2. Overview
Printers are peripherals which connect to
computers and are used for printing text and
images onto paper.
The two most common and popular types of
printers are inkjet and laser.
Printers can come with scanning, photocopying,
and fax functions.
3. History
In China and Korea, printing can be dated back to
3000 BC.
However, printing was popularized in the western
world in the 16th century by Johannes Glutenberg.
He invented the Glutenberg Press, which was a
innovative machine that revolutionized printing.
Historical Printing Methods: linotype, teletypesetter,
phototypesetting, and silk screening.
4. What are the Four Main Types of
Printers and how do They Work?
5. Inkjet Printers
A type of printer that
releases droplets of ink onto
paper to produce text and
images.
Most common type of
printer, can be found in
places such as your home or
even large office buildings.
Price Range: 50$ - 1000$.
6. Laser Printers
A type of printer that uses a
laser beam to transfer
images onto paper.
High end laser printers can
print up to 100 pages per
minute.
Instead of cartridges, laser
printers use toners.
Price Range: $200 - $2000.
7. Dot-Matrix Printers
A type of printer that
produces text and images on
paper using a matrix of pins
that strike an inked ribbon.
Not very popular compared
the previous types of printers,
no longer available in the
market.
Price Range: unavailable.
8. Thermal Printers
A type of printer that
produces a printed image
by applying heat to
thermochromic paper.
Commonly used in stores
to print out receipts.
Price Range: 200$ - $1000
10. Connections to PC
Printers can connect to PC’s in many ways
including:
PRINTER CABLE
ETHERNET CABLE
WIRELESS CONNECTIVITY
11. Information
Processing
Printers receive information from computers, and
then process it on to paper.
Information such as texts or images can be
transferred to printers and then printed.
For the printer to understand the information, it
must process it into its own language.
Information is transferred through printer cables,
ethernet cables, or wireless internet.
12. Printer Specifications
Things to consider when buying a Printer:
Resolution: What is the maximum of dots a printer
can display on a paper?
Print Speeds: How many pages per minute can a
printer produce?
Connectivity: How can the printer connect to your
PC? (wireless internet, etc..)
Paper Handling: What types of paper does your
printer handle? (thermochromic, photo, etc...)
13. Future Trends
Speed is a trend of the future for printers,
companies are working on a printer that can print
2 pages per second.
It is also speculated that ink less printers are
being developed.
Toshiba is working on a printer that allows you to
print, erase, and re-print on a single sheet of
paper.
14. Leading Printer
Manufacturers
Hewlett-Packard
Epson
Canon
Lexmark
Xerox
Samsung
