The Laser color model of network printers sells like hot cake in the electronic market. Network Inkjets are also available from various outlets but their demand is relatively lower as most of them tend to have lower printing speeds. However, a few Inkjet printers can produce high quality outputs while maintaining sufficient performance levels.
Given that color Laser printers are best suited for small office and business needs, buyers must always ensure that they choose the product that suits their budgets and needs such as printing volumes, printing speed and resolution, to mention a few. Some manufacturers add a dose of salt to the features and capabilities of various printers but the truth is that many laser printers churn out averagely good specs and speeds. They are designed for quality printing with toner ink which typically calls for lesser costs compared to inkjet printers.
Below are a few questions buyers should first analyze as they select their most appropriate printers for network needs:
i. How are the printer access controls?
There is need to control how a printer is used and who should access it. A number of network printers offer support for sophisticated accessibility controls that allows business owners/admin to control and monitor the individual users in each department and restrict how and when they should access some of the expensive features such as printing in color, bulk printing, duplexing and more when necessary.
Some network printers only allow data access from USB memory stick storage and not the PC while others may prompt users to enter a password in order to add a file in the print queue. This is an excellent security tip as all workgroups in the network will only send secure files and documents for printing.
ii. What are the printing costs?
The Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is a very important point one should analyze before choosing an appropriate network printer. With thousands of color or black and white pages being printed each month, costs of ink can vary depending on the type of machines and color of the cartridge or toner. Printing more color printouts is more costly compared to black and white printouts. To cut down printing costs, users can choose to reduce paper usage as well as the volumes of color prints.
Printers that feature the duplexing feature allow users to print papers on both sides and this helps users save time in the process and halve the cost of printing by 50% or higher.