From: davidh8@pogo.wv.tek.com (David Haight)
Subject: Tektronix Phaser 200i and Phaser 200e
Followup-To: poster
Keywords: color printers
Organization: Tektronix Inc., Beaverton, Or.
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 1992 01:48:27 GMT

		Tektronix Takes Aim at Business Users
		With New Generation of Color Printers

	Workgroup Printers Offer Speed, Plain-Paper Capability

WILSONVILLE, Ore., Dec. 14, 1992 -- Tektronix today unveiled its next
generation of 300 dots-per-inch color printers, the Phaser 200i and the
Phaser 200e.  Designed for shared use in workgroup environments, the Phaser
200i and the Phaser 200e can print two pages per minute -- several times
faster than most competitive color printers.  The Phaser 200 printers can
also print on a wide variety of common laser printer papers, while a new
dual input tray configuration adds convenience in business settings.  

At $5,995 (U.S. suggested list) for the Phaser 200i and $3,695 for the 
Phaser 200e, these printers set a new price/performance standard for color
printers that address business needs, such as printing on transparencies and
common office paper.  The Phaser 200 printers use a new kind of thermal wax
technology that includes Tektronix' patented ColorCoat process for crisp,
vibrant color images on a range of common laser papers.  The Phaser 200
printers will be available from authorized Tektronix dealers beginning in
January 1993.

"Business professionals have long used color whenever effective
communication really counted, such as in critical presentations, but
everyday use of color has been hindered by the high price, slow speed and
special paper requirements of most color printers," said A. J. Rogers,
Tektronix strategic marketing manager.  "The Phaser 200 printers set a new
price/performance point while bringing to color printing the workgroup
shareability, flexibility and plain-paper convenience that users expect."

Fast Print Speeds and Office Convenience

Improvements in print engine mechanisms and print head design enable more
efficient paper handling than previously possible.  These improvements boost
output speed to approximately two pages per minute while enhancing color
registration.  

The fastest print speed of previous thermal wax printers has been
approximately one page per minute.  Print speed with other color printing
technologies such as aqueous ink-jet can range up to seven minutes per page
-- too slow for time-sensitive business applications.

With dimensions of 13.5 by 17.5 by 11.0 inches, the new printers are smaller
than previous generations of thermal wax printers and can easily sit 
on a desktop.  For convenience in shared office environments, an optional
dual tray configuration accommodates transparency film and paper media
simultaneously.  A robust print engine ensures reliability and unattended
operation.  

Plain-Paper Printing

Previous generations of thermal wax printers had to use paper with a special
coating to produce optimal image quality.  Coatings give paper a noticeably
different texture and weight and are difficult to write on.  Yet, attempts
to print on plain office paper produce mottled or washed out colors.  

The Phaser 200 printers introduce Tektronix' patented ColorCoat technology
to print crisp images on a wide variety of common laser papers.  The
ColorCoat process uses proprietary image processing techniques and a custom
transfer ribbon to apply a transparent primer coat only where needed -- the
result is vibrant color on common laser papers with no change in paper
weight or texture.  

Tektronix pioneered brilliant color on plain papers with its Phaser III PXi
printer.  The Phaser III PXi, capable of tabloid-sized output, is targeted
at graphic arts applications and uses Tektronix' phase-change ink-jet
technology.

TekColor(tm)

For superior image quality, the Phaser 200i and the Phaser 200e incorporate
Tektronix' proprietary TekColor color management and image rendering
technologies, with specific features tailored for each printer.  

Both printers include the TekColor Display Adjust and Blue Adjust options to
accommodate the difference between the printer's blue and the monitor's
blue.  Display Adjust and Blue Adjust are useful in business presentations,
where users expect output to approximate monitor colors.  Printed colors for
Apple(R) Macintosh(R) and Microsoft(R) Windows(R) applications can be previewed
on-screen using the TekColor Previewer.

The Phaser 200i adds a Press Color Adjustment option for simulating printing
press colors.

Connectivity

To meet the needs of workgroup environments with a mix of IBM(R) PC, Apple
Macintosh  computers and workstations, Phaser 200 printers provide parallel,
serial, and AppleTalk(R) ports, with automatic switching among each of the
interfaces.  TCP/IP and DECnet(R) connectivity is available via Tektronix'
4511A network interface.  

For those who need faster throughput of graphics-intensive files over
networks, an optional EtherTalk(R) interface is available for the Phaser 200i.
 
Tektronix' Phaser Print optional software package for Phaser 200 color
printers lets UNIX(R) workstation users print both raster screen dumps and
Adobe(R) PostScript(R) files.  Phaser Print can capture, convert and print a
raster screen dump in less than five minutes by taking advantage of the data
compression of PostScript Level 2.  

Technical features

The Phaser 200e uses a 16MHz AMD 29000 RISC processor, and the Phaser 200i
uses a 24MHz AMD 29000 RISC processor.  The 24MHz processor boosts image
processing speed by about 50 percent compared to the 16MHz processor.

The Phaser 200 series printers include PostScript Level 2 page description
software.  PostScript Level 2 software consolidates extensions to the
PostScript page description language and adds new features such as
device-independent color support and data compression capability.  For
compatibility with a wide range of computer applications, the Phaser 200
printers also support Hewlett-Packard Graphics Language (HP-GL).  

The Phaser 200i comes standard with 6MB of memory, expandable to 14MB.  Base
memory configuration for the Phaser 200e is 4MB, expandable to 8MB.  The
Phaser 200i comes standard with 39 Adobe fonts and a SCSI port for attaching
a font hard drive.  The Phaser 200e provides 17 standard Adobe fonts, with
22 more available with an optional font SIMM. 

Phaser 200 series color printers are PANTONE(R)* certified, providing process
color simulation of PANTONE colors for users of PANTONE-licensed
applications.

For more information on the Phaser 200i and Phaser 200e color printers,
write to Tektronix Inc., P.O. Box 1000, MS 63-583, Wilsonville, Ore. 97070,
or call (800) 835-6100 or (503) 682-7377.

Tektronix' Graphics Printing & Imaging Division markets a complete line of
color printers.

Tektronix is a leading manufacturer of electronic products and systems in
the areas of computer graphics, test and measurement and television systems.
Sales in fiscal 1992 totaled $1.3 billion.  

# # #

Phaser is a trademark of Tektronix Inc. for color printers and related
products.  TekColor is a trademark of Tektronix Inc.  Apple, Macintosh and
AppleTalk are registered trademarks of Apple Computer Inc.  Microsoft is a
registered trademark of Microsoft Corp.  Windows is a trademark of Microsoft
Corp.  IBM is a registered trademark of IBM Corp.  EtherTalk is a trademark
of Apple Computer Inc.  DECnet is a trademark of Digital Equipment Corp. 
UNIX is a registered trademark of Unix Systems Laboratories.  PostScript and
Adobe are trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated which may be registered
in certain jurisdictions.  PANTONE is a registered trademark of Pantone Inc.
 Any other marks used in this document are trademarks or registered
trademarks of the manufacturers or marketers of the products with which the
marks are associated.

* Pantone Inc.'s check standard for color reproduction materials.
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