With VR headset, we can swim with sharks, our phones can recognise our faces and digital watches can detect that we’ve been in an accident. With all this technological innovation, why are printers still so frustrating? This blog article aims to explain some of the reasons and how to make the most of the situation.

Hewlett-Packard (aka HP) released its home inkjet printer in 1988 and home lasers followed shortly after.  Inkjet printers spray liquid ink onto the page through printheads, while laser printers use static electricity to attract and melt toner onto paper.

Here we are, thirty-five years later and the printing technology hasn’t changed much.  Users are still struggling with clogged inkjets, expensive ink cartridges and paper jams.

Manufacturer priorities for printers

Manufacturers often lose money selling you the printer as they bank on making money back on the sale of ink and toner. Due to this business practice:

• ink cartridges run out quickly and yes, they are putting less ink in their cartridges.
• printers designed not to work as well if you use non branded cartridges.
• printers not designed for years and years of service.
• forcing users to perform printer maintenance that uses up more ink.

Even if you do invest in top-quality, on-brand ink, you could still encounter a multitude of other problems including:

• Connectivity issues.
• Paper type issues.
• Printer driver issues.
• Paper feed issues.
• or a variety of other error messages.

This is because the internal workings of the printer are outsourced to the lowest bidder. Since printer longevity is not the goal, there is less incentive to develop robust components or print drivers.

Printing Is Also Not An Easy Task

Printing is a complicated process with many moving parts that need to be in certain precise locations for the whole process to be successful. Humidity or air that is too dry can also impact the paper and how the printer can move it around.

So, what can you do? Here are some suggestions:

• go for a laser printer. Laser printers are generally a better performing type of printer. Yes, you will pay more upfront, but you will no longer be hostage to high ink-cartridge costs.
• use a cabled connection rather than connecting wirelessly.
• don’t buy one of the cheap inkjet printers.
• purchase a printer to suit your needs. If you don’t need a multifunction just purchase a printer or vice versa.

Want to save hours of your life troubleshooting your printer woes? We can help. Contact our experts today at DP Computing.