Canon Rolls Out 'Solid' Printer

Canon USA has unveiled the CLC 3900 color laser copier/printer, touting its speed and affordability, as well as its outstanding image clarity.

By MIKE LLEWELLYN

Despite fighting through a tough economic climate, Canon came out swinging at a recent press conference with the introduction of a new addition to its CLC series, the CLC 3900.

The 3900 color laser copier/printer "has no direct competition right now," said Mason Olds, director and general manager of Canon's Color Systems Division. "It's an entry-level product for a niche market."

Canon plans to market the new copier/printer directly to in-plants because of its versatility, speed and ease of use.

In its marketing materials, the Long Island, N.Y., company has indicated it feels the equipment is perfect for the in-plant setting because it "offers finishing options that yield professional-looking presentations, proposals and booklets."

The 3900 is a color laser copier/printer that warms up in 8.5 minutes and turns out copy number one in 12 seconds. It has a 400x400-dpi resolution, which the company contends looks more like 800x400. The largest stock able to run through it is 12x18˝, and if it's printing on 81⁄2x11˝ paper, it can run about 39 copies a minute in either four-color or black-and-white mode.

Speaking of paper, the 3900 can handle up to 5,350 sheets with its letter paper deck or 3,350 with its oversized paper deck.

Finer, Brighter Toner

With the introduction of the CLC 3900, Canon is also including its FB Toner (FB stands for finer, brighter). According to marketing material distributed by Canon, the FB toner particles are smaller than any previously available, and when combined with "an advanced charging system," they can produce an outstanding level of image clarity.

All told, the approximately 1,200 lb. machine will require about 3x5 feet of floor space. Olds said the CLC 3900 will hit the market with a suggested retail price of $54,990.

"This is a great product, a solid product, but this is a price sale," he said, presenting a chart that indicated the 3900 is priced well below other products in its class.

In addition to the main unit, the CLC 3900 also comes with several finishing options. The first is a 20-bin stapler/sorter that offers three different stapling positions. Then there's the Nagel finisher which can trim, stack and saddle-stitch booklets up to 16 sheets wide. It can also operate off-line with other devices in the shop. And finally, users can attach a TS-100 high-capacity stacker with room for up to 2,500 sheets.

For optimum print-on-demand networked capabilities, Canon says it attaches a RIP to over 90 percent of the CLC devices that it sells. The CLC 3900 works with both the Canon ColorPASS RIP and the T/R Systems MicroPress X series. ColorPASS allows users to edit and customize color curves using the included ColorWise software. In addition, ColorPASS offers a Fiery Scan feature that allows images to be scanned and brought into everyday workflow.

New Wide-format Printers

The company has also rolled out a new line of wide-format printers—the imagePROGRAF W2200, W7200 and W7250.

"In the ink-jet business, we have been a player for quite a while," boasted Marketing Director Amit Bagchi, claiming that the new products would cement this reputation.

The imagePROGRAFs have a large 1.06˝ head that carries six high-infiltration inks: CMYK, plus photo cyan and photo magenta. With each color connected to 1,280 nozzles, the 1˝ head carries a total of 7,680 nozzles for a 1200 dpi resolution.

"We're ahead of last year," says Pike. "Unlike our competitors."