Summary

I’m a big fan of the modern all-in-one printer center. The older ones left something to be desired, and didn’t always do everything as well as single-function alternatives could. The newest batch really shows off how they can now do so much, and do it well. The latest all-in-one I’ve taken for a spin was the Brother MFC-j4410DW. This is an interesting unit since not only is it pretty compact, but it an handle 11x17 prints with ease, as well as duplex printing.

If you are anything like me, you are on the go and you need to scan something. But lugging around a big, cumbersome scanner isn’t exactly practical. You find yourself resorting to a camera to just take a photo of the documents you want to scan and hope they come out clearly. You no longer need to resort to such clumsy solutions thanks to the Xerox Mobile Scanner. This is a scanner that can keep up with you while you are on the go. The scanner is small, lightweight, and easy to pick up to take with you for working out in the field. This device lets you scan documents with ease almost anywhere.

Compared to many all-in-one laser printers on the market today, the Xerox Workcentre 6015NI is, without a doubt, a top contendor.  It may be large model (although not as large as some Xerox models), but with its competitive price point and relatively fast print speed there's some good in having a printer like this one.  

The holidays are fast approaching, and we all know a busy parent or two in our family circle who could use a fab gift under the tree!   (I just happen to one of them! ;-)) If you're stuck for holiday gift ideas for parents, think about products that might pamper them, help them carve out some extra time in their day, or, make more of the time spent with their kids.  For today's time-strapped parents, finding time for real-life social interactions, other than with spouses and children, is challenging. 

Between working outside the home, doing housework, helping with homework, and taxi-ing kids' to their activities, parents rarely have time left over for themselves, friends, or one another. Technology like these 12 great gift ideas for today's high speed parents plays a huge role in helping them stay socially-connected and entertained.

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While it's tempting to spend a lot of money on tech gear and gadgets during back-to-school season, it's not necessary.  There are plenty of steals and deals this fall on a number of products that work great for students (and parents footing the bill!).  When heading out to buy school necessities, make sure that you're investing in items that will stand the test of time.  Moreover, when you're buying software, remember that the app marketplace is a good bet for simple digital tools that will help students (and their work!) shine.

While you gear up for heading back to school you’re probably considering printers as part of your arsenal. They’re still indispensable tools for students at all levels. If you’re heading off to university then having your own printer can come with an additional bundle of issues though; all centered around size. Ideally you want something small and compact that is easy to pack and cart to school, and something that won’t take up much space in your cramped dorm room, but of course you don’t really want to sacrifice functionality while you’re at it. That's where the XP-400 comes in. It seems like it was designed specifically for such student needs. 

If there's one piece of computer technology that people often neglect to upgrade over the years, it's got to be their printer. If you haven’t checked out the latest in printers for a few years, models like the HP Photsmart 7510 might just surprise you enough to convince you that it's time to upgrade.

While you’re gearing up for back to school, you’re probably considering printing solutions. These days printing has gotten much more convenient and flexible than it ever used to be. One of my favorite trends in home printing is adoption of Apple’s AirPrint and Google’s Cloud Print. Apple’s AirPrint lets you print from any iOS device on the same WiFi network as your printer while Google Cloud Print effectively allows you to print from any internet connected device no matter where they are. A lot of you are still unfamiliar with these so this is a good time to take a closer look.

Earl Grey tea – It was one of Captain Picard’s favourite drinks, and he often ordered it on Star Trek: The Next Generation.  However, he didn’t order it from a person, or even make it with futuristic kettle and teapot - he ordered a computer to make it,  and it materialized out of thin air, nice and hot and perfectly steeped every time.  Not only could the replicator make food, it could also make small objects.  In the economy of the future, who needs money when you can make anything you want at your command?  Of the many futuristic technologies showcased on Star Trek: TNG, the replicator, along with the transporter with which it shared its technology, was probably the most far-fetched of the show.  Little did I know when I was watching TNG in 1989 that the very same technology would actually exist in my lifetime, albeit in a much less sophisticated form.

MakerBot Industries has been one of the pioneers of the 3D-printing revolution.  While the technology has been around since the early 1980s, before MakerBot came along, it was still just the domain of large, expensive machines for industrial use.  While MakerBot’s printers aren’t exactly cheap compared to your run-of-the-mill inkjet, they are certainly within the price-point that a small business, artist, or hobbyist can afford.

So, you have that spiffy new computer or laptop for the new school year, huh? Awesome. Okay, so there arestill some teachers and professors who like to get stuff turned in on dead trees, so do you have a new printerto go with this new machine? Right, thought not. Hey, it’s okay sometimes we forget those seemingly archaic devices. Well, I’m here to help you out. Here are a few printers you might want to take a look at as well as a few tips on picking a printer in the first place.

In the beginning there were printers and scanners. They were separate, they were slow, and they were HUGE. As time passed, the printer and the scanner got a little cozy, giving birth to the multifunction. They were still slow and still HUGE.

It’s a new beginning for Lexmark with a device they’ve code-named “Genesis”. The S815 to its friends, Genesis is a re-imagining of what a multifunction should look like, and how fast it should be. Lexmark calls it the first “Now-in-One” printer, speaking to the speed of their new Flash Scan Technology. They’re not kidding about that: it really is the fastest scanner I’ve ever used, and I’ll admit that I’m impressed.

Earlier this month I wrote up an initial review of the Lexmark Pinnacle Pro printer (abour $250 at Future Shop) so here is a follow up review to talk about actually using the printer itself.

Setting up the printer and getting all the machines in the house to connect to it was, as expected, easy. Come on, it's a SOHO network printer, it needs to be easy. I will say though, that for some strange reason my wife's MacBook Air couldn't connect and print to the printer for a day. None of the "usual" steps (turing things off and on; removing and adding the printer) did the trick, but later she could print to the printer. Maybe is was a momentary network strangeness (that does happen), because later she could just print without issue.

Let's talk about printing.

It was announced back in June, but HP and Google teamed up to give HP printers their own email addresses in an attempt to take printing to the cloud. Rather than store a photo or document and wait to be able to get a hardcopy, just emailing it to a specific address should have the finished print ready and waiting for you. After trying this myself, I can see why it can work, and why it might not.

Recently I had an opportunity to put one of the new Brother multi-function printer devices through it’s paces, and overall, I liked what I saw.

Priced as an entry level unit, the Brother MFC-J615W (that’s a mouthful, why can’t they just use names) is a solid home and light-duty small business document centre.