Unlike the basic printers we see in our home and office, wide format printers are capable of printing high-resolution printouts of images, banners, posters, murals, wallpapers, etc. Basically, large format printers are required by architectures, construction companies, advertising agencies, and entertainment industry. However, healthcare companies and even education departments invest in them for long-term benefits.

What to look for in a wide format printer?

With so many styles and varying budget, shopping for a wide format printer can be overwhelming. This is because the printer is a huge investment and you have to ensure that the equipment remains functional today and in the future.

But before you start, make sure to assess your printing priorities.

• Is this your first printer?
• Or are you just adding in your current range of equipment?
• Why are you buying it?
• How often do you plan to use it?
• How many prints do you expect to take out per day?

Color or black and white

Just like our standard printers, wide format printers are also available in choice of black and colored. This mainly depends on the output you expect from your printer. If you are planning to use it for photos, posters, and illustrations – a colored printer is the best choice.

However, a black and white printer generally performs better when it comes to speed while the cost of managing IRA ink is also low.

Speed

Another consideration to make when buying a wide format printer is the speed. If you have a significant workload to maintain, invest in a printer that has a fast output. However, you may have to compromise on your budget for the performance.

Performance

Speed is of the center of talk for a wide-format printing. Waiting for a print is one of the most irritating thing, everyone wants to get these jobs done quicker. The more you use a wide printer, the cheaper and more valuable to the company it can become. It can also be costly if the prints are inaccurate. Wasting ink on large prints can cost hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. Performance ratings consider both print speed and accuracy.

Wide-format printers not only supersize prints but create beautifully detailed output for a variety of purposes, from event graphics to those oversized checks for lottery winners. On the downside, the more detail the print requires, the slower the printing. High-end photo paper or canvas, which require more ink, slow things down even further.

While the current speed demons can pump out roughly 5,000 square feet per hour in draft mode (for checking, proofing or marking up a print), most slow down to under 500 square feet per hour for final prints. That’s still fast enough to pump out dozens of D-sized (24 x 36-inch) prints an hour.

Pricing of Wide Format Printers

The Pricing of a printer depends on multiple factors. The main and the far most important one is the quality of the printer- how well the color tone is and how much detailed prints it can give. As other factors, you can consider size, speed of printing, quality and maintenance cost of it.

Wide-format 24″ inkjet printer price can start from $1200 and can go up to $2000. This price fluctuation is mainly depending on rolls, stands, installation, brand, and geography. Moreover, a 36″ printer can range from $3200 to $4700. Whereas, 44″ can go to $3900-$7900 depending on the number of rolls it contains. Color inkjets used for commercial production can run $15,000 and more. But this last option will be far more expensive if you are a business in very initial stage.

Leasing

Many businesses prefer to lease their printer if they don’t have enough money to buy it now. A lease generally has a low monthly fee, also includes service and maintenance that ease you, and makes upgrading easy when new technology comes out. But with all these pros, the con is that you are paying more than it price. If you want to keep it for a long and you have enough money upfront, buying it is a better option.

Conclusion

The printer is a very handy but expensive device for any business. The price of a printer depends on many things but you have to choose wisely what matters most to your needs. With the time, as you use a printer, its price to usability ratio keeps on growing. So a printer is always worth the price.

If you are looking for a printer, and don’t know which one to buy or what will be the most suitable. Fill the form above, we will provide you the best price quotes from experts and also give you leasing option. You can always discuss further with them.