Company Makes Its Mark with Usability Enhancing Innovations

Konica Minolta’s bizhub i-Series, which includes the recently introduced C750i, has been recognized by Keypoint Intelligence with a prestigious Buyers Lab (BLI) PaceSetter award 2020-2021 in Ease of Use: Enterprise Devices.

Ramsey, NJ, Oct. 16, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. (Konica Minolta), is proud to announce it has received a prestigious Buyers Lab (BLI) PaceSetter award 2020-2021 in Ease of Use: Enterprise Devices from Keypoint Intelligence, the world’s leading independent evaluator for document imaging, software, hardware and services. Keypoint Intelligence based its selection on comprehensive testing and research, determining which OEM has incorporated the highest degree of end-to-end ease of use in the design of their enterprise devices.

Organizations today need to provide employees across departments with hardware and printing infrastructure for a wide variety of applications. With this broad scope of functionalities, ease of use has become one of the most important features in modern multi-functional peripherals (MFPs). Konica Minolta is pursuing an uncompromising customer-centric approach: When developing a new MFP device, understanding use patterns, behaviors and user requirements is the cornerstone of its process. Konica Minolta’s close contact to its customers and additional research amongst dealers and other stakeholders enables it to create solutions perfectly suited for enterprise environments.

Konica Minolta drives usability-enhancing innovations

To determine the market leader, Keypoint Intelligence carried out a study on functionality in everyday usage situations in enterprise work scenarios. With the award, Keypoint Intelligence recognizes the importance of this factor in Konica Minolta’s product design and development. After conducting comprehensive research on what customers do with their devices and which functions are most needed, Konica Minolta created a unique, large control panel that is fully tiltable. The screen provides easy access to all basic settings and touch navigation for a pleasant and effective user experience.

Keypoint Intelligence states: “Konica Minolta is very strong when it comes to typical print, scan and copy functions, what really separates these next-generation products form the competition are the apps onboard tools, and innovations.” Konica Minolta’s MarketPlace comes preinstalled on all new devices. It allows its customers to access cloud offerings such as Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, Google Mail, Microsoft OneDrive, OneDrive for Business and Microsoft Sharepoint. All of these applications are easily downloaded and directly used on the panel. Apps like Scan to Gmail, Sharepoint or OneDrive complement these options.
Also, directly on the device, the How2 app allows users to access online instructions directly from the MFP. One of the most striking functionalities, however, is Konica Minolta’s Follow-You-Persona feature, which enables customization of the MFP panel with all tools and apps a specific user most frequently needs. This way, users can work even more efficiently from any device, anywhere.
“We are particularly honored to receive this award, as it recognizes the diligent measures we take to understand customers and users’ needs in order to develop and deliver new solutions that serve individual preferences and working behaviors,” said Dino Pagliarello, Senior Vice President, Product Planning and Management, Konica Minolta. “As we progress further into the advancement of the Intelligent Connected Workplace, we will continue to focus on design technologies that are intuitive and adapt to our users.”
Konica Minolta has a long history of being a pioneer in regard to the user experience of its MFPs. Last year, the jury of the Good Design Award 2019 praised the A3 color MFPs bizhub C360i/C300i/C250i for their highly intuitive interfaces and user experience, and the C650i/550i/450i Series and recently introduced C750i, 750i, 650i/550i/450i and 360i/300 are based on this same award-winning interface. Although the company has offered the ability to tailor the MFP display to customers’ individual needs for more than ten years, Konica Minolta’s Personalize advances this concept even further, optimizing productivity by allowing users to access their own personalized UI instantly on any device around the world.

About Konica Minolta

Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. is reshaping and revolutionizing the Workplace of the Future™ with its expansive smart office product portfolio from IT Services (All Covered), ECM, Managed Print Services and industrial and commercial print solutions. Konica Minolta has been recognized as the #1 Brand for Customer Loyalty in the MFP Office Copier Market by Brand Keys for thirteen consecutive years, and is proud to be ranked on the Forbes 2017 America's Best Employers list. The World Technology Awards recently named the company a finalist in the IT Software category. Konica Minolta, Inc. has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for eight consecutive years and has spent three years on the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World list. It partners with its clients to give shape to ideas and work to bring value to our society. For more information, please visit us online and follow Konica Minolta on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Twitter.

About Keypoint Intelligence - Buyers Lab

For almost 60 years, clients in the digital imaging industry have relied on Keypoint Intelligence for independent hands-on testing, lab data, and extensive market research to drive their product and sales success. Keypoint Intelligence has been recognized as the industry’s most trusted resource for unbiased information, analysis, and awards due to decades of analyst experience. Customers have harnessed this mission-critical knowledge for strategic decision-making, daily sales enablement, and operational excellence—improving business goals and increasing bottom lines. With a central focus on clients, Keypoint Intelligence continues to evolve as the industry changes by expanding offerings and updating methods, while intimately understanding and serving manufacturers’, channels’, and their customers’ transformation in the digital printing and imaging sector.

About Buyers Lab PaceSetter Awards

Based on exhaustive questionnaires, in-depth interviews, and a proprietary rating scale, Buyers Lab PaceSetter awards recognize those document imaging OEMs that have shown market leadership in a variety of categories, including with technologies, services, and key vertical markets.