With so many choices among color printers, finding one can be a monumental task. Many people feel that a good place to start is by defining what your printing needs are. With an array of sizes and features, functionality can be of prime importance.
A good place to start may be in determining how many pages will be printed. If the machine will be used in a place of business, perhaps a color laser printer should be considered. While costing more initially, these devices are durable machines with a long life. The per page cost is much lower than with ink-jet based machines. The resolution is unmatched - up to nine thousand six hundred by two thousand four hundred. And the print speed is phenomenal - up to twelve thousand pages per hour on some models. Even when printing complex images, these devices still maintain their speed. Plus, if they are left to sit for a long period of time for any reason, they will not go dry. In other words, their ink will not dry up inside of them, ruining them.
For businesses running exceptionally high volume of print, modern copy machines have crossed the line, becoming printers. These machines are superb if you have the budget for them. In many cases, you can lease this equipment for one, three, or even five years. One advantage to this arrangement is that a service technician comes at regular intervals to check the machine. These machines can hold multiple jobs at once. They can reduce or enlarge your print job. They can collate and staple finished jobs. They can even lighten or darken the final product. Since they usually have a large glass area, they can also be used as large, flat bed scanners. No other printer type can match their speed in output, running at up to two hundred or more copies per minute. Their cost per copy cannot be beat.
Some types of businesses require a special printer, such as those printing on fabric. This material requires a thermal, or heat transfer, process. Also, large format printers require specialized ink.
For small businesses or individuals who have limited printing needs, toner cartridge machines usually are cost prohibitive. These machines can cost upwards of five to ten times more than ink-jet printers. Even still, ink-jet printers come in many varieties.
One such sub-type is the photo printer. These devices are configured to print edge to edge. They are equipped with many nozzles for finite control of ink placement. A standard feature is a card reader to read a camera's card. These are stand alone units, with no need to be hooked up to a computer. With their specialty inks and photo paper, these produce the most expensive prints. Yet for printing photos, their quality is unsurpassed. The smallest of these machines is just large enough to print a standard sized photo.
Many homes, on the other hand, have regular ink-jet printers. A plain ink-jet device must be connected to a computer to function. Lower end models come with one ink cartridge. These cartridges have four reservoirs - one for black, and one for each of the three base colors. Mid-range models separate out the black from the color and require two cartridges. Better machines divide out the tints into individual cartridges. Some of these models have three color cartridges, some have five. Upper end machines can have seven or more color cartridges. Most ink-jet printers have special photo cartridges that can be used for printing pictures.
Another variation are the 'all in one' machines. These feature additional capabilities such as scanning, copying, and some times faxing.
One draw back of color printers is cost. Colored ink and toner costs much more than does black ink. One way to reduce the cost of your color printing is to set the printer to black or gray scale printing. Only select the color option when you need to. One reason to do this is that sometimes you may really be printing in dark navy or some other tint that looks black. Also, some printers use a composite of colors to mimic black unless forced to do other wise.
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