Rating of the best printers

Printing texts on paper, printing photographs and drawings remains relevant in the 2020s, despite all the development of electronic communications. But just come to the store and buy printing equipment is hardly reasonable. Be sure to get acquainted with the rating of the best printers and get a clear idea of ​​them.

Home and office printing devices are very different in design. It is important to understand that in any case, the image on paper will consist of dots of various sizes.... The specifics are primarily related to how exactly the image is transferred to paper, and what type of material is used to paint the surface. Also, the difference in purpose cannot be ignored.

Dot matrix printers are considered obsolete, but this is not entirely true. Yes, the performance of a mechanical printhead is not great. Yes, the quality of the image obtained in this way will not surprise anyone, even in the best case.

An inkjet printer works in much the same way. However, the needles have been replaced with a die that has very fine holes. Dotted paint sprays create the desired image. Ink is usually housed in cartridges that must be purchased separately. There are separate models with continuous ink supply, which use reservoirs connected to the printing part by thin capillaries. Refilling ink tanks is more cost effective and easier than replacing cartridges.

Laser printing involves the use of an electromagnetic charge... The laser beam only applies a pulse to the drum unit. The coloring compound will adhere to the charged points of the drum. When the drum moves, it is transferred to paper or other material. When the picture is formed, it is fixed by warming it up in a special unit to a temperature of about 200 degrees.

It is recommended to use inkjet printers for home, and laser printers for office and other office use.... There is simply no sense in buying matrix devices for an ordinary consumer. In offices, multifunctional devices are most often used, in which a scanner, a printer, a copier, and sometimes a fax are connected. Sometimes they install high-speed black-and-white printers without additional components. But usually they try to use both just printers and MFPs in order to flexibly solve diverse tasks.

Those who plan to engage in outdoor advertising (poster, poster), it is advisable to buy large-format printers. For technical purposes (output of drawings, diagrams, maps, and so on), it is necessary to use plotters (plotters). It is impossible to use such a technique in a private house or apartment.... One could also talk about sublimation, marking and other highly specialized types of printers.

An inkjet printer can have quite a wide range of applications. However, the whole thing is spoiled by his increased moodiness. Only with regular use can you not be afraid that the paint will dry out and damage the cartridge. Inkjet printing is not compatible with very thin or very thick paper.And finally, the cost of obtaining a print, taking into account the cost of refilling or replacing cartridges (and even CISS), is quite tangible.

The laser device can output images quickly enough. For him, printing at a speed of 10-20 pages per minute is quite normal. There is more noise than inkjet printing, but the functionality is much higher. Such a technique can safely use a wide variety of types of paper, and the requirements for density and thickness are also much less stringent.

Many tens and even hundreds of manufacturers are engaged in the production of printers. But only comparatively few of them made it to the top of the best and are confidently staying there. Among them, it is worth noting the corporation Lexmark. It is focused mainly on large consumers, but its products are not yet in particular demand in the private segment. Judging by the reviews, you will have to choose such a printer very carefully, and if problems arise with debugging, you will need the participation of the company's service engineer.

In the purely household segment, printer technology deserves attention. Panasonic. But it should be borne in mind that the main assortment of this company falls on MFPs and printer-fax bundles, and not on individual printers. Panasonic devices are easy to operate and very functional. The print quality is quite decent. In addition, the company strives to continuously improve its products and add additional features to them.

In general, users note:

• attractive design;

• support for advanced interfaces;

• use of duplex printing;

• comparative compactness;

• small assortment;

• periodic problems with repairs (which is compensated in part by increased reliability).

Products of another Asian brand compete confidently with Panasonic printers - Samsung... They are also flawlessly suited to the requirements of the press of the XXI century. Such models are inexpensive, have a decent printed resource. The speed of displaying texts and images, monthly productivity and other relevant parameters are at a decent level, but there is no need to wait for any records. In general, Samsung equipment falls into the niche of “home workhorses”.

The next manufacturer on the list is Toshiba... Japanese developers have accumulated vast experience and at one time confidently competed even with Epson. But even today this company can offer a chic range of inkjet printers. She also releases:

• photo printers;

• small format printing equipment;

• widescreen models;

• business-oriented devices;

• label models;

• MFPs with excellent scanners.

Of course, talking about printers and not mentioning Epson would be the height of rashness. This is also a Japanese company that can offer the consumer solutions in the field of photo printing, large format printing. The special technology helps to print for many hours in a row without the accumulation of harmful substances in the air. Therefore, Epson printers are readily purchased by advertising, publishing organizations, educational institutions and copying service centers.

Printers of the brand confidently fall into the elite category Kyocera... For their manufacture, selected materials are used, and the design itself is designed for long-term operation. The technique of this brand confidently copes with even the most difficult practical tasks. In addition, it works quite economically and can be distinguished by its duplex function, working with many formats.

But still, other companies are among the top three leaders in the household segment:

• Canon;

• HP;

• Xerox.

Cheap devices themselves appear in this category. But it is important to understand that the cost per cartridge can greatly affect the actual cost of ownership. An honored representative of such a budget group of printers is Canon Pixma TS304. The color device has a full-fledged photo printing function. Wi-Fi data exchange is supported.

Technical specifications:

• A4 print format;

• elementary drop 1 picoliter;

• color printing of a 10x15 picture in 65 seconds;

• the ability to work in the MacOS environment;

• paper tray for 60 sheets.

A worthy example of inexpensive printers will be a laser machine. HP LaserJet Pro M104a... Detailing is 1200 dpi, which allows you to create a very high-quality picture. The hopper holds up to 150 sheets. A processor with a clock frequency of 600 MHz and 128 MB of RAM are quite acceptable for most practical tasks.

An inkjet model confidently falls into this category. Epson L120. The device performs equally well both at home and in the office. Similar to the previous model, it is supported for use in the macOS environment. Fastest print speed - up to 8.5 pages per minute. Its useful to note:

• the presence of CISS;

• 50-sheet tray;

• work with paper with a density of 64 to 95 g per 1 sq. m;

• resolution of color printing 720 dpi.

A mid-range laser printer is, for example, Brother HL-L2340DWR... The device will be ready for operation 9 seconds after starting. The maximum print speed is 26 pages per minute. Sound volume no more than 49 dB.

This category includes primarily devices of the Kyocera brand. Laser printer FS-9530DN most optimal for smooth office work. The designers have carefully selected the most durable and resistant materials. The sound volume during operation does not exceed 51 dB, which guarantees a normal working microclimate. Technical capabilities and properties:

• two-sided printing;

• black and white output only;

• resolution at 1200 dpi;

• monochrome display;

• built-in memory for 128-640 MB;

• use of CF memory cards;

• weight 68 kg.

The printer model also fell into the elite category. Xerox VersaLink C7000N... It also features 1200 dpi resolution. It is also worth noting the excellent quality of the toner used. The paper tray holds 620 sheets, so you can use the printer for a long time. The 320 GB hard disk will accurately accommodate all the data you need to print.

But focusing simply on the price group is hardly reasonable. It is required to understand why it is planned to take a specific device. So, for the pupil and for the student, the price of a print is in the first place. Consumables are slightly less expensive than a new printer itself. The best option is a machine that will inexpensively print about 100 sheets per week.

Experts recommend taking only inkjet models for study. They are relatively inexpensive and easy to use. But it is important to understand the difference between a piezoelectric and a thermojet device. Piezo inkjet systems deliver cold ink to the paper using electrical impulses alone.

Therefore, a piezoelectric printer is best suited for working with ordinary text documents. The next important criterion is the performance of the print head. Canon, HP equip the cartridges themselves with such heads. This solution is not very durable and is only suitable for those who are not going to print a lot of different texts. If you plan to print not only texts, but also images, the color of the printer becomes very important.

You need to focus on products with 5 or more working colors... A standard budget machine handles no more than 4 cartridges. But you need to understand that models with 7 or more colors will require fabulous refueling costs, and the difference can be fully caught only when using special paper.

Selection of aqueous ink for a "pigment" printer is possible, however, this is the prerogative of specialists. The reverse transition is not possible. The disadvantage of water-based ink is that it burns out quickly in bright sunlight.But they are richer in color and are much cheaper, and also slowly thicken even with a rare print (although this property, of course, should not be abused).

It is often said that a continuous ink supply system is more economical than traditional ink cartridges. However, in reality, the resource of each printer model must be calculated individually. Therefore, such comparisons are only suitable for orientation. However, models with CISS are more convenient.

But for printing images, you need a borderless output function. Important: printers with Wi-Fi are of the same quality as traditional wired models, but they are much more convenient to use.... For home use, it is often recommended to buy printing equipment without considering performance. But this is not very reasonable for students, teachers, working with texts at home. Of course, you need to purchase the printer either from an authorized supplier or from a major electronics department store.

A video review of the best inkjet printers is presented in the video below.