09 Sep Should You Get a Wide-Format Printer or a Plotter?
Both wide-format printers and plotters are capable of printing high-quality designs, artwork, and more in larger formats than standard sized paper. Whether you should get a wide-format printer or a plotter depends upon your budget, the type of printing you plan on doing, and the scope of your work.
What Does Wide-Format Mean?
Wide-format refers to any kind of printing that occurs on non-standard sized paper. This means anything larger than 8.5×11” paper. Wide-format printing is used to print complex Excel spreadsheets and reports that wouldn’t be readable on standard paper, as well as flyers, posters, artwork, photographs, large graphics, signs, blueprints, and more. Wide-format printers may cut paper from a roll as they print, rather than using pre-cut reams of paper stored in a paper tray.
What Is a Plotter?
A plotter is a type of printer that prints only non-standard sized documents ranging between two and six feet wide. Instead of using laser or inkjet printing, a plotter uses an actual pen to draw the designs. The pen is attached to a mechanical arm that moves left and right while being controlled by a computer.
Differences Between Wide-Format Printers and Plotters
A plotter uses a vector format to create and print images, while a wide-format printer uses images created with pixels on a grid. Vector format allows you to redesign and rescale any image to a larger or smaller size without losing quality or clarity, while pixels can only be resized so much before they start becoming blurry. A plotter is best for single-color designs that need to be printed very large or that need to be easily scalable. A wide-format printer is best for full-color printing that is already correctly sized and doesn’t need to be flexible or scalable.
At Arizona Business Equipment, we can help you determine if a wide-format printer or a plotter makes more sense for your business needs. We offer high-quality, affordable office equipment leases to businesses of all sizes and scopes throughout Arizona. To learn more, just call our friendly team at (520) 888-2679 or contact us online.