How to Choose the Right Card Printer

There’s a wide variety of ID printers in the market. Made to fit the needs of the user, some are more high-tech than others. Think about the difference between the card printer used on a college campus compared to the ones used at the DMV. With just a simple example, we can see that there is more to this industry than meets the eye. Evaluating your options can seem overwhelming, so we’ve outlined a short guide on how to choose the right card printer.

Figure Out Your Budget

Anytime you’re deciding on a new product for your business, you need to think about how it will affect your budget. If you only need one card printer, then it shouldn’t be too concerning to purchase. However, if you need multiple printers for the bank or the university, then you’ll want to pay more attention to how that will affect your budget. As stated, printers come in different forms, some more expensive and of higher quality than others—knowing your budget range will help you evaluate the best printers for your organization.

Determine Your Card Volume

This is one of the most important steps to choosing the right card printer. If you haven’t determined your card volume, you run the risk of purchasing a printer that doesn’t fit the organization’s need or spending too much money on one. For example, organizations with medium- to high-volume print jobs will want to invest in a more expensive printer—they’ll save on supply costs over time. However, if a small organization purchases that same printer but doesn’t have the same volume to fulfill, then that can destroy the budget.

Decide on Single- or Dual-Sided

As a small aspect that can change the simplicity or complexity of the job, make sure to decide ahead of time whether the organization needs single- or dual-sided printers. Most organizations require dual-sided printers that can automatically flip and print onto the back side of an ID card. On the other hand, if you’re sure that the organization only needs printing on one side, then buying a single-sided printer will reduce your costs. If you’re unsure of your needs, consider a printer that can upgrade to from single-sided to dual-sided.

Key in on Special Features

The special features of a card printer are what organizations tend to spend the most time considering. There’s the printing method to think about—whether they use dye sublimation printing or reverse transfer printing—but there’s also the question as to whether the printer can laminate, encode, or imprint watermarks. Decide whether your organization needs visual security or wants visually higher-class cards—keying in on these sorts of options that will narrow your search.

At Peripheral Dynamics Inc., our Nuvia Card Printer is just what your organization needs. It’s a color ID card printer that offers some of those key features we mentioned above. It has options for both single- and dual-sided printing and can complete up to 800 cards per hour. It uses magnetic stripe encoding, but we offer other types upon request. We want your organization to know that you’ve received the best of the best. Submit an order with us now!