Hackensack (NJ) – Buyers Laboratory Inc. (BLI), celebrating 50 years as the world's leading independent tester of office equipment and document imaging products, announced its prestigious Summer 2011 "Pick" awards in the scanner category today, with honors going to three Kodak products. Awarded twice each year, the "Pick" awards recognize the products that gave the best performances in BLI's extensive suite of laboratory tests in the past six months.

The Summer 2011 scanner "Pick" winners are:
EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY

• KODAK i5600  - "Outstanding 130- to 170-ppm A3 Production Scanner"
• KODAK i2800  - "Outstanding 60- to 80-ppm A4 Departmental Scanner"
• KODAK i2400  - "Outstanding 20- to 40-ppm A4 Workgroup Scanner"

High-Volume Productivity Meets Desktop Affordability
The 170-ppm KODAK i5600 takes the speed and versatility of the old floor-standing high-volume powerhouse of yesterday and condenses it onto a desktop space only slightly bigger than your average single-function printer. But size isn't everything.

"A combination of customer research and advanced imaging technologies enabled Kodak to refine how performance, power and accuracy work together to help businesses automate the flow of information," said Budd Webster, business director for scanners within the document imaging division of Kodak's Business Solutions and Services Group. "Kodak's selection as a BLI Summer 2011 'Pick' validates our need to consistently push the boundaries of document imaging to extract greater value from the point of capture."

In addition to scanning more pages than any other scanner tested, with nary a misfeed, the i5600 offers the fastest scan speeds of any scanner tested, above average overall OCR accuracy and a cost per scan that's more than 58% lower than the average of comparable desktop devices in its class. "The i5600 was the first scanner we tested with too many strengths to list and not a single weakness," said Lisa Reider, BLI's senior product editor for scanners. This scanner also features a tiltable control panel, smaller than average color file sizes, and the ability to clear misfeeds with the touch of a button-a feature not seen on other scanners tested. With a feature set, performance and price point beyond reproach, it's easy to see why the i5600 earned BLI's top "Pick" for "Outstanding 130- to 170-ppm A3 Production Scanner."

A Class of their Own
During this season's exhaustive scanner testing, Kodak's i2400 and i2800 scanners set new benchmarks for ease of use, affordability and functionality. While the i2400 earned a Summer 2011 BLI "Pick" in the workgroup category, the i2800 gained recognition in the A4 departmental division. And not only do both units come bundled with a value-boosting three-year warranty, but they also offer higher-yield, user-replaceable consumables and lower than average projected total cost of ownership (TCO). But that low cost buys high quality. During BLI's lab tests, both units exhibited flawless reliability; excellent media handling, including the ability to scan embossed cards, carbonless forms and long documents up to 160"; and excellent workflow automation thanks to their BLI award winning software bundles consisting of Nuance PaperPort 12 and OmniPage Professional 17, among others. The i2800 also surpassed the average scan speed of A4 units in its class.

"The i2400 and i2800 offer all of the features one would expect of scanners in their class, and even some I didn't know you could have," said BLI's Scanner Test Technician Joe Ellerman. "Their three-year warranties, low TCO, and easy to use hardware and software are features I hope to see a lot more of in future products."

"Kodak focuses on providing customers with innovative technologies that deliver greater efficiency and cost savings for their document-driven processes," said Tony Barbeau, general manager, document imaging, Kodak's Business Solutions and Services Group. "BLI's recognition of the i2000 and i5000 Series scanners demonstrates the importance of understanding exactly what customers need from vendors as they adapt to change and prepare for growth."

Stay tuned for upcoming Buyers Lab "Pick" award announcements in the following categories:
July 19: Solutions and Wide Format
July 20: A3
July 21: A4
July 22: Outstanding Achievement