If you want to buy a printer the first thing you should know is that the offers of computer stores are diversified. This could only mean chances to find the right printer for your needs are high, but there are some important aspects you need to take into consideration.
In order to buy a printer you must firstly decide what you will use the device for. Depending on the answer to this question you can opt for one of the three types of printers:
– Dot Matrix
– Inkjet printers
– Laser Printers
Dot Matrix
printers
Dot matrix printers were very common in the past, but nowadays they are only used for printing invoices and other similar forms. The main advantage of these printers is the low printing costs per page and the low priced consumables. On the other hand, the price of the device itself is larger than in the case of inkjet printers, for example, and the speed of printing is very low. We can therefore say that if you want to print standard forms for your company, for example, such as documents from the accounting department, which do not require a high printing quality, this type of printer may be ideal.
Inkjet Printers
Inkjet printers are the most common due to the very good price / quality ratio. The main advantage of these printers is their reasonable price, ideal for home use. The main drawback, on the other hand, is the price of cartridges, which is high, but it is good to know that some cartridges can be refilled at a much lower price than the one of buying a new cartridge.
Laser Printers
The main advantage of laser printers is the high quality of printing and the smaller cost for printing a page than in the case of inkjet printers. Laser printers are mainly used for professional printing (books, magazines, brochures, etc.). The disadvantage of these printers is their high price. Considering these circumstances, it is recommended to buy a laser printer for home if you are looking for high quality. In the long run, your initial investment will be recovered.
After you have decided what type of printer suits you, you have to look closely at some further features of the printer you want to buy. These features include resolution, printing speed, cost of supplies and printer memory.
Resolution
The resolution is the number of dots displayed per inch (dpi – dots per inch). The resolution can be both horizontal (number of horizontal points) and vertical (number of vertical points). As the number of dots per inch is greater, the quality of the printed page will be better. Thus depending on the print quality you want, you can choose a printer with a higher resolution (better printing quality) or a printer with a lower resolution (weaker printing quality).
Print Speed
Depending on the number of pages that you print constantly, you’ll need a printer with a print speed that is higher or lower. The speed of a printer is given by the number of pages it can print in a minute (ppm – pages per minute).
The printer memory
It is important to also pay attention to the printer memory. When you ask the computer to print some information, it will process your order and send that information to the printer. As the memory of the printer is larger, the delay between clicking the ‘Print’ button and the actual printing process is decreased.
