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Impact vs Non-Impact Printers Explained

The document compares impact printers and non-impact printers. Impact printers use pins that strike ink ribbons against paper to print, while non-impact printers print without striking paper using inkjet, laser, or thermal methods. Non-impact printers are generally faster, higher quality, quieter, more commonly used today, and can handle graphics and color better than impact printers, but are more expensive. Impact printers are durable, can print multipart forms, and are less expensive, but are slower, louder, and lower quality.

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Rangith Uthayakumaran
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264 views3 pages

Impact vs Non-Impact Printers Explained

The document compares impact printers and non-impact printers. Impact printers use pins that strike ink ribbons against paper to print, while non-impact printers print without striking paper using inkjet, laser, or thermal methods. Non-impact printers are generally faster, higher quality, quieter, more commonly used today, and can handle graphics and color better than impact printers, but are more expensive. Impact printers are durable, can print multipart forms, and are less expensive, but are slower, louder, and lower quality.

Uploaded by

Rangith Uthayakumaran
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

COMPARISON BETWEEN IMPACT PRINTER AND

NON-IMPACT PRINTER

We summarized all the differences between impact printer and non-impact printer
regarding to their features.

1.      Descriptions :
         Impact printer - Produces text and images when tiny wire pins on print head
strike the ink ribbon by physically contacting the paper
         Non-impact printer - Produces text and graphics on paper without actually
striking the paper

2.      Types :
         Impact printer - Dot-matrix printer
         Non-impact printer - Inkjet printer, laser printer and thermal printer

3.      Speed :
         Impact printer - Low printing speed
         Non-impact printer - Reasonably fast

4.      Quality :
         Impact printer - Print quality lower in some types
         Non-impact printer - High quality of output, capable of printing fine and smooth
details

5.      Letter quality :
         Impact printer - Produce near letter quality (NLQ) print only, which is just
suitable for printing mailing labels, envelopes, or invoices
         Non-impact printer - Letter-quality printouts

6.      Consumption :
         Impact printer - Not commonly used today
         Non-impact printer - Most commonly used printer today

7.      Tools :
         Impact printer - Uses ink ribbon
         Non-impact printer - Uses ink spray or toner powder

8.      Cost :
         Impact printer - Less expensive 
         Non-impact printer - More expensive

9.      Durability:
         Impact printer - Reliable, durable (lasting for a long time)
         Non-impact printer - Print head is less durable, inclined towards to clogging and
damage

10.  Sound effects :
         Impact printer - Generally noisy because of the striking activity
         Non-impact printer - Generally much quieter than impact printers because there
is no striking mechanism

11.  Image clarity :
         Impact printer - Poor graphics or none at all
         Non-impact printer - Can handle graphics and often a wider variety of
fonts than impact printers

12.  Multipart forms :
         Impact printer - Ideal for printing multipart forms because they can easily print
through many layers of paper
         Non-impact printer - Cannot print multipart forms

13.  Color output :
         Impact printer - Limited color printing
         Non-impact printer - Capable of printing in strong clear color, good for printing
pictures

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