What’s The Difference Between Inkjet and Laser Printers

Wondering if an inkjet or laser printer is better suited to your needs and needs? We’ll explain the differences and help you choose the right printer for your needs. For this, do not forget to read our laser printer vs inkjet article.

• Laser Printer vs Inkjet Printer

Laser printer vs inkjet printer are fundamentally different both in the way they work and in the quality of the output. We will introduce you to both types of printers and help you find the right device for your personal needs.

• Advantages and Disadvantages of Inkjet Printers

Inkjet printers are designed to print in color. Thanks to special printing technologies, ink is mixed and applied to the paper so that all colors in the printed image are displayed exactly. Printouts can be made on special photo paper that can keep up with the prints taken from the photo lab.

However, to obtain a particularly clear print image, print speed must be compromised. Every time an inkjet printer is turned on, it needs to perform a printhead cleaning first, and it also takes longer to print individual pages than laser printers. The difference between inkjet and laser printer generally consists of these main factors.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Laser Printers

What’s the difference between inkjet and laser printers? This question has become a frequently asked question these days. We will explain this by stating the advantages and disadvantages of laser printers.

Laser printers are designed for large print jobs. You can handle high-volume printing in a short time. Once opened, they are ready to use, virtually fail-safe, can be filled with any printer paper and can print up to 40 outputs per minute.

While laser printers are now also available for color output, they cannot achieve the color space and sharpness of inkjet printouts. Due to the built-in technology, the color cannot be mixed, only scanned closely together. On the other hand, laser-printed pages are smudge-proof and insensitive to moisture and sunlight.

Which Printer Is Right for You?

To find out what kind of printer user you are and whether an inkjet or laser printer is more suitable for you, you should answer the questions below.

• Are you a dedicated user and need your printer only occasionally for black and white output?

Laser printers are ideal for users who rarely want to print. Laser printers do not use liquid colors, they use fine powder called toner. That’s why they don’t dry out even if you rarely use them, and they’re ready to go the moment you want to print something. Black and white prints are of excellent quality on laser printers.

• Are you a dedicated user and need your printer only occasionally for color output?

The question of which printer is right depends on what you want to print in color. If charts or graphs are in color, we recommend a color laser printer. If you want to print high-resolution pictures or photos, you usually need an inkjet printer and special photo paper. However, the ink printer isn’t ready to start right away and needs to clean the nozzles each time it’s turned on, meaning ink is lost. Sometimes state-of-the-art color laser printers are also offered, whose print image can match that of an inkjet printer.

• Do you mainly want to print photos or color of the highest quality, or do you want to use your printer for creative work?

If you need high quality color output frequently, an inkjet printer is your best option. The ink can be used to print on special (photo) paper, after which images become razor sharp. If the inkjet printer is used frequently, the nozzles will not dry out and are ready to use when you want to print.

• Are you looking for a printer for your office or home office?

If you need to print regularly, laser printers are the right choice for you. These are generally more expensive to purchase than inkjet printers; print frequently, but you can save money in the long run thanks to the efficiency of toner and cheaper printer paper. Color printouts are also possible with specialty color toners, but these are generally less sharp than inkjet printers and are better suited for flat charts and diagrams.

Purchasing Criteria and Model Variants for Private Users

Printers with practical extras are offered especially for private users. Both laser and inkjet printers can be purchased from various manufacturers as simple printers or combination devices. Depending on the model, these multifunction devices can also print

• Copy,
• Scan
• Fax

If you want to print from your laptop, tablet or smartphone, it’s also important that the printer is Wi-Fi capable (can be connected via WLAN). It can connect wirelessly to all your end devices if it has the proper connection. You can also connect some WLAN routers to your printer via USB so you can print over the network.