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KODAK Ultima Picture Paper Lasts 100 Years
Kodak Press Release 29/01/04
KODAK Ultima Picture Paper With New COLORLAST Technology Delivers Inkjet Prints That Last More Than 100 Years
ROCHESTER, N.Y., January 29 - Eastman Kodak Company today introduced the world’s longest lasting inkjet photo paper - new KODAK Ultima Picture Paper with COLORLAST technology. The vast majority of prints made on this paper using photo-quality home inkjet printers will enjoy brilliant color and resist degradation longer than prints made on any other inkjet paper. When used with the latest inks from various manufacturers, photos printed on the paper will last for more than 100 years in typical home display without protection from gas and humidity.
Unlike some competitive longevity claims that only consider the long-term effect of light on prints, Kodak also factors in three other variables that play a significant role in picture degradation: heat, humidity and ozone. Based on that science, Kodak formulated its new Ultima Picture Paper with COLORLAST technology for everyday home display conditions - left unprotected on a table, placed under glass in a frame, or tucked away in a photo album - not just for highly-controlled, dark storage environments.
“People are printing their pictures at home in record numbers, and they assume those pictures will survive for generations to come. It’s taken innovation from Kodak, the world’s most trusted picture company, to meet those expectations,” said Laurie Spring, vice president and general manager of inkjet media, Digital & Film Imaging Systems, Eastman Kodak Company. “A picture is only as good as the paper on which it’s printed. Choosing the right paper is as important as selecting the right camera, the right scene, and the right printer.”
Leveraging over a century of imaging and materials science, Ultima Picture Paper starts with the same high quality, ultra-stable, resin-coated base paper as Kodak’s traditional silver halide photographic papers. Then five coating layers are applied, three on the front and two on the back, to deliver a precise balance of image quality and stability.
The key to this balance is the proprietary, three-layer ink-receiving composition. Using a unique blend of mordants (additives to “fix” the dyes) in the bottom two layers, along with nanoparticulate ceramic particles in the top layer to further stabilize the image, Kodak scientists have engineered a significant leap in longevity and color reproduction.
New KODAK Ultima Picture Paper is now available in both high gloss and satin finishes, with 4 x 6-inch, 5 x 7-inch (high gloss only) and 8 1/2 x 11-inch sheet sizes.
For additional technical details, please visit http://www.kodak.com/go/inkjet/. Ultima Picture Paper can be paired with KODAK EASYSHARE software, available for free download from http://www.kodak.com, to take advantage of the exclusive One Touch to Better Pictures feature. This incorporates proprietary color technologies developed by Kodak to help WINDOWS OS users get even more vibrant, true-to-life prints from home inkjet printers, while significantly reducing the trial, error and waste usually associated with home photo printing.
The award-winning KODAK EASYSHARE consumer digital photography system -consisting of cameras, software, printer and camera docks, inkjet and thermal papers, and accessories - makes it simple for anyone to take, organize, share, and print high quality digital pictures. More information on KODAK EASYSHARE products is available at http://www.kodak.com/go/EasyShare.
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#1 Fazal Majid
I would be very careful about Kodak's claims. Their inkjet papers have consistently offered some of the worst performance in Wilhelm's accelerated fade testing, and they have a history of their marketing people making unsubstantiated and deceptive claims about color print life that their technical department new to be false.
From the technical paper, it seems they have only tested the paper with dye-based inkjets, not pigment ones like the Epson 2200. It looks like a Rc paper with a swellable polymer coating, itself coated with a microporous ceramic layer. This would help prints dry faster, the big disadvantage of swellable polymer paper (which often needs a whole day of curing, thus nullifying the supposed instant gratification advantage of inkjet printers over digital minilabs.
On the other hand, the paper is quite evasive about where the dye molecules actually end up. It suggest some go to the swellable polymer layer to be bound by ionized "mordants" there, and some in the microporous layer.
On the plus side, they seem to have a genuine (non-textured) semi-matte finish. Let's see how the real product turns out.
5:41 pm - Friday, January 30, 2004
#2 andre
KODAK Ultima Picture Paper Lasts 100 Years, so says Kodak.
Kodak also says in its white paper on the new Ultima digital paper that a 30% loss in density is acceptable. What we don't know at this time, is how fast the picture will lose 30% of its density.
And this could be another "up to 100 years" claim.
Remember, the digital world is full of false claims:
flatbed scanners with o.d. of 4.2, digital cameras with claimed iso of 100 or 64 when the real ccd iso is much higher, making the advertised iso an exposure index!
Andre
5:16 pm - Tuesday, February 3, 2004