Ink jet printers remain the most commonly used printers today. They create images by expelling thousands of droplets of ink onto the page, directed my magnetized plates that detail where the ink should be propelled. There are many advantages to choosing an ink jet printer for your production needs, but they are not without their drawbacks.

Advantages

1. Initial Cost

Ink jet printers are among the lowest cost printers on the market. In the past, this reduced price point meant that the user sacrificed quality. However, today, ink jet technology has improved to such an extent that even modestly-priced ink jet printers can produce good quality images and documents consistently.

2. Quality

Ink jet printers are now able to produce high-quality documents. In the past, there was a tendency for the edges of individual ink drops to bleed slightly into each other, giving a slightly blurry effect to the text or image. However, improvements in technology mean this has been all but eradicated. For the best results on high-end printers, use photo paper, which is designed to hold the ink more stably.

3. Space

The technology needed to be housed in an ink jet printer is reasonably minimal, certainly compared to daisy wheel or laser printers. This means that ink jet printers are compact and suitable for home use or within a small office. They are usually light enough to be able to sit on a desk.

4. Time

Ink jet printers do not require any warm-up time – switch them on and they are ready to go. In contrast, laser printers may need between five and fifteen minutes to heat up to operating temperature. They also have longer delay than ink jet printers between a document being sent to print and the print process beginning.

Disadvantages

1. Cartridge Cost

While cheap to buy in the first instance, the requirement to keep replacing the cartridges in an ink jet printer means that the cost of running it can accumulate considerably over time. In some cases the cost of the replacement cartridges can exceed the initial outlay on the machine.

2. Speed

Ink jet printing tends to be slower than laser printing. If you need to produce high volumes of documents quickly, a laser printer will do the job better.

3. Ink

The requirement to have ink cartridges means that they can be prone to malfunction. The most common problem is when the exit nozzles of the cartridge get clogged with ink. Many ink jet printers have cleaning cycles you can run, but these use more ink, increasing the frequency with which you need to purchase replacement cartridges. Increasingly, firms are offering services whereby you can refill your cartridges rather than buy new ones. This brings the cost down, but still requires the time to deliver and receive the used cartridges.

4. Moisture

The application of ink means that documents from an ink jet printer require time to dry. This can slow down the document delivery process. There is also the risk that handling the document will smudge it before it is sufficiently dry. Laser printers, because they use a dry toner do not have this problem.

Ben Greenwood is writing on behalf of Cartridge World, the UK\’s leading specialist in refillable toner cartridges and ink cartridges.

Ben Greenwood is writing on behalf of Cartridge World (http://www.cartridgeworld.co.uk), the UK\’s leading specialist in printer cartridges.

Author Bio: Ben Greenwood is writing on behalf of Cartridge World, the UK\’s leading specialist in refillable toner cartridges and ink cartridges.

Category: Computers and Technology
Keywords: printer cartridges, ink cartridges, toner cartridges