Zink Prints Without Ink
By: Lance Ulanoff
PC Magazine
Jan 31,2007
PALM SPRINGS—Printers are cheap; one can be purchased for as little as $49. But how would printer manufacturers survive without selling ink, as well? ZINK, a start up, doesn't care.
Printers all need their regular fix of consumables that include photo paper, and, of course, ink—a key method of making money for Epson, HP, Lexmark, and Canon.
ZINK's new patented print technology (the company claims over 100 patents), introduced here at DEMO 07, doesn't need ink wells to create a photo. Instead, it uses special paper, which includes a layer of dye crystals sealed under a special polymer coating-embedded paper, and a portable printer. The printer doesn't have ink cartridges or ribbons, instead applying heat to the special paper, which then, according to ZINK (which stands for "Zero Ink"), "colorizes the crystals" and apparently brings them through to the surface of the paper. The end result is a color photo.
I think that the idea of the "Zink" printer would be very appealing to consumers. For one, printer ink can be very expensive, the printer alone may only be $100, but the replacement cartridges can be $50 each. Every time you need more ink it is like buying another printer. Therefore, I think customers will like the fact that they won't have to buy replacement cartridges. Another reason why consumers may buy this product is because it is better for the environment because of the none use of ink and less packaging. But, for the companies like HP, Cannon, and Lexmark will they be able to continue to make a profit for years to come? I don't think that this will be a product that will make as much of a profit as the printers that are on the market today. I think this because after the printers are sold how do the companies continue to make a profit off them as they today? The only real solution to this is to price the Zink printer very high compared to what printers are going for today. In all, I think this is a good technological idea that consumers will like, but I'm not sure how much profit the Zink printers will make in future.
Lauren Parolin
PC Magazine
Jan 31,2007
New printing technology and paper combine to output digital images without ink.
PALM SPRINGS—Printers are cheap; one can be purchased for as little as $49. But how would printer manufacturers survive without selling ink, as well? ZINK, a start up, doesn't care.
Printers all need their regular fix of consumables that include photo paper, and, of course, ink—a key method of making money for Epson, HP, Lexmark, and Canon.
ZINK's new patented print technology (the company claims over 100 patents), introduced here at DEMO 07, doesn't need ink wells to create a photo. Instead, it uses special paper, which includes a layer of dye crystals sealed under a special polymer coating-embedded paper, and a portable printer. The printer doesn't have ink cartridges or ribbons, instead applying heat to the special paper, which then, according to ZINK (which stands for "Zero Ink"), "colorizes the crystals" and apparently brings them through to the surface of the paper. The end result is a color photo.
I think that the idea of the "Zink" printer would be very appealing to consumers. For one, printer ink can be very expensive, the printer alone may only be $100, but the replacement cartridges can be $50 each. Every time you need more ink it is like buying another printer. Therefore, I think customers will like the fact that they won't have to buy replacement cartridges. Another reason why consumers may buy this product is because it is better for the environment because of the none use of ink and less packaging. But, for the companies like HP, Cannon, and Lexmark will they be able to continue to make a profit for years to come? I don't think that this will be a product that will make as much of a profit as the printers that are on the market today. I think this because after the printers are sold how do the companies continue to make a profit off them as they today? The only real solution to this is to price the Zink printer very high compared to what printers are going for today. In all, I think this is a good technological idea that consumers will like, but I'm not sure how much profit the Zink printers will make in future.
Lauren Parolin
posted by Licensing 3 @ 6:42 PM
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