Today, there is a wide variety of printers with many different features to choose from in the market. However, every print device will fall into one of two categories: inkjet or laser. These two types of devices operate in very different ways.
• Inkjet printers use a system of tiny nozzles to spray liquid ink onto the paper.
• Laser printers use a toner cartridge filled with powdered ink and a heated fuser.
Both technologies have pros and cons. Here are our top three reasons why a laser printer wins over an inkjet printer.
- Speed of Output – Laser printers are much faster than inkjet printers. They’re built to handle the workload of a busy workplace, so they’re designed to print much faster—laser printers can print between 20 to 100 pages per minute or ppm. Inkjet printers are slower, averaging out at about 16 ppm.
- Volume – Laser printers can produce a significantly larger volume of printed documents when compared to an inkjet. They also produce sharp, high-quality text output. In fact, laser printers are the workhorse for many offices precisely because they’re capable of printing large amounts of documents quickly. Typically, an inkjet is meant for the home office or personal use; their print volume is much smaller. Paper trays typically hold a maximum of 50 to 100 sheets of paper.
- Per Page Costs – The per-page costs for toner printers are much lower when compared to the per-page cost of inkjet output. Liquid ink is expensive, with even the least expensive ink priced at around $13 per ounce… more than twice as much as Dom Perignon Champagne. The cost per page for a black and white inkjet print is between 5 and 10 cents, depending on the printer—color inkjet printing costs even more, about 15 to 25 cents per print. A laser printer’s per-page cost is much lower. The cost per page of a black and white print for a typical laser printer is less than 5 cents. And color laser output costs around 15 cents per page.
The bottom line…
It really comes down to your buyer’s specific needs. For an office that creates a large volume of printed documents or a home user that produces a large number of text documents, a laser printer is the most economical choice over the long term.
For the other side of the discussion, read our blog “Three Reasons to Choose an Inkjet Over a Laser Printer.”
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