Mar (03-03) - Lexmark's loss is your gain

 << In my opinion

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I was shocked and disappointed at the court decision regarding the Lexmark toner. Seems like now they will get away with a legal "crime". Lexmark, IBM, Unisys, Dell, et. al. will have a free-for-all in the now-protected supplies business. I once did a study and came up with this rule of thumb: Toner cartridges will run over eleven (11) times the cost of the equipment in three years at 66% of duty cycle. That laser is really over ! Astonishing... I did a hurry-up purchase of aftermarket toners and may have slipped in under the wire. I haven't seen them yet, so we'll have to wait.

With all the market uncertainty, the large job loss in February, and the slow economy this may be the perfect time to take advantage of the buyers-market. Good equipment and fantastic bargains abound. Once the economy picks up, stocks of good used gear may tighten. Invest now, and save the stress once things open up more.

One of the industry publications we have used for our advertising to the end-user is The Processor. It seems that they have courted the manufacturers and the magazine is primarily a venue for them. Dozens of full page advertisements have shut out the dealer community. How to get the attention of the end user has become a challenge. With e-mail, print advertising, press releases, and good old cold calling, the user is probably just plain overwhelmed. The primary source of information and product availability has become the manufacturers and their distribution channel. Even internet searches have to be very specific in order to find what you are looking for. Need some guidance? Give us a call -- we will offer a level playing field with advice based on experience, not allegiance to a specific brand or model.

IBM's big push of 4247 impact printers has me frustrated. Good specs, but too much plastic for the Consider Tally, Genicom, PSI, etc.... Output Technology Corp (OTC) has ended their production of the Trimatrix series of impact printers. Instead they now resell the same CompuPrint engine sold already by IBM, Genicom, Decision Data, etc. Same engine in them all.... Looks like PSI, Printek, Epson, Okidata, and CompuPrint are the desktop impact printer manufacturers left standing. When you cross off the Oki and Epsons (too delicate for long term), it becomes a narrow field... IBM continues to roll out branded versions of Lexmark, reaching lower down the line with the new 1222 based on the Lexmark 420d... A few more 4322 IP21's rolled in, but these sell quickly so let us know ASAP.

This bears repeating: "The recent debut of an alternative to IBM's aging 3174 line has appeared.
The IDG 9074 family is some powerful which may help the switch over to thin clients and/or TCP/IP. It will support multiple LPARS and can replace up to 32) 3174's (up to 8192 devices!)....Compared to IBM's 2074 and the [Visara] McData alternative, this looks like a winner."

Good supply:
IBM 4224-201 - you can add internal ethernet to these and they last forever.
IBM 4230-201, 102, 202, 4i3, 5i3 - have some new and some used on this current generation gear. (check out the internal ethernet for the 4230 family)
IBM 4232-302 Fantastic durable ASCII printer
IBM 4317-001 – still whittling down the huge supply
IBM 4320-001's. -- 38 left from that big package
IBM 4324-001's. -- 24ppm and up to 11x17 with IPDS, etc
IBM 4332's.-- There are a few IBM 4332-001 and -004 printers left in inventory now.
IBM 4161 Ethernets for 4312, 4317, 4320, 4324, 4332
IBM 6262- all models except the "A" machines (I have one 6262-A22)
IBM 6400-015's 12 units back off lease with 4830 and Code V IGP
Genicom 3470 – New in box = less than the IBM gets for theirs.
Lexmark 2380-003's over 2000 hit the market this month!
Lexmark Optra 1855’s – over 75 pieces sitting (most with ethernet)
Lexmark Optra E --6ppm desktop lasers are a steal at @ with supplies
Lexmark internal and external print servers-- at least 150 of each.
Lexmark Optra S1255, 1625, 1650, 2450's are in good supply now.
Lexmark Optra T612, T614, T616, T522, T620, T622: Some in stock. I expect more machines to come to market as a result of the Lexmark decision.
Printek 4503 Great metal printer with multi-tractors for multiple forms

Tighter:
IBM 6262-A models (everyone wants ASCII-- I have one 6262-A22)
IBM 6252 all models, especially A models.
10/100 Ethernets for IBM NP series