Epson drops prices, adds software to the Expression 636 business and graphics scanner; 30 percent savings and new software bundles create exceptional value

Business Wire, April 7, 1997

TORRANCE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 7, 1997--Epson, the creator of high quality, award-winning imaging products, today announced new software bundles and lower prices for each configuration of its EPSON Expression 636 color flatbed scanner.

Effective April 1, prices have dropped as much as 30 percent depending on scanner configuration. In addition to lower prices, software bundles in the Executive, Artist and Professional models have been enhanced with Caere's OmniPage LE optical character recognition (OCR) software.

"Our new pricing and software bundle meet the needs of today's business and graphics users while providing greater value," said Robert Ozankan, product manager, scanners, Epson. "Caere's OmniPage is a premier tool for integrating scanning technology into practical business applications."

Scanning Technology

Epson has taken its award-winning scanning technology to a new level with the Expression 636. For the world's best color flatbed scanning results, Epson has equipped all models with a proprietary technology package rooted in Epson's innovative optical systems.

With the Expression 636's color CCD, images can be scanned at an optical resolution of 600 dpi with 36-bit color and 3.0 dynamic range, recognizing over 68 billion colors. The Expression 636 provides a maximum 4800 x 4800 dpi for all configurations and supports 12-bit grayscale. The Expression 636's color CCD and single light source make the scanner one of the fastest and most accurate available in its category.

All models include Epson's Scanning Utilities (TWAIN), Epson's PhotoQuick(TM) technology for turning photographic negatives into positive images, Epson's advanced Auto Area Segmentation (AAS) technology and Epson's exclusive Text Enhancement Technology (TET). The PhotoQuick feature requires the optional transparency unit.

Caere's OmniPage OCR Technology

Executive, Artist and Professional PC configurations of the Expression 636 will include Caere OmniPage LE for advanced OCR applications. OmniPage replaces Xerox's Textbridge 3.0 software.

With a technology that carefully studies scanned images on a page, Caere's OmniPage recognizes text while retaining other elements of a document, including black and white graphics such as photos, logos and drawings; text formatting elements such as font types, font sizes and font styles; and page formatting elements such as column structure, paragraph spacing and placement of graphics.

Business Scanning Bundle

For anyone wishing to significantly impact and customize the look of presentations, punch up proposals, create winning, personalized correspondence and expedite data input and document management, the Expression 636 has the Executive solution.

Complete with all drivers, cards and cables, the Executive model carries a new low street price of $799, a 13 percent reduction from the original $899 price point. -0-

Expression 636-Executive             Expression 636-Executive
      for the PC                           for the Mac

Adobe Photoshop LE                   Adobe Photoshop LE
Caere OmniPage LE                    e-Paper Document Management,
NewSoft Presto! PageManager LE         OCR and Archival Suite
SCSI interface board & SCSI cable    SCSI cable
Epson Scanning Utilities (TWAIN)     Epson Scanning Utilities (TWAIN)

-0-

Graphic Arts Scanning

For the graphics community, Epson offers two versions of the Expression 636, the Professional (Pro) and Artist versions. The Pro version comes with a powerful software bundle, including full versions of Adobe Photoshop, Claris HomePage, Caere's OmniPage LE (for PC users), and Kai's Power Tools SE.

Macintosh users also receive e-Paper Document Management, OCR and Archival Suite and Live Picture SE. This package features Epson's custom transparency scanning unit for infusing high-end photographic images into design projects directly from the desktop. The kit provides a SCSI interface and cable for instant installation and carries an estimated street price of $1,399, a four hundred dollar cost savings over the previous street price of $1,799. -0-

Expression 636-Pro for the PC        Expression 636-Pro for the Mac

Adobe Photoshop (full version)       Adobe Photoshop (full version)
Kai's Power Tools SE                 Live Picture SE
Claris HomePage (full version)       Kai's Power Tools SE
Caere OmniPage LE                    Claris HomePage (full version)
Transparency unit                    e-Paper Document Management,
SCSI interface board and SCSI cable    OCR and Archival Suite
Epson Scanning Utilities (TWAIN)     Transparency unit
                                     SCSI cable
                                     Epson Scanning Utilities (TWAIN)

-0-

The Artist's package from Epson has an estimated street price of $999, reduced from $1,299, and includes the 636 scanner, the SCSI interface, cable and a graphics-oriented software suite. -0-

Expression 636-Artist                Expression 636-Artist
    for the PC                            for the Mac

Adobe Photoshop (full version)       Adobe Photoshop (full version)
Kai's Power Tools SE                 Kai's Power Tools SE
Claris HomePage (full version)       Claris HomePage (full version)
Caere OmniPage LE                    e-Paper Document Management,
NewSoft Presto! PageManager LE         OCR and Archival Suite
SCSI interface board and SCSI cable  SCSI cable
Epson Scanning Utilities (TWAIN)     Epson Scanning Utilities (TWAIN)