22 email: editor@printmonthly.co.uk Issue 359 - March | April 2026 UNDER THE HOOD | KODAK PROSPER 7000 TURBO If there was a speed war among continuous feed inkjet press providers, Kodak won it decisively when it launched the PROSPER 7000 Turbo in mid-2022, a machine that can run at up to 410m/min across a printable width of 62cm. Most competitors run to 150 or 200m/min so the 7000 Turbo’s 5523 A4 pages per minute stands well clear with Kodak claiming it is 35% faster than the nearest alternative. It’s rated for over 200 million A4 pages per month and designed for 24/7 operation. The press isn’t just intended to be run flat-out, though. Kodak stresses its flexibility, with three modes supported, trading speed for resolution and image quality. Slowest at a ‘mere’ 200m/min is the Quality mode, which prints at 600 x 900dpi and offers 175lpi-equivalent for halftone images; Performance mode gets you 600 x 600dpi and 133lpi-equivalent at 300m/min, while Turbo hits top speed by dropping resolution to 600 x 450dpi and line screen equivalent in the 85 to 100dpi range. Mode selection will depend not only on substrate type and desired quality but also coverage, with the slower modes supporting higher levels, as is usual with inkjet print. Quite a variety of media is supported, from newsprint and recycled papers to specialist inkjet-coated types, and via Kodak’s own Optimax primers, silk and gloss coated papers, though maximum speed is restricted with the latter to 200m/ min. Supported paper weights range from 45 to 270gsm. The aqueous Optimax primer can be applied inline to the press with a pre-coater unit, or applied offline/nearline, as suits. Kodak suggests that offline priming is more suitable for higher productivity. Optimax is designed to work with Kodak’s CMYK Ektacolor inks which were introduced in 2023. Kodak claims a number of advantages for these inks, mostly driven by the requirements of printing so fast. Its pigment particles are milled to typically around 50nm diameter, which Kodak says is smaller than competitors’ and results in less light scatter, producing more intense colour from a thinner ink layer when dry. Kodak holds the continuous feed inkjet speed prize with the PROSPER 7000 Turbo, capable of printing at up to 410m/min. Michael Walker looks at how that’s achieved and what else the press can do Capturing a Need for Speed with the KODAK PROSPER 7000 Turbo Michael Walker is a trade journalist, technical writer, and editor with over 37 years’ experience in the print, prepress, photography, and digital imaging sectors, with a particular interest in the digital transformation of processes. In addition to editing Desktop Publishing Today and Digital Printer magazines, he is co-author with Neil Barstow of Getting Colour Right (Ilex Press, 2004) and Practical Colour Management for Photographers and Digital Image Makers (2009, self-published e-book) and winner of a Communicators in Business Gold Award. Driving a press this fast with variable content requires some serious RIP horsepower too
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