Laser MFPs buck the trend
Laser MFPs bucked the trend in Western Europe last year,
with a growth in unit sales through distribution of 8%. All other
printer categories experienced a year-on-year fall in unit sales,
according to new data from European IT research company
Context.
Inkjet MFP unit sales were down 3%; laser single function printer
(SFP) sales were 9% lower; and inkjet SFPs fell 12%. Overall, unit
sales through distribution in Western Europe declined by 4%. In the
UK, sales were 8% down.
Amongst the manufacturers, Canon and Brother performed best
with year-on-year sales growth of 28% and 15% respectively. Oki,
Ricoh and Dell also recorded double-digit positive growth.
Kyocera and Xerox distribution sales stayed stable. However,
distribution sales of HP and Samsung printer hardware fell by 6%
and 5% respectively.
PRINT.IT
5
Create 3D copies with Sense
IT distributor Midwich has expanded its range of 3D print
solutions with the launch of a
handheld 3D scanner that lets you
make 3D copies by walking around
an object and capturing it from every
angle.
About the size of a staple gun,
the Sense scanner from 3D Systems
comes with intuitive software that lets
you crop, enhance and solidify tools
and prepare 3D printable files within
minutes.
The Sense scanner complements
Cube, CubeX and Trio 3D printers.
Pcounter gets
its own wood
AIT Ltd, the exclusive
reseller of Pcounter printer
management software in the
UK, is helping to plant new
native woodland in association
with Yorkshire Dales
Millennium Trust (YDMT), a
charity dedicated to caring
for all aspects of life in the
Yorkshire Dales.
Every time Pcounter
customers purchase updates,
support and maintenance,
AIT will dedicate a tree in
the Pcounter Wood, helping
to conserve the Yorkshire
countryside and mitigate
the carbon emissions of
participating organisations.
Customers who choose to do
so will be able to visit Pcounter
Wood to see their tree.
Planting broadleaf trees to
create new native woodland
is one of many initiatives
undertaken by YDMT as part
of its mission to support the
environmental, social and
economic well-being of the
Yorkshire Dales.
Chris Lodge, Woodland
Officer at YDMT, said: “By
dedicating a tree for each of
their customers in this young
woodland, AIT is playing a
crucial role in supporting our
efforts to restore broadleaf
woodlands in the Yorkshire
Dales. Thanks to initiatives like
this, we have planted more than
1 million new trees, helping to
create hundreds of new wildlife
habitats across the region.”
Xerox has extended its
UK Innovation Centre and
strengthened the centre’s
links with the Xerox European
research centre in Grenoble,
France and with PARC in Palo
Alto, California.
The updated facility at
Xerox’s Uxbridge HQ will give
customers the opportunity to see
demonstrations of Xerox print,
workflow and MPS solutions
and gain an insight into future
innovations being developed in
the company’s research centres.
The Innovation Centre
includes a Discovery Area
where visitors can interact with
products and experts; an 80-seat
auditorium; and a 30-seat café
for networking and breakout
meetings.
Darren Cassidy, managing
director of Xerox UK, said:
“The Innovation Centre should
surprise a few people, and we’re
confident that all visitors will
leave with a better understanding
of innovation at Xerox and the
benefits our services deliver to
customers.”
Print and document solutions
provider Altodigital is looking
forward to improved customer
service and reduced mileage
claims after implementing
TomTom fleet management
technology across its
100-strong car fleet.
The TomTom Webfleet fleet
management platform will
enable Altodigital to locate its
service engineers and allocate
jobs more efficiently, saving
time and reducing wait times for
customers.
The accompanying iPhone
logbook app removes the need
for engineers to complete
manual mileage sheets at the
end of each day.
TomTom technology should
also improve driving habits,
resulting in lower fuel costs and
a smaller carbon footprint. An
ecoPLUS fuel diagnostic device
reads fuel consumption data
directly from vehicles to provide
better insights into individual
and total fleet miles per gallon.
Apple has been named the world’s most
valuable brand for the third year in a row.
However, Samsung is closing the gap,
according to brand valuation consultancy
Brand Finance.
The new edition of
The Brand Finance Global
500
report ranks Apple first with a brand value
of $105 billion, a 20% increase on its 2013
value. Samsung is in second place with a brand
value of $79 billion, up 34% compared to last
year’s report.
US tech companies dominate the Top 10,
which includes Apple, Samsung, Google,
Microsoft, Verizon, General Electric, AT&T,
Amazon, Walmart – the only non-tech company
in the Top 10 – and IBM. The highest placed
UK firm is Vodafone in 16th position, down from
13th in 2013.
Altodigital improves
response times with
TomTom
Samsung closes gap on Apple
Xerox cuts ribbon on new Innovation Centre
