TCPglobal - news, views and issues on total cost of printing

Issue #0622/1 - Low-end lasers have always been the cheapest to buy but the most expensive to run. Dell has tried to buck the trend right across its range – but no longer. Its new low-end colour laser is no longer the cheapest to run – but, spend a little more and nearly halve your running costs!

Having reviewed the new Lexmark C500n colour laser printer recently, and deduced that it represents very poor value for money, we are now able to evaluate the new Dell offerings and find a wide spectrum of capabilities and targeted audiences with an equally wide spread of value for money.

Two of the colour laser printers from Dell have been refreshed while the third has been comprehensively replaced. Although the number of models available doesn’t change, this creates a much more inclusive spread of hardware and makes the offering from Dell more evenly spaced.

At the entry-level is one of the refresh models, 3010cn, replacing the 3000cn and at the top-end is the other refresh model, 5110cn, replacing the 5100cn. Although there are no major changes in the 3010cn, the 5110cn has an up-rated engine running at 35ppm in colour and 40ppm in black against the 25/35ppm offered by the outgoing model.

In the middle is the 3110cn. Don’t be misled here. Although the new model follows the existing naming protocol, and may sound like a refresh model, this is in fact a totally different machine based on a brand new print engine. The engine is from the Fuji Xerox stable, as are Dell’s other colour laser printers, offered to Dell as another exclusive first-to-market model.

Dell C3010cn

As the bottom of the range model, it would be nice to think of Dell’s new 3010cn colour laser printer as being everything that the Lexmark C500n could be and should be but isn’t – but we can’t. There is more in common between the latest low-end offerings from these two manufacturers than both being dirt cheap to buy but very much on the expensive side to run.

This aspect is unusual for Dell and marks a very real shift in the company’s approach to the low-end customer. Whereas the 3010cn’s predecessor was a very low-cost printer with nearly the lowest running costs in the category, the 3010cn itself both costs 34% more to buy (than the exit price of the 3000cn) and costs more than 40% more to run over a three-year period with nominal mono Cost Per Page that is a massive 97% higher.

At a purchase price of £209, the 3010cn costs rather more than the outgoing machine cost (£137), probably down to a sell-out price so that the company could move on to the new model. However, it is the Cost of Printing that is the surprise here, especially the nominal mono CPP.

What Dell has done with this new machine is to reduce the capacity of the black toner to half that of the 3000cn. Add to that a price that is 16% higher than the toner for the 3000cn and we have a toner only CPP of 1.45 pence (up from 0.63 pence) – an increase of 130%! Incredible!

Once the other replaceable parts have been taken into account, the nominal mono CPP works out at 1.69 pence against 0.86 pence for the 3000cn, representing a 97% mono Cost of Printing increase.

Then, we look at the colour consumables and find that they have suffered a price hike as well – of 19%, which pushes the nominal colour CPP up to 9.37 pence from 7.42 pence (26%).

Working on the basis that only 30% of output is likely to be colour, this rounds up to a three-year Total Cost of Printing of 4.22 pence instead of the 3.00 pence associated with the 3000cn – a massive 41% increase!

Bearing in mind that Hewlett-Packard has just reduced the price of its consumables, the fact that Dell has pushed up the Cost of Printing in this category means that the gap between the two companies is now significantly smaller than it used to be. The premium previously paid for a Hewlett-Packard Colour LaserJet 1600 over a Dell 3000cn was a significant 55%. This has now been reduced to a mere 5%.

No longer is the Dell machine the cheapest in the line-up, either for purchase (although it is only the Lexmark C500n that is cheaper!) or Cost of Printing. In fact, it is not even in the lower half of the line-up on Cost of Printing! The 3010cn now ranks as the third most expensive machine to run in the category over a three-year period of ownership, behind only Lexmark and Hewlett-Packard – and that by a relatively short whisker.

Uk Low-end colour	Purchase	Print Speed		Nominal CPP	Mixed mono/colour CPP over 3 years
Dell 3010cn	£209 (Four-pass)	Mono Colour	25 ppm 5 ppm	1.69 pence 9.37 pence	4.22 pence
Canon Laser Shot LBP-5200 (with network)	£382 (Four-pass)	Mono Colour	19 ppm 4 ppm	1.59 pence 7.89 pence	3.68 pence
Epson AcuLaser C1100n	£313 (Four-pass)	Mono Colour	25 ppm 5 ppm	1.43 pence 8.22 pence	3.64 pence
Hewlett-Packard CLJ 2600n	£251 (Single-pass)	Mono Colour	8 ppm 8 ppm	1.91 pence 9.69 pence	4.43 pence
Lexmark C500n	£205 (Four-pass)	Mono Colour	8 ppm 31 ppm	2.15 pence 10.41 pence	4.71 pence
Konica Minolta 2430DL	£345 (Four-pass)	Mono Colour	20 ppm 5 ppm	1.44 pence 7.95 pence	3.68 pence
Oki C3200n	£359 (Single-pass)	Mono Colour	20 ppm 12 ppm	1.70 pence 9.82 pence	3.80 pence
Xerox Phaser 6120VN	£296 (Four-pass)	Mono Colour	20 ppm 5 ppm	1.42 pence 9.34 pence	3.96 pence

Note that for this level of machine, the mixed mono/colour CPP over three years shown in the accompanying table is calculated on the basis of 2,500 pages per month; is based on the use of maximum capacity supplies; takes into account any standard, or starter, supplies shipped with the device; and also includes the cost of purchase. All prices are manufacturer’s recommended prices without tax.

This change of policy for Dell reflects more closely the general position in the market where it is the consumer and low-end business user that are expected to pay dearly for laser printing. What many users fail to appreciate is that they could typically save between 40% and 50% of their print costs by using a high-end business inkjet printer instead of a low-end laser printer! Laser technology is not essential to all printing environments, even where customer-facing materials are concerned.

In terms of changes that have been made to the 3000cn to create the 3010cn, we see no positive difference. In fact, the first page to print time has been extended from 9 seconds mono and 17 seconds colour to 16 seconds and 25 seconds respectively.

Also, whereas duplex was optional for the 3000cn, no duplex capability at all has been provided for the 3010cn – a modification that would seem to be a mistake where any business environment is concerned. Furthermore, the parallel interface has been dropped.

Like Lexmark, Dell has even stripped out the Page Description Languages from this new printer. No longer is it equipped with PCL5e and PCL6 but is driven by a ‘host-based like’ language that is said to be an Enhanced GDI (Graphical Device Interface).

Combine these factors with the reduced capacity toners on the new machine and we see Dell making almost exactly the same decisions made by Lexmark where the printer is downgraded but the cost uplifted. [Perhaps Dell has already bought Lexmark!] It seems that the primary motive for launching a new model is to reduce cost to the company while increasing revenue and profit by specifically increasing cost to the user rather than by attracting new users.

In its defence, a maximum paper capacity of 900 sheets, comprising 150-sheet standard input, optional 250-sheet feed and optional 500-sheet feed, is very impressive for a machine targeted at this audience. In fact, it is probably way over the top for this target audience!

Dell 5110cn

For medium to high-volume business users and workgroups, the 5110cn replaces the 5100cn, as a fast, low cost colour device.

Based on the same engine, speed has been boosted from 25ppm in colour and 35ppm in mono to an impressive 35ppm in colour and 40ppm in mono.

This is, in fact, the major difference between the two models. However, Dell has also boosted the toner capacity significantly, a modification that will provide major benefit to high-volume users, halving some interventions.

Colour toners are now 12,000-page capacity, up from 8,000 pages. The Black toner, however, has been doubled in capacity from 9,000 pages to an impressive 18,000 pages. Standard colour cartridges still hold 8,000 pages-worth of toner but the standard black cartridge now contains 10,000 pages-worth rather than the original 9,000 pages.

Although not affecting life expectancy, Dell has bundled the Imaging Drum and Transfer Roller together for this model, which helps from the administrative perspective.

In addition, there is one other minor change – maximum duty cycle for the printer is uplifted from 90,000 pages to 95,000 pages per month.

Finally, Dell is targeting high volume business users with a compelling Cost of Printing message. The higher capacity toner cartridges provide a small, but significant, cost benefit (6%) but the main advantage gained is in the reduction in number of interventions, which in turn means fewer purchase orders, thus reducing administrative costs.

With its integrated duplex unit, this puts Dell’s 5110cn in a seriously competitive position in the market. Its long-term Total Cost of Printing is a mere 1.92 pence in comparison to typical figures in the sector that are over the 3 penny mark and a high of 4.85 (Lexmark C760dn).

What makes this so remarkable is that the purchase price point is also considerably lower than any of the competition with the exception of Xerox’s solid ink Phaser 8550DP, which sells at the same price as the 5110cn but has a running cost that is exactly double that of the 5110cn.

Uk Mid-range Single-pass	Purchase Duty Cycle	Print Speed		Nominal CPP	Mixed mono/colour CPP over 3 years
Dell 5110cn	£559	Mono Colour	40 ppm 35 ppm	0.54 pence 4.04 pence	1.92 pence
Brother HL-4200CN	£1,499	Mono Colour	24 ppm 24 ppm	1.39 pence 5.89 pence	3.52 pence
Epson AcuLaser C4200DN	£1,013	Mono Colour	35 ppm 25 ppm	1.19 pence 6.24 pence	3.04 pence
Hewlett-Packard Colour LaserJet 4700dn	£1,620	Mono Colour	30 ppm 30 ppm	1.25 pence 6.02 pence	3.39 pence
Konica Minolta magicolor 5440DLD	£880	Mono Colour	25 ppm 25 ppm	1.05 pence 5.86 pence	2.82 pence
Kyocera Mita FS-5030DN	£1,355	Mono Colour	24 ppm 24 ppm	0.89 pence 3.97 pence	2.33 pence
Lexmark C760dnD	£824	Mono Colour	25 ppm 25 ppm	2.19 pence 10.70 pence	4.85 pence
Oki C7350dn	£1,239	Mono Colour	26 ppm 24 ppm	1.43 pence 7.21 pence	3.62 pence
Ricoh CL4000DN	£1,895	Mono Colour	25 ppm 25 ppm	0.89 pence 4.99 pence	2.87 pence
Xerox Phaser 6350DP	£1,249	Mono Colour	35 ppm 35 ppm	1.41 pence 6.36 pence	3.42 pence
Xerox Phaser 8550DP	£559	Mono Colour	30 ppm 30 ppm	1.42 pence 7.82 pence	3.82 pence

Note that for this level of machine, the mixed mono/colour CPP over three years shown in the accompanying table is calculated on the basis of 5,000 pages per month; is based on the use of maximum capacity supplies; takes into account any standard, or starter, supplies shipped with the device; and also includes the cost of purchase. All prices are manufacturer’s recommended prices without tax.

Dell 3110cn

So, finally we come to the new machine that occupies the middle ground.

As indicated, this printer is based on a new engine from Fuji Xerox and pushes Dell’s speed offering in the sector up by more than three times for colour printing (17ppm) and up by one quarter (30ppm) for mono printing, making it nice and fast for general purpose office printing.

Now single-pass technology, this machine technically replaces the 3100cn, a four-pass machine with 5ppm colour and 25ppm mono printing capability. So, although the 3110cn bears the same family naming as its predecessor, otherwise it bears no resemblance.

Moving to a vertical in-line configuration, the 3110cn is more akin to the engines from Canon that are used in the Hewlett-Packard single-pass colour printers, making everyday maintenance very easy.

One difference between this engine and the Canon engines lies in the life expectancy of the imaging unit. At first glance, it appears that the 3110cn uses single-piece toner cartridges with integral drum, like the canon engines. However, the 3110cn does have an imaging belt.

But, unusually, Dell expects it to have a life expectancy of between 100,000 and 150,000 pages. In other words, most users are expected to be retiring the printer before it gets to the point of needing a new imaging unit.

For those users printing in high volumes, should the imaging unit actually achieve end-of-life, Dell will replace it free of charge for users that have taken out extended warranty agreements. For this reason, the part is not classified as a consumable and cannot be bought as such.

To fit into this sector of the market, this new machine has a maximum duty cycle of 60,000 pages per month and maximum toner capacity of 8,000 pages for each of the four toners. The unit ships with standard capacity toners - 5,000-page black yield and 4,000-page colour yield.

Duplexing is available on the 3110cn and the device has a healthy maximum paper capacity of 950 sheets, based on a 400-sheet standard input capacity and an optional 550-sheet second feed. Ethernet, USB 2.o and parallel interfaces are all supplied as standard, as are PCL5e, PCL6 and PS3 printer emulations.

Driver facilities offer a high level of manageability and printing flexibility. For instance, the 3110cn is capable of printing n-up pages, booklets, watermarks and overlays and provides administrators with colour access control to guard against unauthorised colour useage.

At a purchase price of £319 / $499 / €404, the 3110cn printer is a little more expensive (10%) than its predecessor, the 3100cn, but comes with a significantly higher value proposition.

In terms of Total Cost of Printing, there is little value in comparing the 3110cn with the 3100cn. This printer now needs to be compared with the lower end of the single-pass category, with printers such as the Hewlett-Packard Colour LaserJet 3000n, Ricoh CL3100N and Xerox Phaser 8500N solid ink printer.

In this category Dell again claims the lowest long-term Total Cost of Printing figure, but not by a huge margin (2.38 pence against 2.76 pence), despite having the lowest purchase price by quite a large margin (22% from the Konica Minolta magicolor 5430DL). It is the FS-5020N that runs most closely to the 3110cn for long-term CPP, missing the lowest slot by just 16% despite the fact that it costs more than 3½ times the price of the 3110cn to buy.

It is largely Dell’s very aggressive nominal mono CPP of just 0.81 pence that accounts for this victory (along with that low purchase price). This figure puts the 3110cn into a mono printing bracket occupied by faster mono laser printers such as the 34ppm Brother HL-8050N and Epson EPL-N3000. It works out nearly 30% cheaper on mono toner than a printer like the 33ppm Hewlett-Packard 2430 and one-third lower than the 33ppm Lexmark T640.

The advantage the Dell 3110cn has over most of the machines in this category is the 30ppm mono print speed, making it a good choice for general purpose office environments. In this group, only Hewlett-Packard’s Colour LaserJet 3000n and Xerox’s Phaser 8500N match this speed even though the colour print speeds of all the machines are comparable at or about 17ppm (Phaser 8500N has the advantage of a nominal 24ppm colour print speed but once print quality in default mode is considered, this actually stands at only 12ppm).

So, overall, the Dell 3110cn is a machine that can truly be considered as a mono-replacement colour printer. It is fast enough to cope with fast mono printing in the general office and, most importantly, at a cost that is truly competitive with mono printers. The printer does not impose a premium on mono pages for the sake of also being able to print in colour but, equally, offers colour pages at a cost that is not so far above the cost of colour pages on a business inkjet machine (only 2.7%).

One area in which Dell is ahead of its competitors with all of its laser printers is in its handling of the fuser unit. Extended warranties are available for all laser printers and this includes replacement of the fuser at any time as well as repair of any other parts that may fail.

For users with a high monthly print volume (in other words, where replacing the fuser unit is an inevitability) an extended warranty contract becomes essential and provides that fuser unit as well as overall protection at a cost fairly well in keeping with a fuser unit replacement on its own.

Low volume users, however, who would not expect to need a fuser replacement during the anticipated life of the printer, may feel that it is not worthwhile spending the cost of an extended warranty on top of the cost of the printer just for insurance purposes.

Uk Low-end Single-pass	Purchase Duty Cycle	Print Speed		Nominal CPP	Mixed mono/colour CPP over 3 years
Dell 3110cn	£319	Mono Colour	30 ppm 17 ppm	0.81 pence 5.01 pence	2.38 pence
Hewlett-Packard Colour LaserJet 3000n	£905	Mono Colour	30 ppm 15 ppm	1.31 pence 8.31 pence	4.14 pence
Hewlett-Packard Colour LaserJet 3600n	£522	Mono Colour	17 ppm 17 ppm	1.39 pence 7.58 pence	3.62 pence
Konica Minolta magicolor 5430DL	£410	Mono Colour	20 ppm 20 ppm	1.41 pence 7.47 pence	3.49 pence
Kyocera Mita FS-5020N	£1,154	Mono Colour	16 ppm 16 ppm	0.89 pence 3.97 pence	2.76 pence
Oki C5450n	£679	Mono Colour	24 ppm 16 ppm	1.38 pence 7.84 pence	3.79 pence
Ricoh CL3100N	£1,495	Mono Colour	21 ppm 17 ppm	1.14 pence 6.63 pence	4.14 pence
Xerox Phaser 8500N	£559	Mono Colour	30 ppm 24 ppm	1.42 pence 7.82 pence	3.96 pence

Note that for this level of machine, the mixed mono/colour CPP over three years shown in the accompanying table is calculated on the basis of 2,500 pages per month; is based on the use of maximum capacity supplies; takes into account any standard, or starter, supplies shipped with the device; and also includes the cost of purchase. All prices are manufacturer’s recommended prices without tax.

In conclusion, we see how Dell is shifting the goal posts in its handling of its colour offerings – looking for more money from low-end, low-volume users but offering exceptional value for money to serious medium and high-volume business users. In the middle ground, Dell has positioned its new offering in a much more central location to appeal to a wide market.

In an environment where a colour laser is required, unless the volume of print is very low, spending £219 on the device and then 9.4 pence for every colour page doesn’t make much sense when spending £110 more will bring a whole host of additional functionality and features and an ongoing cost of just 5 pence per colour page. This reduces the overall Cost Per Page of 90,000 pages over three years from 4.22 pence to 2.38 pence – a saving of 44%!

Secure archives go up in smoke

Emphasising that secure data is not secure unless held in more than one place, on Wednesday night a secure paper archive facility in East London was burned to the ground.

Iron Mountain’s facility was said to contain ‘inactive business records’. But, who’s to say when an ‘inactive record’ is a ‘redundant record’?

Paper records need vast storage space - perhaps these paper archive storage companies should be investing in digitising facilities so that the archives can be stored digitally in two much smaller separate secure facilities! Reducing storage volume would compensate for the cost of digitising; the data would be more accessible, less vulnerable and more mobile.

A second secure storage facility, also owned by Iron Mountain, in Ottawa, Canada, then went up in flames on Thursday. This seems suspicious in the extreme, especially considering that there was another major fire in London, also on Wednesday.

There doesn’t appear to be any suggestion yet that there may be foul play involved but the loss of business records could have serious consequences.

~End~

This entry was posted on Friday, July 14th, 2006 at 12:03 am and is filed under Hardware, Pricing, Comparisons, Financials, Issues. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.