Printer and its types.
The device that are attached to a computer system to enhance its capabilities is called
computer peripheral. Peripherals include input devices, output devices, storage devices and communications devices.
Printer
An output device that produces text and graphics on paper is
called printer. It is used to produce hard copy output. There are 2 types of
printer.
● Impact
printer
●
Non-impact printer
Impact
printers
An impact printer has mechanisms resembling those of a
typewriter. It forms characters or images by striking by a hammer or wheel
against an inked ribbon, leaving an image on paper. Examples: Dot-matrix
Printer, Daisy wheel printer etc.
Dot- Matrix
printer
A more common type of microcomputer impact printer is the
dot-matrix printer, which contains a print head of small pin that strikes an
inked ribbon forming characters or images print heads are available with 9, 18
or 24 pins, with the 24 pin head offering the best print quality.
It is noisy and not good for continuous printing but it can
print multi-pages i.e. it is possible to use carbon papers to get extra copies
of the same document. It is flexible it does not have fixed characters font. As
the font is not fixed, a dot matrix printer can print any shape of character.
Merits of
Dot Matrix Printer
●
Can print on multi parts forms or carbon copies
●
Low printing cost per page
●
Reliable, durable
Demerits of
Dot Matrix Printer
●
Noisy
●
Limited print quality
●
Low printing speed
●
Limited color printing
Non-Impact
printer
Non- Impact printer is faster and quieter than impact
printer because they have fewer moving parts. It forms characters and images
without making direct physical contact between printing mechanism and paper.
Example: - Laser printer, Ink -Jet printer
Inkjet
Printer
It is a non-impact character printer. Like dot-matrix
printer, ink-jet printer also form images with little dots, but the dots are
much smaller and more numerous. It sprays small, electrically charged droplets
of ink from four nozzles through holes in a matrix at high speed onto paper.
Most color printing is done on ink-jet because the nozzles can hold for
different colors, CMYK (Cyan (blue-green),Magenta (Purple-red), Yellow and
Black, other colors are derived by the combination of these four colors. It is
even quieter than laser printer and procedures and equally high-quality images.
Merits of
Inkjet Printer
●
They are high quality of output, capable of printing fine
and smooth details.
●
They are capable of printing in color, good for printing
pictures.
●
They are fast and easy to use.
●
They are quieter than dot matrix printer.
Demerits of
Inkjet Printer
●
Print head is less durable.
●
Expensive replacement ink cartridge
●
Not good for high volume printing
●
Printing speed is not as fast as laser printer
Laser
Printer
Laser printer is a non-impact printer, page printer. An
entire page is processed at a time. It produces high quality print. Print
resolution ranges from 300 to more than 2400 dpi (dot per inch). It is
expensive than other printer.
Similar to a photocopying machine, a laser printer uses the
principle of dot-matrix printers in creating dot-like images. However, these
images are created on a drum, treated with a magnetically charged ink powder
known as toner, and then transferred from drum to paper.
There are good reasons why laser printers are the most
common type of non-impact printer. They produce sharp, crisp images of both
text and graphics. They are quieter and faster than dot-matrix printer. They
can print 4-20 pages per minute for individual micro-computers.
Merits of
Laser Printer
●
They are high resolution
●
They are having high print speed
●
They are low cost per page (compared to inkjet printers)
●
They are good for high volume printing
Demerits of
Laser Printer
● They are more expensive than inkjet
printer
● Warm up time is needed
● The cost of toner replacement and
drum replacement is high
● They are less capable of printing
vivid colors and high quality images such as photos.
