If It Prints, I'll Let You Know

Life is becoming more and more fast-paced, and traveling everywhere has become a common activity for the everyday businessman. The internet has allowed us instant access to our files, emails, and documents anywhere in the world, so long as the content is online. But printing is another matter. What if you need to print something quick and you only have your laptop with you at some remote place that time seems to have forgotten?

Fortunately for us, compact and portable printers have now been developed, and it becomes an easy task for us to print our files from anywhere in the world. These mini printers are often battery-operated, and can be carried in our laptop bags or even in our briefcases. It’s that convenient to have, especially during situations when you have to print a file that you need that very minute, and don’t have the time to run around and find a printer somewhere else.

One common disadvantage of mini printers is limited features. Some mini printers are built only for monochrome printing, while others are only for photo printing. It probably is still difficult to jam a lot of functions into something so small and compact. Looking at it from one perspective, that’s the trade-off for convenience and portability.

So if you don’t mind missing out on the other frills that big printers have to offer, mini printers can provide you with a basic solution to your printing needs. It’s small, light, and easy to carry, making it ideal for emergency printing situations. While mini printers are built mostly for a single type of printing, it is worth your money especially if you are a traveling businessman.

While the printer in itself is considered a stand-alone accessory of a computer set, it doesn’t mean that it cannot have accessories of its own as well. There are many parts available in order to improve the performance of your printer and by extension, the quality of your prints. From USB cables to paper handling accessories, these parts have a significant effect on your little piece of hardware.

Paper handling accessories can aid you a lot if you’re going to print in bulk, since custom paper trays have a large storage size, sparing you the hassle of having to refill your paper tray over and over again. Some of these accessories even have multiple trays to hold different paper sizes, which can also help if you need to switch paper sizes on the fly.

Printer memory can also help a lot in your printer’s performance, especially when you’re trying to print a lot of pictures in a short amount of time. Having more RAM would mean that your printer would have a lesser tendency to freeze during printing – something that you would truly detest when you find yourself in a hurry to get the final prints.

Printer software is also an important printer accessory, since this can give you a wider range of customization options for your printer. But before you go online and install it, make sure that the software is built specifically for your printer model as well as your current operating system. If it doesn’t, then it will not run on your computer.

While most printers today are connected to the PC via the USB port, it never hurts to have an extra one. You never know when your cable might become defective, so in this case it’s better to be prepared.

Having a limited budget shouldn’t mean having to avoid buying a printer. There are several practical reasons to own one not least of which is the need for several household documents for school, bills, taxes, records and even the ability to print digital pictures for friends and family. It can also be helpful to own a device that offers printing, faxing and other helpful functions, making the investment that much more valuable. Here are a few great printers that are affordable and worth the investment.

• Canon Pixma iP2600 Photo Printer (markets for $49-$68): This is a great printer for families who need a good device for printing photos and text documents. It doesn’t have an external image upload port but the pictures it prints are great.

• Canon Selphy CP770 (markets for $80-$160: A great printer for travel purposes. It comes with a bucket for ease of travel.

• Lexmark X7675 Pro(markets for $130-$200): An excellent multi-purpose printer, the X6765 offers you easy wireless setup, great prints, and a five year warranty to guarantee it’ll last you too.

• HP Officejet J6480 (markets for $145-$250): This printer offers several options that are almost never found in printers less than $200. A all-in-one with excellent print quality and tough hardware, its sure to be a great help to families.

• Dell Multifunction Monochrome Laser Printer 1125 (Markets for $200-$260): If you’re looking for a sensible printing device this is the one for you. While it is text specific it’s still a great all-in-one.

Docking stations are favored by a lot of users because it extends more than just mobile and other functional features. They were created to lessen the need for cables to connect other computer peripherals to the system. For instance, if you have a laptop and you need mouse, scanners and printers, you no longer need to think of the burden of plugs and cables.

In the trade for docking stations, there are popular ones in the market. One is Kensington Portable Notebook Cooling Station Model 60149. This is more than just an ordinary cooling dock for your portable notebook. It also helps relieve you of eye and neck strains.

Targus also has its own cool versions for docking stations. The list includes that of the Universal Notebook Docking Station Model ACP50US and the Podium Coolpad ModelPA241U. The former is good for any notebook model while the later is ideal if you need a partner to make your portable PC’s work for you all day. HP, Logitech, Toshiba and Tritton have their own popular docking stations as well.

For full version of this article, please visit “Most Popular Docking Stations of 2009“.

If you live anywhere where it gets very hot and have very limited cooling for your home office chances are you’ve dealt with a clogged inkjet printer. The heat in these areas can dry out the ink before you can get much more than a few sheets from the cartridge and by the time you’ve sorted out that out you’ve probably already gone through a few of them. So what can you do?
Actually the best solution for this problem is simpler than it seems. While inkjet printers can be great (and even possible in hot climates if you can maintain the level of coolness they need to function) laser printers are less of a hassle in hot, dry climates (not as much in humid climates where the paper gets damp and either sticks together or produces running ink on documents).
Why?
There are a few things going for the laser printer over the inkjet despite the higher price of the former. Laser printers produce a higher print yield per cartridge (the amount of documents that can be printed per ink cartridge) for one and they also tend to have a longer life even in the heat. Laser cartridges are also less likely to gunk up your printer. This means that as long as you print an occasional document or two in times of less frequent usage you should have a printer that can work for you even in the hot, dry heat of the southwest.