Epson has unveiled a website to help people match their printer to their personality.

Intending to show the office manufacturer’s recognition of "how personality relates to printing requirements", customers will be able to align their individual creativity and printing needs with the right product.

Called "Epsonality", the initiative matches the company’s printer attributes with various personality types and printing behaviours, with an interactive quiz on the website that can help define an individual’s "printing persona".

"Our products target a wide variety of customers ranging from the techno-savvy to the inventive type, but all of our customers have a need to express their creativity," said Jeffrey Marks, director of marketing and communications at Epson.

Epson’s most recent wide-format printers have been said to represent a level of technology "never before seen" in the market, achieving higher levels of print quality than previous models.

The Stylus Pro 4880, 7880 and 9880 make use of the company’s new print head which is an enhanced version of its UltraChrome K3 Ink (TM) Technology, as well as several other "forward-thinking advancements".

The first order for the so-called "$100 laptop" has been placed by the government of Uruguay.

Recently launched by the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) organisation, the "give one, get one" scheme aims to enable US residents to buy two laptop computers for $399 (£198).

Intended to be sold at $100 (£50) eventually, one laptop will be sent to the buyer while the second goes to a child in the developing world.

Now the South American country has snapped up 100,000 of the low-cost durable devices for its schoolchildren at $199 a pop.

Known as the XO laptop, the machine has been designed with children in developing countries in mind and can be powered by solar, foot-pump or pull-string powered chargers.

The green and white device also features a keyboard that switches languages, a video camera, wireless connectivity and Linux software, while computer software giant Microsoft is currently in the process of making Windows XP work on it.

Observers have noted that the price of the "$100 laptop" has increased steadily since OLPC revealed its intention to make low-cost computers to bring developing nations into the digital age.

A candidate for the "greenest" office in New York has been revealed.

According to the International Herald Tribune, Cook & Fox Architects’ top-floor office in an eight-storey building in Manhattan is the only one in the city with a platinum rating from the US Green Building Council.

Noted for its spacious layout and large windows, the office features plants on every desk and even has a green roof "where birds and butterflies land in summer".

"We believe in creating the right kind of environment," Robert Fox Jr told the paper, pointing out that his firm’s paint, carpet and office furniture are all made from eco-friendly materials that do not give off strong chemical odours.

Meanwhile the office’s bathrooms have water-saving fixtures to add to its green credentials and save money.

Recent research highlighted that "free-range" workers in bright, airy offices are ultimately more productive than their cramped "battery" counterparts.

A study of 800 workers in the UK carried out by Mind Lab on behalf of Hewlett Packard (HP) showed that workers in cubicles, with slow computers and big computer monitors, experienced a "marked decrease" in performance.

Samsung has launched its sleek new laser printer range in London.

Compared by many onlookers to KITT, the Knight Rider vehicle that David Hasslehoff fans will remember well, the piano-black finish SCX-4500 features a zooming blue LED light that tells the user when it is operating.

Described as the perfect office accessory, Samsung has eliminated the need for buttons, instead equipping the printer with a soft-touch sensor which enables users to access menus "effortlessly".

"Samsung wanted to create not only a functional printer, but one with a striking design that would lead the printer industry," said Peter McParland, country manager for Samsung Ireland’s IT Division.

"In a world where consumers are looking for more than just product functionality, we have introduced an innovative design range that will further cement the company’s position in the consumer and small business printer market," he continued.

The electronics giant has previously referred to the new laser printer as a "refined work of art".

Also included in the range is the ML-1630 monochrome laser model, described by PC Magazine as "going all-out" to attract customers looking for more appealing designs.

Xerox has unveiled a range of colour laser printers aimed at small businesses.

The office equipment manufacturer’s Phaser 6130 can reportedly print up to 12 colour pages per minute and 16 black-and-white pages per minute, as well as making use of the company’s eco-friendly Emulsion Aggregation High Gloss Toner.

Emphasising Xerox’s desire to make colour printing affordable for offices of all sizes, the president of the firm’s Office Group, Russell Peacock, commented that the range offers advanced features for businesses needing to produce professional colour documents.

"High-quality colour prints are no longer off limits to budget-conscious small and mid-size businesses," said Mr Peacock.

"The Phaser 6130 is an ideal entry-level colour printer because it’s fast, reliable and delivers impressive quality page after page," he concluded.

Capable of printing on a wide selection of office supplies, including labels, business cards and envelopes, the device also comes complete with pre-installed ink cartridges, while a gauge tells the user if it contains enough toner to complete a job.

As part of the Xerox Green World Alliance, the printer’s toner cartridges and routine maintenance supplies are recyclable.

Staples has announced a new co-branded store in China.

The world’s largest office supplies company has teamed up with UPS, the world’s biggest package delivery company, to combine its office supplies and document processing services with the latter’s packaging and international shipping services.

Called Staples UPS Express, the first two branches opened this week in Beijing, with two more in Shanghai planned by the end of the year.

"Staples UPS Express will offer customers a convenient, one-stop location for office supplies, document services and international shipping needs," said Richard Loi, senior vice president for UPS in China.

With customers able to pick up their UPS shipments within 30 minutes of making a phone request, each store will include a broad range of office supplies, document processing services, international package shipping and packaging and labelling services for business customers and consumers.

Both Staples and UPS plan to support the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, with Staples exclusively providing office furniture to the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games.

The news follows Staples’ recent revelation that it will sell computers, laptops and other electronic equipment made by Dell.

Sanyo has unveiled its new HD home cinema projector.

The LCD-based PLV-Z2000 is described by the company as having "the industry’s most advanced lens shifting motion" as well as its "most silent fan system".

Able to adapt to a wide variety of room sizes, the projector’s lens can be shifted from top to bottom or left to right and project a 100-inch diagonal image that is full-HD from just ten feet away.

According to Sanyo, the device’s use of the company’s 3D Colour Management promises rich colour depth, offering "1100 times better colour management ability" than traditional models.

Going on sale in November, the price of the PLV-Z2000 has not been confirmed, although its US price has been estimated at $2,995.99 (£1,453.61).

A cheaper alternative to Sanyo’s latest addition was launched recently, with Epson hailing its HD-ready projector as reliable, low cost and energy efficient.

Making its debut at this year’s IFA trade fair in Berlin, the EMP-TW680 was welcomed by Tech Digest magazine, which claimed that consumers would be "hard pressed" to find a quality projector for less than its £799 price tag.

Millions of printer cartridges from around the world are being recycled every year by a company in Australia.

According to ABC Canberra, Close the Loop has 43,000 drop-off points across Oz and receives used printer cartridges from firms as far-flung as Asia.

Recycling around 13 million cartridges annually, the company’s chief operator demonstrated to the news provider how both inkjet printer cartridges and toner cartridges are managed in the process.

Greg Turnidge pointed out that his firm protects the health of employees by extracting toner dust from the workplace with large fans.

"Toner dust is a very difficult material to manage," the boss told ABC Canberra.

"It’s a very fine substance and we have to be careful in the way we process it so we don’t end up with issues in the plant," Mr Turnidge continued.

A growing proportion of office experts recommend that consumers look for remanufactured printer cartridges, not only for eco-friendly reasons.

Critics have argued that industry leaders such as HP, Epson and Canon sell their printers at low prices because they profit from consumers buying expensive printer-specific ink cartridges.

An office in Edinburgh is at the centre of protests by workers and local residents.

They are against plans by developers to re-fit the Standard Life office building as it would mean creating a new top floor in place of the current roof garden.

Residents and workers alike have maintained that losing the garden on top of the office block would negatively affect the whole area.

Purposely constructed for the insurance firm 17 years ago, Standard Life’s offices became the first Scottish building to win the Office of the Year prize.

Sold some months ago for around £23 million, developer CEREP plans to refurbish it and divide it into smaller office units, according to the Scotsman.

"This was a very clever way of integrating a large office building into a residential area, and it was a success because of features like the roof garden, or the domes on the roof which feed light through the building," local resident Alan Black told the paper.

Other campaigners expressed reservations that the proposals would entail adding "an incongruous rectangular lump" on to the side of the building, seriously impacting on the character of the existing building.

Manufacturing professionals expect their office devices to perform a wide range of tasks, according to a new study.

Printer specialists Lexmark found that in "paper-intensive" working environments employees needed "flexible technology" that goes beyond basic printing.

A large proportion of individuals polled placed a higher than average importance on paper-based tasks such as making copies, faxing, printing photos and using a scanner.

"Laser multifunction technology is a must-have for manufacturing professionals because it gives them access to robust print, fax, copy and scan capabilities from one reliable device," commented Marty Canning, president of Lexmark’s printing solutions and services division.

The single function printer was also found to play an important role in manufacturing processes.

Research firm Gartner recently marked out the rise of the multifunction printer as a significant trend in office supplies and electronics.

Analyst Sharon McNee highlighted that consumers can save money by combining their printer, copier, scanner and fax machine.

Meanwhile, techno-experts vunet.com pointed out that it is "becoming rarer" for users to look for a separate printer and scanner as multifunction devices grow in popularity, although the success of HP’s new Scanjet G4050 indicated that the standalone scanner is "not dead yet."