THE NEWS IN PRINT

Consumers have been complaining of soaring ink prices and the returns they fetch. Inks are expensive and it hurts when it's wasted. Well, wastage not in terms of printing unwanted material but the hidden wastes that no printer manufacturers project.

Here's a fact about inkjet printers that all consumers should know. During the lifecycle of printing, it seems that all the ink contained in the cartridge is not deposited on paper but elsewhere. The video embedded below shows that there's a significant amount of ink that is deposited into a waste ink container while it performs head cleaning; a criminal waste really.

There is nothing much one can do about this wasted ink as all inkjet printers are guilty of wasting ink in a similar manner. I hope that in the future, the ink squirted for keeping the nozzle clean could be reused.

An estimated 45 trillion pages are printed annually around the world, as of 2005. In 2006 alone, there were approximately 30,700 printing companies in the USA alone, and these companies accounted for about $112 billion in revenues that same year. When looking at an even broader scope, worldwide print-related revenues have catapulted the printing industry into one of the largest and most successful industries in the world.

The printing industry has a long, rich history dating back to an estimated 1850 BC. Since that time, we have developed new and innovative ways to print pictures, designs, and type onto a variety of different mediums. But how has printing progressed from the early techniques used in ancient times, to the innovative inkjet and laser printers that are commonplace in today's society? We'll take an informative glance back into time to examine the history of printing, all the way up to the newest innovations in printing technology that are being used and developed today.

Ever wondered about those quick printers found in every store or restaurants? The print receipts are narrow but lengthy and the printing time is almost instantaneous. The technology behind those printers is the thermal printing technology which doesn't involve any impact or ink in the process. It works its magic on a special printing thermal paper which is usually in the form of a roll. The printers that are usually seen in stores and restaurants go by a fancy name; Point of Sale (POS) printers.

According to Arthur Scott, only 5% of the POS printers in 1993 were thermal but in the year 2007, it's up to 34%.

Here are some reasons as analyzed by the author for the rising demand in thermal POS printers:

- Speed. Thermal printing is up to seven times faster then impact printing.
- Moves the check out line quicker.
- May eliminate the need for two ply paper since the printer can print a second receipt while the customer is signing the first.
- Faster transactions lead to better customer service.
- Faster print speeds allow large volume restaurants to reduce the number of servers/cashiers used, saving payroll costs.
- Most POS software can buffer the entire transaction and print the customer receipt at the end of the sale with all products organized with discounts. Impact printers would take too long to print out that information at the end of a sale.

Speed is great and so is the zero noise level. But, the only concern many (including I) have experienced is the prodigiously small shelf life of these prints. It tends to fade away when exposed to direct sunlight or when folded; especially when folded and stored in (pant) pockets. I am used to pulling out clean receipts out of my pant pockets with absolutely no writing on them.

I have a neutral admiration for thermal technology when used commercially as discussed in this article. It might be a hindrance for some who prefer to store receipts for almost a life time. Yet, for the present generation where time means money, it's an asset to keep.

Yesterday, we looked at the top five printing technologies that have made a revolution. Let's take a look at the rest:

6. Quick Start Lasers - While all other printing technologies have nudged forward, laser printing for the first print still takes a while. A new fuser technology is being tested which is estimated to reduce the printing time for the first print by four times.

7. Instant Scans - Much like laser printers, scanners take an era to boot up. Things are improving in scanners as well and LEDs have effectively reduced the warm up time significantly.

8. Solid Ink Technology - Xerox debuted solid inks for its laser printers and there was a heat of war between Xerox and HP over allegations and counter allegations on the pros and cons of the technology. The commercial product is yet to be released but the technology has been impressive so far.

9. Nano Printing - Nano technology based electronic components are now printable using an altered inkjet printer. This can change the face of electronic fabrication and there are reports that printed circuit boards are made commercially at some factories using modified printers.

10. 3D Printing - There is not a single website that hasn't talked about the latest hung-ho, 3D printers, which are capable of printing 3D models. My gut feeling is that 3D printing will be a parallel one from the common 2D printing and there shouldn't be any overlap or people switching sides.

From the reviewed technologies, it is clearly evident that HP has been the leader for not only its performance, but for several technological advancements it has seen over the recent past. But, we must be reminded that the rest are not too behind.

As for 2008, it is beyond our human periphery to think about the incoming inventions, not just in printing industry. We will be around to see the day and to celebrate technological advancements as and when it comes.

Change is the only constant in nature and only if it's being for the better. In printing, there's no looking back. The days of dot matrix printers are gone and in the days ahead, we will see far more advanced printing solutions at the price of a peanut; not sure about it though!

On this website, we have featured several innovations and latest technologies that have hit our printing world and those that make a difference in the way we print and the output we get. Eweek has compiled the top ten technologies that is expected to change the printing world for the better. Most of the featured technologies have already been discussed at some point or the other here:

1. Edgeline Printing Technology - There is no doubt on our minds that printing heads as big as the sheet of paper would definitely print faster. We didn't think about it earlier but the geniuses at HP's research lab did.

2. Drums on Edgeline Technology - When an image needs more than one pass of the print head, a way to get additional passes is to stop the page from advancing and let the print head take another pass. A better choice is to use a drum to carry the paper under the print head, spinning the drum multiple times for multiple passes.

3. Memjet Technology - Invention of different printing technologies have shown us that there isn't one exclusive technology that would be superior to all others; memjet technology is an active example of this theory. Print heads in this technology have thousands of nozzles and spits out millions of ink droplets to hasten printing.

4. Sophisticated Inks - Ultra modern hardware with lame software will most definitely end up being on the losing side. The latest printer technology should be complemented by equivalent ink enhancements and we seem to be well on par.

5. Non Smudging Paper - The last component that makes printing comes a full circle is the printing media. HP and Canon are far beyond others in this field.

In the next post, let's look at the remaining five technologies that will rule the roost.