Printers are machines that take information from a computer screen and put it onto a piece of paper. This can be text, say from a typed document, or graphics, like images from a digital camera. Originally, this was all that could be printed, but now, anything seen on a computer screen can be printed, allowing users to make newspapers, wedding invitations or even mixed-media paintings. Of course, like a pen needs ink to write, a printer needs something to put on the paper, and in the printer’s case it’s either printer ink or toner.

Toner is a black powder that bonds to paper when heated, so pages printed from these printers come out warm. Photocopy machines commonly use this process as well. You may have noticed warm photocopies in the past. Printers that use toner are called laser printers. Here, a laser draws an image onto a printing drum. This drum attracts toner from a cartridge and rolls the toner onto a piece of paper. These printers tend to be more expensive than printers that use ink, however, the cost per page printed is significantly less in this method. This is the advantage of using toner. When these printers run out of toner, the cartridge is replaced with a new one, and the old cartridge is sent in for recycling. Refilling a toner cartridge is generally not done. In the past, toner was refilled by pouring the powder directly into the machine, but it was very mess and most printers use cartridges now. Due to their cost-effectiveness, laser printers using toner are generally used in businesses that create a large number of documents.

Printers that use ink are called ink-jet printers. Here, an ink cartridge moves from side to side and shoots out ink onto the paper. These write text or draw a picture line by line. Usually, these printers have one ink cartridge for black ink, and another for magenta, yellow and cyan (or blue) ink, allowing full color printing. When the cartridges run out of ink, they need to be replaced or refilled with printer ink. However, some manufacturers do not recommend refilling used cartridges. Ink-jet printers are generally good for home use, excelling in printing out digital pictures. Though ink-jet printers are very inexpensive, the cost of printer ink can add up quickly if high volume printing is required.

To summarize, there are two types of printers – ink-jet printers that use ink cartridges, and laser printers, which use toner cartridges. Knowing which type of printer you have will tell you what you need to purchase. Or, just write down the make and model of your printer, bring it to an office supply store, and they will bring you what you need.

Tags: toner, toner cartridges

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 15th, 2009 at 1:02 pm and is filed under Buying Tips.