Canon today revealed the company’s entry into the commercial photo printing market with the launch of the DreamLabo 5000 production inkjet printer.
Creating a new premium standard of photo-print quality, DreamLabo 5000 will challenge the silver halide technology market and enable new revenue opportunities from the production of high-value print merchandise such as photo books.
“The market for photo books is strong and continues to grow rapidly. With consumers demanding high-quality printed images, Canon has extended its renowned inkjet technology to create a commercial printer that raises the standard of image quality for the photo 
book industry,” said Gareth Thomas, Development Manager - Digital Imaging, Canon Australia. “Canon Australia is excited by the potential for this new technology and we’re currently exploring opportunities for this premium product in our market.”
Building on Canon’s existing inkjet technology, which it has successfully deployed through its PIXMA desktop printers and imagePROGRAF wide format range, the DreamLabo 5000 features a newly developed high-density print head, enabling the printing of output up to 305 mm wide. Incorporating Canon’s FINE (Full-photolithography Inkjet Nozzle Engineering) technology, the print head, which features over one million nozzles, enables the printing of high-quality photos to support a variety of high-value-added output, from photo books, and calendars to high-quality POD items such as customised brochures.
“DreamLabo 5000 sets a new standard for the printing of high-quality images and high-definition text and is aligned with the needs of commercial photo printers and print-on-demand specialists looking to provide premium merchandise,” continued Thomas.
DreamLabo 5000 uses a seven-colour dye-based ink system that realises smooth gradation expression. Employing image processing technology that makes use of the full range of Canon’s unique inkjet printing colour gamut, the new printer enables the output of photo images with a level of colour representation that overall surpasses that of conventional silver halide photographs.
The system also realises high productivity with duplex printing capabilities with an on-board guillotine reducing post print process production costs. In addition to the inkjet technology the high-end commercial printer also includes units for de-curling, skew correction, inspection, front and back cutting and temperature control and holds up to four paper rolls. By enabling paper and ink tank replacement during printing, the DreamLabo 5000 supports the extended operation times required for production printers.
The wide print head delivers One-Pass Printing, requiring only a single pass of the printing paper while the print head remains in a fixed position. When used in combination with the automatic double-sided printing function, the DreamLabo 5000 is capable of printing the contents of a 20 page A4-size photo album in just 72 seconds.*
Canon Australia
www.canon.com.au
