>We find ourselves in need of a new color printer for support of the
>automated DNA sequencing, and are wondering if anyone has tried the new
>Tektronix Phaser 350, or the slightly older 340. PE-ABI says it needs to
>have PostScript language for the software, and the Tek 350 does. We had
>used a HP1200/PS DeskJet for the last 18 months, and are wondering what
>some of the new technology is like. Our main concerns are reliability,
>throughput, and operating costs.
>> Thanks in advance for any input.
>
Mary Kay,
We have been using the Tektronix 340 for over a year. It has good speed
(prints 36 chromatograms of a gel in about 30 min with background printing
off), and is relatively cheap to run since it prints on regular laser
printer paper. The main costs are the wax sticks and maintenance trays. We
also like the vivid colors it has. The older 200e printer we had was
terrible. The jets that spray the melted wax onto the paper do get clogged
up periodically. Some of this is solved by regular cleaning, but a
maintenance contract is essential - we have had a few major
cleanings/repairs that would have been very costly without a contract.
Vahe Bedian
