Photofinishing and Photo Products : Kodak NexPress Upgrades: Image Quality and Longer Sheet Capability Top the List

January 2012 By Alice B. Miller

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Powered by rock-solid R&D and photo science, Kodak recently brought to market an armful of upgrades and innovations that represent sales, savings and productivity gold for the photo retailer and photo lab—and creative freedom for their customers.

“Every year since 2005, for each generation of NexPress presses, the list of features increases. These enhancements are backward compatible, which allows customers to build for the future while still leveraging existing equipment,” says Jeff Tabit, Worldwide Director, Photo Segment, for Kodak’s Digital Printing Solutions group.

All NexPress models are built on the same platform, so when a lab or retailer buys into the platform, they don’t have to reinvest in a new press to incorporate new technologies; they just add the options to their existing platform.

Topping the list of enhancements to the latest generation of NexPress SX and Photo presses are Kodak’s new HD dry inks, developed to further enhance image quality—which is job one in the photo market—and the new, longer sheet capability.

What follows are some of the key benefits of these and other recent enhancements in terms of productivity, longevity and the creative options available to NexPress users.

1. HD Dry Inks. Kodak’s new HD dry inks for the NexPress SX and Photo presses have been commercially available since July. Consumers are used to continuous tone photographs, but many of the imaging technologies used produce less than satisfactory photo quality results. “We knew what had to be done,” says Tabit. “For instance, our new HD dry ink produces greatly enhanced images because the smaller particle size lays down smoother and more uniformly on the printed page.”

2. Dimensional Printing. Seven new textured patterns pave the way to a host of fresh creative options and sales opportunities. For example, it’s now possible to create a linen or pebble look and feel to an entire photo book, greeting card or photo calendar by adding texture to the print with dimensional ink. It’s also possible to add texture to specific areas of a printed photo using Kodak NexPress Dimensional Printing.

“Imagine Christmas cards with a graphic of greenery, or other holiday cards with selected areas textured. By putting a texture on the evergreens, snow drifts, candles or other areas, retailers can offer unique value-added products,” explains Tabit.

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