Inkjet & Digital Printing

Konica Minolta Receives 2011 MFP “Line of the Year” Award from BLI

Thursday 13. January 2011 - Outstanding Performance of bizhub Color and Monochrome MFPs Earns Four Additional "Pick" Awards from Leading Industry Analyst

Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. (Konica Minolta), a leading provider of advanced imaging and networking technologies for the desktop to the print shop, today announced that Buyers Laboratory Inc. (BLI) has named Konica Minolta 2011 “Line of the Year” award winner in the A3/Ledger MFP segment for the company’s award-winning line of bizhub Color and Monochrome Multifunctional Products (MFPs – print, copy, fax, and scan all in one system). Additionally, Konica Minolta has been recognized with four A3 “Pick” Awards.
BLI recognized Konica Minolta with the following awards:
“Line of the Year” – A3/Ledger Color and Monochrome MFPs
bizhub 423 – “Pick” Award winner for Outstanding 41- to 50-ppm A3/Ledger Monochrome MFP
bizhub 363 – “Pick” Award winner for Outstanding 31- to 40-ppm A3/Ledger Monochrome MFP
bizhub 283 – “Pick” Award winner for Outstanding 21- to 30-ppm A3/Ledger Monochrome MFP
bizhub 223 – “Pick” Award winner for Outstanding 21- to 30-ppm A3/Ledger Monochrome MFP
BLI’s “Line of the Year” is awarded once a year to the OEM whose product line is determined to be the best overall in its category based on the cumulative test results of all model’s tested in BLI’s rigorous two-month laboratory evaluation. Among the many factors considered are reliability, image quality, productivity, ease of use, scanning, a host of connectivity attributes and overall value. Also considered is the breadth of the OEM’s line and its ability to provide quality products suitable to a broad spectrum of customer needs, from low-volume to high-volume.
In the last year, Konica Minolta has won more A3 “Picks” than any other vendor. “Time and again, Konica Minolta’s line has proven itself in the areas that matter most to end users-reliability, ease of use, productivity and image quality,” said George Mikolay, Senior Product Editor, A3/Copier MFPs, Buyers Laboratory Inc. “These areas are the foundation on which we measure every single A3 device we test. With outstanding performances in these key areas, along with competitive to lower-than-average prices and robust feature sets across its color and monochrome lines, it became readily apparent that Konica Minolta is the vendor to beat for 2011.”
The twice-a-year “Picks” assess reliability in terms of the service and preventive maintenance calls required over the course of a rigorous two-month evaluation. Its comprehensive evaluation includes an assessment of copy and print quality, productivity, ease of use and economy, as well as connectivity issues such as feedback to workstations, administration utilities, print drivers, multitasking and scanning solutions.
“Konica Minolta’s complete line of bizhub MFPs consistently performs well in our testing and the ‘Line of the Year’ award acknowledges the company’s market-leading performance and innovative technology,” added Mikolay. “The ‘Pick’ awards further demonstrate the exceptional capabilities that we have come to expect from the Konica Minolta name.”
“Receiving these awards from BLI, in particular the ‘Line of the Year’ award, highlights our success and commitment to delivering products that address and surpass the needs of our customers of all sizes,” said Kevin Kern, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. “Moving into 2011, we will remain committed to the goal of ensuring that customers can count on Konica Minolta for award-winning technology that meets their entire scope of digital printing needs.”