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Difference between a liquid and a dry toner printer

what is a dry toner printer?

Determine whether a liquid or a dry toner printer will be perfect for your print environment!

Are you curious about the difference between liquid and dry toner printers? To simplify the difference, a dry toner printer essentially refers to a printer that uses dry toner, whereas a liquid toner printer uses liquid toner. Although that seems simple enough, key differences between the two are worth considering.

What is toner?

Toners are a substance used in digital printers, including laser printers and copiers. Toner cartridges are solid powder and work best on multifunctional copiers and printers. Toner is required to print your graphics.

Although toner works well for multifunctional printers and copiers, most folks also use ink. The most significant difference between toner and ink cartridges is that they work with different types of printers. For instance, if you are printing with an inkjet printer, you will need ink cartridges.

The process involves a powdered pigment that bonds the paper with heating material when you use toner. Toner is a solid substance, and different types of toners are available, including plant-based toners, which may be a better environmentally friendly option for your print environment!

What is a dry toner printer?

As mentioned, a dry toner printer requires dry toner to print. Dry toners have pigments inside polymer beads that help with the printing process. A bonding phase between the material you are printing melts the polymer beads directly onto the surface.

The strengths of using dry toner for your printers include the following:

  • Stable and accurate colors
  • Faster printing and little risk of smearing prints due to no drying time
  • A more versatile printing option (diverse materials)

What is a liquid toner printer:

What is the difference between a liquid and dry toner printer?

A liquid toner printer refers to a printer using liquid toner that is used in digital presses typically for commercial printing. Liquid toners are primarily made of dye or pigmented acrylic resin particles.

Like dry toner, liquid toner uses polymer beads as well for printing. However, the beads dispersed and bonded to the page are oil when using liquid toner. The oil evaporates during the process of combining the pages.

People use liquid toner for digital presses to produce vibrant colors that jump off the page. If your business utilizes commercial printing, this may be an excellent option for your team. Some of the biggest strengths of liquid toner include the following:

  • Zero warm-up time required
  • More resistance prints with little fading or smudging
  • Quick speed with high-quality output

Although dry toner has some competitive advantages over liquid toner, it is still worth considering liquid toner depending on your printing needs. Either way, both toners will offer you a competitive edge in print quality, speed, and accuracy that can’t be beaten!

To stay up to date on industry news and trends, be sure to follow our Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube channels for more information. Our blog is also an excellent resource for your printing needs and office solutions.

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Written By:BDS
May 8, 2023

About BDS:

BDS is an authorized office technology provider/reseller with corporate headquarters in Marlborough, MA, and offices throughout New England and Florida. Since 1978, we have supported local customers in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, and Florida with copier and printing solutions.
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