9 Print Industry Companies To Know In 2020

Vendors such as HP, Xerox, Lexmark and Brother have been among the print vendors actively releasing new devices over the past year.

Titans Of Industry

According to Xerox CEO John Visentin, "the printing industry is decades overdue for consolidation." Keith Kmetz, program vice president for imaging, printing and document solutions at research firm IDC, agrees that the industry could see consolidation in the years to come--even if Xerox and HP Inc. never find a way to combine forces with each other. "I wouldn't be surprised if one of these companies or both of these companies looks at further acquisition activity in the print market. We've been talking about maturity and consolidation pending for some time," Kmetz said. There is "credibility" to the notion that some players in the print industry "are going to merge or consolidate and create a bigger, stronger entity."

As it stands, though, there are still plenty of print industry companies to follow. So as part of CRN's Printer Week 2020, we've chosen to feature nine players that have been most on our radar. In the following slides we highlight some of the companies' notable device releases over the past year, featuring enhanced print speeds and a range of advanced capabilities.

What follows are nine print industry companies to know in 2020.

Brother International

Featured Device: Aimed at small businesses, Brother International's MFC-J5945DW specializes in offering simplified management of printing supplies. Part of Brother's INKvestment Tank all-in-one lineup, the MFC-J5945DW includes up to an entire year’s worth of ink in the box with the printer. The ink cartridges are also easy to insert and offer high page volumes. In addition, the MFC-J5945DW includes Brother's Page Gauge feature, which provides an estimate on how many printed pages are remaining with the cartridge. The device includes paper capacity of up to 500 sheets, along with print speeds of 22 pages per minute in black and white, and 20 pages per minute in color.

Canon

Featured Device: Canon recently rolled out four imageCLASS laser printers aimed at small-business customers. The new black-and-white printers include the multifunction imageCLASS MF448dw/MF445dw, along with the single-function imageCLASS LBP227dw/LBP226dw. All four printers offer print speeds of up to 40 pages per minute, while three of the models (excluding the LBP226dw) leverage Canon's Application Library, "helping to create a customizable experience for small business professionals in a variety of industries," Canon said. The MF445dw and LBP226dw models also can work with Canon's optional auto-replenishing service for toner cartridges.

Epson

Featured Device: A high-performance A3 multifunction device, Epson America's WorkForce Enterprise WF-M20590 delivers monochrome print speeds of 100 pages per minute and a maximum paper capacity of 5,350 pages. The WF-M20590 also uses up to 50 percent less power than monochrome laser printers. The device is powered by Epson's PrecisionCore Line Head Technology, enabling "high-speed, brilliant-quality output to meet the productivity and versatility needs of SMB and corporate workgroups with high print volume demands," Epson said.

HP Inc.

Featured Device: Last fall, HP announced three new A3 devices, two of which are aimed at transactional-oriented partners and one for contractual partners. The devices for contractual partners are the HP Color LaserJet Enterprise MFP M776 and HP Color LaserJet Enterprise M856 Printer. They are aimed at providing enhanced color printing for marketing materials and professional documents--thanks in part to a new print mode offering a wider range of colors. For managed print partners, the company unveiled the HP Color LaserJet Managed E85055, which promises a lower cost per page.

Konica Minolta

Featured Device: Recently launched offerings from Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A. include the new bizhub C360i. The multifunction device, part of Konica Minolta's i-Series, seeks to meet small and medium-sized office needs, including with a redesigned user interface. The bizhub C360i Series also offers high-resolution printing in color or black-and-white at up to 36 pages per minute--with the strong performance enabled in part by the inclusion of 8 GB of memory--along with a paper capacity of up to 3,300 sheets.

Lexmark

Featured Device: Aimed at small businesses, Lexmark's MC3224adwe multifunction device offers print speeds of up to 24 pages per minute in color; scanning, copying and faxing capabilities; wireless printing and scanning; and connectivity over Ethernet and USB as well. Lexmark is "betting the farm on the channel" with its recently launched devices for SMBs including the MC3224adwe, said Sammy Kinlaw, the company's vice president of worldwide channel and OEM sales.

Ricoh

Featured Device: Recently debuted multifunction printers from Ricoh include the IM C300F, a color laser MFP that offers print speeds of up to 31 pages per minute; copying, scanning and faxing; resolution of up to 1,200 x 1,200 dpi; and paper capacity of up to 2,000 pages. Additionally, the device leverage's Ricoh's "Always Current Technology," allowing for upgrades to the MFP through downloadable software and applications.

Sharp

Featured Device: Sharp Imaging and Information Company of America recently unveiled 11 new workgroup MFPs for its Advanced and Essentials Series--offering print speeds of up to 60 pages per minute--along with two new desktop MFPs for its Advanced Series, which reach up to 47 pages per minute. Capabilities available with the new models include voice control (via Amazon's Alexa assistant); cloud services integration (such as with Dropbox and Box); and security (such as firmware attack prevention and self-recovery features), according to Sharp.

Xerox

Featured Device: With the B215 multifunction printer, Xerox provides high-speed Wi-Fi Direct connectivity, enabling wireless printing (without the need for a router) and mobile printing using Apple AirPrint, Google Cloud Print, Mopria and Android. Print speeds for the B215 reach up to 30 pages per minute in black and white, with available resolution up to 1,200 x 1,200 dpi. Additionally, the B215 boasts a 3.5-inch touch screen, "giving users a smartphone-like experience," Xerox says.