser printer for as little as $299 (a few
years ago, by contrast, the least expensive street price was
$2,999). Most of these printers can be bought for less
than $2,000, and the bulk of the 8 1/2" x 14" printers are
in the $500–$2,000 segment. (Larger, 11" x 17" printers
generally range from $3,000 to $7,000.)
This guide does not cover regular ink jet printers,
though we should point out that the performance of a
few ink jets has increased to the point that they can pose
a viable alternative to laser. There's a separate section in
this volume for what we call "business-class" ink jet
printers, beginning on page 125.
We are, however, including in this guide a less common
technology known as "solid ink jet" because it is widely
viewed as being on something of a peer level with laser.
This, as well as LED printing (a close cousin of laser),
accounts for our use of the term "laser-class" in defining
the parameters of this guide.
There's also a new technology from Ricoh,
"GelSprint," which qualifies as "laser-class" color print-
ing. According to Ricoh, GelSprint is a hybrid of laser
and ink jet print technologies that offers laser-like preci-
sion and resolution with consumables costs comparable
to those of laser machines. GelSprint utilizes a perma-
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The Color Laser Printer Guide: Industry Briefing
nent print head that, Ricoh claims, enables fast printing
by low-cost printers while contributing to their long life.
Until a few years ago, most desktop color laser printers
typically had full-color engine speeds of about 3–5 pages
per minute (ppm). Then there was a move toward faster
models with speeds in the 6–12ppm range. Most recently,
the industry has been flooded with even speedier models
using so-called tandem-engine, single-pass technology,
which allows for rated full-color speeds above 20ppm.
(We'll explain this technology later in this section.)
Most color laser printers have been faster when printing
in black only: commonly, color printers have run three or
more times faster in black-and-white. This is because
pages had to be run across the drum four separate times
as each of the four colors was laid down.
The growing number of tandem-engine machines, how-
ever, often run at the same or similar speeds in color and
in black-and-white. In addition, a new class of color
printing has emerged, one that acts as a departmental,
high-speed black-and-white laser, but has as an extra fea-
ture: the ability to print in color, albeit at a relatively slow
speed.
The copier-printer alternative
Keep in mind that all color copiers can be connected to
computers so that they double as upscale color laser
printers. These machines are expensive devices, generally
costing $12,000–$40,000 or more at list price once con-
nected. Traditionally, they have offered faster speeds than
desktop color printers and more sophisticated paper han-
dling. Nevertheless, some of the latest single-function
laser printers are giving the copier-printers a run for their
money:
The 20–40ppm speeds for the growing number of
color laser printers rival those of most color copier-
printers, which are quite a bit more expensive.
Until a few years ago, no desktop model could print in
color on 11" x 17" paper. Today, however, this ability
is common.
Until recently, desktop color printers rarely had paper
trays holding more than 250 sheets. Today, most have
at least 500-sheet trays as standard, and some can go
up to more than 3,000 sheets.
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