Lexmark Pushes Dot Density Envelope with 7000 Color Jetprinter

On April 21, 1997 Lexmark International (Lexington, KY) introduced the Lexmark 7000 Color Jetprinter, a new top-of-the-line ink jet printer. Lexmark is emphasizing the 7000 model's 1200 dpi printing capability, which, Lexmark says, is the industry's highest resolution printer. With an estimated street price of $399, the Lexmark 7000 is positioned to sell against the Epson StylusColor 800, which has a street price of $449. Lexmark calls the 1440-dpi Epson StylusColor 800 "a similar performance printer with lower print resolution."

Lexmark's Worldwide Product Marketing Manager Matt Zimmer observed that recent image quality developments include six-color printing, ultra-high resolution, and pigmented black ink. "On May 1, Lexmark will be the only vendor to have all three," he said. Being able to identify features that are not matched by others will be very important in Lexmark's marketing communications efforts, with which Lexmark is waging an uphill battle for brand recognition and market share. Careful phrasing is required, though, in order to identify areas of unique performance. For instance, Zimmer said that the new printer will offer "the highest density yet in a thermal ink jet printer," an accurate statement since 1440 dpi printers from Epson use piezo print heads, not thermal, and the Epson printer prints 1440 dpi in the horizontal direction only. It is entirely conceivable that a major difference in base technology will go unnoticed by the target market, as will the difference between dots per inch (resolution) and dots per square inch (density). Stretching the communications still further, Lexmark's statement about being "the only vendor to have all three" image quality tools available applies to the line of Lexmark ink jet products, since all three image quality performance capabilities don't coexist in a single printer.

Like Epson, Lexmark uses full-strength colors in its three-color cartridge, and relies on the ability to print small dots in order to provide photo quality. Color dots from the Lexmark 7000 are about 60 microns in diameter on coated paper, more or less the same size as Epson's dots. From our perspective, both Epson and Lexmark would benefit from a six-ink color system, since the full-strength cyan and magenta dots, small and well-behaved as they are, keep the prints in the "near-photographic" realm instead of the "photographic." The dots from Lexmark's new print heads are, indeed, well behaved, virtually always consistently round on Lexmark's glossy paper. Six-ink systems take longer to print, Zimmer told us. Lexmark says its 7000 Color Jetprinter produces a 4" by 6" photo, presumably at full resolution, in less that two minutes.

In addition to touting the high-resolution photo-quality capabilities of the Lexmark 7000, Lexmark will emphasize its text printing capabilities. The Lexmark 7000 uses pigmented ink in its black cartridge. Black dots are 65 microns on coated paper. "We've done a great job of capturing the detail of the laser in this ink jet printer," Zimmer said. In print comparison research, Zimmer said, half of the people preferred laser prints, and half preferred ink jet prints. "That's a sign that they can't tell the difference." With pigmented black ink, which Epson and Canon do not have, Lexmark prints dots that are very well formed on plain paper, which, when combined with the extra addressability that 1200 dpi brings, gives the Lexmark 7000 remarkable text printing capability.

For the 7000 Color Jetprinter, Lexmark has moved to a new fabrication technique, using lasers to cut print nozzles and ink channels. The photograph below shows a close-up view of a nozzle. The tri-chamber color cartridge has 192 nozzles, and the black ink cartridge has 208 nozzles. Lexmark adds the numbers together, to say that they are "densely packing 400 tiny nozzles onto the printhead."

For years, Hewlett-Packard has put forth the message that resolution is only part of the image quality formula, and recently has backed up its position by eliminating the resolution specification from some of its press releases. (HP did not state a resolution specification for the Color LaserJet 5 or its yet-to-ship PhotoSmart printer.) Since HP is the market leader, this "contrarian" view must be acknowledged. Lexmark, it appears, is going in a different direction, and has embarked on a specmanship communications program, going so far as to print a competitive comparison in its marketing brochure that charts dots per square inch. (The company that is on top in market share is on the bottom of the dot density chart.) The calculations show that Lexmark can print 38% more dots per square inch than its closest competitor (Epson). Arithmetic shows that a 60 micron dot would be optimum in covering 100% of an area at 300 dpi. What is the benefit of 1200 dpi if 300 dpi is all that is required too cover the page with dots? The additional addressability gives Lexmark more options on dot placement. In essence, with 1200 dpi addressability and 300 dpi dots, the driver can position a dot on one of four positions on each 300 dpi grid position. However, Lexmark has to rely on the cleverness of its imaging algroithms to benefit the additional addressing capability. Yes, Lexmark can print more dots per square inch. But will customers actually get better prints? Comparing vendor-supplied prints, we would say that Lexmark's prints are on par with Epson's, but we would hesitate to say that they are better. It is more likely that the additional addressing capability provides a benefit with text than with images, since the extra precision will help Lexmark craft better-looking letters. The key in producting photographic prints, probably, is the ability to make smaller dots, and the ability to print more levels at a particular position. In this regard, printing 38% more dots probably contributes very little.

When it comes to print quality claims, especially regarding resolution and photo quality, our expectation is that the pool of potential ink jet printer customers will fall in two camps. As a result of vendor claims, some will pay additional attention to print quality in their purchase decision, and seek more information. Others will add image quality to the list of vendor-supplied information that they can't understand or deal with. (Printing speed and print cost are on the list, already.) Zimmer explained his view of purchase dynamics. "With printers, customers look at print quality in the store," he said, underscoring the importance of shelf space and the in-store sample print production. On May 1, 1997, the Lexmark 7000 will be available at Best Buy outlets. Lexmark's products are available in 7,500 outlets in the U.S. As ever, the challenge for Lexmark is to be included in the customer's purchase decision. "Sad but true," Zimmer said, "brand matters. People buy based on brand."

Lexmark 7000 Color Jetprinter Supplies (List Prices)

Color Business Report is an information service of Blackstone Research Associates. Information and analysis presented in this publication are based on the best information available, but cannot be guaranteed for completeness or accuracy. Copyright © 1997 by Blackstone Research Associates. Reproduction without permission prohibited.

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