Issue #0538/1 - Capable four-function All-in-One device joins the line-up of new machines from Dell launched two months ago.
Following the recent launch of part of Dell’s new range of inkjet All-in-One products (TCPglobal Issue #0529 - "New generation of photo AiOs from Dell - 924/944"), the top of the range model now joins the line-up. The Photo AiO 964 is a full-functioned, Print/Copy/Scan/ColourFax AiO with maximum print speeds claimed at 24ppm in mono and 19ppm in colour.
What makes this AiO rather special is that it offers the fax functionality with ADF at a price point of only £110 / €150 / $199. This compares with prices that are more typically in the range of £130 (OfficeJet 6210) and £150 (Lexmark X7170) to £202 (OfficeJet 7210) and even as high as £250 (Canon MP780) for models with the fax function. Only Hewlett-Packard’s OfficeJet 5610 competes closely on price at £111 – unfortunately it doesn’t compete on Total Cost of Printing.
Whereas Cost of Printing for the Dell machine is typically low, at 4.78 pence per page, the Hewlett-Packard machine has the highest long term PPP of the group, at 6.41 pence.
This is largely due to the fact that the OfficeJet 5610 uses a very low capacity colour cartridge, the No.22, with a pitiful ink volume of just 5ml. For black printing, the machine is shipped with the No.27 cartridge with a capacity of 10ml but is capable of taking the well-proven No.56 with an ink capacity of 19ml. Using this cartridge instead of the No.27 reduces the nominal mono CPP from 5.41 pence to 3.02 pence – a very worthwhile 44% saving.
|
UK - 4-function AiO with ADF |
Purchase |
Print Speed |
Nominal CPP |
Mixed mono/colour CPP over 3 years |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brother MFC-425CN | £149 |
Mono Colour |
20 ppm 15 ppm |
2.80 pence 8.25 pence |
6.08 pence |
| Canon MP780 | £259 |
Mono Colour |
25 ppm 17 ppm |
1.72 pence 6.88 pence |
6.07 pence |
| Dell AiO 964 | £110 |
Mono Colour |
24 ppm 19 ppm |
2.60 pence 6.71 pence |
4.78 pence |
|
Hewlett-Packard OfficeJet 5610 |
£111 |
Mono Colour |
20 ppm 13 ppm |
3.02 pence 10.42 pence |
6.41 pence |
| Lexmark X7170 | £150 |
Mono Colour |
22 ppm 15 ppm |
3.21 pence 7.28 pence |
6.11 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 250 pages per month using maximum capacity cartridges and takes into account any standard, or starter, toner cartridges shipped with the printer and includes the purchase price.
Hewlett-PackardOfficeJet 5610
In terms of long-term Cost of Printing, using the No.56 black reduces the CPP from 8.68 pence to 6.41 pence – again, a worthwhile saving of 26% (colour CPP using both No.27 and No.22 is as high as 12.8 pence!).
However, if the OfficeJet 5610 were to use the No.57 tricolour cartridge instead of being restricted to the No.22, and shipped with the No.56 and No.57, then the CPPs would be further reduced. The nominal mono CPP would be 3.02 pence, 8.55 pence for colour pages and 5.73 pence long term – making it a rather more attractive proposition for users.
A reduction in the long-term CPP from 6.41 pence to 5.73 pence (17%) might not seem to be a big deal on the face of it but it would drop it significantly below the level of the other three competitive machines. It would then not take much of a pricing realignment on the No.56 and No.57 cartridges to destroy a major portion of Dell’s competitive advantage.
One of the main barriers to this course of action, however, is that Hewlett-Packard is very unlikely to want to be seen to be entering into any form of direct printer competition with Dell, or admit that Dell had any form of advantage, by responding to its pricing strategy.
As a general principle, Hewlett-Packard’s major advantage over Dell in the printer market is in the quality of its equipment, perhaps backed by the longevity of its existence.
Dell PhotoAiO 964
From the hardware perspective, the Dell AiO 964 is very well specified. As a printer, its print speeds are a reasonable 24ppm in black and 19ppm in colour, claiming to be the fastest colour print speed of the group and only beaten in mono print speed by Canon’s large print head that produces 25ppm.
In addition, it is equipped with memory card slots and PictBridge interface for direct photo printing, with 2.4” colour LCD for preview purposes. To handle full 6-colour photo printing, it is necessary to add the optional photo cartridge.
One of the most attractive aspects of the basic product design though, is that it has a front feed paper tray like Hewlett-Packard designs – more desirable than a rear feed any day. Like all AiOs, paper capacity if restricted to 100-sheets, which is barely adequate but not such a problem as to make the devices unusable. For ease of use, this tray has an auto-paper type sensor so that users can undertake print jobs faster while knowing that the driver will adjust print settings so that they are appropriate to the media in use.
An Automatic Document Feeder (common to all the machines selected for the comparative grouping) further enhances the usability of the AiO 964 for copy and fax functionality. It takes up to 50 sheets on the input side but will cope with only 20 in the ADF output tray, so a large copy or fax job will need to be removed from the ADF output tray in batches while the job is in progress – not necessarily very convenient!
As far as the fax component is concerned, the AiO 964 has all the necessities for a light-usage fax device. This includes 33.6kbps modem, 89 speed dial locations, auto-redial, 10 broadcast groups with 30 number capacity per group and caller ID display for use where this service is available.
Scan functionality includes a number of common features, such as scan to email, file and application. The scan head used is CIS technology (Contact Image Sensor), still referred to by Dell as a ‘Compact’ Image Sensor. The major implication of using this type of sensor is simply that 3D objects cannot be successfully scanned because the sensor has a very shallow depth of field.
One downside of the sensor though is that it is a 1,200 pixels per inch native resolution whereas many scanners currently in use have a native resolution of 2,400 ppi. The higher resolution is very useful for scanning of negatives and film positives. However, as this device does not have a negative adapter, this is perhaps irrelevant.
In summary, the Dell AiO 964 is a fairly well specified, and certainly a well priced, device. We must hope that the quality is adequate for the job it needs to do.
~End~
