Printers

Computer Printers have evolved over the years from different types of
technologies. Impact or daisy wheel printers disappeared several years ago 
because they were slow and noisy, although excellent quality. 

Dot matrix printers come with 9 pin or 24 pin heads. They enjoyed a period of 
long popularity because they were affordable, had good quality, were relatively
fast, and there were large choices of fonts. 24 Pin printers were closer to 
letter quality, although some 9 pin printers were capable of double offset 
striking to make it look good. Although dot matrix printers are still 
manufactured, they are fadding in popularity because of newer technology. Dot 
matrix is still used for labels and non critical reports. Replacement ribbons
are usually available for most machines. Head replacement usualy approaches the 
worth of replacement.

Ink jet technology is the most popular today. Prices start at $250 and quality 
is very close to laser quality. HP and Canon are leaders in this technology.
For color work, the Epson Color Stylus Pro is the choice. Ink costs are much 
more than ribbons for dot matrix. A frequent user should keep a new spare ready 
as there is little warning when the cartridges go empty. Inactivity makes 
cartridges clog. A resolution of 300 dots is considered good, although newer 
units do much better.

Dye printers yield briliant color pictures. Fargo has a printer that is 
affordable using this process for under $1000. Some high end dye printers still 
cost $6000. 

Laser printers are top quality printers with some prices starting just above 
$400 for home use. These low end lasers generally don't hold up in office use. 
Better lasers for small office generally run $ 875 and up. HP is the leading 
manufacturer of lasers, but you should be aware of what your software requires.
Many customers have purchased low end lasers only to find that they do not work 
in a given application such as graphics or special fonts. Also, graphics and 
full page publishing may require special printer memory requirements. For 
years, 300 dots per inch resolution was considered good and acceptable. Newer 
lasers do 600 dot resolution. Some special laser printers have been available 
for years at much higher cost that do high resolution, 1200 plus dots such as 
made by LaserMaster.

Color laser printers are fast coming down in price, now about $ 6000. That is 
expected to drop way below this amount in the next 2 years. Color laser quality 
has also improved in recent models.