Tag: Printers and Scanners

Introduction

I am now reviewing the Brother MFC-7360N monochrome multifunction laser printer which is part of a series of newly-released monochrome-laser multifunction printers released by this company. This unit is positioned as a “step-up” model above the MFC-7360 entry-level direct-connect model. The midrange model in this series is the MFC-7460DN which can print on both sides of the page as well as become future-proof by supporting T.37-compliant Internet faxing. The top-shelf model is the MFC-7860DW which also has 802.11g WPA2 WPS-compliant Wi-Fi connectivity and can accept output from smartphones and tablets equipped with the Brother iPrint&Scan app.

They all have the same new “compact monochrome laser” print engine as the Brother HL-2240D printer that I previously reviewed and its peers such as the HL-2270DN network model that I also recommend. Here, this xerographic-print engine is a full laser type and can yield a simplex print speed of 24 pages per minute.

Prices

Printer

The machine’s standard price: AUD$349.99

Inks and Toners

Servicing and Other Parts (Laser Printers)

The printer itself

This unit uses the typical control panel layout as common with most machines in its class but the LCD display could benefit from backlighting. Here, I had to set the display contrast to maximum to gain best readability; and is something that could be improved upon.

Control panel

Setup

This unit has the same Brother fax-setup wizard with one name and fax number as a station ID, so you don’t have to determine a separate station ID for transmitting and receiving. It also can work properly with a dedicated fax line or a shared fax line, whether through a distinctinve ring (Faxstream Duet) setup or a CNG-detect arrangement.

It can be set up on an Ethernet (or HomePlug) network with plug-and-play operation for most small networks and is IPv6 ready. Of course, when the time comes to enable the network for IPv6, the user just has to go to the Network menu on the control panel and select “IPv6” and set that to “On” before turning the unit off and on in order to have it as part of the IPv6 network.

It could benefit from NTP-based Internet time synchronisation with time-zone selection so the user doesn’t have to set the clock when they set up or shift this machine or after a power blackout.

Walk-up functions

This unit has the basic copy and fax functions, and allows walk-up scanning to network-connected computers only. Here, the host computer needs to run Brother-supplied scan monitor software

The more-expensive models; the MFC7460DN and MFC-7860DW, have the ability to support scan-to-email and T.37-compliant Internet-fax endpoint functionality. These features should be available across the range as we move away from the circuit-based telephone setup towards packet-based telephony.setups courtesy of the next-generation broadband infrastructure plans.

Automatic Document Feeder with document loaded

The printer’s automatic document feeder may look as though it is missing something because of the absence of the paper input tray. But this tray is actually the lid that swings open to the right when you use the document feeder. This is infact a style that is becoming common with Brother small-business multifunction printers that have this feature; and allows for a machine to look more neater. It also assures more reliable operation of the document feeder because the input chute isn’t always exposed to dust and other foreign objects.

Computer functions

The software is very easy and trouble-free to load and has that same “at-a-glance” view for the print job settings that all of the Brother printer drivers have always had. As well, it makes proper use of the Windows 7 Device Stage for managing the printer’s functionality.

This is in fact where you manage the printer’s unobtrusive and reliable scan monitor software, which has been a sore point with many of the multifunction devices that I have used and reviewed. Here, you can determine what form the image file should be and which application should open the file.

Print Quality

The Brother MFC-7360N, like the previously-reviewed HL-2240D and others based on the same print engine, does the job properly by starting quickly and turning each page out quickly. Like most laser printers and multifunction units, it requires the user to press tie Start button after they replenish the paper tray during a print job.

The print quality is as sharp as expected for a monochrome laser printer especially when it comes to turning out documents. For photographs, it will reproduce the images as expected for black-and-white images when set to 600dpi in the print driver but can have issues with image contrast especially at higher dpi settings. Luckily, the printer didn’t complain of memory overload when I sent through the 1200dpi photo print job but it yielded an image that appeared too dark and with little contrast.

It also the similar consumables to the HL-2240D and requires the user to take the drum-unit assembly out and detach the toner cartridge from the assembly to replace the toner. This of course will have the same room for error by allowing the drum unit to be exposed to dirt unless it is on a clean surface when the user replaces the toner.

Limitations and Points Of Improvement

One improvement that I would like to see for the range would be to have the LCD display showing a high-contrast image. This could be augmented by having the display backlit during operation even with just a basic LED arrangement; akin to what is done with the HL-4150CDN.

There is still the common issue that this machine has with other Brother printers based on the new compact monochrome laser-printer engine that can impair the useability. This is where the user has to remove the drum unit from the printer to replace the toner. It could be improved upon with a similar arrangement to what is used for the colour lasers where the drum unit assembly is pulled out like a drawer so the user can replace the toner cartridge.

The feature limitations like the lack of duplex printing and inability to support Internet-based faxing may be necessary to keep the printer as a step-up model within the multifunction range.

Conclusion and Placement Notes

This printer can work well as an entry-level or supplementary monochrome laser printer where basic copying, scamming and faxing are desired. But I would recommend the MFC-7460DN, which is the model above it, if you expect to do a lot of document printing or place value on having future-proof Internet fax abilities.

Introduction

I am reviewing the Brother HL-2240D monochrome laser printer which is the second in line in Brother’s latest series of compact monochrome laser printers. There is a cheaper version of this printer, the HL-2230, which doesn’t have the auto-duplex functionality. On the other hand, the HL-2250DN and HL-2270DW printers have the same functionality as this model but can be connected to an Ethernet network or HomePlug powerline network with the appropriate adaptors; with the latter model being able to be connected to a Wi-Fi network as well.

It is also worth noting that the HL-2270DW model, which is the Wi-Fi-enabled top-shelf model of the series had won the Buyer’s Laboratory “Pick” Award for A4 SOHO printers.

Prices

Printer

Recommended Retail Price: AUD$149

Inks and Toners

Servicing and Other Parts (Laser Printers)

The printer itself

Like its low-end laser-printer peers, the Brother HL-2240D and its stablemates are very compact printers that is very shallow, slightly higher than two large-city telephone directories stacked on top of each other. This means that the printed documents are easy to reach from one’s chair and it doesn’t take up much bench space.

Usage experience

The software that came with the printer had installed on my computer very properly and had operated true to the Windows 7 specifications. As well, the user-interface screens for the driver are very easy to use, being able to show on the left side the settings you have implemented for your print job. This is a very similar experience that I had with the driver software that I had for the Brother HL-4150CDN colour laser printer when I reviewed that unit; and has demonstrated to me that Brother has made strong efforts with their software’s useability.

The Brother HL-2240D printer and printers based on this similar print engine take between 6 to 8 seconds to warm up and be ready to print. It doesn’t matter if this printer has been just used or not.

There is a significant time penalty with this printer for duplex printing, where the machine will take twice as long to turn out documents. This is because it can handle only one page at a time through a duplex print cycle; and will likely be a problem with compact laser printers that use this feature.

The printer uses a manual feed slot for labels, transparencies, envelopes and similar material and these materials have to be loaded one at a time. There may be some materials that have to pass through the printer in a straight-through manner similar to the old photocopier or original Apple LaserWriter printer. Here, there is a drop-down hatch on the back of the printer to cater for these requirements.

There isn’t a “fuel-gauge” for the toner, a feature I would find useful when working out the effect of a large print run on the machine’s toner supplies. The only way the user knows if the printer is out of toner is through the “TONER” light on the top of the machine flashing when it is very low and this same light glowing steadily when they need to replace the toner.

What is required to be removed to replace the toner on these printers

When you have to replace the toner cartridge on the Brother HL-2240D and its peers, you have to remove the drum unit from the machine then release the toner cartridge from the drum unit by operating a small green latch on the left side of the drum unit. This process can appear to be very fiddly compared to other laser printers that I have reviewed, where you could just simply pull out the spent toner cartridge from the printer after opening the access door / lid and, in the case of the colour lasers, pulling out a drawer. It is also prone to mistakes and reduced printout quality if the user doesn’t know where to “park” the drum unit while replacing the toner cartridge.

Toner Cartridge detached from drum unit

Print Quality

The output quality is what you would expect from a laser printer when it comes to text, with the sharp lettering that is typical of this class of printer. But give it a photograph to be printed in greyscale and you will have some banding across the page. As well, the pictures come out slightly darker even though they are printed on plain paper. This is usually due to these printers having their prowess anchored around document printing.

Limitations and Points Of Improvement

An improvement that I would like to see would be an easier-to-replace toner cartridge. This is where the drum unit can be pulled out just enough to remove and replace the toner cartridge without the need to operate any catches.

Similarly, these printers could benefit from an on-machine or driver-based toner “fuel gauge” indicator. This is so that one can know where they are at with the toner supply for their units.

Conclusion and Placement Notes

I would recommend that the Brother HL-2240D or HL-2250DN printers be considered for applications like most small medical or legal practices; small hotels or independent travel agents where there is a strong likelihood of turning out standard documents where colour doesn’t matter like invoices, health-insurance forms or itineraries.

Similarly these two printers could be used in a lawyer’s, psychologist’s or other similar professional’s office for turning out confidential information for their patients or clients. It is also augmented by the fact that these printers could easily just occupy the space of a small table like the archetypal side table; which may befit one of these professional’s offices.

The HL-2250DN would suit applications where there are two to five computers sharing the one printer or the location uses laptop computers connected to the network via Wi-Fi wireless. If this was used in a Wi-Fi-based location, this printer would be connected to the network via Ethernet or HomePlug.

Introduction

I am reviewing the HP Envy 100 ePrint-enabled all-ine-one printer which is another member of the HP “Envy” high-end stylishly-designed equipment range. This printer is styled not like an ordinary all-in-one printer but something that wouldn’t look out of place alongside domestic hi-fi or home-cinema equipment.

Prices

Printer

Recommended Retail Price: AUD$399

Inks and Toners

The printer itself

The printer with its scanner lid open and paper input and output exposed

There is a lot about this printer’s styling that makes it not like the typical all-in-one printer that I have used or reviewed. This printer has a design that wouldn’t look out of place in a hi-fi or home-theatre equipment rack with its slimline and neat styling. Here, it would be as slim as the typical VHS video recorder or “personal-TV service” unit. Even the scanner lid reminds me of that flat-glass lid used to cover the turntable on a mid-1980s “music-centre” stereo system because of the way it lies flush with the top of the printer and is made of that similar glass.

Where do the documents come out of?

The way the printer is styled may confuse some people because there isn’t an obvious paper tray or output tray.

The printer's paper output tray

When you want to use the printer from the control panel, you work it using a large touchscreen on the front of the unit. This touchscreen can be positioned at an angle for easier operation but will swing up when the printer is printing out anything. The paper is loaded in to a shallow removeable tray which you pull out from the front of the printer.

Even the SD slot for your camera card may be hard to find but it is located on the top right edge of the printer, under a small flap.

Setup

The printer can work with 802.11g/n WiFi networks that are secured using WPA2-PSK technology. You enter the passphrase for these networks using a virtual keyboard on the unit’s touchscreen; but it also works properly with WPS “simplified-setup” routines that most recent-issue home and small-business routers support.

On the other hand, the software that is supplied on the CD-ROM leave a lot to be desired. It doesn’t operate properly with network setups and you may have to try many attempts at setting this software up on your computer. This is more so with firewall software that may be slow to respond.

Walk-up functions

The printer works as expected for a colour copier. As well, it can print from or scan to SD cards or USB memory keys. Like with all printers, these functions could be improved through increased memory in the unit. Here, images obtained from the scanner or removable media could be copied to the memory before being printed so as to allow quicker and more productive operation; such as being able to quickly copy many pages or print pictures from your camera then continue snapping more pictures.

Through the use of the ePrint Web apps, this printer can print documents on demand. As well, some of these ePrint apps work as client programs for various photo-sharing or social networking sites, so you can print pictures from your albums that exist on these sites.

It also supports the HP ePrint “email-to-print” system which allocates the printer an email address so you can send documents or photos to that address for printing. This also allows for Apple iOS devices to print documents and images directly to this printer using AirPrint.

It is also worth knowing that Android users can download the “HP iPrint Photos” app from the Android Market to their device so they can print photos through this printer. At the moment, there isn’t a full document-print solution available for this platform yet.

Computer functions

When used with a Windows 7 machine, this printer works tightly with the operating system, thus using functions like the Device Stage.

Even the ability to set up device-initiated scanning for a network-connected printer requires you to visit the Device Stage which comes up when you click on the printer in “Devices and Printers”. This feature has still got some problems with reliability in that it won’t start properly or expose the options to the printer’s control panel. This function is still something that has to be worked out and should be part of the operating system as I have touched on previously.

Other than that, it does work properly as far as computer-initiated printing goes. It also does offer proper support for basic and advanced UPnP printing functionality; something I find that is not implemented in many client devices like set-top boxes. This is not enabled by default and you would have to go to the printer’s Web page which is at its URL, then go to “Networking” to select and enable this function.

Print Quality

This printer works as expected for an inkjet printer when it comes to printing documents. But the real test I notice with these inkjet printers is how they handle photographic images. The pictures don’t come out as saturated as most of the other inkjets that I have tested.  As well, they are not as dark as those printed on most of the other inkjet printers that I have tested.

Limitations and Points of Improvement

As with all HP inkjet printers that have auto-duplex printing, this function still requires a significant top and bottom margin, which can be very limiting for desktop publishing applications. I have raised this issue on forums operated by HP, but they say that this is a designed-in limitation to assure proper auto-duplex operation but I have seen auto-duplex-equipped inkjets available from other manufacturers, namely Canon, which can print this way without requiring the top and bottom margin.

As well, the use of a tri-colour ink cartridge makes the printer more costly to run because you can’t replace individual colours as needed. This could be improved upon by HP when they refine their low-profile print mechanism that is used in this printer. The slimline design also has a limitation with the paper tray not being able to hold much paper.

The manufacturer-supplied software could benefit from a lot of work on it, especially with the way it operates with network printers. This includes making it work tightly with the operating system’s services and properly discovering the printer and announcing the computer’s network location. This is always something that manufacturers tend to forget about when designing their printers.

Taking the concept further

The way HP have integrated a duplex-capable inkjet print mechanism with “front paper feed” as well as an LED-based scanner mechanism into a chassis the size of a typical VHS video recorder has amazed me with this unit.

Here, they could take the concept further with various product ideas for inkjet printers and similar devices. One could be a rack-mount printer for “built-in” applications, where the printer is pulled out like a drawer when it needs to have new ink added or be serviced.

Similarly, there could be the ability for HP to design a transportable “all-in-one” printer modelled on the Envy 100 that is designed for “on-location” workforces. This would have a handle of a style not dissimilar to that found on a boombox and having the scanner lid kept closed by a latching mechanism. Electronically, it would have full WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity and work on 12 volts DC, thus being able to work from a car’s cigar-lighter socket or a 12-volt rechargeable battery pack.

As well, this mechanism could encourage HP to work towards mainstreaming low-profile “front-feed”  inkjet printer designs for the home and small-business market/

Conclusion and Placement Notes

This printer is targeted to those who place a lot of emphasis on style and may suit those of us who are particular about what can be placed in the common living areas of the house. But it wouldn’t be worth using as a main printer for a home or small business because of the two-cartridge system or the reduced paper capacity. Here, I would recommend it for use as a secondary printer intended for use in the family room if you can accept the price for this application.

Introduction

Brother MFC-J6720DW A3 desktop inkjet multifunction printer – uses piezo printheads rather than thermal printheads

If you own an Epson or Brother inkjet printer, you may end up with a situation where there is reduced print quality for particular colours even if you have just put in a new ink cartridge. The symptoms will be in the form of one colour not appearing in your printout or gaps at regular intervals in the printed output.

This is a problem that I have experienced previously with an Epson inkjet printer that I had earlier on through 2000 to 2004. As well I had run in to this problem when I was reviewing the Brother MFC-6490CW A3 inkjet multifunction printer; and had to run this printer through the cleaning cycle a few times after installing a new cartridge.

The piezoelectric print head working as a pump

An espresso coffee machine that uses a pump to push the water through the ground coffee – similar to how the piezo printhead in an Epson or Brother printer works

This may be to do with the way these printers work compared to most other brands. Here, the ink is pushed through the printer using a piezoelectric pump mechanism which integrates technology similar to what is used to force the hot water through the ground coffee in a domestic espresso-coffee machine when you make that latte or cappuccino.  On the other hand, the HP, Canon and Lexmark printers use a thermal a.k.a. “bubble-jet” method of pushing the ink drops through the printhead in a similar vein to the way water is pushed through a drip-filter coffee maker.

HP, Canon and Lexmark printers use a printhead that works in a similar way to how this drip-filter coffee maker passes water from its tank to the ground coffee

If you happened to fill one of the previously-mentioned espresso machines with water after allowing it to run dry, then decide to make a coffee, it will take a very long time for the coffee to come through. As well, you will hear the machine’s pump initially make a loud noise, then make a softer noise as it takes on the water. The loud noise that you hear initially is due to the pump encountering an airlock. Then the softer noise that you hear is what is happening as the espresso machine’s pump is being primed and airlocks are being removed out of the pipework in the machine. In some cases, you may have to run water through the machine’s cappucino steam-jet as if to make hot water for this to work.

Similarly, what can happen with your Epson or Brother printer is that after allowing an ink to run dry, you will end up with airlocks in the pipework or printhead. This may be more so if you try to “run it out” beyond the “out-of-ink” warning so you could get those last few pages printed. This same situation tends to happen with newly-purchased printers because you have to establish a constant flow of ink through the pipework and printhead.

What can you do?

The cleaning cycle

Newer Brother printers represent the settings menu with “tools”

If this happens, you may have to do one of two things. One would be to run the printer through the “cleaning” cycle a few times as this will “prime” the printhead pumps. You may have to do this after you install a new ink cartridge.

Maintenance menu in Settings menu

In most of these printers like the previously-mentioned Brother printer, you will need to start the cycle through going to the “Maintenance” or “Setup” menu on the printer’s control panel, then select the “Cleaning cycle” function. Recent Brother printers use a “tools” icon for access to the Settings and Maintenance functions.

Head cleaning menu under Maintenance menu

Older single-function printers and some Epson multifunction printers may have a dedicated “cleaning cycle” button or require you to hold down a button like the “Paper Eject” button to start this cycle. To be sure, check the instruction manual that has come with the printer or the manufacturer’s Web site concerning how to activate this cycle.

Creation and use of “printer cleaning sheets”

Another would be to prepare a “printer cleaning sheet” for each colour. This would be a drawing that has a rectangle of the specified colour (black, cyan, magenta or yellow) that covers at least 50% of an A4 or A3 sheet of paper. You could create this with your favourite graphics, presentation or desktop-publishing program. Even a “paint” program like Microsoft Paint could do the job. Then make sure you save this as a file. If you created a multi-page file such as the PDF file that I have created and made available for you, you have one page per colour and print this page out for the colour that needs attention. Otherwise, print out the file pertaining to the colour that needs attention. You may have to print this a few times to prime all of the pumps in the printhead.

The idea behind creating and printing these sheets of paper is that the printer has to keep running the pumps continuously so they are primed and the ink starts flowing through all the nozzles properly. As far as the paper is concerned, you just then use the blank side of these sheets you printed out as notepaper, such as to keep beside the telephone.

How do you prevent airlocks from getting in to your printer?

The only way to prevent airlocks from appearing in your Epson or Brother inkjet printer is to make sure you have a spare ink cartridge on hand and ready to install when the ink cartridge in the machine is running low. Here, your machine will notify you of this with a warning message on its display or a flashing light. As well, the print-monitor utility on your computer that comes with the machine’s drivers will flash up a “low-on-ink” warning.

Similarly, if you anticipate large print runs you may find it a good idea to stock up on ink cartridges and/or purchase the extra-capacity cartridges. This may be more so if you are doing campaign-driven print runs; frequently printing on A3 using your A3-capable inkjet printer; or using special media like glossy paper.

If you do use generic-brand or third-party cartridges, you may have to keep an eye on the ink level because these cartridges may not work as accurately as the manufacturer-original cartridges. In some cases, you may even have to run the cleaning cycle every time you change these cartridges.

Those of you who use an aftermarket continuous-inking system may need to keep an eye on the bottles associated with these systems so that you know when to replace the inks. As well, you need to make sure that the system is in good order with the pipes secured properly and full of ink. This also applies to those of you who use an Epson EcoTank printer that has user-refillable ink tanks mounted on the side of the printer. Here, you need to check the ink tanks on the machine’s side to make sure your machine isn’t getting too near the “empty” mark.

Conclusion

Once you know how to use the cleaning cycle and / or create a “printer cleaning sheet”, you can be able to avoid an unnecessary service call or product return concerning your Epson or Brother inkjet printer.

Note: This article was originally published on March 2011 but has undergone a major revision in 2015 to illustrate the different types of coffee machines and to encompass the newer Brother printers. It has been revised in August 2016 to encompass Epson’s EcoTank printers which use large user-refillable ink tanks.

Introduction

I am reviewing the Canon PIXMA MG-6150 multifunction inkjet printer which is positioned as the top inkjet multifunction in Canon’s lineup that isn’t equipped with fax functionality.

Prices

Printer

Recommend Retail Price: AUD$299

Optional Extras:

Bluetooth module: BU-30 $69

Inks and Toners

The printer itself

This machine comes in a piano-black finish and has the user-interface LCD lying flat with the top of the lid. But when you turn it on, the LCD screen lights up and various touch buttons light up in a manner that isn’t dissimilar to either the way a pinball machine or the dial panel on a mid-1970s stereo receiver lights up.

As you use the printer in its various operating modes, some of the buttons light up as required. These buttons are actually touch-panel buttons which will make you think somewhat of operating some of the mid-1980s B&O hi-fi equipment, especially the Beogram CDX CD player which had this similar kind of touch panel. As well, the main display is able to come up at an angle by pushing on a button located behind the display.

The display can come up at an angle

The printer lit up in operation mode

Walk-up printing

The printer has various “walk-up” functions like copying and printing from camera cards. As well, it can print from cameras using PictBridge, which I have used to print “proof-prints” of the pictures that I took for this review. It can even print PDF documents from USB memory sticks. But its handling of this function can be very fussy at times, especially if you use a PDF prepared by a desktop-publishing program.

As well, there is the ability to create your own stationery like notepaper, graph paper and music manuscript paper. For this latter paper type, you can turn out 12-stave pages which is a lot more flexible for most music tasks like “vocal and piano”, organ or “four-part harmony” music.

Computer functions

The software that is supplied on the CD-ROM can be very tricky to load and can think that there isn’t the printer available. But I have visited Canon’s Website and downloaded the latest version of the software and this has loaded properly and discovered the printer as it should.

The device-initiated scan-to-PC software leave a lot to be desired. The user interface looks very pale and confusing and you can only allocate one path for device-initiated scan jobs. This would be to place the files in a particular folder on the host computer or to attach them to an email in Outlook. As well, it doesn’t support other email clients for scan-to-email. You can determine how the document should be scanned from the printer but there are two forms already set – A4 document to PDF or 4×6 snapshot to JPEG.

Paper handling

Paper loading paths in this printer

The paper handling is very similar to some of the other high-end A4-capable PIXMA printers like the direct-connect MP-610 and the fax-enabled network-connectable MX-870 that I previously reviewed on this site. Here, the printer has a front-loadable tray for A4 plain paper as well as the standard rear-mount paper feed tray. This means that you can keep a reserve of ordinary paper on hand in the printer yet use the back path for glossy paper and other special media.

Also, these printers have a fabulous auto-duplex function that has very little registration problems for double-sided documents and can work “to the edge” as far as margins go. This would put the double-sided printing function beyond satisfying the need to avoid wast and in to a league where you can work on both sides for your desktop-publishing needs.

As well, there is a CD printing attachment that slides in the front but you have to flip down a tray that is deeply hidden there. There isn’t any storage for the CD printing attachment so you could then easily lose that part if you occasionally print on CDs.

Printing reliability and quality

The printer is very reliably as far as the mechanism is concerned and could handle large print jobs very easily.

Its document-printing quality is what you would expect for a high-end consumer inkjet unit. When it prints photos, the pictures come out strong on saturation but do lack a bit of definition.

6 ink tanks in this printer

This is even though it uses a six-colour ink system whereas most inkjets that I have reviewed use either four colours or five colours if they are “photo-rated”. Sometimes it may be true that the number of colours in a photo-rated inkjet may not yield particular improvements.

Points of improvement

The printer could benefit from an improved scan-to-PC program which gives the user greater choice on how the image should be handled. As well, it could support the ability to define more than one path for scan-to-PC jobs initiated from the control panel.

As well, Canon could supply high-capacity cartridges for these printers as an extra-cost option so that users are covered if they have a huge run of print jobs from the printer.

Conclusion and Placement Notes

I would recommend this printer as being on my shortlist of printers worth deploying as a home-office or secondary-use (study) multifunction printer for the home if you don’t value faxing or email-to-print.

When most of us do business with banks or shops or simply run a business, we have to deal with paper receipts and journals. Typically this involves the use of a printer that prints on to a paper tape of some form, whether integrated in a cash-register, EFTPOS terminal or an automatic teller machine; or as a standalone device connected to a computer-based point-of-service system of some sort.

Similarly, this class of “tape printer” is also being put to use as a label printer in most business applications like travel or healthcare. But this label-printer application is becoming relevant in the general office space for addressing envelopes on an as-needed basis.

In the home, It may also be relevant as a coupon or receipt printer for interactive TV applications such as “claiming” special offers that are promoted alongside TV commercials or buying goods from TV shopping. It can also be relevant for “as-needed” label printing in the home office.

The main problem is that there are two main printing methods used with this class of printer. One is an impact printer that works like the old dot-matrix printers and uses a ribbon to print on to cheaper plain paper. The other is a direct-thermal printer which uses heat to print on to special paper, like the first-generation fax machines.

Usage problems

Both these technologies yield a fair share of problems with the useability of these dockets. The impact printer is based around a ribbon which can cause the print quality to deteriorate as the machine is being used. At worst, the docket or journal can end up being hard to read when the ribbon is nearly at the end of its life.

The thermal printer which relies on the special paper can cause problems of its own when it comes to handling the receipts or journals. For example, the paper is known to fade over time and this becomes worse with receipts that are kept in a wallet that rests in someone’s hip pocket because of the contact with one’s body heat. This can be an issue if you have to keep the receipts over a significant amount of time, which would be required of a business or individual in order to satisfy the taxman.

Another issue is that the paper can be very slippery and this can cause problems when writing on the receipt or journal with most ballpoint pens. This may be of importance if you have to sign a receipt at the point of sale when paying by credit card. As well, customers may have to sign or annotate the receipt after the sale for tax or reimbursement purposes.

It also makes it hard to use an automatic document feeder on a scanner, fax machine or copier with these documents if you have to copy, scan or fax them. In these situations, you are not likely to have consistent and reliable feed-through behaviour and at worst, you could have frequent paper jams.

Inkjet technology for this printer class

One improvement that I would like to see is for manufacturers to use inkjet technology for this class of printer. Here, the printer could use an integrated printhead cartridge like what most cheaper inkjet printers use or use technologies like the pipe-based ink-distribution technology used in Brother inkjet printers like the MFC-6490.

Previous designs

Canon has tried this idea previously with a few of its printing calculators by using a “BubbleJet” mechanism as the printhead but not many other manufacturers caught on to this idea.

What could it offer

A printer based on this technology would use cheaper plain-paper rolls for regular receipt and journal printing. If it were to print labels, it could use regular and cheaper plain-paper labels, rather than special thermal-paper labels.

The inkjet technology can also support colour printing in a cost-effective manner, whether as a basic two-colour setup or as a full-colour setup. This can open up application paths like colour emphasis or full brand preservation on customer-facing documents. In the home, it could appeal to personal “as-needed” labelling applications like “ownership” labels used for things like books and recorded music, or labels used on jars of homemade preserves where these labels convey full personal flair.

If the mechanism uses the pipe-based ink-distribution technology, it could use higher-capacity cartridges which would be useful for high-throughput applications like kiosks, gaming machines, high-turnover point-of-sale or ATMs.

Limitations

One limitation that may surface for this class of printer is the size of the inkjet print mechanism. The printhead for this technology may be larger than the common thermal printhead and this will impact on the design of the device that it is to be implemented in. This will put a limitation on designs that are intended to be low-profile like handheld payment-card terminals, printing calculators or peripheral printers, unless these machines use a pipe-based ink distribution mechanism.

It could be easy to “cheapen the design” by doing what has been commonly done with consumer and small-business inkjet printers. Here, a manufacturer could sell a low-end inkjet-based tape-printing device like a label printer, printing calculator or entry-level cash register for a loss-leading price but have the device work only with expensive ink cartridges. This can be exacerbated through the use of very small ink cartridges that need to be replaced frequently.

This may also require a cash register or POS printer to have two separate paper rolls placed side by side and the printhead moving across both rolls every time a sale is made. Some machines may be designed with dual printheads so they work as if they have two separate printers – one for the journal and one for the receipts.

Conclusion

The use of inkjet printing for “tape-based” printers could make life easier for most businesses and customers as well as allow for increased innovation in this class of device.

iOS 4.2 beta hits Apple’s developer portal, wireless printing dubbed ‘AirPrint’ – Engadget

From the horse’s mouth

HP ePrint enabled printers first to support printing direct from iOS devices |  The HP Blog Hub

My comments

A function that most of us who own smartphones long for is the ability to print documents from the smartphone using a regular printer. The main problem with this is the requirement for the computing device i.e. the smartphone to have drivers for the various printers that it will encounter. Typically this has been achieved through printer manufacturers providing free single-purpose apps through app-store platforms like iTunes App Store that only do a task like printing photographs on the manufacturer’s printer.

Now Apple have taken up the initiative by establishing a one-size-fits-all printing mechanism as part of the iOS 4.2 operating system. This mechanism is intended to work with the HP ePrint-enabled printers like the HP Photosmart Wireless-E printer that I previously reviewed but is intended to be rolled out to more printers offered by other manufacturers.

There are a few questions that I have about this wireless-printing platform. One is whether the platform is really reinventing the wheel that standards like UPnP Printing have established or simply is a way of allowing a manufacturer to market one of these standards under their own name?

Another more serious question is whether other handset operating systems and platforms like Android will implement the wireless-printing platform in a universal way at all. It may be easy to accept the status quo with Apple providing support in the next version of iOS but if this feature is to work properly, it has to work for other handset operating platforms and devices made by other manufacturers.

Other issues worth tackling include support for public-access printers, including secure job submission and collection as well as support for paid operation models.

This concept may open up a new field of access to hard copy for devices like smartphones and tablet computers as well as dedicated-function devices.