Sato develops next-gen IoT mobile printer

Sato, a provider of Auto-ID technology to empower workforces and streamline operations, has developed the IoT-enabled PW2NX rugged mobile printer range.

The range is designed for the printing of markdown labels, price tag labels and delivery labels in heavy use front-line operational environments

The range is designed for the printing of markdown labels, price tag labels and delivery labels in heavy use front-line operational environments.

With an estimated market size of US$2.29 trillion worldwide, the e-commerce sector has seen remarkable 23.2 percent growth in 2017, quadruple the rate of traditional retail, reported Sato. Double-digit growth is expected until at least 2021 it added, citing the eMarketer Worldwide Retail and Ecommerce Sales: Estimates for 2016-2021 report. Widespread e-commerce usage requires retail and logistics providers to adopt ever more sophisticated technology to enable their workforces to handle the load, the company noted.

With its polycarbonate body, the PW2NX series features high shock resistance and impact absorption when dropped. Elastomer on its edges absorbs impact and provides rugged durability to protect the printer while out in the field. It also features an intuitive key design and universal icons for easy operation. Additionally, the printer supports linerless labels, to allow users to reduce their environmental footprint by using less paper and eliminating waste.

The new 2in mobile printer features robust connectivity, with support for Sato’s application enabled printing (AEP) enterprise label printing platform, which enables smart and connected apps for versatile accessibility and expandability. It has also been designed to support Sato Online Services (SOS), a cloud-based IoT maintenance service to identify issues before they become critical, which helps to prevent downtime. With AEP functionality, NFC and iOS support, Sato described the PW2NX series as enabling expandability and flexibility of use, ‘key for a wide range of uses’ both indoors and outdoors at QSR outlets, food production facilities, distribution centers and on-the-go for deliveries.

Noriyasu Yamada, chief product planning officer at Sato, said: ‘We are excited to introduce a best-in-class IoT mobile printer to the market. As e-commerce needs continue to grow, smart hardware designed for the IoT era is a must.

‘We have listened carefully to the pain points of the market to develop an expandable, evolving product that enables better connectivity to improve ROI for customers.’

The PW2NX series is planned for phased rollout in APAC, Europe and North America starting in February 2018.