Newbie needs some help in making a choice

[cyberet]

Hi guys,

I have the following machines available to choose from and i'm lost as a first timer. Can't trust the sales talk too

Canon IRC2550i
Konica Minolta bizhub C253
Ricoh MPC2550
Toshiba estudio 2820c

My main usage for the machine would be printing color photographs & secondary would be b/w photocopy

Clarity/sharpness would be a priority in the color printouts. Previously i was using analog films.

The sample printout from Toshiba is the best, but i'm not sure if the picture i provided was edited/enhanced..

Thanks!

[tr21x]

Look for the best service department.
you will be owning this machine for a little while so you won't see the sales people however you will see the service folks. Ask for avarage call response time for each, where in proximity the dealership is too your business, if most of the parts for the machines you are looking at are in stock,or will they have to be ordered.Get a service contract quote on the machines make sure all toner,developer,and drums are included along with all tires and electrical components are covered.
The cost of the service contract should set apart the compatition you will be able to make a better decision knowing what each machine will cost you to run per copy.

[schooltech]

You are right, you don't know how much tweaking went on before the demo was sent out. I would think that not too much, as tweaking for one type of print will affect another type of print.

It does not really matter which manufacturer you go with, as each manufacturer will have dealerships flooded with experienced techs that can make anything work fine.

Watch your service contracts and prices, but also you'll want to meet the service people that may be assigned to your territory. You want someone that has been to training on the model you're selecting. This will not make them an expert, but it will make them feel much more comfortable and they'll have some experience with tweaks and hear good information from what other techs in the school have ran into, plus they will have first-hand talk with the instructor.

If you can't get quality support, you'll be a pissed off customer in a very short time. I would NOT lock into a 60 month contract, as this can make it extremely difficult to get out of the contract or have another company 'roll' the costs into another machine if you need to make changes. I would stay with a 24-36 month contract, as three years is a long time for a piece of color equipment. Color machines, by design, are a bit more complicated and aren't generally built the same as their mono counterparts. That's not a bad thing, it's just trying to compare a Ferrari to a Lexus. Both are nice, but one will require a bit more "tweaking" along the way.