OKI C900 Family Review

Good: White and clear toner printing (on the C941e), ability to handle all media sizes, EFI XF 5 Server (for the C931e, C941e and C942).
Bad: Devices target a particular niche (graphic arts and publishing), so not suitable for all industries.
Bottom Line: High-speed printers with innovative printing quality.
Vendor:
Product:
Price:
Intended Users:
OKI
C900 Family
$3,699-$22,199
Production
Speed Black:
Speed Color:
Processor:
Memory:
50ppm
50ppm
1GHz-1.2GHz
2GB

Product Overview

The C900 Series are members of OKI’s Multimedia Production Platform, a category of devices aimed at the graphic arts and production environments – i.e. marketing, design companies, and publishing. These machines are among OKI’s highest speed printers to date, and can handle all media from business cards to envelopes to signage to banners. They also can handle media size up to 13″ x 52″.

There are four members of this family (please note that the new C942 has recently joined this family):

  • The C911dn ($3,699) prints at up to 50ppm in both black and color. It supports standard duplexing and networking. The C911dn’s processor speed is 1GHz and supports 2GB of standard memory.
  • The C931e ($6,099) has a 1.2GHz processor and 2GB of memory. It provides a few upgrades over the C931dn, which are a two-year warranty, improved envelope support, 2 free custom media files, and a higher color density.
  • The C941e ($22,199) is also the only printer in this series that allows printing in white and clear toner. It also provides a few upgrades over the C941dn, which are a one-year warranty, improved envelope support, 4 free custom media files, enhanced clear toner, and a higher color density.
  • The C942 ($22,199) prints at up to 50ppm in black and color for CMYK print jobs, however, for CMYK+White color, its output is 45ppm. It includes a new white toner with increased density. It handles a wide variety of media, including envelopes, banners, signage, invitations and polyester door hangers.

All four devices have an 8-second first-page-out print time and 300,000-page duty cycle. PCL, PostScript, and XPS are supported. USB and Ethernet connectivity is standard.

These printers are available via the OKI Professional Color Partner Program. There is a one-year onsite warranty for the C911dn, C941e and the C942. The C931e has a two-year warranty. All printers have the five-year digital LED printheads warranty.

OKI continually improves the C900 Series. They are scalable, flexible, and innovative devices aimed at offices with very heavy printing needs, such as design and publishing. They also have excellent paper-handling features, reasonable prices, and very unique printing quality.

Features

Standard paper handling includes a 530-sheet tray and a 300-sheet multi-purpose tray. Users can add additional trays as options – such as a second 530-sheet tray, two additional 530-sheet trays, or a second tray and a high-capacity feeder that supports up to 1,590 sheets. Maximum paper input is 2,950 sheets. Output is a maximum of 610 sheets (face-down).

OKI offers an optional EFI XF 5 Server for the C931e, C941e and C942 machines. This external RIP helps improve production workflow and reduce printing errors. Some of the tools in this software are: spot color, job management views, and automated color workflows (the software is pre-installed with workflows and downloadable media profiles). For both devices, OKI also offers an optional Harlequin MultiRIP 10 RIP server for printing complex color jobs.

What makes these devices stand out from other production machines are the consumables, especially for the C941e and C942. They support a five-color toner station – users can print not only in CMYK toner on the C941e but white or clear toner as well to make the colors stand out. The C942 can print in CMYK + White to allow users to expand beyond regular full color printing on white paper to bold color-on-color printing on transparent or colored media. Some examples that OKI has given that includes white or clear toner are: signage, bottle labels, invitations, and pocket folders. We’ve calculated the cost per page for the C931e and C941e (note that we don’t have prices for the clear or white toner so cost-per-page reflects just the CMYK toners and image drums). It is 1.2 cents for black and 7.4 cents for color (MSRP pricing).

  • Automatic Document Feeder?
  • Duplexing?
  • Ethernet Connectivity?
  • Wireless Connectivity?
  • Mobile Printing/Scanning?
  • Finishers?

Shortcomings

These devices target a specific niche, such as graphic arts and publishing, so they may not be ideal for all offices/industries.

About

OKI Data Americas, headquartered in Mount Laurel, NJ, and a subsidiary of OKI Data Corporation of Japan, markets PC peripheral equipment and customized solutions under the OKI® brand, including digital color and monochrome printers and multifunction products, serial impact dot matrix printers, thermal label and POS printers, as well as a full line of options, accessories and consumables. OKI Data Americas serves the graphic arts and production and specialty printing markets with the OKI proColor Series™ digital production printers, as well as its expanding line of ColorPainter™ and Teriostar wide-format professional printing devices. In addition, its Multimedia Production Platform category of production-quality A3 color devices meets a wide-range of graphic arts and commercial printing needs. Utilizing Genuine OKI toner ensures consistent, reliable and high-quality output that maximizes performance. OKI Data offers a broad portfolio of products built to optimize managed print engagements. OKI Data Americas takes a consultative approach to supporting every customer’s needs and delivering individualized print solutions that optimize business performance. The company’s innovative technology is backed by Tokyo-based parent company OKI Electric Industry, a leader in telecom, infrastructure and mechatronics systems, as well as an approximately $4.5 billion multinational corporation according to its FY 2014 financial reporting. Keeping its customers’ needs top of mind, OKI Data Americas is ISO 9001:2008 certified and offers a selection of ENERGY STAR certified products.

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