Printers

What types of printers are best suited for small businesses?

When running a small business, chances are you’re not going to need an industrial, heavy-duty printer unless you actually run a printing business yourself. 

In general, most small businesses will be well-accounted for with a simple printer that includes the more typical features you’d expect - colour and black-and-white printing, colour and B&W photocopying, and scanning.

If the printer is mostly being used to print text documents, then an affordable laser printer may be the way to go. On the other hand, if you’re printing out different graphic designs and images, then the richer colours and deep blacks of an inkjet printer will likely be a more ideal choice.

How Do I Choose an Office Printer? What Features Should I Look For?

Making the right choice for your office printer will, as with all other things, depend on what you use the printer for and how frequently you use it.

If you need to print hundreds of pages (if not thousands) every day, then you’ll want to opt for a more industrial-style multifunction printer that can easily print a sizeable number of sheets per minute. Laser printers are faster than inkjet printers, so will enable faster turnaround times for prints. This is certainly a point to be mindful of.

There’s also the matter of what you print. If you mostly print out reports, documents, or any text-heavy pieces of work, then laser printers are a great fit for such documents. But if you print design works (graphic design, ad designs, newborn photography, etc.), the greater colour definition and saturation offered by an inkjet printer is often the better choice on this front.

Price is another factor - not just the cost of the printer, but of the ink or toner you need. Generally, inkjet printers have a cheaper initial cost, but the amount you spend on ink can lead to some pretty big costs down the line. Laser printers and their toners are more expensive when starting off, but they’re more economical over time. Laser toner lasts much longer than ink cartidges. So, while toner costs more, it also lasts substantially longer, leading to cost benefits over the long term.

Now, if you want a high degree of precision in the print work you do, this is where PostScript printers come in. These can be popular in businesses that specialise in work that needs to be exact. This can include graphic design, architecture, and publishing professionals. 

PostScript printers can be either laser or inkjet, with their key difference being the precision that’s afforded to their printing thanks to the support of Adobe PostScript, which is a page description language that makes such high-precision prints possible.

PostScript printers are the most expensive thanks to their advanced processing power and high-quality graphics handling. They also make use of professional-grade components and involve licensing fees to support Adobe PostScript.

Outside of the key feature differences, also consider if you need photocopying and scanning capabilities, as well as the potential necessity of wifi or Bluetooth connectivity for wireless operations.

Can I Print on Different Types of Media with My Office Printer?

Outside of different sheet sizes (A4 vs A3 vs A5, etc.), you may be wondering if printers can handle different types of media or materials with printing. For most printers, they’ll be able to handle different types of paper (e.g. standard A4 printing paper and glossy printing paper). This can include different forms of printable vinyl, roll-up banners, and so on.

Obviously, if you want a printer that can handle larger or more specific sizes of paper, you’ll need to ensure that such custom dimensions are part of the printer's capabilities. 

What are the Environmental Considerations for Using Office Printers?

Printing, as with any office activity, does have a certain impact on the environment. After all, you’re making use of paper, energy, and different chemicals that are necessary for printing.

But there are also simple things you can do to lessen your impact. Consider the following:

• Use print paper that’s made partially or entirely from recycled paper or more sustainable materials such as bamboo.

• Many printers include eco options that may lower their power usage or optimise prints to use less ink or toner for similar end results.

• When printing, consider printing double-sided to halve how much paper you’re using up at any one time.

• You may also be able to find eco-conscious inks and toners (such as vegetable-based inks) that are renewable and avoid compounds that could be potentially harmful in terms of carbon footprint.

How Do I Properly Maintain My Office Printer?

Many printers these days will handle much of their maintenance themselves through self-cleaning functionalities and the ability to notify you when there are other issues (jammed or missing paper, the presence of dust or particles, etc.).

In the event you do need to maintain your printer yourself, it’s best to refer to the included instruction manual or visit the manufacturer’s website for more information. 

They’ll provide guidance on how to clean the printer heads, how to safely remove dust particles (oftentimes a low-powered hand vacuum does the trick), how to redistribute ink or toner if certain colours aren’t printing correctly, and so on.

It’s best to avoid any improvised solutions. Make sure you’re maintaining your printer in accordance with the best practices stated by the manufacturer.

What Security Measures Should I Take for Office Printers?

Almost all modern printers operate through wireless connections, typically facilitated through your wifi. While this can make broader connectivity around the office simpler, it also presents security risks to be mindful of. These could include cybercriminals being able to infiltrate your network through weak endpoint security (such as a printer) and using that point of access to then infiltrate other devices and information on the network.

Some measures to consider include:

• Limiting access and printer operation times - if there are people in your office who do not require access to the printer, don’t provide access. This limits the number of potential access points that could be compromised. Similarly, when office hours are over, set your printer to shut down and disconnect from the wifi.

• Ensure your printer’s software and firmware updates happen consistently - these often address operational issues as well as potential security flaws that could allow an outside party to gain access.

• If you’re regularly printing sensitive information (or even if you’re not), it’s a good idea to ensure the printing history on your printer is cleared out regularly. Failing to do so could allow someone (including outsiders) to potentially access sensitive files or data.

• Through the use of printer tracking software, you can keep a record that’s separate from the printer of what’s been printed, the time it was printed, and who printed it. This allows you to know if and when sensitive information has exchanged hands and if any suspicious activity has occurred within your company.