We all know Xerox is an old and respected brand credited with inventions that we now take for granted. But is Xerox still innovating today? Why should you consider Xerox production printers alongside HP Indigo, Konica Minolta Accuriopress, Canon Varioprint and others next time you update your technology?
Xerox is a name that has entered our vocabulary as synonymous with a thing or a process, something not many brands achieve (see also Hoover, Klaxon, Frisbee and Biro!). However, significant as that heritage is, by itself, it’s not enough. So, for the rest of this blog, which coincides with our 30th birthday, we’re going to show you just how much Xerox has innovated and moved forward in just four years. Sometimes it helps us all to ‘zoom out’ a little and look at just how far we’ve come.
If you have specific enquiries about device vs device, please go ahead and contact us to speak to a specialist.
Four years is a long time in production print…
Winter 2017: Xerox White Dry Ink for the iGen 5 arrived.
Spring 2018: We welcomed the industry’s first six-colour inline print engine: the Xerox Iridesse Production Press.
Autumn/Winter 2018: The Xerox Iridesse was named top ‘Most Progressive Printing Technology: Digital’ and given several other awards.
February 2019: First Copy (and FCC Innovation) won a Gold Award for Customer Experience.
June 2019: The inkjet market was disrupted by the unveiling of the Xerox Baltoro HF Industrial Inkjet Press. Watchwords: Value, Volume, Velocity.
July 2019: CMYK+ came to the Xerox C60/70 in our first hints at the revolution to come.
October 2019: The Xerox PrimeLink C9065/C9070 was launched. An evolution of the C60, the PrimeLink brought not just the prospect of metallics but also fluorescents to entry-level production print.
Autumn/Winter 2019: The Xerox Baltoro HF Inkjet Press won several awards for progressive and pioneering technology in production inkjet.
June 2020: Upgrades for the Xerox Versant 180 arrived, bringing vivid and fluorescent toners to larger devices.
October 2020: Xerox won a BLI 2021 Outstanding Innovation Award in Production Print for Adaptive CMYK+ Kits, recognising the game-changing technology behind swap-in/swap-out fluorescents and gold, silver, white and clear toners in PrimeLink and Versant devices.
October 2020 (again!): We introduced the Xerox VersaLink C8000W, the smallest device yet with additional colours, demonstrating the commitment from Xerox to bring speciality toners to even the most affordable ranges.
November 2020: Fluorescent Pink Dry Ink for the Xerox Iridesse brought the brightest pinks and zestiest oranges to our favourite digital platform.
November 2020 (cont.): A facelift for the Versant range was announced. We introduced our customers to the Xerox Versant 4100 and Xerox Versant 280. These two launches were among nine pre-Christmas innovation announcements at a glittering virtual event.
September 2021 – First Copy turned 30! If you add everyone together, we’ve got centuries of experience with Xerox production print and related software and services…!
We hope you’ll agree that the last few years have seen enormous strides forwards for Xerox digital print and inkjet technology.
The big question remains:
What will happen in 2022?!
We are sure more significant announcements will come next year. We are limited to guessing where we think upgrades could be due based on the ages of existing presses. However, we suspect there will be new colours and innovations for our favourite recent platforms: the iGen, the Iridesse, the Versant range. 3D Printing will only become more mainstream. On the office side, documents will become ever more digital, transferrable, and collaborative.
Will you be on the journey with us?
Why invest in Xerox with First Copy?
We believe you should invest in Xerox technology with us because Xerox is investing in the future of production print, and your part in that future.
For our part, we have a whole page about why we think you should partner with us.
A more extended history of Xerox Production Print (1906-2016)
1938 – Inventor Charles Carlson makes the first xerographic image in his Astoria, Queens, New York City lab.
1949 – The Model A becomes the world’s first xerographic copier.
1956 – The Haloid Company (dating back to 1906) and The Rank Organisation plc (UK) form Rank Xerox.
