Barcode Printers - Laser and Thermal Printers

Whether you need barcodes on an industrial scale or you just want to create a few on your home computer, there are barcode printers to suit your needs and budget. Here is a guide to the technology involved, with the pros and cons of the various systems.

Thermal transfer Barcode Printers

Uses the same process as direct thermal printing except that the printhead heats a ribbon to deposit wax or resin onto the label, forming the image. They are a good option if you need a dedicated label printer.

Pros: Fast and quiet output. Print on demand with no wastage. Precise barcodes. Print on various kinds of paper and synthetic media. Durable long-life labels. Can use colored ribbons.

Cons: Can be very expensive. Costly ribbon replacement. Can only print labels.

Direct Thermal Printers

Chemically treated paper stock is passed over rows of tiny heating elements (up to 400 per inch) which switch on and off, turning the paper black and creating an image. Direct thermal printers are mainly used industrially for printing large numbers of labels.

Pros: Fast and quiet output. Simple to use, requiring low maintenance. Print on demand with no wastage. Precise readable barcodes.

Cons: Labels are prone to fading after a few months. They can also darken in contact with some chemicals, for example those used in highlighter pens. Printheads wear quickly due to abrasive print stock. Can only print labels.

Laser Barcode Printers

A laser beam removes static charge from a roller within the printer. Toner sticks to the charged areas and is printed onto the paper. Commonly found in UK office environments these printers have many uses including barcode printing.

Pros: Very high resolution. Very fast. Can be used for other tasks. Can print in color. Can print large format labels.

Cons: Not good for synthetic media. Expensive on color. Only prints whole pages of labels, causing wastage. Complex paper feed can cause problems with peeling labels.

Inkjet

Tiny droplets of ink are shot onto the surface of the print media. These are very common in the home and businesses, suited to small outputs of barcode labels.

Pros: High resolution. Can be used for other tasks. Low cost. Economical color printing.

Cons: Slow printing. Inks not water-resistant. Only prints whole sheets causing wastage. Expensive ink cartridges.

Dot matrix

Very small points hammer onto a ribbon which deposits ink onto the paper. Much older-style of office printing which are not recommended for barcodes due to unreliable print quality.

Pros: Small and low-cost. Can be used for other tasks. Can print large labels. Can print labels one by one.

Cons: Low resolution. Slow and noisy printing. Fading ribbons produce unreadable UPC codes.