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The large format printer is the unsung hero of modern advertising. If you can see a banner, trade show booth graphic or even a car wrap decal, chances are it’s been made with a large (or wide) format printer.

And yet, there’s a bit more to unravel behind these heavy-duty devices. If your business works with large rolls of paper (or even vinyl), you may have heard of different printer types, namely plotters and printers. Let’s go a bit more in-depth to help you determine exactly what kind of large format printer you might need.

What Is a Large Format Printer?

The first mystery we may need to solve is one of terminology: How large is a large format printer, exactly?

The answer will, surprisingly, depend on who you ask.

You should already probably have an idea of what a “normal-sized” printer is. It prints in A4 and legal-sized paper, so its width is typically 8.5 to 9 inches.

In general, wide-format printing is considered anything printed on sheets (or even rigid surfaces) that are at least 18 inches wide. A typical large format printer might accept sheets of paper with a width of 24 or 36 inches and several feet in length.

But what happens to the paper sizes that end up in the middle?

One of the most common such options is the A3 paper. With a size of 16.5×11.7 inches, the A3 is sometimes classified as “normal-sized” and sometimes as “wide-format” printer paper. As mentioned, this will depend on who you ask. If you’re trying to purchase a large format printer, note down the minimum printing width you work with regularly, as that will greatly narrow down your choices (and help your provider determine what exactly you need).

Vital Large Format Printer Features to Consider

Apart from determining the exact size of the printing your company needs to perform, you should also determine some other vital printing metrics.

Monochrome vs. Color

As you step further into the realm of large-format printing, monochrome printers start getting scarcer. The reasoning is quite straightforward: very few companies that need a large format printer work solely with text or black-only graphics. As a result, you’ll typically find printers that only offer color options and have multiple different color cartridges, which allows you greater control over your consumable use and running costs.

However, if you do end up needing a printer only for technical documentation, you can find a black-and-white large format printer (typically on the slimmer side). While it will never deliver that splash of color, it will cost less and print faster.

Printer vs. Multifunction

It’s not often that you need to digitize a large-format document, but the need can arise, and it’s where a multifunctional large format printer can shine. Similar to before, this is also achievable with smaller formats. But, it’s one of the most practical ways to scan a design schematic and not lose some details in the process.

Of course, the multifunctionality comes at a price, literally, with these models having a larger price tag. Additionally, the scanning process is unlike traditional scanning. The printer intakes the paper much as it would when printing, scanning it horizontally. Typically, the scanning speed for this type of printer is measured in inches per second.

Printers vs. Plotters

Typically, manufacturers (and online repositories) will refer to devices as either a “large format printer” or a “plotter.” Both types essentially do the same thing (print on paper or vinyl), but achieve that slightly differently.

Historically, plotters used automated pens, markers, or even knives to write or cut away at the printing material to create detailed images. This came at the cost of pure printing speed, device price, and the maintenance requirements they entailed. Modern plotters work similarly but have largely moved from actual pens to printer heads that more resemble traditional printer heads.

The result is that devices ended up being called printers or plotters, depending on the manufacturer and seller. Some manufacturers use the term “technical printer” when referring to modern plotters.

However, a part of the old design remains, and that’s compatibility with different file and image types. Plotters (and their evolutions) work well with vector-type images. These images store details in the form of mathematical functions and curves. One major advantage of this method is that the image quality isn’t reduced when changing the plot resolution and size.

This is contrasted by the more common raster-type images that printers can produce. In a raster, each pixel or dot gets a determined color and is shaded when being displayed or printed. When changing the resolution or size of the image, computer systems approximate the “new” pixels by the colors of the previous ones, which results in patches of the same color, effectively making the image blurry.

In practice, plotters are needed for highly detailed and precise files such as technical documentation, architectural and engineering designs, or some signs. Printers will work better when you need a wider array of colors and designs, but they are also typically the only practical option for the widest-format printing such as banner design.

Can You Outsource a Large Format Printer?

If your company doesn’t frequently need to print files on a larger scale, you might consider outsourcing the job to a printing company. But before you do that, here are some reasons why getting a large format printer for the office might still be better:

• Speed: Ordering a print job, especially one for wide-format printing, typically takes longer than traditional print orders, and not every print shop has larger sizes available. There’s also the problem of having to pick up the order or get it delivered back to the office. When you need a design made quickly, having a printer in the office can truly make a difference.
• Control: If you own the printer, you can set it up however you like it and keep those settings. You retain complete control over the printing pipeline and can schedule printing whenever you need it.
• Cheaper to re-print: If you spot a design mistake in the print that needs to be fixed, you can quite easily go back and make a new print. With an outsourced order, you have to go back to the queue, resend it to the outside printer, and, once again, wait for delivery or pickup, however long that takes.
• Safety: With an in-house printer, your designs never go out of the office without your authorization, minimizing the risk of miscommunication or security breaches.

How to Bring Wide-Format Printing to Your Office

Considering the somewhat perplexing nature of wide-format printing (starting with the exact qualities of what makes a large format printer, well…large), it’s understandable if you might have more questions than this guide can cover.

That’s where a qualified and experienced office technology partner like Stargel Office Solutions comes in. A partner and office equipment provider allows you to detail exactly what you need to be done, and the representatives will quickly ascertain what devices you need and how to implement them in your document management processes.

With decades of experience working with clients in the greater Houston area, we at Stargel know how important building a lasting partnership is for providing the best value. So, contact Stargel today and get top-notch devices with premium-level support.