Almost every home and office printer uses one of two technologies. Knowing how each works makes most buying decisions much simpler.
How an inkjet printer works
An inkjet sprays tiny droplets of liquid ink through a print head that moves back and forth across the page. Colour inkjets mix a few ink colours (usually cyan, magenta, yellow and black) to make every other colour. Ink comes in replaceable cartridges or, on "ink tank" models, in built-in tanks you refill from bottles.
How a laser printer works
A laser printer uses a laser to draw the page as an electrical charge on a drum. Fine powder called toner sticks to the charged areas, is transferred to the paper, and is then melted on by a heated unit called the fuser. That is why pages come out warm. Mono laser printers print only black; colour lasers use four toners.
Side by side
| Inkjet | Laser | |
|---|---|---|
| Best at | Colour, photos, mixed home use | Lots of text documents, quickly |
| Text | Good | Very crisp; doesn't smudge when handled |
| Photos | Usually better, especially on photo paper | Fine for charts and graphics; photos are less smooth |
| Infrequent use | Ink can dry in the print head if unused for weeks | Toner is dry powder and doesn't dry out |
| Speed | Slower for long documents | Faster, especially for many pages |
| Size | Often compact | Usually larger and heavier |
Which suits you?
- Mostly text, school or office documents, printing in bursts: a mono laser is usually the simplest choice.
- Photos, colourful projects, crafts: an inkjet, possibly an ink-tank model if you print a lot.
- A bit of everything, not very often: either works; if weeks can pass between prints, consider a laser or check how the inkjet handles long idle periods.
Running costs matter as much as the price of the printer. See Ink and toner explained.
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