Should I Get An Inkjet Printer or Laser Printer?

Which type of printer should I buy? Inkjet Printer or Laser Printer? This has been the most frequently asked question to us so let us try and address it in this article. We will firstly delve into each printer type, its mechanics and the pros and cons. Subsequently, we will do a head on comparison of the key factors for both printer types, then a summary to round it off.

Laser Printer

Laser printers were designed to print fast and print well. They handle large print volumes with ease and is a great companion for any business.

Mechanics

1. The printer’s laser beams your print onto a metal cylinder called a drum (click here to know the difference between drum and toner)
2. Using static electricity, the drum attracts powdered toner from its cartridge to the drum.
3. The drum rolls the toner onto the paper in the form of your print.
4. The toner is melted onto the paper by heat from a fuser as it passes underneath.
5. Your print comes out of the printer

The laser printer printing process is much more complex as compared to an inkjet printer and requires the many components in the laser printer to work hand in hand. For more info on the key components of a laser printer, click here

Pros

• High print quality
• Fast print speed
• Cleaner in Operation
• Lower print cost per page
• Less maintenance issues

Cons

• More expensive machine
• More expensive toner cartridge
• Bulkier and not as portable
• Not all print materials are suitable

Inkjet Printer

Inkjet printers were designed to print beautiful images with long lasting prints and excellent colour vibrancy. It handles image printing with great ease and is highly affordable in price. Various types of inkjet printers are available in the market like for photography, ink tank printers, ink cartridge printers.

Mechanics

Inkjet printers are less complex and are simpler in operation. Images and text are mainly printed from ink pumped out from the ink cartridge into the inkjet printer micro nozzles and subsequently sprayed onto the paper to form the desired print outs. Depending on printer type, the prints from inkjet printer are generally less sharp

Pros

• Smaller in size
• Good with images
• Cheaper ink cartridges
• Easier to operate
• Affordable printer
• Works on many paper materials

Cons

• Maintenance issues
• Slower print speed
• Lower quality prints

Inkjet Printer vs Laser Printer

Print Speed: The clear winner here is laser printer as it churns out way more and way faster as compared to inkjet printer. It handles large printing volume very well

Print Quality: Once again the winner is laser printer as the precision laser technology churns out crisp clear and fine prints for both black and colour

Image Printing: Inkjet printer will be the winner for this round as photography inkjet printers have thousands of micro nozzles that produces highly fine prints. This is coupled with the ability to accommodate different shades of colours which adds layers of colour vibrancy to the print outs. Inkjet has an edge here

Printer Size: Laser printer tends to be bulkier, heavier in size and large in dimensions. (In recent days there are lighter and more portable versions). However generally, laser printers are less portable. Inkjet printers is the winner for this factor

Printer Price: Generally, with an apple-to-apple comparison, laser printers definitely cost way more than an inkjet printer due to the technology employed. A multi-function colour laser printer price starts from about SGD$400 while for inkjet multifunction colour printer, you can get it within SGD$100. Inkjet wins this round (click here for cheap inkjet printer, click here for cheap colour laser printer)

Cartridge Price: On the surface, laser printer toners cost more. However, one should focus on the cost per page which is significantly lower than an ink cartridge cost. For short term low printing usage, inkjet printer cartridge will be cheaper while for mid to long term heavy volume printing, laser printer toner cartridge will be more economical. Shop here for cheap printer ink cartridge and toner cartridge!

Maintenance: Inkjet printers are notorious for their maintenance issues which is the nozzle clog due to 1001 factors. Laser printers on the other hand has its far share of issues too but less frequent and problematic as compared to the inkjet printer. I would personally favor laser printer for this round

Summary

It boils down to your printing needs, budget and print out expectations. If you are a home user, I would personally suggest to go for the inkjet printer to avoid burning a hole in your pocket (however please choose wisely. For our top 3 inkjet printer recommendations, click here). If you are a business owner, I would personally suggest you to go for the laser printer) (for our top 3 laser printer recommendations, click here)

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