Kodak Inkjet Printers
As Kodak debuts its new line of inkjet printers, it is not the printer themselves that are creating the headlines, it is the printer cartridges.
The new Kodak EASYSHARE All-in-One models use pigmented based printer ink cartridges that are priced at $9.99 for black and $14.99 for a five color cartridge (about 50% less than what you will pay for black and color cartridges manufactured by HP, Lexmark, Dell, and Epson). Kodak CEO Antonio M. Perez was quoted as:
“For far to long, people have felt restrained from printing due to the high cost of ink. Our new system gives consumers the freedom to print documents and photos frequently, easily and affordably with exceptional quality that lasts a lifetime under typical home display conditions.”
Kodak has adopted the slogan, thINK, and features on their web site, “Think: is it smarter to save money on a printer or ink? (Hint: You only buy the printer once.)”
What kind of pritners is Kodak putting out?
The EASYSHARE 5100 AiO printer ($149.99) an print and copy up to 32ppm in black and 22ppm in color. This 5100 will be available this month (March 2007) from BESTBUY and in April 2007 on the Kodak web site.
The EASYSHARE 5300 printer ($199.99) has a 3-inch color LCD that allows the user to view and crop photos directly from the printer before printing. This printer will be available this month (March 2007) from BESTBUY and online in April at the Kodak web site.
The EASYSHARE 5500 ($299.99) has a fax function and included a 2.4 inch color LCD, an automatic document feeder, and a duplexer attachement.
Kodak is touting their exclusive KODACOLOR Technology, which is a combination of 4 key elements; pigment based inks, micro-porous photo papers, color and image science, and the Micro-Electro-Mechanical-Systems (MEMS) print head. Their printer cartridge packaging is also quite aggressive, touting a savings “of up to 50% on everything you print.”
Note: Do notice that one key component of the KODACOLOR Technology is micro-porous photo paper. Kodak has taken the approach of promoting their photo paper along with their cartridges and printers. Most printer manufacturers have taken to endoring their own photo paper as being best for use in their printer. It’s nothing new, but it is nice to see they are not entirely bucking the system.
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October 1st, 2007 at 6:07 pm
Bought one of these printers and would not give you 2 cents for another one. I have had it about a year if that and the print quality is the worst I have ever seen. It jams oftens and the cartridges which are cheaper, have to be changed more often. I am so tired of being ripped off by name brand copanies.
May 15th, 2008 at 11:01 am
Hi, hard to believe you had the printer a year when it was only released in April of 2007. I am sure that you experience is not standard and I know from personal experience that this printer runs great for most users. Be sure you update your printer firmware often, that helped out one issue with cartridge use and also make sure you use only Kodak cartridges and don’t “refill” ink yourself. If you aren’t happy I am sure Kodak will exchange if still under warranty. People that complain without looking at warranty and returns really don’t have a leg to stand on. It is not the “big companies” fault if you don’t make them aware of the issue and give them a chance to make it right.