In a way to reduce the office’s footprint and centralize document management systems, companies have turned to multi-function copiers. An MFC combines the functionality of a printer, scanner, copier and fax machine to improve operational efficiency. Multi-function copiers are available in different types, models and with different features. In today’s highly competitive business world, effectively projecting your business is the key to acquiring leads. A color MFC helps you in this purpose.
Features specific to a color multi-function copier
Businesses that produce high volumes of color documents such as brochures, project reports and marketing material should go for a color multi-function printer. While purchasing a color MFC, here are certain aspects to consider:
Image quality
Businesses that rely on a high volume of marketing material should look for a print resolution of at least 1200x1200 dpi. While the color output should be of superior print quality, text should be crispy.
Toner yield
Toner yield is the number of color pages that the toner prints before it needs to be changed. The higher the toner yield, the more pages you can print. At the same time, high toner yield optimizes operational expenses.
Production capacity
While production capacity is not unique for color copiers, it needs to be considered as well. Check out the print speed, monthly duty cycle and maximum sheet capacity. For a home office, 5-20 ppm should do well. Medium workgroups can do well with 20-40 ppm. Large enterprises require a print speed of more than 40 ppm. A maximum sheet capacity of 3,500 is a decent requirement.
Finishing features
When printing business marketing material, finishing features are important as well. Check out features such as booklet creation, stapling, 2/3 hole punching, negative and positive inversion and watermarks. These features greatly enhance your marketing material and make it easy for you to work on large volume projects.
Top brands that produce color MFCs
HP
HP offers affordable multi-function printers for businesses of all sizes. For home offices and personal use, HP offers color multi-function printers under the HP Laser Jet Pro MFP series. These machines are cost-effective and provide good print speeds between 17 and 35 ppm. The price range falls within $250-$1,000. For medium and large workgroups, HP Laser Jet Enterprise and HP Laser Jet Enterprise Flow series machines are available. The print speeds fall in the range of 40-60 ppm.
Epson
Epson multi-function copiers are known for having the smallest footprint. For home offices, Epson offers MFCs under the Epson WorkForce WF 2600/3600 series. Small workgroups can go for the Epson WorkForce Pro 4600 series. For large work groups, Epson offers multi-function copiers under the Epson WorkForce Pro C, WorkForce Pro 5000 and WorkForce Pro 8000 series.
Lexmark
When compared with Xerox and Brother, Lexmark offers fewer models in the MFC segment. For home office/small office, Lexmark offers MFCs under the CS310/410 and CX310/410 series. The company offers four series for medium workgroups: CS510, C740, X740 and CX510 series. Large workgroup MFCs are available under these series: C790 Series, X790 Series, C925 Series, C950 Series, X925 Series, X950 Series.
Canon
Canon multi-function copiers come with a higher configuration and deliver robust performance. They are offered under the Canon imageRUNNER Advance series. For small work groups, Canon offers MFCs under the C2000/C3000 series and C250iF and C350iF series. Even though they fall into the small office category, they provide faster speed and capabilities that are enough for medium-size offices. Medium work groups can look at the C5000 series. For large work groups, Canon offers high-end machines that provide a faster speed of 100+ ppm. They are available under the C7000 and C9000 Pro series.
Xerox
Xerox offers a huge catalog of multi-function copiers for businesses of all sizes. For smaller work groups, MFCs are available under the Xerox WorkCentre 6000 series. These models offer a print speed of 18-24 ppm and resolutions between 600 and 2400 dpi. Medium workgroup MFCs are available under the WorkCentre 7500/7800 series. The print speed falls in the range of 30-50 ppm. For larger work groups, Xerox offers numerous models under the ColorQube 8700/8900/9300 and Color C60/C70/C75 Press series.
Brother
Brother is another company that offers a large catalog for multi-function copiers. The good thing about Brother Machines is that they come at a low price while offering reliable performance. For home offices, Brother offers MFCs under the Brother MFC-9000CW/MFC-9000CDW series. They offer a print speed of between 18 and 24 ppm and cost you less than $500. For medium-size workgroups, Brother offers MFCs under the MFC-L8000CDW/MFC-L9000CDW series. For large enterprises, MFC-L8600CDW, MFC-L8550CDW and MFC-L9550CDW are available. While Brother MFCs offer all features at a low price, the print speeds of these machines are comparatively low.
Color Multi-function Copiers for Small – Medium Offices
| Brand | HP | Epson | Canon | Brother | Lexmark | Xerox |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | HP LaserJet Enterprise Flow MFP M630z | Epson WorkForce Pro WF-4630 | imageRUNNER Advance C3325i | MFC-9130CW | Lexmark CX410e |
WorkCentre™ 6505 |
| Print Speed (color) | 21 ppm | 20 ppm | 25 ppm | 19 ppm | 32 ppm | 24 ppm |
| Print Speed (Black) | 21 ppm | 20 ppm | 25 ppm | 19 ppm | 32 ppm | 24 ppm |
| Monthly Volume | 40,000 | 30,000 | 50,000 | 30,000 | 75,000 | 40,000 |
| Cost | $399 | $199 | $6,615 | $399 | $541 | $549 |
Color Multi-function Copiers for Large Workgroups
| Brand | HP | Epson | Canon | Brother | Lexmark | Xerox |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | HP LaserJet Enterprise color Flow MFP M575c | Epson WorkForce Pro WF-8090 | imageRUNNER ADVANCE C9270 PRO | MFC-L9550CDW | Lexmark X954dhe |
WorkCentre™ WC 7970 |
| Print Speed (color) | 31 ppm | 34 ppm | 65 ppm | 32 ppm | 50 ppm | 70 ppm |
| Print Speed (Black) | 31 ppm | 34 ppm | 70 ppm | 32 ppm | 55 ppm | 70 ppm |
| Monthly Volume | 75,000 | 75,000 | 330,000 | 75,000 | 250,000 | 300,000 |
| Cost | $3199 | $42,000 | $799 | $15,499 | $31,000 |
Benefits of a color laser multi-function copier
The very purpose of a multi-function copier is to centralize office document procedures so that one machine can cater to office documentation needs. These machines reduce an office’s footprint, improve efficiency of office procedures, increase productivity, provide more data security and create mobility solutions. Without color printing, an MFC would not be complete. With a color MFC, you can bring vibrancy to your business marketing material. Moreover, texts would become crispy and clear.
Recommendation for an office size of 0-10
HP Color LaserJet Pro M476nw is a decent machine for home/small offices. It comes with a decent print speed of 21 ppm in color and black. The print resolution of600x600 is decent. The monthly duty cycle is 40,000 with a recommended monthly page volume of 1,000-2,500 pages. The intuitive control panel comes in a 3.5” color touch screen with the HP Business App. It allows you to display photo thumbnails or apps.It comes with a 250-sheet input tray. HP M252dw offers many other features that are more than enough for a small office. The ballpark price is around $399.
Recommendation for an office size of 10-30
Canon imageRUNNER Advance C5200 series LaserJet printers suit a medium workgroup well as well as a large one.Canon C5235 comes with a print speed of 35 ppm and provides excellent image quality at 1200 dpi. This machine is an excellent multitasker as it offers several useful features such as booklet creation, two-page separation and duplex support. With dimensions of 43.3x31x25.5 inches, this machine is compact and saves office space. It comes with Access Management System software that limits access to people based on the group or role assigned. The intuitive panel makes it easy to operate. While this machine comes with a sheet capacity of 5,000, there are other models in this range that offer around 6,000 sheet capacity. The ballpark price is around $11,970.
Recommendation for an office size of 30+
For busy offices, Xerox WorkCentre WC 7855 is a good choice. With a print resolution of 1200x2400 dpi, this machine delivers a superior color output and rich and crispy text. You can set user permissions to groups and applications so that emails can be printed in black and PowerPoint presentations can be printed in color. It offers a faster print speed of 50 ppm for color and 55 ppm for black. With a monthly duty cycle of 300,000, large volumes of print jobs can be easily performed. This machine comes with Xerox ConnectKey technology, which means you can access this machine from anywhere, anytime and from any device. The ballpark price is around $24,854.
What Others Are Looking For...
Requesting color copier lease rates for our contracting office. Would like to have a comparable model to that of a Xerox 5687. Requirements are as follows: 48 month lease. High volume finisher, 3 hole Fins, Color Scan Enable, S08 C-p scan Controller, Customer Ed., Analyst Services.
-Accounting Firm, Washington, DC
We are interested in two quotes. Leasing and/or Purchasing. We need the following capabilities: a color copier, email enabled, scan/fax/copy (b/w or color), and medium speed, not too slow.
-Manufacturing Company, Long Beach, CA
Want to eliminate current color copier/printer and fax into one machine must have 11x17 capability and color.
-Business Services Company, Merritt Island, FL
Print/Copy/Scan/Fax, Staple, Internet/Ethernet, Color and B&W hole Punch (2 and 3 hole) 2 sided copying, printing, scanning. Paper sizes: 1) 8.5x11, 2) Legal, 3) 11x17. Has dedicated paper trays for 1) 8.5x11, 2) Legal, 3) 11x17.
-Business Services Company, Ann Arbor, MI
Needs to be an HP Laser printer. Can be a mono or color copier lease. Most copies will be black & white so color is not a priority. A stapler is a plus but not a priority. -Business Services, Chelan, WA
I am looking to lease a color copier. Hopefully the most economical machine for 12 months which meets the following specifications. Copier Machine/FAX/Printer/Scanner complete with installation, service, maintenance, supplies, and all monthly usage charges. Minimum Machine Requirements: 1. Color Scanning 2. Collating/sorting/stapling 3. Enlarging/Reducing 4. Multi-size sheet feeder 5. Four paper tray sizes and bypass tray 6. Two sided and single sided copying 7. Plain paper copies 8. Memory feature with fifty documents 9. Automatic document feeder with 50 page capacity 10. Memory storage for twenty or more phone numbers.
-Construction Company, San Diego, CA
3 hole punch. A color copy machine would be nice, but isn't necessary, depending on the price.
-Non-Profit Organization, Charleston, WV
Just looking for a color laser copier lease that can handle 11X17 and duplex copying. Have limited space so desktop would be preferable.
-Non-Profit Company, Elmsford, NY
We want to lease color copiers, 1 Color 4 medium volume Black & White and 2 Desktop low volume 1-5K copies per month.
-School, Ottumwa, IA
I need a fast color copier that can print 2 sided as well as large format print jobs.
-Manufacturing Company, Santa Fe Springs, CA
Must do black and white and color. Also must be able to enlarge and reduce.
-Business Services Company, Southampton, PA
We are replacing a Konica-Minolta BizHub Pro C500. The cost has some flexibility in it.. The most important is color, scanning/emailing, and duplex capabilities. We produce high quality maps so resolution is important.
-Government Agency, Lapwai, ID
Run 2 sided, cardstock .67lb, enlarge, reduce, hole punch, staple and correlate, In Color, Ink powder, Laser.
-Non-Profit, Fort Worth, TX
I'm looking for three color copier machines in total. One large machine to copy, scan, fax, and print in black & white and color; able to staple and 3-hole punch; 2 paper trays (letter & legal). Second machine is a desktop that will copy, print, scan, and fax in black & white only. Third machine should be a high volume black & white printer only.
-Financial Services Company, Austin, TX