Productivity Tools

Gearing Up for Growth

Effective project management and scheduling are a challenge for most rapidly expanding enterprises. FastTrack Schedule 9 for both Windows and Mac makes project management simpler. This $349 application enables users to quickly plan projects and report on progress. Schedule 9 includes project consolidation, integration with Microsoft Project, and direct exporting to iCal.

Creating and maintaining an attractive and productive Web presence can be expensive and time consuming. Namo WebEditor 2006 Suite is a low-cost ($150), powerful and easy to use suite of tools for website creation and posting. A simple Site Wizard gets your website up and running quickly, while advanced tools let you post and edit blogs, and explore the possibilities of XHTL and Javascript.

Easy On the Eyes

Low-cost portable video/data projectors can deliver a major boost to sales, training, and workgroup productivity. The new HP vp6320 is powerful enough for a well-lit conference room, yet small enough for a quick road trip. This sub-$1,300 unit delivers 2000 ANSI lumens of brightness and weighs in at 7.7 lbs. It's a native XGA (1024x768) DLP-based projector that is also 1080i HD-compatible, and will accept inputs with a resolution as high as 1400x1050 pixels.

Weighing about 4.2 lbs., BenQ's PB2250 multimedia projector delivers an impressive 2200 ANSI lumens of native XGA output. The sub-$1,500 unit uses a Texas Instruments DLP chipset to deliver PowerPoint slides and video with a crisp 2000:1 contrast ratio. It includes such innovative features as password protection and a high-altitude mode for extreme environments.

Small enough to fit in the accessory compartment of many laptop cases, the 2.2-lb. NEC LT20 projector ($2,000) produces a high-quality 1500-ANSI-lumen, native XGA picture. While this ultra-portable projector is powerful enough for use in conference rooms, it is also a great unit for presentations in cramped quarters--it can deliver a 2-foot image (diagonal) from a distance of around 3 feet.

Quality Prints

Selecting the right printer for different tasks can save you time and money. The high print quality and low cost-per-page of Konica Minolta's magicolor 5450 make it particularly efficient for printing multiple copies of presentation handouts, proposals, brochures, and newsletters. This sub-$1,800 PostScript printer features an internal memory of 256MB DDR SDRAM (upgradeable).

The versatile Epson Stylus Photo RX700 inkjet (less than $400) can print high-quality borderless photos without a PC, as well as copy and scan photos/documents. You can also scan and restore the color to faded slides, negatives and old pictures. A big advantage for a small business is the RX700's ability to print a professional looking labels directly onto an inkjet printable CD/DVD.

Among the new color inkjet multifunction units with fax/copy/scan/print capability are the Lexmark X8350 Office ($199) and the Brother MFC-640cw ($200).

The ingenuity and enterprise of office equipment manufacturers is bringing forth a flood of low-cost, useful tools. Look for an update on new network-ready storage and security devices in the next issue.

Color Laser Quality and Performance

KONICA MINOLTA's magicolor® 5450 color laser, with its astounding speed and quality, is everything you need in an affordable business printer. Its 667 MHz processor delivers your first page in 14 seconds, and races through subsequent prints at 27 ppm in color and black-and-white.

Featuring PostScript® 3 and PCL® 6 emulations and a high-performance controller, the magicolor 5450 is multi-platform compatible to support Windows®, Macintosh® and Linux®. And, its Gigabit Ethernet® interface enables it to process jobs from the fastest network connection available. The magicolor 5450 also features revolutionary color technology to give important business documents that compelling "wow" factor.

Backed by five years of free, U.S.-based technical support, you can rely on this investment for years of trouble-free printing.

For more information, call 1-800-523-2696 or visit www.buymagicolor.com.