KODAK VERITÉ 55 Eco — performance, and business use
KODAK VERITÉ 55 Eco — Features, specifications, performance, and business use
The KODAK VERITÉ 55 Eco (often sold as the Verité 55W Eco or Verité 55 Mega Eco in some markets) is an inkjet all-in-one aimed at value-conscious home offices, small businesses and creative users who want the convenience of print/scan/copy with a strong emphasis on lowering ink costs. Rather than chasing production speeds or enterprise manageability, Kodak designed this family of devices around two straightforward ideas: deliver good-looking prints (especially photos) from a compact machine, and give users an easy way to reduce ongoing ink expense with an “Eco” mode and larger-capacity cartridges. The result is a pragmatic MFP for low- to moderate-volume office use where colour printing is important but running costs must be kept low.
Design and target audience
Physically the Verité 55 Eco is a compact tabletop unit that fits a single small tray, a top-mounted flatbed scanner and simple front controls. Its target buyer is not the print shop but the small team or home office that prints occasional colour marketing materials, photos, labels and everyday documents — particularly environments where smartphone printing and easy scanning are priorities. Kodak packaged mobile-friendly features (AirPrint/Google print compatibility and a Kodak mobile app) and one-touch scan/print workflows to simplify use for non-technical staff. The Eco variant adds a user-accessible “Eco Button” aimed at reducing ink usage with minimal fuss.
Key features — what makes it different
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Eco Button — the headline feature. The Eco Button provides two selectable eco modes that reduce ink usage by lowering print density (Eco Mode 1 ≈ 20% ink savings) or by combining density reduction with a small automatic image scaling (Eco Mode 2 ≈ 30% ink savings). These modes are useful for routine business documents where photographic colour fidelity is less important than legibility and cost. Kodak quantifies the savings and points users to test conditions in their literature.
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Large-capacity cartridges — Kodak ships the Verité 55 series with higher-volume cartridges (branded as XXL/XL/3XL in different markets) so the pages-per-cartridge is multiple times that of many consumer rivals. That lowers per-page ink cost and reduces replacement frequency for busy households and small offices. Retail listings and product pages highlight very large ink yields when combined with Eco settings.
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Mobile and wireless convenience — built-in Wi-Fi, AirPrint and Google Cloud Print compatibility plus a Kodak Verité mobile app let users print and scan directly from phones and tablets, including “flick” photo printing and one-touch scan-to-device operations. That makes it an easy fit for teams who work a lot from mobile devices.
All-in-one functionality — flatbed scanner with copy functions and basic document-handling features are included, giving businesses a single device for light scanning and occasional copy work. The A4 flatbed and app integration support simple document workflows without separate hardware.
Technical specifications (practical summary)
The Verité 55 Eco family was released in several closely related SKUs; exact numbers vary by region and model (e.g., Verité 55, 55W, 55 Plus, 55W Eco). Typical, broadly applicable specs include:
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Print technology: Colour inkjet, multi-cartridge system (black + colour).
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Rated print speed: Modest — real-world A4 speeds fall in the single-digit pages-per-minute range for colour (ISO numbers vary). Office listings commonly show low single-digit color ppm and up to around 10 ppm mono in some modes; expect slower speeds for photo prints and high-quality colour.
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Resolution: Up to 1200 × 1200 dpi (driver/engine modes vary by output type).
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Memory / CPU: Typical consumer/Narrow-office spec (examples list 128 MB memory and a modest onboard processor) — sufficient for small documents but not aimed at heavy concurrent spooling.
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Paper handling: Small input tray (commonly 60 sheets typical) and manual duplex or driver-assisted duplexing depending on SKU. Max supported paper size often up to legal (8.5 × 14") in some regional variants.
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Connectivity: USB 2.0 and 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi; mobile printing support (AirPrint, Google Cloud Print) and Kodak app features.
Because Kodak released regional variants and “Plus/Eco” trims, buyers should check the exact datasheet for SKU-level differences (for example, memory, tray sizes and whether duplex is automatic or manual). The manufacturer PDFs and retailer pages provide the authoritative spec table.
Image quality and real-world print performance
Kodak positioned the Verité 55 family to produce pleasant photo prints and sharp text at desktop scale. In real use the strengths are:
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Photos and colour prints: For snapshots and small photo prints the Verité 55 delivers satisfying colour and detail relative to other sub-£/USD consumer inkjets. Photo labs and reviewers note good colour for prints from phones and cameras when using photo paper. That said, for colour-critical graphics work or professional photographic reproduction, a dedicated photo printer or higher-end ink system will still outperform it.
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Office documents: Legibility and black text are clean; the Eco modes reduce ink density and can make printed greys and images look lighter but still perfectly usable for internal documents, draft reports and handouts. For documents with heavy blocks of colour or fine halftones, Eco modes produce visible differences but offer a worthwhile tradeoff for cost savings.
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Speed tradeoffs: The printer is not fast; expect lower throughput than laser MFPs. For small teams printing occasional colour it’s acceptable, but for daily high-volume monochrome output a mono laser is still better value for speed.
Reliability, consumables and total cost of ownership
Where the VERITÉ 55 Eco aims to win is TCO (total cost of ownership). Kodak’s approach combines larger cartridges and Eco printing to reduce per-page ink cost; some retailer claims and Kodak marketing suggest very high page yields when Eco modes and XXL cartridges are used. In practice:
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Cartridge yields: Larger (XL/XXL/3XL) cartridges store more ink and lengthen time between replacements. Third-party listings show compatible refill cartridges are available, but warranty and quality tradeoffs apply.
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Eco savings: Kodak’s published Eco Mode figures (20–30% ink saved) are measured under specific conditions (they reference ISO/IEC test methods in the literature). Real savings depend on what you print — text-heavy pages gain less than photo pages, while mixed office jobs see intermediate benefits.
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Maintenance and longevity: The Verité 55 series is a consumer-grade inkjet in build and expected lifecycle; for light-to-moderate office use it’s reliable, but heavy duty environments will outgrow it. Keep spare cartridges on hand for continuous workflows.
Ideal business use cases
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Small offices & home businesses: Teams that print occasional colour brochures, labels, photos, or marketing flyers and value lower ink costs will appreciate the Eco features and XXL cartridges. It’s particularly appropriate where mobile printing and easy scanning are used frequently.
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Photo-centric micro-businesses: Small photography shops or event photographers who need quick client proofs or contact sheets can use the Verité 55 as an inexpensive, compact proof printer — not a production photo lab replacement but useful for same-day quick prints.
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Schools and creatives: Classrooms that print craft projects and photos occasionally benefit from the simplicity and relatively low running costs when Eco settings are acceptable.
Where it’s not ideal: any office with steady monochrome page counts into the hundreds per week will likely find a small laser MFP more cost-effective and faster over time. Similarly, color-critical print workflows and high-duty copy rooms should look at higher-end ink or toner devices.
Practical buying tips
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Check exact SKU: Confirm whether the model sold in your market is the 55, 55W, 55 Plus, or 55W Eco — features (duplex, memory, tray size) can differ. Always download the regional datasheet.
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Use Eco sensibly: Try Eco Mode 1 for day-to-day office printing and Eco Mode 2 when conservation matters most — test on your common documents to ensure quality remains acceptable.
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Buy larger cartridges if you print regularly: XXL/XL cartridges reduce per-page cost and are a simpler way to lower TCO than switching to third-party supplies.
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Consider alternatives for heavy mono work: If your offices print mostly black-and-white documents, compare mono laser MFPs for speed and lower per-page cost.
Conclusion
The KODAK VERITÉ 55 Eco is a thoughtful, small-footprint all-in-one that addresses a real pain point for small teams and home offices: ink cost. With practical mobile features, large-capacity cartridges and a plainly useful Eco Button that lets users trade a small amount of colour vibrancy for substantial ink savings, it occupies a useful niche between consumer printers and larger business MFPs. It’s not a high-volume or colour-critical production device, but for its target audience — users who print moderate volumes, want simple mobile workflows, and need lower running costs — the Verité 55 Eco is a persuasive, cost-conscious choice.
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