If you're considering buying an inkjet printer for your home or home office, you're in good company. Inkjets are used in more homes today than any other type of printer.
But what factors and features do you need to consider when choosing one inkjet over another? This article will help you get started.
Advantages at a glance
First of all, inkjet printers are afforable. If you need a color printer and are on a budget, an inkjet printer is the way to go. In addition to printing in color (which is great for presentations and digital images), many inkjets print black–and–white text that comes very close to laser printers in quality. There's a wide range of inkjets to choose from, depending not only on your price range, but also on your individual need for speed and print quality.
Key considerations
First, think of the environment in which you'll be using your printer. Will you be printing solely from your own computer, or will you be connected to a workgroup with multiple computers? If part of a workgroup, you'll need a higher–end inkjet with its own memory.
If you're producing publications or CAD documents, you'll most likely need a wide–format inkjet that can handle paper large enough for 11 x 17–inch printing. If you're constantly on the go, you'll want to consider a lightweight, portable printer.
Photos are another consideration. Are you looking for the latest color technology? Are you looking for a printer that will print photos directly from your digital camera's memory card? You can find inkjet photo printers designed specifically for each of these uses.
Speed requirements
Inkjet printer speeds vary greatly, depending on whether you are printing straight black text, mixed black text and color graphics, or colorful photographs (as you might expect, text prints faster than photos). You can find inkjets that will print black text at speeds ranging from 5 pages per minute (ppm) to up to17 pages per minute. Color documents can be printed at speeds from 2 ppm to up to 14 ppm.
Paper size and capacity
Will printing letter–sized paper (8 1/2 x 11) fit all of your needs, or will you also need to print legal–sized (8 1/2 x 14) documents? Most printers can handle both. Some inkjets can also print paper wider than letter size, from 11 x 17–inch to 13 x 19–inch pages.
Inkjets typically hold between 100–500 pages of paper (extra trays are optional with some models). Special tray configurations are also available. The greater the tray capacity, the less often you'll need to bother with refilling.
When shopping for an inkjet printer, make sure it's compatible with your computer. Today, however, most inkjet printers are compatible with both PC and Macintosh.
Resolution
Several inkjet printers provide a color resolution of up to 2400 x 1200 dpi (dots per inch). The general perception is that the higher the dpi, the sharper the output will be. However, this is not always the case. Resolution is not only about the number dots; it's also about how the dots are placed. That is, the quality, accuracy and precision of the dot placement is just as important as dpi.
Many HP printers offer up to 2400 x 1200 dpi (on premium photo paper) as well as Enhanced Color Layering Technology from PhotoREt III (Resolution Enhancement Technology). PhotoREt III is an alternative print mode for 2400 x 1200 dpi that prints much faster and with visibly the same exceptional print quality. This technology produces brighter, crisper, more realistic colors and sharper details. With color layering, drops are precisely layered or blended within the space of a single drop to create more color for each dot. Also, more drops of ink are packed into each printed dot, so HP's printers are capable of printing more colors. At 3500 colors, they print five times as many as our previous line of inkjets. More levels of color create more accurate colors with fewer dots per inch. With less data to process between the computer and the printer, printing is faster.
Connectivity
As you get close to making a printer purchase, you'll need to check the connectivity. Make sure there's an available port on your computer to match the port on your inkjet printer. Most printers, but not all, provide both parallel and USB interfaces.
Sharing a printer in a network environment is another consideration. Some printers are network–ready right out of the box.
Are you into digital photography? Many inkjets, including HP's Photosmart Printers, allow you to print directly from your digital cameras memory card. No computer required!
Using wireless (infrared) connectivity, photos and files can be sent directly to HP's printers from HP digital cameras, personal digital assistants (PDAs), Windows CE devices, and laptops. This "beam and print" connectivity moves information faster than a serial connection and is comparable to a USB connection.
Important Note: Printer cables must usually be purchased separately from the printer. This enables you to personally select the type (USB, parallel) and length of cable you need.
Hewlett Packard, © 2002.
