If your company needs to print



and you have decided to handle the job in-house, you will

need to choose from the wide variety of available

. With all the

different options available, making a decision can be complicated. Although

one's needs will vary based upon the nature of their business, all barcode

printers should be capable of handling two basic requirements. What should

barcode printers do? Let us take a look.

First, all barcode printers should be able to produce readable labels that

measure up to industry specifications. In other words, they should print a clear

barcode label that can be read by scanners. The text portions of the label

should be clearly legible and easily read by human eyes--including any numerical

sequences accompanying the barcode.

Second, all barcode printers should be able to produce those labels repeatedly

and consistently. Although even a lightweight home printer can produce a barcode

label in a pinch, their ability to do so accurately and reliably in volume is

limited. Commercial barcode printers must be able to print the label repeatedly

with a very high level of accuracy and very few errant attempts.

Remember, those two basic requirements are merely prerequisites for an adequate

barcode printer. Barcode printers that meet the simple two-pronged test are not

created equally. One's choice among barcode printers will be influenced by size,

cost, system compatibility and a host of other considerations. One should not

assume that any clear-printing reliable product will be the right choice for

their unique situation.

However, if a printer is unable to meet both of those requirements it should be

immediately dismissed from one's list of potential bar code printers. If a

printer cannot consistently and accurately produce highly readable labels, it

should be kept as far away from an operation as possible. The costs of using a

poorly designed printer will far outweigh any savings realized during the

initial purchase.