Rockville, MD, May 1, 2006 - IDEAL.com announces the addition of two new energy efficient scanners, manufactured by Contex, to its product line. These new "green" scanners are certified "Energy Star Compliant" by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency. The IDEAL / Contex green scanners include the Crystal HS 42 and the Chroma HS 42.

About the Crystal HS 42

The IDEAL / Contex CRYSTAL HS 42 scanners are designed to give environmentally conscious professionals the best in energy efficient high speed monochrome scanning with the additional option of quality color scanning for special jobs. The scanner's 42" imaging area handles large E-size/A0 engineering drawings, architectural sketches, blueprints, sepias, detailed maps, drawings and large color posters.

High resolutions, easy maintenance, user replaceable parts, Automatic Thickness Adjustment Control (ATAC) and Energy Star Efficiency are all combined in the CRYSTAL HS 42" making it the perfect device for effective, energy efficient, reliable high-production scanning. The Crystal HS 42 comes in Base and Plus models.

Features

*  Energy Star Efficiency

*  Fast monochrome scanner with added color capabilities

*  Crisp, clear black-and-white

*  16 bit graytone capture for perfect grayshades

*  48 bit color capture for photo-realistic vivid colors

*  All-Wheel-Drive with contour adjustment

*  Scans Thick Media - up to 0.6" (15mm)

*  Automatic Thick Media Adjustment Control (ATAC)

*  Replaceable parts to bring down service costs.

*  Flexible Plug 'n' Play connectivity - FireWire and Hi-Speed USB

*  Scan to PDF format option

*  Scan to network, also across the internet

*  Advanced options for printing of grayshades

*  Color matching to printer & media

*  3C Automatic Maintenance System

*  Built-in Basic calibration - black-and-white points

*  Built-in Precision Color calibration

With fast and effective monochrome scanning and the option to scan in perfect color, these devices offer a cost-effective solution for environmentally-minded CAD, AEC and GIS professionals.

About the Chroma HS 42

The IDEAL / Contex CHROMA HS 42 wide-format energy efficient color scanners incorporate the latest in imaging technology for high-quality full color scanning and copying. The scanner's 42" imaging area handles large color posters, architectural sketches, detailed maps, drawings and fine art at very high speeds.

High resolutions, easy maintenance, user replaceable parts, Energy Star Certification and Automatic Thickness Adjustment Control (ATAC) are all combined in the CHROMA XL 42" making it the perfect device for energy conscious, effective, reliable high-production scanning.

Features

The IDEAL / Contex CHROMA HS 42 wide-format energy efficient color scanners incorporate the latest in imaging technology for high-quality full color scanning and copying. The scanner's 42" imaging area handles large color posters, architectural sketches, detailed maps, drawings and fine art at very high speeds.

High resolutions, easy maintenance, user replaceable parts, Energy Star Certification and Automatic Thickness Adjustment Control (ATAC) are all combined in the CHROMA XL 42" making it the perfect device for energy conscious, effective, reliable high-production scanning.

*  Energy Star Compliance

*  Very fast color and improved speed in monochrome scanning

*  48 bit color capture for photo-realistic vivid colors

*  16 bit graytone capture for perfect grayshades

*  All-Wheel-Drive with contour adjustment

*  Scans Thick Media - up to 0.6" (15mm)

*  Automatic Thick Media Adjustment Control (ATAC)

*  Replaceable parts to bring down service costs.

*  Flexible Plug 'n' Play connectivity - FireWire and Hi-Speed USB

*  Scan to PDF format option

*  Scan to network, also across the internet

*  Advanced options for printing of grayshades

*  Color matching to printer & media

*  3C Automatic Maintenance System

*  Built-in Basic calibration - black-and-white points

These state of the art scanners offer unlimited possibilities for energy-minded professional imaging services, copy service providers, POP/Exhibit/Display companies, graphic professionals, Mapping, Architect and Engineer offices.

About Energy Star

Energy Star is a program helping businesses and individuals protect the environment through superior energy efficiency. Energy Star qualified scanners automatically enter a low power "sleep" mode after a period of inactivity. Spending a large portion of time in low power mode not only not only saves energy but also helps scanner equipment run cooler and last longer. Many countries, markets and businesses look for Energy Star compliant products when investing in their office equipment.

Contex scanners' automatic power down function now supports low power values that meet the Energy Star criteria. In addition to the standard timer clock setting feature already supported, power down can now be set in Widesystem as an idle time value. The power down mode can be triggered manually from the panel from Widesystem's or through the idle time setting. Regardless of the triggering method, the power down mode in these scanners meets the strictly low Energy Star criteria.

About IDEAL

IDEAL.com develops, markets, and supports a wide range of color and monochrome scanning solutions for large format drawings and technical documents including scan-to-print, scan-to-file, Online Planrooms, indexing, archiving, converting and editing software, and 3D printers. For more information on the HS 42 series of Energy Star Certified scanners or for more information on any IDEAL products, please contact Kathy Magenheim at (301) 468-0123 ext.1230 or contact via email at kmagenheim@ideal.com.