Upgrading your Printer? Learn more about the Different Types first!

20 Mar Upgrading your Printer? Learn more about the Different Types first!

All around us in our modern lives is technology that we often take for granted. From document solutions in the workplace to the mobile phones we use to communicate with our friends, we rarely stop to think about how the technology works or how it makes our lives so much simpler.

But sometimes it’s good to take a step back and examine this technology in finer detail. This can be especially helpful when we’re looking to upgrade what we have. When it comes to document solutions and printers in South Africa, it’s vital to thoroughly review and research all of the available options out there and to gain a basic understanding of how these work so that we can make the best decisions for our businesses.

If you’re thinking about upgrading your office printers, read on to learn more about some of the different types of printers available.

Dot Matrix Printers

Dot matrix printers work by striking pins against an ink ribbon. This produces dots that are spaced closely together that, when looked at as a whole, create the desired image. These can be quite pricey and the quality of the prints they produce is far from superb. Moreover, they are rather noisy. So why would you want to buy one? Because they can produce multi-page forms, a feature which sets them apart from inkjet and laser printers.

Line Printers

These are super quick, but the quality of their prints is certainly sacrificed. As the name suggests, they print one line at a time.

Inkjet

Plates within the printer direct the flow of ink, which can either be electrically charged (piezoelectric) or heated (thermal bubble). These types are popular in many offices and homes as they are relatively inexpensive to purchase and produce prints that are vibrant. However, know that replacing ink in these machines can become an expensive affair.

Laser

An image is produced on a drum using laser technology, as the name suggests. The laser is directed at the drum in the desired pattern, and this changes the electrical charge of the areas affected. After this, the drum is rolled in toner and the areas that have been lasered pick up this toner, which is then transferred permanently onto the substrate using pressure and heat.

LCD and LED

These are similar to laser printers in that drums and toner are used, except a laser is not used to create an image on the drum – rather, LED or LCD technology creates the desired image or pattern.

Solid Ink

One of printing’s greatest inventions in recent decades, this technology used solid ink to produce prints that have superb quality. Solid ink is cheaper than normal ink and it is better for the environment, too.

Other

As we have mentioned in previous articles, there is a wide variety of different types of printers available, from printing pancakes and ice-cream, to printing art for finger nails. But in practical, everyday terms, some of the more common ones include photo printers, dye-sublimation, 3D, plotter, and multifunction printers.

If you’d like to update your office’s document solutions in South Africa, contact our experts at DocX today!

Main image credit: http://pctechnotes.com/