In September 2004 Dell introduced the 3000cn and 3100cn color printers, followed in May 2006 by the 3010cn color printer. All were based on the Fuji-Xerox® (DocuPrint® C525A print engine with OEM rated print speeds of 5 color pages per minute (ppm) and 25 black and white ppm. The 3000cn was targeted at small or home offices, and the 3100cn aimed at small businesses and included additional paper input trays for the larger work volume. The 3010cn was rated at the same print speed but included updated software that allowed for user access controls and usage tracking over a standard Web browser.
Other OEMs also launched their own versions based on the C525A print engine, including Epson® (AcuLaser® C1100) and NEC® (MultiWriter® 1700C). Supplies for all brands are nearly identical, but are not interchangeable.
The 3000cn and 3010cn ship with reduced capacity (1,000 page yield) color cartridges and full capacity (2,000 page yield) black cartridges. The 3100cn model ships with full capacity 4,000 page yield color and black cartridges. Replacement cartridges are offered in differing page yields and vary by printer model.