YourBuyersGuide
toThermalLabel
Printers
!2HillsideRoad,BuryStEdmunds,SuffolkIP327EA.
wwww.expertlabels.co.uke:[email protected].
T:01359271111
Whyhavealabelprinter?
Foramodestinvestmentyou’llhaveaprinterthat’seasytouse,producesexcellentprint
andyouwon’thavetokeepswitchinglabelsinyourlaserprinter.What’smore,rolllabels
arecheaperthansheetlabelssoyou’llsavemoneythemoreyou’llprint.
You’llget:
• Nearinstantprinting.Typicallyyouwaitafewsecondsandyouhaveyourlabels
printed.Withalaserprinteryouneedtowaitfortheprintertowakeup,warmup
thenprint.
• Singlelabelcapability:Withaspecialistlabelprinteryoucanprintasfewasone
label,unlikealaseroraninkjetwhichtypicallyprintspagesoflabels.
Onecompellingreasonforinvestinginalabelprinteriswhatyou’reprintingonto.Ifyou
needlonglastinglabels,scratchorsmudgeresistance,colouredtext,heatresistantlabelsor
printingontoplasticsortinytextandbarcodes–you’llneedathermaltransferprinter.
ChoosingtheRightBarcodePrinter
Therearehundredsofdifferentlabelandtagprintersavailablefromdozensofdifferent
manufacturers.Theaimofthisarticleistohelpyoudecidewhichprintersuitsyouthebest.
Whatwillyoulearn:
•
•
•
•
Firstwe’lltouchuponthetechnologybehindlabelprinting.
Thenyou’llbeintroducedtothedifferentbarcodeprintersyoucanbuy–desktop,
portableorindustrial.
Nextyou’lllearnwhatspecialityprintersareavailablefollowedbythevariousways
you’llbeabletoconnecttoyournewprinterand
Finallyyou’llunderstandthedifferentadd-onsandoptionsthatwillmakeyour
printingeasier.
Beforewerunthroughbarcodelabelprinters,I’vegotafewquestionsyouneedtoask
yourself.Ifyouwanttocallusandhaveustalkyouthroughyouroptions,havesome
answerstothesequestionsandgiveusacallon01359271111.
Thefirstquestions:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Howlongwillyourlabelsneedtolast?Amatterofdaysorweeks–orlonger?
Whatareyouprinting?Labels,receipts,tags,ticketsorwristbands?
Howmanylabels(orotheritems)doyouexpecttoprinteachday–upto500or
morethan500?
Wheredoyouplantouseyourprinter?Inanice,cleanoffice,adustyfactoryor
outdoors?
Doesitneedtoberugged?
Doesitneedtobeportable?
Ifyoucananswerthesequestions,you’llbebetterplacedtodecidewhatprinterfeatures
youneed.
DirectThermalorThermalTransfer
Thermalprintersuseheattoproduceveryhighqualitybarcodesandothertextonlabels,
tags,tickets,wristbandsorreceiptpaper.Comparedtolaserandinkjetprinting
technologies,thermal-printers:
•
•
•
•
•
Needlessmaintenance,
havelowercostlabels,ticketsandink,
canprintsinglelabelsorreceipts(notwholeA4sheets)andprintfaster(upto
450mmpersecond)
Nearinstantprinting
whilenotsufferingbleedasyoufindwithsomeinkjetprintersorfadewithsome
lasers.
Thermalprinterscanprintintwodifferentways–DirectThermalorThermalTransfer.
Whichmethodofprintingisdecidedby:
1.Howlongthelabels(orotherprintingmaterials)needtolast
2.Whatmaterialyouplantoprintonto.
WhatdoesDirectThermalandThermalTransfermean?
All‘thermal’printer,asthenamesuggests
useheattoprint.Directthermalprintersprint
ontospecialheat-sensitivemediathat
darkensasitpassesundertheheated
sectionsoftheprinthead.
Becausetheyprintwithoutneedinganinkribbon,directthermalprintersaresimple–no
needtochangeinksandnoribbonmechanismbuiltintotheprinter.Directthermalprinted
labelsusuallyhaveagoodshelflifebutarenotwellsuitedtosituationswherethey’ll
experienceheat,longperiodsofdirectsunlightorabrasion.Thermallabels,tagsortickets
canbe‘topcoated’toprovideheatandscratchprotection.
Notallmaterialsareavailabletobuywithathermalcoating.Plastic(synthetic)labelsand
tagsarenotwidelyavailableforthermalprinting.
Insummary,directthermalprintingproducessharpprintqualitywithgoodbarcode
scanningabilitybutwithouttheneedforink.Ifyoudon’tneedlonglifelabels,i.e.for
printingaddresslabels,freshfoodortickets,directthermalisalowcost,easywaytoprint.
ThermalTransfer
Thermaltransferprintersuseaninkribbon
whichismeltedontothelabelbythe
printhead.
Whatdoesitmeanforyou?
•
•
•
•
Thermaltransfermakesiteasytoprintontoawiderangeofdifferentmaterialslike
polypropyleneandpolyester,foroutdoorandharshenvironments.
Thermaltransferprintingcanbeextremelydurable–makingitscratch,chemicaland
waterproof.
Labelsprintedusingthermaltransferhaveaverylonglifemakingthemperfectfor
assetlabels,productlabelsandoutdoorwristbands.
Sinceyouareusinganinkribbon,youalsohavethechoiceofarangeofcoloursto
printwith.
Withtherightcombinationoflabelsandribbon,youcanmakealabelforanyenvironment
orapplication.Thoughitdoescostalittlemoretoprintthermaltransfermedia,theadded
benefitsensureyourlabelortagisreadablethroughoutitslifewithouteverneedingto
reprint.
WhenDoyouuseDirectThermalorThermalTransfer?
WeintroducedyoutoDirectThermalandThermalprinting.Here’swhereyou’duseit.
WhatamIprinting?
AssetLabels
AddressorshippingLabels
ProductLabels
Shelf/LocationTags
Wristbands(indoor)
Wristbands(outdoor)
Receipts
Tickets
Waterprooflabels
Hightemperaturelabels
DirectThermal
•
•
•
•
ThermalTransfer
•
•
•
•
•
•
PrinterTypes
Thefirstquestiontohelpyouchoosetherightprinterisdecidingwhereyou’llbeprinting
andwhatyouplantoprintonto.Let’sanswerthatfirstquestion.
Desktopprinters
Theseprinters,asthenamesuggests,aresmallerinsize.Designedtoworkinsmaller
spacesandprintfewerlabelsthantheirbiggercousins.Desktopprintersalsotendtobe
lessdurable–madefromplasticnotmetal.Whilstit’sdifficulttogiveanexactnumberof
labelsthey’redesignedtocopewith(labelsdifferinsize)desktopprintersarecapableof
printingonandoffforanhourorsoaday.Thatmightbeacoupleofhundredlabelseach
day.Wetypicallysupplyretailerswhoprintpricelabels,orasmallbusinessprintingcourier
labels.Otherexampleswouldbesmallmanufacturersprintingproductlabelstwoorthree
timesaweek.Desktopprintersprintthesamesizeandqualityoflabelsasindustrial
printers(withafewexceptions),justfewerofthem.
Bestsuitedto:
•
•
•
Smallspaces
Printingafewhundredlabelsaweek
Printinglabels,receiptsorticketslessthan110mmwide
IndustrialPrinters
Industrialprintersarelargerandmoredurablethandesktopmodels,builttoprintmore
labelseachdayandworkwithlessattention.Industrialprintersareabletoprintfromafew
thousandlabelsperdaytoprintingnon-stopeachday.Theseprintersaredesignedtohold
largerrollsoflabels,ticketsortagsthandesktopprinterssoyoudon’tneedtochangelabels
orinkribbonsasoften.Industrialprintersarefast–TSC’sindustrialprinterscanprintatan
eyewatering450mm(18inches)persecond.You'llfindprintersliketheZebraZT230in
manufacturinganddistributioncentresaswellaslargeretailers.
Highendindustrialprintershaveahostoffeaturesthatmakeuseoftheprinter’sbuiltin
computingpower.Printerscanbeprogrammedtoprintwithoutcomputersornetwork
support.PluginabarcodescannerorUSB(orBluetooth)keyboardandprintdirectlyfrom
theprinterwithouttheneedforacomputer.TheSatoCL4NXusesnearfield
communication(NFC)foundonmanysmartphonesforeasyconfiguration.WiththeCL4NX
youcanpulldatafromthewebtoincludeinyourprintingwithouttheinvolvementofany
computer.
Ifyouareprintinganytypeofmediainlargeamounts,yourmostreliableoptionare
industriallabelprinters.
Bestsuitedto:
•
•
•
•
•
Highvolumeprintingsituations
Situationswhereprintspeedisimportant
Roughhandlingsituations
Missioncriticalsituationswheredowntimeisabigproblem
Flexibilityandcomputer-lessprintingsituations
Mobile
Mobileprintersusethesamethermaltechnology,but(asyoumighthave
guessed)aresmallenoughtocarryaroundandwillprintwithoutcables.They
connectwirelesslytoyourWifinetworkorviaBluetoothtoahandheld
terminal.ModelswithUSBcablesareavailableandthereareafewthatstill
useInfraRed.Portableprintersdohaveafewlimitationsduetotheirsmall
size.Theyarenotbuilttoprinthighvolumesoflabelsandtagsbecausetheyhaveasmall
rollcapacity.They’resmall–sotheyhavenarrowprintwidths–100mmisthewidestyou
canget,usually,narrower.Onelastlimitationisthatmobileprintersareusuallydirect
thermalonly.Notsousefulifyouneedlonglifeassetlabels–butOKformostotherlabels,
anditreducestheweightoftheprinter.
Whatportableprintersareexcellentforisprintingtags,labelsandreceiptsonthemove.A
mobileprinterprovidesyouwithhighqualityprintinacompactpackagethatfitsinthe
palmofyourhand(orclippedtoyourbelt).
Usetheseprintersfordeliverydriversorsalesagentstocreatereceiptsinthefieldora
warehouseworkerthatneedstomakelabelsonthespot.Theseprintersarenottiedtoa
fixedcomputer,soyoucanconnecttothemwirelesslythroughWifiorBluetoothanduse
themwithhandheldcomputer(handheldterminal),orsmartphoneforprintingwherever
yougo.
Bestsuitedto:
•
•
•
•
Printingatthepointoftransaction
Situationswhereweightisaproblem
Accesstopowerisn’talwayspossible
Printingsmallnumbersoflabels
SpecialistPrinters
Mostofthetimethermalprintersprintlabelsandlabelprinterscanbeloadedwithreceipt
paper,tagsandtickets,buttherearespecialistprinters–designedtoprintticketsand
wristbands–makingthemveryeasytouse.
WristbandPrinters
Eventhoughstandardlabelprinterscanalsocreatewristbands,youcanbuya
dedicatedwristbandprinter.Ifyou’replanningtoprintwristbandsfora
hospital,venueorthemeparkadedicatedwristbandprinteristheperfect
solution.
Theseofferseveraladvantagesandinmanycasesaloweroverallcost.
Whilestandardprintershavetheirmediaonaroll,dedicatedwristbandprintershave
cartridgesthatsimplyslotintoplacemakingloadingfastandeasy–somuchsothattraining
isvirtuallyeliminated.Theseprintersoftenhaveaprintresolutionoptimisedforclear,
accurateprintingofimagesorlogos.Ifyou’rebuyingahospitalorhealthcarewristband
printerthenmanymodelshaveaspecialanti-microbialcasetomeetthecleaningdemands
ofyourhealthcareenvironment.
Ifyouregularlyprintcustomprintedwristbands,adedicatedwristbandprinterlikeaZebra
HC100wouldminimisetrainingandbethemostefficientsolution.
TicketPrinters
TicketPrintingisanotherspecialisedareaofon-demandprintingwhere
thermalprintersareperfectlysuited.Ticketsareusuallyprintedonthicker
paper.Ifthey’renotperforatedthentheyneedacutterfittedtotheprinter,
soticketscanbeneatlycut.Labelsareoftenprintedin‘fanfold’format.
Specialistticketprintershaveatallercasesotheycanbeloadedwithmore
fanfoldtickets.Ifyourticketscomeonarollthentheseprinterscanbefittedwitha
hanger.Withticketsbeingworththeirweightingold,dedicatedticketprinters,likethe
DatamaxST-3210comewithalockablecase.
Howdoyouconnectyourprintertotheoutsideworld?
Everyprinterneedsinformationinsoitcanprintsomethingout.Itneedstocommunicate
withacomputerofsometypetoreceiveprintjobsandlabeldesigns.Whilestandaloneisan
optionforsomeprinters,youstillneedtoconnecttoaPCtoset-uptheprinterinthefirst
place.Themajorityofprintingapplicationshowever,stillrequireaconstantconnectionin
ordertoreceiveit’sprintingcommands.
USB(universalserialbus)
Allofthedesktopandindustrialprintersweselloffermultipleoptionsforconnectivity,with
USBbeingthemostcommontoday.AnyPCorlaptoptodaywillhaveUSBconnectionsandit
isbyfartheeasiestwaytoconnecttoyourprinter.Plugintheprinter,installthedriveron
thePCandyou’rereadytoprint.
SerialandParallelconnections
Ifyouhaveaspecialapplicationorapieceofindustrialcontrolequipmenttoattachto,
optionsforserial(RS-232)andparallel(Centronics)connectionsarestillavailableformost
printers.
Connectingtoyournetwork
Withnetworkconnectivitybeingmoreimportanttodaythanithasbeeninthepast,
EthernetandWi-Fihavebecomemuchmorecommoninlabelprinters.
WhenyourprinterhasanEthernetconnectionyousimplyconnectastandardnetworkcable
toanetworkportandnowitcanbesharedacrossyournetwork.USBprinterstendtobe
tiedtothePCit’sconnectedtoandthePChastobeswitchedoninordertoprint.
Manyofhighvolumeindustrialprinters,liketheSatoCL4NX,nowcomewithEthernet
connectivityasstandard,simplybecauseoftheconvenienceitprovides.
Theworldiswireless
MoreandmoreofourclientsappreciatetheflexibilityandconveniencewifiandBluetooth
offerthemwiththeircomputerequipment.Wi-Fionaprintermakesiteasytoputit
anywhereyoulike.Wifiisusuallyanextraoptiononthermalprinters.
Portableprintersareaspecialcasesincewirelessconnectivityisamust,bydesign.Whilst
mostmobileprintersofferaUSBcableconnection,togetthefulladvantageofmobility,WiFiorBluetoothneedstobeused.
Wi-Fiusesawirelessnetworktocommunicatejustlikeafixedprinter.Aslongasyouare
withintheradiorangeoftheWifinetworkaccesspoints(antenna)theprinterwillworkbut
forfullymobileapplications,Bluetoothisabetteroption.Bluetoothreducesyourwireless
rangeto10mbutworkswithoutanetworksinceyourprinterandhandheldcomputeror
laptoptalktoeachotherdirectly.Usuallyyou’llhaveacomputerortabletinyourhandand
amobileprinteronyourbelt10mrangeforBluetoothismorethanacceptable.
LabelprinterAdd-Onsandaccessories
Nowyouhaveagoodideasofthetypeofprinteryouneedandhowyou’llbeusingitto
print,it’stimetolookataccessories.
Mostprintersdon’tneedanyaccessoriesoroptions–butmanyoftheseoptionalextraswill
saveyoutime(andthereforemoney)andmakeprintinglabelsajoy.Onceyou’veused
themyou’dneverconsidergoingback.Mostoftheseoptionsareonlyavailableondesktop
orindustrialprintersandspecificadd-onswillvarybymodel.
Cutter
Acutterdoesexactlywhatitsnamesuggests.Ifyouneedindividuallabelscutfromtheroll
oncethey’reprintedoryou’reusingcontinuousrollsofmaterial(suchaswithtickets)a
labelcutteristheanswer.Assoonasalabelortagisprintedthecutterwillslicethrough
thegapbetweenthelabelsandtheindividuallabelwillfallontoacatchtray.With
continuouslabel,printerortagmaterialthecutterwillcutthroughthecardormaterialand
itwillbecaughtonthecatchtray.Wehadclientsusingaheavydutytearprooftag,which,
asthenamesuggests,wasimpossibletotearoff.Acutterwastheonlywaytheycoulduse
thesetags.
Printerscomewithatearoffbar–aserrated‘cutter’whichenablesyoutotaketheprinted
labelsandtearthemofftheprinter.Thisisfineformostuse.You’realsoabletobuy
perforatedrollsoflabelssoitiseasytotearitofftheprinterbutwhenyouareusing
continuousorspecialmedia,acutterisessential.
Awordofcaution–cutterscanbeunreliableifthey’renotmaintained.Theyneedtobe
regularlycleaned(especiallyifthey’recuttingthroughlabels,asopposedtothelabel
backingpaper)sothelabelgluedoesn’tjamthemup.Thebladesalsoneedtobereplaced
beforetheybecometooblunt.
LabelRewinder
Arewindercomesintwoversions:internalorexternal.Alabelrewinderoneofthosepieces
ofkitthatonceyouownone,youwonderhowyouevercopedwithoutit.
Theinternallabelrewinderisarollerinsidetheprinterthattakesthelabelsyouprintand
havethemfeedbackinsidetheprinterontoanemptyroll.Thefinishedresultisanicetidy
rollofprintedlabelsasopposedtoapileoflabelsinfrontofyourprinter.Thisoptionis
invaluablewhereyou’reprintingthousandsoflabelsinlargebatchesatonetime.
Theinternalrewinderusuallycomesasafactoryfittedoptionthatyouchooseatthetime
youorderyourprinter.Someprinterscanhavelabelrewindunitsfittedeitherbyreturning
theprintertousorwithanengineervisitingyoursite.
Externallabelrewindunitsasthenamesuggestsisanexternalstandalonemotorwitha
roller.Asthelabelscomeoutofthefrontoftheprinterthey’rerolledontoacardboard
coreturningontherewindunit.It’sabitmorecomplicatedthanthat,withmechanisms
thatcontrolthespeedtherewinderturnsanddifferentsizedcorestorolltheprintedlabels
backonto.
Ifyouhaveseveralprintersandyoudon’talwaysneedtorewindlabels–thenanexternal
labelrewinderisthebestsolution,asyou’reabletosetitupwithwhicheverprinteryou’re
using.Ittakesacoupleofminutestosetupbutsavesyoulotsoftimeifyou’reprinting
largebatchesoflabels.
Thealternativetoarewindunitistositthererollinglabelsontocardboardcoreswithyour
hands.It’soddlytherapeuticbuttimeismoneyandthere’slotsyoucoulddowhilstyour
labelrewinderdoesthework.
Peeler/Dispenser
Alabelpeeler/dispensertakeseachlabelasitisprintedandseparatesitfromthebacking
paper.Thebackinglineristhenfedbackinsidetheprinterandrolledbackontoacore.The
printerthenpresentsthepeeledlabelsforyoutotakeandsticktoyourwork.Labelpeelers
areperfectwhereyou’reprintingindividuallabelsandthenstickingthemstraighttoa
productimmediately.Thepeelersavesthetimeittakestotearoffthelabelandthenpeel
it.Thisseemsfairlyinsignificantbutifyou’rehandapplyinghundredsoflabelsadaythena
peelerquicklypaysforitself.
Note,however,ifyouprintinbatchesapeelerisn’tagoodoptionsincetheprinterstops
printinguntilyouremovethelabelfromtheprinterafterithasbeenpeeled.
RFID–RadioFrequencyIdentificationlabelencoding
RFIDisatechnologysimilartoNearFieldCommunication(NFC)youfindonsomesmart
phones.RFIDisalsousedinmanybuildingswhereyouwaveacardortaginfrontofa
readerandthedoorunlocks.
RFIDismakingitswayintolabelprinters.Itenablesalabeltobereadelectronically–
withouttheneedtoactually‘see’abarcodeonalabel.Withbarcodesthereadermustbe
positionedcorrectlyinfrontofthelabelbeforeitcanberead.Thisusually(butnotalways)
involveshumaneffort.WithRFIDtheRFIDreaderonlyneedstohavethetagnearit.The
distancevariesdependingontheRFIDlabelsortagsandthespecificationofthereader.
OtherbenefitsofRFIDisthatRFIDtagscanbereused(byoverwritingthedataonthechip),
theycanencryptthedata–addinganelementofsecurityifyouneedit.Theycanread
fasterandthetagscanstoremoredatathanbarcodes.
ThebenefitoffittinganRFIDencodertoalabelprinteristhatyoucanprinttraditional
barcodesforusebycustomers(whodon’thaveRFID)butatthesametimeencodethelabel
withRFIDdatathatyoucanbenefitfromwithyourownsystemstouse.
Someprinters,includingafewmobileunits,offeroptionsfor‘printing’RFIDbasedlabels.
Withthisoption,youcanprintonthefrontofalabelwhileencodinginformationintothe
RFIDchipwhichissandwichedinthemiddleofthelabel.RFIDoptionsvarydependingon
whatfrequencyrangeyouwillbeworkingwithandmostprinterswillsupportUHForHF
ranges.
RFIDsystemsarecomplicatedandneedcarefulsetupbeforeyoucanenjoythebigsavings
theyoffer.SpeakwithoneofourRFIDexpertstoensureyougettherightprinterforyour
RFIDneeds.
In-lineBarcodeVerifiers
Fromtimetotimebarcodeprintersexperienceprintqualityproblems.Ribbonswrinkleand
printheadelementsburnout.Ifyou’reprintingabarcodethiscanmeanabarcodeis
unreadable.That’saproblemifyoudidn’trealiseandyou’vejustlabelledup2000products
andshippedthemtoyourbiggestcustomertoscan.
Anin-lineverifierisaspecialtypeofbarcodescannerthatmountstothefrontofthe
printer.Thisscannerisanalysingeachlabelthatisprintedtoensureitmeetsspecificprint
qualityrequirements.Themomentaprinterfittedwithaninlineverifierstartstomake
labelsbelowthegradeyouset,theverifierwillstoptheprintingprocess.Youcanfixthe
problemandknowthatyou’vesavedyourselfhoursofworkandhundredsorthousandsof
poundsinexpenserectifyingtheproblem.
Alowercostsolutionthat’snotasdecisiveonthequalityofbarcodes(especiallyifthere
wasadisputewithcustomers)istoscanthebarcodepriortodispatchwithastandard
barcodescanner.Ifyouwantasolutionthatwouldholdupinacourtoflawthenaportable
barcodeverifiercouldbeusedtotestbatchesofbarcodesforquality.Dependingonyour
qualityassuranceprocessesthiscouldpreventexpensivemistakes.
Whenyouaresendinglabelledproductstolargeretailerstheywillhavestrictrulesonthe
printqualityofthelabelsyouproduce.Thefinesinvolvedinnotmeetingtheirrulesare
oftenmorethanthecostoftheverifier.Anybusinessthathastomeetanykindofprint
complianceshouldseriouslyconsideranin-lineverifierfortheirprintertoeasilyavoidthe
finesandheadachesofpoorlyprintedlabels.
Verifiersaremorethanjustbarcodereaders–theyareprecisioninstrumentsandneedto
bediscussedindetailtoensureyoubuysomethingthatwilldowhatyouneedittodo.Call
oneoftheExpertLabelsteamandletushelpyouchoosetherightsolution.
HowtoFindtheRightPrinter
Withalltheinformationavailable,choosingtherightbarcodeprintercanbeoverwhelming.
Wehopethisguidehelpsyouchoosetherightbalancebetweengettingthejobdoneand
payingafairprice.Ifyouarestillhavingdifficultyorhavemorequestions,feelfreetocall
ourexperts01359271111-we'reheretohelpyoufindtherightprinterforyourneedsand
enjoytheopportunitytohelpyou.