Common Printer Questions

What you need to know:

Common printer questions cover choosing a printer, ink and paper types, and troubleshooting common problems like paper jams or connectivity issues. Key decisions include selecting between inkjet and laser printers based on speed and volume needs, understanding features like wireless connectivity, and knowing how to resolve common problems like a printer showing as offline or a job stuck in the queue.

Choosing a printer:

Inkjet vs. Laser:
Inkjet printers are often better for photos and lower-volume printing, while laser printers are faster and more efficient for high-volume text documents.

Multifunction printers:
These printers can print, copy, scan, and sometimes fax, making them a versatile all-in-one solution.

Considerations: When choosing a printer, consider factors like the volume and frequency of printing, desired features, speed, and security needs.

Ink and paper

Ink types:
Understand the difference between single inks and cartridges, and how often you will need to change them.

Paper:
Use the correct type of paper that meets your printer’s specifications for size, weight, and type.
Troubleshooting jams: Paper jams can occur due to cheap paper, paper that is too thick, or loading multiple paper types or sizes at once.
Common problems and fixes

Printer offline:
A common issue, even with the printer on, can be due to connection problems or a stalled job in the print queue.

Printer not found: This can happen if the printer isn’t properly connected or the necessary drivers are missing or corrupted.
Slow printing: This can be caused by a clogged print queue, the printer’s settings, or a stuck print job.

Paper jams: To prevent this, use good quality paper and don’t overload the tray.
Print queue: A job can get stuck, causing the printer to stop. You can clear the queue to fix this

Multifunction printers are all-purpose tools for the office or home. They combine at least three functions — printing, scanning, and copying — in one compact device. In this case, they are called 3-in-1 multifunction printers. There are also 4-in-1 devices that offer an additional fax function.

A printer for each purpose
Depending on the number of users, frequency of use, and primary application, a different type of printer is recommended.

Photo print
Amateur photographers often want to print high-quality pictures on special paper with great colour depth. However, buying a printer with only this one function can be rather inefficient. Instead, they could use an inkjet multifunction printer that is optimised for photo printing with five separate ink cartridges. Here, spending a few extra bucks might be a good idea, as inexpensive models rarely deliver the necessary quality. Laser printers cannot be considered in this case, as they cannot print on photo paper.

Text print
Laser printers promise sharply contoured letters without colour gradients and fast printing speeds. They are, therefore, a great choice for the office. When using cheaper printer paper, inkjet printers show slight colour fringing. Laser and especially LED printers can handle larger print jobs much more quickly than inkjet models. In addition, the toner range exceeds that of a conventional ink tank by far.

Text with illustrations
Anyone who regularly prints texts that include images or other visuals should go for an inkjet-based multifunction printer. These are the most popular devices, especially for home use, as they are rather versatile. Higher-priced models now achieve good results at high printing speeds, so they are also becoming increasingly popular in smaller offices, even competing with laser printers.

Rare use
If you only print sporadically and at irregular intervals, you should go for a laser printer. If you do not use an inkjet printer for a long time, the ink will dry out eventually. In this case, the printer nozzles will have to be cleaned with each use, resulting in increased ink consumption and thus high follow-up costs.

To make your purchase decision easier, let’s take a look at a concrete example:

Private users, for example families with school-age children, usually have a relatively low printing volume. The printer has to handle small print jobs a few times a week, mostly text documents — in some cases with illustrations — and now and then a high-quality photo. Occasionally, documents also need to be scanned or copied. For this user profile, multifunction printers with inkjet-based printers are best suited. Those who value high-quality photo printing should look out for an additional pigment black ink cartridge. If, on the other hand, you can do without photo printing altogether and rarely use the printer, you should go for a multifunction laser printer. Laser printers are also recommended for larger offices where numerous large print jobs are performed regularly.

Reference: Final Check