Phaser 8400 Ink: No More Smudges Or Hassle Changing Tanks!

by garrett on March 13, 2008

There are now more affordable color laser printers than ever, ranging from discounted old printers to newer and smaller models. Every small office or working group can now use a high-volume laser printer instead of an ink jet printer. Many different vendors now offer color laser printers that are so inexpensive that even individual users can afford them.

A fast laser printer will let you crank out lots of black and white pages. A good inkjet properly used can produce high-quality photographic images. For some of the best of each, the Phaser 8400 uses solid-ink technology to quickly deliver rich, even color. And with PostScript compatibility and color-tweaking, you get performance unmatched by an entry-level color laser printer.

The Phaser 8400 printer is known as a phase-change or a wax-jet printer. Its ink appears to be halfway between that of a laser printer and an ink-jet printer, or that used by offset printing presses. The four colors of ink come in small waxy cubes. To be more precise, the yellow, cyan, black, and magenta inks each come in slightly different shapes. They are inserted into the printer like a toddler’s toys, each one into its own slot beneath the hood of the printer.

Accustomed to conventional ink and toner cartridges, it was slightly unnerved that the Phaser’s front-panel LCD and software driver don’t offer an ink-remaining gauge though the former does display a low-ink warning; instead, you simply lift the hood and look. You can top off or add ink anytime, such as before starting a big print job, with no more wondering whether an installed cartridge will go the distance.

Unlike the hassles of disposing of or trying to recycle an ink cartridge or waste tank, the Phaser 8400 ink pack is friendly to the earth – requiring you to replace a single tiny kit or image drum lubrication package every ten or thirty thousand pages. There’s also a wastes tray you have to keep empty and replace now and then.

Solid ink printers utilize heat and pressure to make an image on paper. The printer melts a small portion of the desired color(s) and sprays the ink onto a heated, rotating drum which transfers the image to paper. The Xerox Phaser 8400 printer has distinct environmental advantages over most low priced printers. Using only 1500 watts of power, the Phaser 8400 uses a fifth less electricity than liquid ink printers and the 600 X 600 dpi (1236 individual nozzles) print head transfers the image in a single pass (four is standard).

The ink almost instantly solidifies again on the page, with no inkjet-style seeping or blotting on plain paper, and won’t smear if swiped by a damp finger though it can scratch off if rubbed with a fingernail. The result is output that almost looks damp when it’s dry. Solid-color areas appear practically painted on, with rich, glossy hues and absolutely none of the banding that plagues inkjets and, to a lesser extent, laser printers.

Phaser 8400 ink doesn’t utilize laser technology. It utilizes ink to make stunning color copies very rapidly. It is also compatible with PostScript, and you can adjust color settings in a way that’s not possible with a low level laser printer. The Phaser 8400 is a solid ink printer. Instead of using liquid or powdered inks, the Phaser 8400 solid ink printer utilizes small solid blocks of yellow, cyan, magenta, and black ink that are specially shaped to be held and used by the printer. The Xerox Phaser 8400 is revolutionary.

– Ben Pate

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