The printer is essential for any company’s top point-of-sale (POS) system. Retailers, restaurants, salons, banks and other businesses generate receipts for card and customer transactions using point-of-sale (POS) printers. When deciding on a printer for receipts, business owners have a few options.
What Is a Receipt Printer?
It’s a compact device used to produce credit cards and customer receipts. The most typical settings for this kind of devices are restaurants, retail stores and gas stations. Using a front-of-house printer for credit card payments and a back-of-house printer for order tickets is also an option for most food service environments. When choosing the right receipt printer for your business, you’ll notice two main types: impact and thermal printers.
Impact Printers
Like a typewriter, an impact printer (or a dot matrix printer) operates by striking the paper with ink physically. The printhead of an impact printer is equipped with tiny pins that move across the page and press the ink ribbon against the paper to create letters. The affordability of impact printers is the main reason why are they attractive to most POS users. Additionally, they’re reliable and efficient in hot conditions, which is particularly important in some professional contexts, such as handling back-of-house restaurant tickets in a hot kitchen.
Thermal Printers
Heat-sensitive thermal paper and the thermal head with tiny, heated components, come into direct contact to operate a thermal printer. The letters or graphics are created by heating the thermal paper layer until it turns black. Despite being more expensive than impact printers, thermal printers might save money over time because they don’t need ink or toner. However, thermal printers might not work as well in hotter areas because they’re heat-sensitive.
What to Consider When Selecting a Receipt Printer?
Compatibility
When choosing an appropriate receipt printer for your customers, compatibility should be your top priority. The device you choose should be flexible enough to accommodate various customer situations by seamlessly integrating with a range of point-of-sale (POS) software. The printer can be compatible with the system to guarantee smooth integration, whether it is used in a restaurant, retail establishment or service counter.
Performance in Everyday Environments
Despite their reputation for dependability, impact printers are slower and noisier than thermal printers. They’re the superior option, however, when used in a heated setting. Due to the inherent heat sensitivity of the paper used in thermal printers, these devices’ performance degrades in environments with high humidity and temperatures. Therefore, an impact printer is a preferable choice if you’re, for instance, selecting a POS printer for your kitchen staff to pick up orders.
Efficiency and Noise Level
A thermal printer can be the best option if you require a printer to print card transaction slips and customer receipts. Compared to impact printers, which typically produce three lines per second, these printers may produce up to 20 lines per second. This quick printing is essential to cut down on wait times and boost productivity during peak hours. Compared to their dot matrix equivalents, thermal models are far quieter.
Cost, Features and Colour Capabilities
You should also think about whether your company needs single- or double-sided printing, as well as if you require multicolour or single-colour printing. Certain receipt printers also come with branding-friendly features that may be customised, like the option to add logos and rapid response codes to receipts.
Your decision will also be influenced by your budget. Choose eco-friendly printers and receipt rolls if your business cares about the environment. These options can also save a lot of money during the printer’s lifetime. Cost concerns, including consumables like paper rolls, should strike a balance between initial outlays and long-term savings through efficiency and durability.
Extra Connectivity and Software Choices
Before you buy, make sure you have enough extra ports to support the printer you want and that it has the appropriate interface for your computer system. There will be USB, parallel or RS-232 serial connections on your system.
Even if the majority of receipt printers are universal, you should make sure the ones you select work with the kind of POS system you have; otherwise, they are pretty much worthless. To facilitate smooth integration with point-of-sale systems and other devices, some advise searching for systems that include USB, Ethernet, and/or Wi-Fi connectivity.
Common Printer Receipt Problems
Because they’re frequently used in technically challenging settings, receipt printers are prone to malfunctioning. These are the three major categories of problems and their fixes:
- Poor printing performance, such as paper jams and poor print quality. While print quality can be preserved with prompt replacement and modifications, paper jams can be avoided with routine cleaning and the use of printer-compatible materials.
- Problems with connectivity, such as erratic network connections or out-of-date drivers. By following information technology best practices, like secure connections and frequent firmware updates, these problems can be prevented.
- Overheating and supply depletion. Purchasing high-duty cycle printers, allocating cooling times and reducing pointless printing can all help prevent this.
A POS’s seamless operation and excellent customer satisfaction levels depend on appropriate training, routine maintenance and vendor support.
