For many small and medium-sized businesses, choosing new office imaging equipment begins with a basic question: do you actually need a traditional copier-based MFP, or would a properly selected printer-based MFP meet your needs just as well?

 

Choosing the right office multifunction printer is not simply a matter of selecting the largest and most capable machine or the smallest and least expensive one. Printer-based and copier-based systems are designed around different types of workloads, paper-handling requirements, features and service arrangements.

 

In many cases, a printer-based MFP can provide the print, copy, scan and fax capabilities an SMB requires with a lower equipment cost and less long-term service commitment. In other situations, higher centralized volumes, regular 11 × 17 printing, advanced finishing like stapling, booklet making and three-hole punching or other specialized requirements may make copier-based equipment the more appropriate choice.

 

That is why this assessment begins by comparing the two approaches side by side. It looks at how your business actually works, including volume, paper requirements, scanning, workflow, continuity and acquisition preferences to help determine which equipment category is the better starting point. If your requirements are better suited to copier-based equipment or a more specialized solution, the assessment is designed to identify that and recommend the appropriate next step.