HP LaserJet Pro CM1415 Color "What's the Total Cost of Operation"

31 years of selling laser printers to commercial accounts, well...I've pretty much seen and heard it all. Over those years I've had many clients who did not purchase a laser printer from me, because they thought my printer was too expensive!

What peeves me the most is when I'm trying to communicate (help) the cost per page of a device or the total cost of ownership of the device. Many accounts will opt for the small inexpensive printers where the manufacturer states "with a maximum duty cycle of 30,000 pages per month" (Duty cycle: the maximum possible number of pages that can be printed per month) I ask you, what the heck does Duty Cycle really mean? Does it mean, I can print 40,000 pages each and every month on this device that only cost me $449 for the printer? I'll give credit when credit is due, HP actual states a recommended print volume for the HP LaserJet Pro CM1415 Color which reads "HP recommends that the number of printed pages per month be within the stated range for optimum device performance, based on factors including supplies replacement intervals and device life over an extended warranty period."  The recommended range is 300 to 1,500 pages per month, however there is no reference made to them all 1,500 pages can be color. Most systems have some type of limit as to how mamy color pages can be produced each month.

I was just nice to HP and now I'm gonna slam em, is there really any need for this?  Monthly duty cycle

Up to 30,000 pages, and they back this up with this explanation! "Duty cycle is defined as the maximum number of pages per month of imaged output. This value provides a comparison of product robustness in relation to other HP LaserJet or HP Color LaserJet devices, and enables appropriate deployment of printers and MFPs to satisfy the demands of connected individuals or groups." I've been doing this for 31 years and can't figure out what they mean except for the fact is that you're telling me I can do up to 30,000 pages a month.

Let me show you what happens if you would print 30,000 pages per month on the HP LaserJet Pro CM1415 Color.

I have this neat software package that can actually give the cost per page of most printers and multifunctional products and why shouldn't I. I'm the darn expert. Some software programs may vary in the price per page.

So, this really cool HP LaserJet Pro CM1415 Colorsells for $449. It  has a neat print speed of 8 pages per minute for color and 12 pages per minute for black. The black toner cartridge cost for this device is $69.67 with a yield of 2,000 pages. Mind you that the 2,000 page yield is based on probably 5% coverage of the page. There are three color cartridges, Cyan, and Magenta are $61.00.63 each and Yellow is $66.28 each. The estimated yield for the color cartridges is 1,300 pages based on 20% coverage.

Now, you may ask what is 20% color coverage of the page, pretty much if you condensed all of the color print area to one area, it means it can't cover more than 20% of the page. Take a trip here to see color page coverage examples

Back to the color cost per page (we're just gonna focus on the color cost per page), divide the cost of all four cartridges by the yield, and then add em up and you have a color cost per page of .1798. Ok, I gonna print me my  maximum volume of 30,000 color pages (remember there's no statement on if they can all be color), so, how much is that gonna cost me? It's gonna cost you $5,394 each and every month, and if you maintain that volume for 36 months, you'll be out a whopping $194,184! WHOA, NOW THAT'S A REALLY BIG NUMBER! Plus it's about $90,000 cheaper than the Xerox Phaser 6125!

How about if you print all your docs with 40% coverage (go back to the page coverage link for an example). Get a load of this number, simple math it's twice the cost. $388,476 for the total cost of operation and that's about .36 cents per page.

Just for giggles the cost at 100% coverage the Total Cost of Operation runs up to $971,028 and a cost per page for just under ONE DOLLAR. Believe it or NOT!  When compared to the Xerox Phaser 6125 the HP device will save you a cool $500,000 (enough for a nice yatch).

Hey, I understand that most users don't print all their pages at 40%, and I understand (because I'm in the business) that this printer will might choke a few times before it prints 40,000 pages in one month, however how does the end user know this? Most of the disclaimers are vague (I appluad HP for at least posted a recommended volume), well maybe it can do 40,000 pages per month, but at 18 pages per minute that would take almost 66 hours to complete. Point is there should be some type of real measuring stick for these types of devices. Like there's no way on Earth that this system will print 30,000 color pages per month every month.

In closing, if you're thinking about doing on 30,000 color pages per month, with 20% coverage on the page, opt for the SAVING MONEY, and call a Print4Pay Hotel member to save you some real cash. Here's a neat link (P4P Cafe) to get a quote on a Really Nice MFP so you can get that Really Expensive Ride to Romulus!!

-=Good Selling=-