How to Chose a Print Machine That’s Right for Your Business?

Think about what you need Do you need to be able to scan and copy as well as print? What sort of documents will you print the most? Do you need prints fast, or is print quality more important? What devices do you want to print from? Will your printer sit in one room attached to a computer, or do you want to print from a range of PCs, laptops and devices over your home wi-fi network? Clarifying your needs will help you narrow down your selection for Managed Print Solutions in Ireland.

Inkjet printers: A Balance of Speed and Quality

Inkjet printers are great all-rounders. They can handle text-heavy documents such as a student’s coursework or minutes from a meeting, but they can also print photos – and do a better job of it than a laser printer. They’re quiet and unobtrusive, and they also take up less desk space. However, inkjets are usually more expensive to run than a laser printer, costing you more in ink per printed page than you would pay for laser toner. That’s not necessarily the case with a few business-focused inkjet printers in Ireland, but as a rule of thumb inkjets cost you less up front, but more in the long-term. Pros Smaller and cheaper than laser printers, can produce good quality colour prints Cons More expensive running costs, slower to print black text pages than a laser Get a great inkjet printer with our round-up of the Best inkjet printers. Inkjet printing costs per page are higher than colour laser printers, but colour laser printers and cartridge cost more at the outset. If you’ll print a lot, a colour laser printer should work out cheapest over time.

Laser printers: For Those Who Crave for Professional Level Prints

Laser printers shine when it comes to printing a lot of black text, and while colour models are more expensive than colour inkjets, they also produce professional-looking business graphics for managed print services. They’re normally faster than inkjets when it comes to this kind of job, and can handle a heavier workload if you’re planning to print a lot of pages every month. What’s more, while the toner cartridges are expensive, each one prints a lot more pages than an inkjet cartridge, so the actual cost per black-and-white or colour page is usually much less. However, laser printers are usually bulkier and noisier than the equivalent inkjet printer and will take up more space on your desk. Pros Fast prints and good value printing for black-and-white pages Cons More expensive to buy, bulkier and often noisier than inkjets.

All-in-one printers: The Choice of Smart Printer Users

You can buy straightforward inkjet or laser printers in Cork, but a device that scans and copies as well won’t cost you a whole lot more. Most have wi-fi connectivity built-in so that you can print from several PCs or laptops, not to mention tablets or smartphones. Some include a fax function too. Pros Can scan, photocopy and fax as well as print Cons Tend to be larger models that take up more space Wireless printers Wi-fi connectivity is now a given for all but the cheapest printers, which still need to connect directly to your PC or laptop via a USB connection. In any case, it’s a feature worth paying for. Not only can you print from all the computers in your home, but many wireless printers will print from other devices, such as a smartphone or tablet. In fact, you can even print remotely, using bundled email-based ‘eprint’ services or services such as Google Cloud Print. Pros Allows you to print from smartphones, tablets and computers wirelessly Cons Traditionally more expensive, but prices have fallen Find a great wi-fi printer from our round-up of the Best wireless printers.

Photo printers: For Those Who Love the Camera

The term ‘photo printer’ covers a wide range. To some it means an A4 all-in-one that’s really good at printing photos. To others it’s a dedicated compact photo printer that only prints small photos, or at the other end of the scale it’s an A3 specialist photo printer with specially-designed photo cartridges and high-resolution print heads for lab quality photo prints. Photo printers in Ireland usually have memory card slots and a USB connection on the front, so you can plug in your camera’s memory card or connect the camera itself and print away, with or without a PC. An A4-sized printer is more versatile than a compact photo printer because it can handle other jobs as well. You can read more about the Best photo printers on our website. Optimised for photo-sized prints and you can’t guarantee a better print quality than a more flexible regular printer.

A3 printers: When It Comes to Larger Printouts

If you want to print large office documents, posters or photos to hang on your wall, then an A3 printer in Cork is the one for you. They cost more money and take up more desk space, but they can print on larger sheets of paper than your standard A4 printer. Some have a strong photographic or design focus. If you think your photos look good at A4 size, just think how good they’ll look at twice the size. Pros Ideal if you need to print at poster-size Cons Take up significant space compared to regular printers.