Printers come down to two different types (for the most part): inkjet and laser. Your individual needs will determine which printer type will work best for you, and we’re here to break down what makes them different and how to decide which printer you should buy. How They Work. Laser and inkjet printers both achieve the same end goal: they.
AdvertisementWhen you set out to buy a new printer, the first thing you’ll have to choose is the type of printing technology. Printers can be inkjet, laser, or LED.
What exactly is the difference between the three?Inkjet and laser printers have been around for some time now. LED printers are relatively new, gaining popularity in the past few years. But just because it’s new technology does not mean it’s better technology.Understanding the different technologies can help you You don't have to spend a ton of money to get a reliable and versatile new printer and which to avoid. How Inkjet Printers WorkInkjet printers are the most common types of printers found in homes and small offices. That’s largely because they are cheaper than laser printers to purchase, and they can print in full color.
They also work better for special papers like photos or labels.Inkjet printers use ink cartridges. These can be two cartridges (black and color) or four cartridges (cyan, magenta, yellow, and black).
The cartridges contain liquid ink, which is fed to the “print head”.The “print head” is the main component of an inkjet printer. It has thousands of tiny nozzles that drop ink onto paper. The print head moves back and forth at a high speed to perfectly position these ink droplets, forming the image or letters you want to print.
The printer needs to ensure only the amount of ink needed is being fed. Otherwise it will keep leaking and the cartridge will run out in no time.
So the nozzle in the print head contains a resistor, which heats up the ink rapidly. This causes the ink to vaporize and form a bubble.
The bubble escapes the nozzle, the resistor cools down, and new ink from the cartridge takes the place of the “escaped” ink.Inkjet printers are the simplest of all printers, and are cheaper to produce., rather than the hardware itself. How Laser Printers WorkAs the name suggests, a laser printer uses lasers for the printing job. And Here are 6 things do with a laser pointer once you're all pointed out., there are other important components inside like the “drum” and the “toner”.
The cylindrical drum is coated with a photosensitive chemical. Once a print job is sent, the drum gets a positive static charge. The laser in the printer bounces off a mirror and hits this drum to form the image of the page. The laser does not move, only the mirror moves.Wherever the laser hits the drum, the positive charge turns to negative charge. Now you have a positive charged drum with a negative charge for all the letters and symbols needed to print.As the drum rotates, it comes in contact with the toner, which is also positively charged.
The toner is made of powdered ink. This powdered ink sticks to every part of the drum that is negatively charged. This means the drum now has powdered ink sticking to all the letters and symbols needed to print. The drum continues rotating to come in contact with the paper you feed in the machine.
Before the paper and drum connect, the paper is rendered a negative charge by the printer. So now, when the negatively charged paper and the positively charged drum and ink come into contact, the powdered ink falls from the drum onto the paper. The drum’s job is done.The negatively charged paper now has ink powder sitting on it at the right places to form letters. To make the powder stick, the paper goes through “fuser”, which is two heated rollers. This fuses the ink to the paper, and then releases it out of the machine.This entire process happens faster than you can imagine.
The powdered ink particles are also smaller than you can imagine. Don’t open up your printer to try and watch this whole thing in action! How LED Printers WorkAn LED printer is not too different from a laser printer.
Both the technologies use a similar combination of drums, toners, and static electricity for positive and negative charges. The main difference is lasers and LEDs. Instead of a laser and mirror, an LED printer has an array of light emitting diodes to burn letters and images into the drum. The rest of the process is the same as a laser printer.So why use an LED instead of a laser? Simple: because it’s cheaper. A laser and the moving mirror is much costlier to manufacture and maintain than a fixed array of LEDs.
Color Printing in Laser and LEDBoth laser and LED printers are primarily used for black-and-white prints. While there are color printers available, they cost a lot more and are bulkier.This is largely because how color printing works for these machines. You know how a drum and toner interact to create a black-and-white print. Well, for a color print, you will need a separate drum and separate toner for each of Basic knowledge of color theory can mean the difference between an 'amateur' aesthetic and a 'professional' one – and it really doesn't take long to learn. Cyan, magenta, yellow, and key AKA black).
That means four toners and four drums, and usually five or more mirrors so that the same laser can bounce around everywhere. That’s a lot of hardware inside one machine.The result is a large printer, best suited for large offices. And even though it can print colors, remember, we are talking about “solids” like pie charts and graphs. If you want to print photographs, a laser printer won’t do the job well. What Should You Buy?Now that you know how they work, the question becomes what you should buy.
As a thumb rule, inkjet printers better serve the needs of a home or small office. Laser printers are ideal for a business environment with 10 or more people working together.Our Printers are amazing tools that don't get much love. But when buying budget printers for a home or small office, how do you choose the best? What are the features to look for? Is the best place to start.
It should help you figure out if you need a laser printer or an inkjet. We also dive into other features and what you need or don’t, like Wi-Fi or an automatic document feeder. Do You Print Photos?When choosing between inkjets and laser, this is the big question to ask yourself: do you print photos on photo paper? If so, how regularly do you do that?If you aren’t going to be printing photos, a laser printer might work out better for you. But nothing beats the series if you like to print out what you snap.What is your printing setup? Do you prefer an inkjet to a laser? Have you upgraded to an LED?
Let us know your printing tips and tricks in the comments below!Image Credits: Sarawut Padungkwan/Shutterstock.
Credit: FabrikaSimf/ShutterstockIf you're in the market for a new printer, one of the biggest decisions you'll have to make is whether you should choose an inkjet or a laser printer. Inkjet printers, like the name implies, spray wet ink directly onto your paper. Laser printers use a combination of toner (powder) and heat to print onto paper. Price and ongoing costsBusiness owners can find printers in each category that fit within a wide range of budgets.
You may find inkjets for less than $100 – and, especially for remote workers – that may be all you need.If price isn't the main factor, then what is? Well, both of these types of printers will require ongoing supplies (known as consumables) and occasional maintenance. These costs are unavoidable.When purchasing ink or toner, manufacturers will generally specify the number of pages that each ink or toner is capable of printing.
A simple way of evaluating the costs and value for ink or tone is to determine the cost of ink per page. Divide the number of pages you'll get from an ink or toner cartridge by the price of the cartridge.Editor's Note: Looking for a printer and copier solution for your business? If you're looking for information to help you choose the one that's right for you, use the questionnaire below to have our sister site, BuyerZone, provide you with information from a variety of vendors for free. Buyerzone widgetFor either type of printer, it's cheaper to print in black and white. Make sure, though, to consider all of the ways you will use your printer as well as who will be using the printer so you can accurately estimate maintenance costsFor enterprise-grade laser printers that can support medium to large workgroups, there will be some additional maintenance involved. For example, you may require replacement fuser cartridges or the replacement of other parts. Quality for printing basic textIf you need a printer that will speed through print jobs, go with a laser printer.
Laser printers have surged in popularity and have a reputation for speed. This holds true for even basic black-and-white laser models; it's not unusual to see print speeds of 20 or more pages per minute.Inkjet printer speeds have improved in recent years, but they still lag behind laser printing models. For example, you might see speeds in the range of 7 pages per minute on up to about 20 pages per minute.
Use cases for inkjet and laser printersFor basic business printing – where you'll be printing reports, memos or research – and you're concerned mostly about text quality, then you're probably fine with either printer type. For crisp detail and small print (smaller than 12-point fonts), laser printers outperform inkjet versions.Inkjets shine more when it comes to printing in color. If you print photos and presentations often, you might want to narrow your search to an inkjet. They can handle a wide range of paper types, and you'll notice that colors appear truer to what you see on your camera or screen.Laser is better for business-use cases where the printing volume is higher, speed matters and most printers have one ink color – black. They're built to withstand a high capacity of documents, churning out pages and pages of black-and-white prints. This doesn't mean that you can't print photos on a color laser printer; it only means you shouldn't expect incredible quality.Both printer types offer MFP models (multifunction printers) that print, scan, copy and sometimes fax.
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For a small business, you can't go wrong with either choice, but for large offices where there is a greater demand, a laser jet printer may make the most sense.