All-in-one printers lead popularity contest

All-in-one printers lead popularity contest

Have you ever been to a computer exhibition such as the recent
Mega Bazaar at Jakarta Convention Center? If you did, you must
have noticed that there were perhaps more multifunction devices
or multifunction printers than the single-purpose printers on
display.

It seems that the top printer makers -- Canon, Epson and
Hewlett-Packard -- have placed more emphasis on multifunction
printers because of their increasing popularity.

These multifunction printers are not new, of course. HP began
to market its multifunction products many years ago. They already
had the products even when color multifunction devices were still
not allowed to enter the Indonesian market. If you recall, the
reason for the ban at that time was because these multifunction
printers could print fake bank notes very easily. Of course, the
reason did not make sense at all, as people have been able to
print fake bank notes with scanners and color printers since they
were introduced here in the mid-1990s.

Today, you can get inkjet as well as laser printer-based
multifunction devices. As usual, if you print a lot of documents
in black and white, a laser printer will save you a lot of money.

However, many of the inkjet multifunction printers can now
print high-quality photos -- which can cause a serious problem as
it is now even more difficult for you to distinguish the bank
notes printed by our secure printing and minting corporation or
those printed by the illicit home industry.

What can a multifunction device do? For sure, it can scan text
and images because it has a flatbed scanner. And, because it has
both a scanner and a printer, the device can also function as a
personal copier. Of course, you are not advised to print reams of
documents with it as it is not a low-cost photocopier.

On the subject of copiers, some high-end models such as Canon
Multipass MP730 Multifunction and HP OfficeJet 6110 All-in-one
have automatic document feeders, so you can scan or copy multiple
pages without having to manually place the sheets one by one on
the scanner's glass top.

Adding a fax function is just a matter of adding some sort of
modem to the device. Not all multifunction printers have the fax
machines, as some people still believe that a dedicated fax
machine is the better choice for the office or home.

Besides, a lot of people are still concerned over whether
combining so many functions would quickly turn the multifunction
printer into a malfunctioning device. Actually, it should not be
a cause for concern. Keep in mind that what makes multifunction
printers so attractive is the space saving from combining three
or more devices into one, and the ease of installation as you
will need to install one single driver on your computer for all
these functions.

Lately, as digital cameras increase in popularity and the
ability to print quality photos on par with professional photo
labs without leaving home, some of the multifunction printers
even have a multiple format memory card reader and a small LCD
screen to let you preview the photos before you print them. Two
of the top-rated printers are the Canon Multipass MP730 and Epson
Stylus Photo RX600 All-in-one.

What do you have to check when choosing a multifunction
printer? First, determine whether you will need only black and
white or full color printing? If you work with black and white
documents, again, a laser printer-based multifunction printer
such as HP LaserJet 3015 may be a better choice. If you plan to
print photos, perhaps the inkjet models are the better choice. In
this case, make sure the printer already supports the PictBridge
standard, which will allow you to print from any PictBridge
digital camera.

Almost all of today's multifunction printers use USB
connections. We are still waiting for the printer vendors to add
Bluetooth to the features and make it a standard so that we can,
for example, print photos directly from our cellular phones.

In general, the scanner on these printers is quite capable for
everyday use. Some, however, can even scan with an optical
resolution of up to 1200 x 2400 and a 48-bit color depth. This
feature will come at a premium, of course. And, finally, do not
forget to check the printing speed. Five color pages per minute
should be considered the very minimum these days. --- Zatni Arbi

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