Editing Printer (computing) (section)

===Modern print technology===

The following [[printing]] technologies are routinely found in modern printers:

====Laser printers and other toner-based printers====
{{main|Laser printing}}

A [[Laser printing|laser printer]] rapidly produces high quality text and graphics. As with digital [[photocopier]]s and multifunction printers (MFPs), laser printers employ a [[xerography|xerographic]] printing process but differ from analog photocopiers in that the image is produced by the direct scanning of a [[laser]] beam across the printer's [[photodetector|photoreceptor]].

Another toner-based printer is the [[LED printer]] which uses an array of [[light-emitting diode|LEDs]] instead of a [[laser]] to cause toner [[adhesion]] to the print drum.

====Liquid inkjet printers====

[[File:Ink-jet-cartridge.jpg|thumb|Liquid ink cartridge from Hewlett-Packard HP 845C inkjet printer]]
[[File:HP Deskjet All in One Printer.jpg|thumb|300px|right|HP Deskjet, an inkjet printer]]
[[Inkjet printing|Inkjet printers]] operate by propelling variably sized droplets of liquid ink onto almost any sized page. They are the most common type of computer printer used by consumers.

====Solid ink printers====
{{main|Solid ink}}

[[Solid ink]] printers, also known as phase-change ink or hot-melt ink printers, are a type of [[thermal transfer printer]], graphics sheet printer or 3D printer . They use solid sticks, crayons, pearls or granular ink materials.  Common inks are [[CMYK color model|CMYK]]-colored ink, similar in consistency to candle wax, which are melted and fed into a piezo crystal operated print-head. A Thermal transfer printhead jets the liquid ink on a rotating, oil coated drum. The paper then passes over the print drum, at which time the image is immediately transferred, or transfixed, to the page. Solid ink printers are most commonly used as color office printers and are excellent at printing on transparencies and other non-porous media. Solid ink is also called phase-change or hot-melt ink and was first used by Data Products and Howtek, Inc., in 1984.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Gregory|first=P|title=Editor|publisher=Blackie Academic & Professional for Chapman and Hall|year=1996|isbn=0-7514-0238-9|location=Great Britain|pages=113–138}}</ref>   Solid ink printers can produce excellent results with text and images. Some solid ink printers have evolved to print 3D models, for example, Visual Impact Corporation<ref>{{Cite book|last=Burns|first=Marshall|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/27810960|title=Automated fabrication : improving productivity in manufacturing|date=1993|publisher=PTR Prentice Hall|isbn=0-13-119462-3|location=Englewood Cliffs, N.J.|pages=97|oclc=27810960}}</ref> of Windham, NH was started by retired Howtek employee, Richard Helinski whose 3D patents US4721635 and then US5136515 was licensed to Sanders Prototype, Inc., later named Solidscape, Inc.  Acquisition and operating costs are similar to [[Laser printing|laser printers]]. Drawbacks of the technology include high [[energy conservation|energy consumption]] and long warm-up times from a cold state. Also, some users complain that the resulting prints are difficult to write on, as the wax tends to repel inks from [[pen]]s, and are difficult to feed through [[automatic document feeder]]s, but these traits have been significantly reduced in later models. This type of thermal transfer printer is only available from one manufacturer, [[Xerox]], manufactured as part of their [[Xerox Phaser]] office printer line. Previously, [[solid ink]] printers were manufactured by [[Tektronix]], but Tektronix sold the printing business to Xerox in 2001.

====Dye-sublimation printers====
{{main|Dye-sublimation printer}}

[[File:RGB dye sublimation panels.jpg|thumb|300px|A disassembled dye sublimation cartridge]]
A dye-sublimation printer (or dye-sub printer) is a printer that employs a printing process that uses heat to transfer dye to a medium such as a [[plastic card]], paper, or [[canvas print|canvas]]. The process is usually to lay one color at a time using a ribbon that has color panels. Dye-sub printers are intended primarily for high-quality color applications, including color photography; and are less well-suited for text. While once the province of high-end print shops, dye-sublimation printers are now increasingly used as dedicated consumer photo printers.

====Thermal printers====

[[File:Twitter receipt printer.jpg|thumb|Receipt printer printing an X timeline]]
[[Thermal printing|Thermal printers]] work by selectively heating regions of special heat-sensitive paper. Monochrome thermal printers are used in cash registers, [[Automated teller machine|ATMs]], [[Fuel dispenser|gasoline dispensers]] and some older inexpensive fax machines. Colors can be achieved with special papers and different temperatures and heating rates for different colors; these colored sheets are not required in black-and-white output. One example is [[Zink (technology)|Zink]] (a portmanteau of "zero ink").