Dot Martix Printers: Worthy Review
Once a must-have companion in any IT environment, dot matrix printers are rapidly losing their market share to quiet and smooth printers that do not make an impact. Although the use of impact printers still exists, buyers are leaning more towards laser, thermal, or inkjet printers due to a variety of reasons.
Bad points
o The first and main reason is noise pollution, which is the main factor for preferring non-impact printers. Areas where bulk printing is required, dot matrix or impact printers make a lot of noise, greatly disrupting the office environment. In some cases, the printer has to run all day for certain printing tasks that cannot be stopped in the middle. For this reason, printers are placed in closed or confined areas to avoid noisy office environments. Even a small nine-pin printer can make noise that can reach great distances and annoy many workers.
o The output quality of impact printers is much lower than that of laser or ink jet printers. When it comes to graphic results, impact results are far behind in terms of quality. Also, using the ribbon leaves unwanted prints especially when you start to lose your ink. The impact also creates etched prints on thick papers that make it look unprofessional.
o The page speed per minute of non-impact printers exceeds the characters per second speed of a dot matrix printer. The problem dot matrix printer takes a long time to produce a completely filled page, causing delays in the office environment.
o The weight of such a printer is much more than laser or inkjet due to more mechanical parts. These mechanical parts are the main reason for noisy operations. Since the dot matrix consumes a lot of electricity, due to its mechanical design, it is generally avoided where a printer is needed for regular printing.
o Although EPSON, Star Micronics, and IBM impact-matrix printers performed well for years and still hold a larger share of the market, HP and Cannon are rapidly consuming their office share.
Positive points
o In recent days, the maintenance and recurring cost of printers has increased considerably. The main reason is a non-impact printer toner cartridge that has replaced the noisy but less expensive ribbon found in impact printers. Dot matrix printers are more profitable in terms of printing and recurring cost. Ribbons are inexpensive and can print many pages with very few refills.
o Dot matrix printers are ideal for receipt printing, especially when multiple copy printing is required. The printer head printing can create carbon copies of up to 3 or more in number of models. This reduces the cost of printing and makes these scenarios easier.
o Printer forms make life easier with no paper jams or line breaks. In case of printing thousands of invoices or invoices, there is no replacement for dot matrix printers.
o The lifespan of the pin printing is much longer than that of inkjet or thermal. Even if a paper is wet, the print will stay there for a considerable period.
o The dot matrix is still used for filling in figures on pre-printed forms, as it is the best option available for such a task.
o Offices that only need text printing should prefer dot matrix as their preferred option.
The review above is good for those who can’t decide whether to go for dot matrix or non-impact inkjet / laser / thermal printers.