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Recommendations for High Volume Color Laser Printers?
dughutch asks: "My church currently uses a small business color laser printer (Minolta 2200), but alas, it can not handle the load of our growing congregation. We are looking at buying a higher volume color laser printer and I wanted to ask the Slashdot readers for any and all information on possible solutions relating to this question, including, but not limited to: cost, volume, repairs, and outsourcing?"
Why dont you send a prayer and god will give you advice - or even a color laser printer!
*grin*
Why not inkjet? Epson puts out a pretty good one. Also, would it be better to go to places like Kinko's with a single color master? IIRC, color laser printers simply aren't cheap, and if it's a growing congregation, you can maybe get one on an NPO program, but again, *color laser*?
This sig no verb.
High volume Color Laser printers don't exist. They are instead called Networked Color Copiers. But forget cheap, you're looking at $16K entry, that will get you around 20ppm.
I thought this thread was gonna be COOL
:-(
then I saw the word "Printer" on the end.
Can you give a better definition of what you mean by high volume.
500 flyers for the sunday service each week
or
10,000 11x17 double-sided brochures every week.
Do you have any special requirements?
Must print on paper type ______.
Must handle these sizes?
Doublesided printing in single pass?
Do you care: postscript/PCL?
A little more info would be helpful.
If you're printing a lot of stuff that isn't time-sensitive(i.e., you don't need it RIGHT THIS SECOND), why don't you go with a professional printing house?
I think you'd probably have a lot less hassle with that route than with trying to find, purchase, install and support a color laser printer.
I've got an older 750N, works like a champ, cost $1400 - the toner cartridges are a bit pricey (250 each) but they last a pretty good while. Has linux support, internet printing etc.
Here is what they currently have on sale.
I would suggest to go see a professional. Probably cheaper and less hassel
Wow, and I bet you are unhappy with religion because it tells you what to do.
Pray to Gawd for your scroll printing purposes
What we see depends on mainly what we look for. -- John Lubbock Now search for that bug slave!
And show good stewardship of your congregation's money. If you have so much money that you *need* to spend it on something, open a soup kitchen.
"Eve of Destruction", it's not just for old hippies anymore...
...would probably be about 200 offshore indian children with crayons working for cheap in an old warehouse.
Outsource, outsource
No I didnt spell check this post...
"Let us condemn to hellfire all those who disagree with us." -- militant religionists everywhere
s/religionists/slashbots/
Sometimes black and white works. Such as my church is fairly small. Infact, my wife and I are the ones who donated the printer to our church. My wife does the bulletins and I do the audio recording for our church.
Now, perhaps if we wanted we could have decided what we wanted to donate. We did look into some color lasers before, and our research took us to xerox's site (mainly we were looking at the Phaser 6200). I didn't see in the documentation this time, but I thought that it did double sided. It might have been a slightly different model. As far as how it holds up, I don't have any information on though. Toner didn't seem too outrageous, but it is on the higher end of the price range I think.
Norris/Palin 2012
Fact: We deserve leaders who can kick your ass and field dress your carcass.
Check out the following website:
FreeColorPrinters
The fraternity that I am in has been using this service for the past 3 years (that is how long the contract lasts); the printer lease runs out in a week (the printer is yours to keep after the lease expires). We have a Phaser 850DP, and I believe the current model is a Phaser 8200, which are both color wax transfer printers - check out this link for the specs:
Phaser 8200 Specs
The only thing you have to do is print the quota (if some guys living in a dorm can do it, I am sure you can as well), and buy your ink from them (all black ink is free; color ink is kind of expensive, but it is worth it for the free printer). Also included is an on-site service agreement for the length of the 3 year lease.
I would definitely recommend this service, especially for small organizations. Good luck with finding one for the church!
A computer is a valuable tool, so use it and stop whining.
I don't know what you mean when you say high volume, but...
If you're not having a speed of printing issue, but are having trouble with the printer jamming, what you should look into is getting a good service contract. No matter what kind of "high volume" printer you get, excessive printing will wear down the rollers and cause a lot of paper dust to accumulate. The only way to keep them going is by cleaning them and replacing the rollers when they wear out.
I worked at a place that had 12 printer on a single floor that printed between 5,000 to 10,000 pages per printer per month. They were all great printers, but on average needed to be serviced ever six to eight weeks to keep working.
I'd recommend getting an additional printer, and getting a service contract on both printers when one needs to be serviced.
I've got the Phaser 8200 that I use for producing our short-run marketing materials.
.25 inch of the edge of 8.5x11 paper (sorry, don't run A4 so I don't have the measurements for that) - but when you run legal size paper, it only will print about 12" (leaving 1" top and bottom unprintable)
It's not really a laser printer (in that it doesn't use toner). It uses a solid ink technology - think 'melting large crayons.'
The quality is pretty good, but it depends on what you want to do. The unit we got has network printing built in, and will do doublesided printing automatically.
It is fairly cheap to operate. (you can get cheaper ink sticks at www.inktechnologies.com) and has a decent quality output. It doesn't do halftoning, but instead uses a diffusion style dot pattern to mix colors. For the most part that's not a problem, but don't expect to print areas of very light color without seeing dots. (like light gray panels, etc)
It will print on card-stock as well (but you have to manually feed it - which means you can't auto-doubleside print)
The print speed is pretty good, but if you haven't used it in a while, the warmup takes quite a few minutes (has to melt some of the ink).
Replacing the ink-sticks is fantastic. You just open it up and drop it in the slot. No mess. (again, think 'large block-like crayon')
The unit accepts Postscript or PCL and can even accept jobs via email or ftp (runs its own little ftp server, or can check a pop3 mailbox). There's a small web-server on the device that lets you check print status, get accounting (ink used, etc) and set other properties.
Some of the disadvantages:
Since it's a solid ink - the color doesn't permeate the paper (like a professional print). If you fold the paper and there is an area of color there, the color will 'break' as the surface of the paper breaks (small white lines). Additionally, if you press hard enough, you can get it to smudge.
It only prints to within about
--
Overall I'm pretty happy with the printer, as it wasn't horribly expensive (as these things go).
I mentioned that you can get cheaper ink than directly from Xerox. So far the cheaper ink works fairly well, but I think it may have a little bit more dot-gain than the Xerox sticks did. This results in small lines getting just a little fatter. I'd have to switch back to the Xerox sticks to be sure, but I don't remember some of the recurring jobs I print looking exactly as they do now back when I was running the Xerox sticks. Your results might be different.
GCC Printers Elite Color 16 DN $2099
That should be plenty for a church.
It seems that a lot of people replying to this thread haven't checked out color laser prices in the past couple of years. It used to be that the HP 4500 series was over $2000. However, that's no longer the case.
I picked up an HP Color Laserjet 4500 about a year ago for $600. This awesome printer had less than 10,000 pages on it. One $89 JetDirect 10bT Ethernet card later, I have a fantastic network printer that will last me for many years. I do a lot of prepress, brochures, etc. and the thing has already paid for itself just in printing out work for my clients (I charge them about half of what the local printer charges, and I've made plenty of money from that.)
I admit that $600 for a printer with less than 10,000 pages is a great deal, but there are some on eBay that are coming down under $800. (Note: Don't have one shipped... buy locally if at ALL possible. These things are HEAVY.)
If you're interested in a new color laser, the little Laserjet 1500L printers offer great bang for the buck. They're more unobtrusive than the giant 4500 series, but they have the same great laser quality starting at around $800. PC Connection has good prices for these as well, especially if you open an account with them.
If you want a brand-new giant color laser, try the Color Laserjet 4600. Yes, these are in the $2000 range, but if you're printing hundreds of pages per day, they are a good value.
I would never buy an inkjet again for a business. Yes, you can get an inkjet printer for $100, but those cartridges are a killer ($30 and they last perhaps 150 pages.) My color toner cartridges are $125, but they last for six thousand pages. The black toner cartridges are cheaper and go for 10,000 pages or more. At 11,000 pages, I've only ever had to replace one cyan cartridge, and I routinely do runs of a few hundred pages each. I'll never go back to the treadmill of inkjet cartridge upgrades.
For a church, I'd say the 1100 and 2500 series ($1200 or less) will work out great. Good luck on finding a printer that works well for you!
Simpli - Your source for San Jose dedicated servers and colocation!
More likely God's Dinosaurs Fun Book.
And I bet you are happy with it for the same reason.
In fact, I am unhappy with it because it is so full of shit. As, indeed, are you.
All things in moderation; including moderation
I believe you are saying that it should be your choice what kind of printer you choose to donate to your church.
In fact when I said someone might donate a B&W printer, I had in mind a used one. I gather from your post that you bought one for your church specially.
What I was suggesting is that perhaps people like you should donate the money to a truly worthy cause
e.g. feeding the hungry
instead of a less worthy one
e.g. having colour photos in the parish magazine.
All things in moderation; including moderation
GOD KNOWS WHO YOU ARE Mr annonymous coward ;-)
Slashdot - The one stop shop for procrastination
You asked about color laser, but if all you're looking for is decent color prints you might want to take a look at Oki Digital LED printers. I'm not a printing expert and I'm really not sure of the advantages and disadvantages of LED vs traditional laser printing, but I do know that our users who have been using an Oki 7000 series for a while really like it.
Have you ever considered that bright flashy advertisements catch eyes better than black and white advertisements? If a church is going to put up an advertisement for a church garage sale at the local grocery market, a color add is more eye catching than a black and white one.
Your basic assumption that a church should survive on bread and water alone is quite foolish. I suppose that you would also say that a church softball league is just a silly expenditure not helping the poor or needy. However, it also serves as an excellent out-reach into the community and it brings brothers and sisters together working in unity.
So, while a color laser printer may not have direct use to the poor, it does serve a purpose. To immediately write off any bit of expenditure that does not help the poor as wasted is quite foolish.
An example from the Bible is in Mark 14:3-9. Here a woman annoints Christ with an expensive oil and when some were upset that the oil was used on Christ instead of sold for money to pay the poor. Christ rebukes them and says that she has done a good work and that it shall be accounted to her.
Why?
Well, if you read the passage you see that Christ tells the people that he is with them a short time, yet the poor will always be with us. But, that also whenever the gospel is preached from then on that this woman will be remembered for her good works.
Basically, what is being said is that though money is used for one purpose now, in the future it will bring benefit. While sometimes money is wasted by churches, sometimes it is an investment into the future.
Norris/Palin 2012
Fact: We deserve leaders who can kick your ass and field dress your carcass.
Quite foolish? You're the one who believes in a fairy tale desert cult, after all.
ROTFLMAO.
You, on the other hand, fail to see that the church is interested in furthering it's own needs before those of anyone else: While the core ideas that it propounds are basically good (though at times naive), the organisation itself is an irrelevant construct which parasitically feeds on the memetically successful ideas of a simple carpenter.
So yes, I can see why the printer would be good for your church, but that doesn't mean it is good for you or that it is morally correct according to the teachings of your religion.
All things in moderation; including moderation
Oh, I forgot that you're a church. Nevermind.
"Eve of Destruction", it's not just for old hippies anymore...
the HP 4600DN is roughly $3500 (Canadian), gets the same speed, and doesn't have the blue problem. We've yet to have a maintenance problem other than running out of toner, and we do tons of CD labels and leaflets every month. We've been useing it for about 5 months.
As a bonus, it duplexes, so you don't have to re-load your bulletins to do the other side.
Go to freecolorprinter.com. This is Xerox's program whereby you can apply for a FREE color printer (typically solid ink, but they list laser/toner printers, too). The catch is that you have print a minimum number of pages per month and commit to buy all your consumables from the freecolorprinter website for a period of three years.
It's kind of like a lease: any failures they pay for (you pay for wear parts). After three years, the printer is yours to do with what you will at no cost to you. Use it for a doorstop if you want.
Some of my customers are in this program and are very happy with it.
I'm not a Xerox employee, and I don't get any kind of kickback for recommending it.
Give me my freedom, and I'll take care of my own security, thank you.
Ah yes, and here we arrive at the wonderful verse of Mathew 7:6.
Good night.
Norris/Palin 2012
Fact: We deserve leaders who can kick your ass and field dress your carcass.
- You sign up with them and indicate how many pages per month you print on average
- If they accept you into the program, they'll ship you a Xerox color laser printer (such as the Phaser 8200) which is completely network ready, etc.
- Every month, you send them a form (from the printer) to show them how many pages you printed during the month
- After 3 years, the printer is yours!
There are a few strings attached: You have to buy your ink from them. And if you forget to send in the form every month they'll charge you a fee. It comes with 3 years of free service. So if you have any problems, you can just call up and they'll help you out.Additionally, the black ink is completely free! And if the printer doesn't work out for you, they'll pay to ship it back to them. It's a really great deal! If you decide to go with them, use my referral number and I'll get $100! (Referral #: 427148). Note: I'm not associated with Xerox in any way other than as a satisfied customer.
-Andy
Or are all ordinary human needful things already
taken care of in your sheltered part of the world?
Erm...huh?
Did this come completely out of the blue or what?
Ah sorry, didn't read this properly - ignore my other post.
I had a similar issue with my church. I agree with the reply to your post, that the printer can open up a greater potential than that money spent outright - for example, I think 25cents (roughly) of every dollar - I could be wrong on this - given to world vision is spent on admin charges, etc. However, all that money that is kept goes into advertising and other efforts that in turn produce more money than they would have had from keeping the 25cents.
However, there is some truth in what you say. In my church they wanted to implement windows desktops when Linux would have been more than perfect (in some cases it isn't, in this case it was). What that meant was spending money on winXP licenses for each PC, along with an upgrade for all but one pc because none of them would run XP - and there's no downgrade rights. They still wanted to use windows even though I showed them Linux was good (and they agreed). Why? I think because they wanted to go with what they knew, to feel safe. They said because if a secretary worked in the office they wanted her to have training in the primary applications used so she could put it on her resume. I actually left the role of admin over this - I couldn't condone spending of money on pointless endeavours when it could be saved and given to a more worthwhile cause.
On another topic, throwing around derogatory comments like "desert cult" do nothing to pursuade us, only to get brownie points for yourself with like minded slashdotters. Not all churches are the same, not all atheists are the same, no one is the same. Some live by the principles they expound, others don't. You can't look at those who transgress the principles of Christianity and say "See? I told you Christians were liers". In fact, one core belief is that Christians believe that they are basically not good people - and that's why we need God. And the atheist says "what's not good about me? I'm good enough that I don't need God". Amusing arrogance at the least. I'd be curious to see just exactly what it is an atheist could possibly believe they are "good enough" at so that they don't need God. After all, without God there is no right or wrong - there is only "something that helps me pass on my seed" and "something that stops me passing on my seed". The fact that atheists come by a set of moral laws independently of religion is a testimony to God's existence and a mockery of what the atheist believes. If natural selection sets any precedence, then almost every atheist I view is not living the way they should. They should all be living in ways that helps them get more children - what path they choose is irrelevant (being nice, deceptive, violent, etc). What is important is producing as many children as possible.
It's a church? Canon's your brand.
>On another topic, throwing around derogatory comments like "desert cult" do nothing to pursuade us, only to get brownie points for yourself with like minded slashdotters.
I agree. There's no excuse for BS like that...
>And the atheist says "what's not good about me? I'm good enough that I don't need God".
Some may say that. Some have simply decided that they feel the bible is far too inconsistent to base one's most important life decisions on. Just because you've rejected religion _doesn't_ automatically mean you've rejected the possibility of doing wrong.
IMHO, bad choices are made by a lack of intelligence on the matter at hand, and since nobody knows everything, and nobody ever will (unless someone builds a time machine + transporter), no atheist should ever think themselves perfect.
>I'd be curious to see just exactly what it is an atheist could possibly believe they are "good enough" at so that they don't need God.
Simple -- I feel I'm "good enough" at making decisions that affect others positively, while also ensuring the effect on myself is either neutral, or positive.
Sure, I make mistakes, but up to now, none serious enough to alienate family, friends I wanted to keep, or neighbours. I think that's a good enough track record, IMHO, without asking "God" to tell me what I should(n't) do.
>After all, without God there is no right or wrong - there is only "something that helps me pass on my seed" and "something that stops me passing on my seed".
Of _course_ there's right and wrong. What's right is what causes humanity to progress in a positive manner, so that any children you have might prosper, and so that your name will be remembered in a good light. Generally, this happns by improving humanity as a whole, which means not doing things to harm it (ie: Hurting other people).
I'd rather that if someone hundreds of years from now crosses my obit. they weren't saying "Look, it's shepd the Tryrant!".
>The fact that atheists come by a set of moral laws independently of religion is a testimony to God's existence and a mockery of what the atheist believes.
Say what? That doesn't compute. If group a produces set b independently of group c, which produces the same set b, it is automatically group c that produced set b?
Which brings me to what I said earlier, and why I don't believe in the bible. Inconsistencies in logic abound.
As an interesting test, you'll find that many animals, despite the fact that such lower life forms cannot understand the mere conception of a "God", do have feelings, many of which seem quite human. Harm an animal and it'll either get enraged or cower. Befriend it and it won't harm you (usually). It may even help you.
The fact that animals can have these simple feelings says something about the fact that humans could be pre-programmed with a set of moral rules from birth. And the fact that the human brain is so large and so much more complex than that of any other species would clearly point to a much more developed and complex rule system. One that helps govern an orderly society, perhaps?
>If natural selection sets any precedence, then almost every atheist I view is not living the way they should.
As an appeal to the bible reader in you, Matthew 7:1 suggests that you might want to avoid this...
>They should all be living in ways that helps them get more children - what path they choose is irrelevant (being nice, deceptive, violent, etc). What is important is producing as many children as possible.
Tell that to the gay atheists, would you?
Then again, by this "Atheism's goal is reproduction" logic, that can't happen, can it? There can be no gay Atheists in in a Fox's Hole. Then again, the
If you could be told what you can see or read, then it follows that you could be told what to say or think - BoC
Thanks for the reply, was interested. For some reason I feel like talking about some of these things more.
I was wrong as you pointed out about all atheists saying that they are good enough that they don't need God. It is only some that say that.
I am confused about this paradox you present - gays that believe in the bible are asked to commit suicide peacefully?
It is obvious that homosexuality is abnormal and counterproductive to both natural selection and christianity. It does not mean that if someone has these feelings we should reject them. There are some gays who say they are comfortable with their sexuality. There are others that realise that it is not normal and seek to deal with it (sexuality is entirely possible to alter, leading one to believe that homosexuality is not genetic).
But that suicide comment - I really don't understand that. No-one I've heard has ever said that.
Comment on the Matthew 7:1 verse. You will notice it says, basically, judge not lest you be judged by your own standards. But first take the plank out of your own eye before helping your brother.
The Bible does not outright condemn judging (in some places it tells us that we should), but rather be careful of it.
Depending on exactly what it is that you want to do, you may not need or want a colour laser printer.
If you're doing reasonably high-volume duplicating, but not such a high volume that an offset press is required, then what you want is a machine called a "digital duplicator", such as a Risograph. It's sort of a cross between a photocopier and one of the old crank Gestetner duplicating machines that used to be popular in schools. You put your original document on the scanner board just like a photocopier, then hit the "make master" button. After that, you set the number of copies that you want and let 'er rip, at about 120 pages per minute.
It's much faster than a photocopier or any laser printer, and about 10% of the cost per sheet as well.
If you're a zombie and you know it, bite your friend!
Get one of these and not only can you do large print runs but also you can set your place up as a copy shop and end up with a second revenue stream.
I'm not associated with Xerox but I was a very happy customer.
Ed Almos
Yeah, time to throw in the towel and hid behind some bible nonsense.
That is typicle, and predictable. Congratulations.
You will find out there is not god when it is too late. Quit wasting your time, you don't need that crap to live a good life.
Dumb fuck.
Now don't laugh, but this guy really needs a mimeograph machine. I saw the perfect machine for this guy, a digital 4-color mimeograph, at a conference about 10 years ago. I went to a computer conference for school tech admins, some company (I forgot who) was demoing a high-speed CMYK mimeograph that had digital input in PostScript. I guess they figured schools were familiar with mimeography and were prepared for this weird hybrid beast. This was back in the early days of direct-to-plate, and they'd adapted their mimeo machines to direct-to-stencil. It was designed for large-run 4color low rez jobs, and produced about newspaper-quality CMYK printing on plain paper. The system laser-etched all 4 colors of mimeo stencils right in place on the roller, then at the end of the run, you had to pull the stencils off the roller and toss them. They ran it for a few seconds and it cranked out pages at an astonishing rate.
I never thought much about high-end mimeography until a few years later when I spent a few months in Japan attending school. The office had two B&W copy machines, one regular copier, and one for long runs. The long-run machine was an advanced mimeograph, similar to the fancy 4C one I'd seen at the show years earlier. I was told it was cheaper to use a mimeo for 25+ pages, but it would cost more if you only wanted 1 or 2 pages, due to the extra cost of the dispoable stencils.
But ultimately, this guy just needs to buy a real printing press, or job out the work to the local instant printers. Using laser printers for a mass printing job is wasteful of resources. Your laser printer consumes a hell of a lot more electricity and expensive consumables than your local ink-and-paper instant printer facilty. Save the environment, support your local pressman!
-My church currently uses a small business color laser printer (Minolta 2200), but alas, it can not handle the load of our growing congregation.
.. but still you can add an identical printer to the network and just manually divide the load.
It sounds like your printer -almost- handles the load but falls just a little short. Simple - add another identical printer and have both printers service the same print queue. You are already experienced with that particular printer, no need to modify anything on the client side, you already have a stock of toner cartridges.
Actually I am thinking about the way Netware handles printers and print queues, not sure if it is quite that straightforward in a pure Windows environment or not
Simple, builds on your existing investment in money and knowledge, and you don't have to scrap your existing hardware.
Glonoinha the MebiByte Slayer
>For some reason I feel like talking about some of these things more.
:)
It's only by talking about issues that people can best understand each other's opinions, and by that, better understand one's own opinions.
>I am confused about this paradox you present - gays that believe in the bible are asked to commit suicide peacefully?
Perhaps you can better educate me on this point. It's my understanding that if one takes the KJV bible literally, Leviticus 20:13 suggests that gays will be put to death.
However, at the same time, one of the ten commandments is "Thou shalt not kill", which seems to leave only one "option" open, suicide.
But perhaps I'm confused on this. I do know there are many bible-based religions that don't take it that literally.
I only try to avoid even mentioning things like that with most people, as, quite honestly, few ever give me cause to mention things like that (not that you did, apart from asking
If you could be told what you can see or read, then it follows that you could be told what to say or think - BoC
I'd be curious to see just exactly what it is an atheist could possibly believe they are "good enough" at so that they don't need God.
I think you don't quite get atheist. It's not that we are so good that we don't need God, it is that God does not exist wheter we need him or not.
Nice troll, BTW. So good actually that I have biten.
:wq
Ah, yes, an explanation for that is good. "Their blood shall be upon them" means that the guilt of their crime is theirs to bear - and that the execution of them is justified. If I say that the blood of someone else is upon me, then I say that I took their life unjustly and that I bear the guilt for that action. To say their blood is upon themselves is to say that the guilt lies with them, and it is no crime to take their lives.
It is worth noting that it is practicing homosexuality that the Bible condemns. Christians acknowledge, or at least are supposed to, that we are all wicked in one way or another.
As for the "thou shalt not kill" - there is a difference between murder and kill which most people are aware exists but are not sure of the boundaries between the two. Kill is the justified taking of a life. The circumstances under which it is justified - that is another question. Either way, I hope that helps you understand.
this isnt fuckig funny. i hope you know that. god damn loser. you like joplin? she has one decent album and a few good songs, the rest sucked, only chrysler's infection would allow mercedes to use that song in a commercial, and that bitch used to perform drunk as fuck on jacked up southern comfort and vermouth. the fact she could peform in an anebriated state proves she sucked as an artist. and retards like you dont even notice the bitch in cranked and sloppy. i guess PUKING this shit out on Slashcrap is poetic justice for that song. you coming out with the "humor" on a dead heroin junky. schweet try there buster.
Whoa man... Some fall out the wrong side of the cage today?
She was part of an era of artists who were rarely sober. Some things haven't changed since then. I do not condone such behavior, but the music is a lot of fun.
Then, if you look at the original post that I was replying to:
Why dont you send a prayer and god will give you advice - or even a color laser printer!
The song fits in quite well. Whether you like Janis or not, its an appropriate post.
Perhaps you need to read something a little more relaxing. I'm sure I could find you a 404 somehwhere that is just screaming your name.
Norris/Palin 2012
Fact: We deserve leaders who can kick your ass and field dress your carcass.
I am glad to see that you feel you know everything and can judge what a person should or should not believe. You are no different from any other close minded little bigot. Like the rest of them, you like being an Anonymous Coward.
See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
How much paper can it store ?
How many pages/minute ?
Most important of all: What is the total click cost (cost per imprint.)
Consider asking a copier dealer about a pay per click.
Well said.
Sorry for the lack of details.
We're expecting to do around 15,000 color pages per month, double sided. 11"x17" ability needed.
Copier functionality is a possibility... we are just checking our options.
Thanks for the idea of local printing houses... that is actually one of the options we are considering.
Thanks again for all the useful feedback.
While the Xerox Phaser series is great, if you want really high volume, you need Xerox DocuColor iGen3 for 6,000 impressions per hour, auto duplex. According to BusinessWire, the DocuColor iGen3 lauched starting at a list price of $510,000, but I don't know if that's the current price.
I help run a fairly large club (2,000 members) that has a publicity drive every 3-4 months, during which time we print something like 20,000 flyers, brochures, etc. in various formats. We also print quite a lot of lower volume things: tickets, certificates, etc.
We've investigated this area in some depth, and concluded that for the high volume stuff, it's much cheaper to use an external print shop if other practicalities permit. There are several around and they're quite competitive for the sort of business we could give them, so deals to reduce cost are quite plausible, and the service is generally pretty good. If you're printing thousands of pages, but not every day, I'd certainly recommend finding yourself a good local print shop to work with. (This is based in the UK, BTW; obviously YMMV elsewhere.)
For smaller volume work, using your own printer is much more cost effective, since you don't have the same level of overheads, and it's easier to tweak things if you need to. I guess this would be true of colour work as well, from what I've seen, but we only do B&W ourselves.
For really high volume work (thousands of pages per day) it can make sense to get your own serious kit and do everything in-house, but you're practically running your own print shop by that stage. Your requirements are similar to ours, though, so I'd guess this is overkill for you too.
If you disagree, post your argument. (-1, Overrated) isn't your personal censorship tool for views you don't like.