When most people think about printing, they picture a standard home or office printer, churning out sheets of A4. But, depending on the type of business you run, you may need to print much, much bigger formats than that. That’s where a large format printer comes in, as it is used for printing XL items like billboards, posters, and banners. This guide answers common questions about large format printers and provides tips and advice to help you buy the best one.
The Basics of a Large Format Printer
First, a definition. A large format printer is, in simple terms, just what it sounds like. It’s a printer made especially for printing at larger than usual scale. While a typical home printer can handle little envelopes and standard A4 papers, a large format printer prints huge posters, signs, and so on.
Large vs. Wide Format Printing
Large and wide format printing are two terms used interchangeably by many people. Both refer to large-scale printing jobs – the kind for which standard printers simply won’t suffice. However, there’s one specific difference setting them apart.
Large format printing specifically refers to prints that are at least 36” wide or long. Wide format printing isn’t quite so specific. It’s more of a general term for big printing, without any precise measurements to define it.
How Does a Large Format Printer Work?
Large format printers work a lot like regular printers. However, their precise mechanisms may vary from model to model. Many simply spray ink onto the printing material to form the image you wish to print. Others involve the use of rollers or even plotter pens to draw lines and shapes with pinpoint precision.
Whichever large format printer you choose, the overall printing process is much the same. First, you select your printing material – large format devices are often capable of printing on much more than mere paper, including metals and plastics.
Then, you decide on the designs, letters, shapes, or images you wish to print and configure the printer accordingly to suit the desired size. With everything configured, you commence printing and let the large format printer do the rest.
Who Uses Large Format Printing?
A large format printer is needed any time you wish to produce larger-than-normal prints. That goes for the likes of:
- Posters
- Banners
- Cut-outs
- Large stickers
- Signs
- Billboards
- Store displays
- Blueprints
Since there are so many possible uses for large format printers, these devices are relevant and valued in many industries.
Marketing agencies, for instance, may benefit from their own in-house large format printer fleet. It allows them to print off an array of oversized marketing materials, like trade show displays and banners for their clients.
Retailers, too, may use large-format printing to decorate their stores with big banners, posters, and display stands. Event planners might use a large-format printer to produce signs, banners, and similar items to decorate their venues.
Companies in engineering, architecture, and construction, too, benefit from having a large format printer. It can help them produce blueprints, architectural drawings, construction plans, and the like, preserving detail and accuracy, even at high resolutions.
The Benefits of a Large Format Printer
A large format printer brings a host of benefits to the table, including:
- Size: These are the best and often only options for producing large-scale prints, like big signs and billboards.
- Versatility: Large format printing has a vast spectrum of applications across industries, from engineering to retail.
- Detail: Often, the larger a print is, the less detail it has. Large format printers manage to preserve detail and clarity in their output.
- Material Choice: You don’t only have to print on paper with a large format printer. They work with metal, canvas, fabrics, and even wood.
How to Find the Best Large Format Printer
To buy the very best large format printer, focus on:
Speed
Printers vary enormously in speed. Some are lightning-fast, capable of churning out many large-scale prints in no time. Others are notably slower. Historically, large format printers tended to be quite slow, but these days, you can find some super speedy models, perfect for businesses that need to do a lot of printing in a small amount of time.
Quality
The best printer manufacturers prioritize quality, especially in large-format devices. As touched on above, an issue when printing in large sizes is that you sometimes lose clarity and detail. But the best printers deliver flawless, consistent output. If you need detailed, impactful, colorful prints, look for models that offer high-resolution ratings and small droplet sizes.
Cost
Of course, when investing in any piece of business equipment, from a humble office copier to a high-end large format printer, cost matters. You have to think about both short and long-term costs here. Some printers may cost more up-front but less in the long run if they’re well-made and cheaper to maintain. Others may be cheap initially but cost a lot in maintenance, ink, and repairs.
Usage
At a base level, a large format printer works a lot like a regular one, but that doesn’t mean that using a large format printer is as easy as using a simple home or office device. These are quite large machines that require careful and precise configuration to avoid unnecessary wastage. It’s best, therefore, to find one that’s easy to work with.
Turn to the Pros for Large Format Printing Success
If you work in any industry that requires large-format printing, you’ll want to ensure you get the best possible device to meet your needs and maximize your print quality and efficiency. Even with the tips above, it’s not always easy to decide between one large format printer and another, particularly if you’re a first-time buyer of this type of equipment.
That’s why it’s best to turn to the pros. Like Copiers Northwest. With years of experience and unparalleled expertise in copiers and copying solutions, Copiers Northwest has helped more than 10,000 businesses, and we’d love to do the same for you. Contact our team today to find out more.