FAQs

Memjet technology is a new generation of printing technology for photo retail customers, delivering extremely fast, color printing performance at breakthrough costs per page and price points relative to performance. 

The technology consists of four main components including page-wide printheads, high performance controller chips, software and custom inks, which Memjet Photo Retail will sell to OEM brands to be integrated into their own branded printing devices. 

The "MEM" in Memjet refers to "MEMS" or Micro-ElectroMechanical Systems; the technology of the very small, with metrics ranging in size from a micrometer (a millionth of a meter) to a millimeter (a thousandth of a meter).  The Memjet printheads are fabricated using MEMS processes; modified semiconductor fabrication processes that enable the creation of the silicon structures, nozzles and drop-ejection systems that are the basis of the Memjet technology.  

For decades the printing and imaging industry has provided customers with inkjet and laser printing solutions. Finally, the next generation of printing technology has arrived - Memjet.  

No.  Neither our OEM brand business partners nor any existing printer brands have any financial interest in Memjet Photo Retail or our technology development partner, Silverbrook Research, Ltd, Pty.  This allows Memjet Photo Retail to operate independently and fairly across our range of incumbent and non-incumbent brand partners.

Silverbrook Research is a private, independent research and development company based near Sydney, Australia. Silverbrook Research is the developer of the Memjet technology components.  Memjet Photo Retail is a separate, private, independent business responsible for the commercialization of the technology for the photo retail markets. Commercialization includes the development of OEM brand relationships, market strategy, business models, component pricing, OEM brand technical and business support, supply chain and operations related to the Memjet Photo Retail business opportunities.  Memjet Photo Retail works with Silverbrook Research to specify and prioritize technology requirements to satisfy the needs of home and office customers. 

Kia Silverbrook is the co-founder and CEO of Silverbrook Research, the developer of the Memjet technology.  Kia is a scientist and prolific inventor, holding more than 2,400 U.S. patents.  Kia's background in digital imaging dates back to 1973.

There are currently four Memjet companies - Memjet Home and Office, Memjet Labels, Memjet Photo Retail and Memjet Wide Format.  Separate companies enable each company to focus on the unique technology applications, customer needs and business requirements associated with each market space.  While much of the core technology components are leveraged, business models and partnerships differ.  Ink formulations and properties may vary and printhead configurations, controller chip software and host software are optimized to better meet customers' needs in each of these important markets.

Memjet devices are page printers that are designed to process and print an entire color page in one pass.  The print engine spans the width of the printer so that it can print the entire width of the page while the paper simply moves underneath the printhead.  The Memjet software and controller work together to efficiently process page data.  The controller contains a high speed 648 MHz processor and embedded memory sufficient to print even complex pages at rapid speeds.  Each printhead contains 70,400 nozzles and can print up to 900 million drops per second with minimal warm up time. 

Memjet Photo Retail does not intend to introduce its own printers or be the primary brand on any photo retail printing product.  Our Memjet Photo Retail business model is to deliver technology to existing brands for use in their own branded printing devices.

Memjet's customized inks are absorbed into the paper in milliseconds.  Prints, even high-coverage prints, can be handled immediately after printing and are highlighter resistant.

The Memjet printhead nozzles are small enough that the human eye is not able to see the impact of single clogged nozzles distributed randomly across a Memjet printhead.  Even so, the Memjet components and related ink delivery and maintenance systems have been carefully designed to mitigate clogging and other potential problems that lead to print quality issues.  

The surface of the Memjet printheads and the silicon nozzle's structure are designed to be effectively wiped clean by a maintenance system.  Each Memjet based device will be delivered with a maintanence system designed to keep nozzles healthy while the device is printing as well as after it has been idle for a period of time.  Maintenance system regimes have been designed into Memjet controller chips and can also be adjusted by OEM brands to support a range of printing environments and customer requirements.     

Yes.  Memjet inks are customized to ensure sustained performance and quality using a Memjet printhead.  Using the wrong ink can dramatically decrease the capability of a Memjet printhead and can ultimately destroy it.  While the chemistry and fluid dynamics of Memjet ink formulations are unique and specific, the Memjet water-based inks have many ingredients in common with inks used in printing environments today.