Considering Small Printers

By John Bassinger

Not so very long ago, when you wanted to travel with a printer, that meant that some truly impressive travel arrangements had to be made. You might be stuck with something the size of a small desk that would need constant support and attention. You might have been using an ink jet printer or a thermal printer.

All of these had drawbacks; thermal printers had special paper requirements, and their output often looked strange. Inkjets had lovely output, but would be temperamental about changes in temperature, humidity or just being jostled; you ended up spending more time clearing the heads with the head cleaning utility than you ever did printing. Plus, the cost per page went through the roof.

On the other hand, you might have had a laptop printer that would last you about three months and need a lot of care for those three months. They might not have been great solutions, and from hearing the IT departments grumble, they were a pain to support as well!

Happily enough, all the recent changes in technology did not leave printers behind. Desktop printers shrunk from 70-pound monsters down to 20 pounds and smaller. Ink jet and lasers printers have shrunk and ink jets have gotten much more stable as to how they can deal with their environment.

The real champ in all of this, however, is the laser printer. These small personal printers that were originally marketed for college students who were short on space are pretty impressive and when you think about the fact that they can print 12 pages per minute, have good durability styles and can fit inside a suitcase, you know that you have a winner.

When you are looking at a laser printer when it comes to consumables means that you get rates of about 7 cents per page; this is when you are looking at black and white pages with about 10 percent coverage. Remember that if you want something more like photo printing, the cost will go up, but in many ways, the quality is worth it.

The nice thing about these printers is that they are small. Our own HP 1006 Personal LaserJet is just a bit larger than a toaster and when we're off to the trade shows, we can print out data sheets and sales reports for our customers. It measures in the neighborhood of 14'' wide by 18'' deep by 9'' tall and it fits happily into its box.

The pass through tray is something of an annoying thing to deal with, but you really don't need it at all. Getting set up is simple, the functionality is excellent and the low cost of the consumables make this a perfect tool for anyone who needs to travel and print while they are on the road! - 29854

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