Colortrac, the leading innovator in large format scanners and scanning solutions, has become the first wide format scanner manufacturer to achieve a BERTL (Business Equipment Research Testing Labs) "BEST IN CLASS" rating for both a CCD (charge coupled device) and CIS (contact image sensor) scanner.

The CCD-based Colortrac SmartLF Gx+42 professional color graphics and the CIS-based SmartLF Ci 40 technical document large format scanners had both previously won BERTL's prestigious "OUTSTANDING" ratings which were accompanied by 4.5 Star Awards, the highest rating given by BERTL to any large format scanner.

Recognizing that Colortrac SmartLF wide format scanners combine state-of-the-art technical innovation with exceptional value for money, BERTL upgraded its "OUTSTANDING" rating on these two Colortrac SmartLF devices to "BEST IN CLASS" for its 14th Annual Award presentation of BERTL'S BEST products (December 2009).

The Colortrac SmartLF Gx+ 42 is a new generation professional graphics scanner providing unrivalled color capture in a system bristling with productivity-enhancing, energy saving technical innovations unavailable in CCD devices from well-known industry brands. The Colortrac SmartLF Ci 40 is a low-cost, high productivity device whose uniquely practical front-exit media path distinguishes it from all CIS technical document scanners. Common to both is powerful ScanWorks and CopySmart software which provides professional, flexible and easy-to-use tools ideal for standalone or Gigabit network scanning.

In presenting the Colortrac SmartLF Gx+ 42 with the "BEST IN CLASS" 42" Wide Format CCD Scanner Award Certificate, BERTL summarized its benefits as follows:

• Combination of high resolution and CCD imaging technology creates a flexible, multi-purpose scanning system capable of capturing both very fine line and image details while reproducing color graphics in vivid, high fidelity colors.
• Award winning features such as instant-on, long-life 2D LED illumination, full 1200dpi optical CCD resolution, power-saving ENERGY STAR compliance and fast scan speed is unavailable in any other product.
• "Scan Once" software works in real time reducing the need to rescan, saving businesses time and money by making users more productive.

In presenting the Colortrac SmartLF Ci 40 with the "BEST IN CLASS" 40" Wide Format CIS Scanner Award Certificate, BERTL summarized its benefits as follows:

• Its ease of use makes it ideally suited for AEC, CAD and GIS technical documents.
• The unique paper path makes this device an attractive buy as it can be placed against a wall and saves precious office space.
• Colortrac's optional ScanWorks scanning software offers users a multitude of options for manipulating scanned images that rivals the features and functions of those found in Photoshop and other similar software.
• Exceptional value for money-combination of software, pricing and fast black and white and color scanning speed make it an excellent choice.

Peter de Winter-Brown, Colortrac's Sales and Marketing Director, said "With a 27% growth in sales, 2009 was Colortrac's best year ever. Receiving BERTL's "BEST IN CLASS" award for our SmartLF Gx+ 42, (which also won Wide-Format Imaging's "Top Product" 2009 award), as well as the SmartLF Ci 40, was the icing on 2009's cake. BERTL's awards are a tribute to Colortrac's relentless technical innovation and its commitment to providing SmartLF large format scanners with an unbeatable value for money price tag. Colortrac looks forward to 2010 and earning an even bigger slice of the cake through the growing recognition of its superior large format scanning technology at prices more buyers can afford!"

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