Colour inkjet label printers offer an attractive solution when businesses are looking to move label production in house, they can offer cost savings and allow businesses the flexibility to produce customised colour labels on demand. When businesses are considering what colour inkjet label printer they should buy, they should take into account the below five considerations.
1) Pigment inks or Dye inks
Some inkjet printers use dye-based inks whilst others use pigment-based ink. Choosing between the two is an important consideration as the durability and colour vibrancy of the label print is determined by the ink used. Pigment inks offer good resistance to water, abrasion and UV light. Dye based inks contrastingly are water soluble and have low resistance to UV lights however they produce more vibrant colours than pigment inks. Pigment ink is recommended when labels are intended for outside use and for long life durability.
2) Printer speed
The print speed of an inkjet label printer is measured by milimetres of print per second. The print speed can vary greatly depending on the inkjet printer. The importance of print speed as a consideration depends on the volume of labels that are being printed. If thousands of labels are being printed per day, print speed will be an important consideration, it can be very frustrating if a printer is slowing production processes down and productivity. Contrastingly if a dozen labels are being printed per day, a fast print speed may not be an essential.
3) Print resolution
The resolution of an inkjet printer is measured by DPI (dots-per-inch, how many dots of ink can be printed per square inch). The higher the DPI of a printer the higher the resolution and print quality. As inkjet printers have varying DPI levels this is an important factor to consider when choosing a printer. The label design that is being printed will help determine the importance of DPI. If a label design contains very fine details and colour variations a printer with a high DPI will be required to produce a sharp image.
4) Label print width
Inkjet label printers have varying minimum and maximum label print widths. When choosing a label printer it’s important to know the label dimensions as this may rule out a number of inkjet printer models.
5) Features required
Inkjet label printers have varying features that depending on your label printing and label application requirements may be ideal. Some inkjet printers such as the Epson C3500 come with an inbuilt label cutter which can cut a continuous label roll to various sizes. This is a useful cost saving tool when there are various label sizes being printed. A feature which may be required for some applications is a built-in peeler which automatically removes the label backing paper, this feature is useful for print and apply applications.
We supply a wide range of colour inkjet label printers from leading brands including Afinia, Epson and Primera. If you are interested in purchasing one of our inkjet label printers and require additional support, our experienced and friendly team is here to help. Please list your enquiry details on our contact form and one of the team will get back to you.
