Laser vs inkjet when for greyscale`

[harryguy082589]

Hi,

I run a detal prtice and i am begining to digitize my x-ray system,
somebody told me that i should buy an inkjet printer over a laser
printer because inkjets have better quality greyscale images. Is this
true?

 

[Pat]

I'm not one for grammer, but I hope you do fillings better than you
spell. Adding a few letters, I hope it's a dental practice.

In most circumstances, I think inkjets look better, however it really
depends on the equipment and software. See what your software
manufacturer recommends. The easiest think to do, if your software
company doesn't have a recommendation, is to take a CD (or laptop) to
the local store and have them print some from each printer and see what
works the best for your circumstance.

A lot of the reason inkjets look better tends to be that you can use
better paper in them -- photo paper. However, some dye sublimnation
printers are tremendous.

 

[John McWilliams]

I'm not one for grammer, but I hope you do fillings better than you
spell. Adding a few letters, I hope it's a dental practice.

ow, ow, ow.... First rule: Never, ever do a spelling lame unless you're
sure you have it all correct: Grammar. Second "rule" Bottom post, unless
you need to go interspersed. Enough cop for today!

In most circumstances, I think inkjets look better, however it really
depends on the equipment and software. See what your software
manufacturer recommends. The easiest think to do, if your software
company doesn't have a recommendation, is to take a CD (or laptop) to
the local store and have them print some from each printer and see what
works the best for your circumstance.

Are you, the OP, printing from Photoshop, or .....?

The concept of trying out printers on exactly what you want to do with
them is the best route.

 

[measekite]

ow, ow, ow.... First rule: Never, ever do a spelling lame unless
you're sure you have it all correct: Grammar. Second "rule" Bottom post,

I have carefully read all of the arguments regarding top and bottom
posts and I find it much more logical to top post because people who
follow a thread will not have to scroll down and the reply is at the top.

 

[GregS]

I have carefully read all of the arguments regarding top and bottom
posts and I find it much more logical to top post because people who
follow a thread will not have to scroll down and the reply is at the top.

The way it is, for many years, you bottom post, its always going to be
that way, and any other way one might also try to do..Trying to make everyone top post is FUTILE.
200 years from now, perhaps top posting will be mandatory. There is also
a case for the blind reading vocalized posts. Of course, don't the arrows
indicate a posting sequence???

 

[ASAAR]

ow, ow, ow.... First rule: Never, ever do a spelling lame unless you're
sure you have it all correct: Grammar. Second "rule" Bottom post, unless
you need to go interspersed. Enough cop for today!

A cop out? Not just a grammer mizspellar he, you may or may
not have caught "The easiest think to do". Skipping other minor
stuff we approach some really sublime country:

However, some dye sublimnation printers are tremendous.

And some 4"x6" dye sub. printers are really tiny.

 

[John McWilliams]

The way it is, for many years, you bottom post, its always going to be
that way, and any other way one might also try to do..Trying to make everyone top post is FUTILE.
200 years from now, perhaps top posting will be mandatory. There is also
a case for the blind reading vocalized posts. Of course, don't the arrows
indicate a posting sequence???

There'll always be those who post contrary to givens in any NG, whatever
the conventions are. One of them is one of the more helpful of folks,
and I think he's merely set in his ways. The other is a poster who has
little to say, but says it often, very often. I've suggested folks not
either talk about him, which I've just done! Damn!, and certainly not
reply to his monotonous chanting.

 

[Pete D]

"Rules" are for the blind obedience of fools and the guidance of others.
Whoever wrote the first guide that said bottom posting was a good idea is a
dead set moron. I have now worn out twelve mice because bottom posters do
not snip the rubbish.

 

[Raphael Bustin]

Hi,

I run a detal prtice and i am begining to digitize my x-ray system,
somebody told me that i should buy an inkjet printer over a laser
printer because inkjets have better quality greyscale images. Is this
true?

In general, yes.

Inkjet will give you better tonality, but only if all colors
are involved. An inkjet using only its K (black) nozzles
won't look all that much better than a laser printer
(or the laser may win that contest.)

It's easy enough to turn a BW (bitonal or grayscale)
image into an RGB image to make that happen, but
then you can't expect the print to be perfectly neutral --
ie., it may not be pure gray at every step. That's
probably not an issue for your purposes.

Laser printers still generally use halftoning rather than
error diffusion or stochastic dithering. In other words,
they will have much more visible "dots" and tonality
somewhat diminished relative to inkjet. Nowadays
in a good inkjet printer, the dots are nearly invisible.

The laser printer will almost always have the lower
cost-per-copy.


rafe b
www.terrapinphoto.com

 

[ColinD]

"Rules" are for the blind obedience of fools and the guidance of others.
Whoever wrote the first guide that said bottom posting was a good idea is a
dead set moron. I have now worn out twelve mice because bottom posters do
not snip the rubbish.

Not snipping does not invalidate bottom posting. As for your mice, does
your keyboard not have a PageDown key?

Colin D.

 

[Kevin Agard]

I'm not one for grammer, but I hope you do fillings better than you
spell. Adding a few letters, I hope it's a dental practice.

In most circumstances, I think inkjets look better, however it really
depends on the equipment and software. See what your software
manufacturer recommends. The easiest think to do, if your software

[SNIP]

And I doubt you actually meant "The easiest think to do" but would
suggest that when one is pinging someone else for typos, it behoves them
not to have any in the post in which they are doing the pinging!

 

[Poobah]

I'm not one for grammer, but I hope you do fillings better than you
spell. Adding a few letters, I hope it's a dental practice.

In most circumstances, I think inkjets look better, however it really
depends on the equipment and software. See what your software
manufacturer recommends. The easiest think to do, if your software

[SNIP]

And I doubt you actually meant "The easiest think to do" but would
suggest that when one is pinging someone else for typos, it behoves them
not to have any in the post in which they are doing the pinging!

Tee-hee! "Behoves"...

 

[ASAAR]

Tee-hee! "Behoves"...

Beet me too it.

And I'm safe, at least according to my spell checker. <g>

 

[Pat]

A cop out? Not just a grammer mizspellar he, you may or may
not have caught "The easiest think to do". Skipping other minor
stuff we approach some really sublime country:


And some 4"x6" dye sub. printers are really tiny.

Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at an Elingsh uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in
waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, olny taht the frist and lsat
ltteres are at the rghit pcleas. The rset can be a toatl mses and you
can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae we do not raed
ervey lteter by ilstef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

There, I top posted for you guys. Geez. Take a valium. The next
thing you know, you will want me to call "soccer"; "football".

 

[Frank ess]

Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at an Elingsh uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer
in
waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, olny taht the frist and lsat
ltteres are at the rghit pcleas. The rset can be a toatl mses and
you
can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae we do not raed
ervey lteter by ilstef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

There, I top posted for you guys. Geez. Take a valium. The next
thing you know, you will want me to call "soccer"; "football".

smrt alc

 

[ASAAR]

There, I top posted for you guys. Geez. Take a valium. The next
thing you know, you will want me to call "soccer"; "football".

Not I. That would just result in more Brazil nuts. Just trying
to see if I have enough pull to get you to tow the line.

 

[J. Clarke]

Hi,

I run a detal prtice and i am begining to digitize my x-ray system,
somebody told me that i should buy an inkjet printer over a laser
printer because inkjets have better quality greyscale images. Is this
true?

Depends on the particular printers you are comparing, but generally yes.
Google "grayscale ink" and you'll find a large number of hits with relevant
information. There's a tutorial at <http://www.cjcom.net/digiprnarts.htm>;
<http://www.inksupply.com/index.cfm> produces grayscale inks and their site
has considerable discussion of their use. Some printers, for example the
Epson R2400, 4800, 7800, 9800, HP 8750 and several other HP models, include
or have available from the manufacturer grayscale inks. In addition the
color inks are used in combination to fill out the tonality.

 

[Arthur Entlich]

Most inkjet printers are higher resolution than laser printers, and so
the range of grey steps in the scale would be finer.

Inkjets can produce photo-like results. Some higher dpi (black) laser
can produce reasonable greyscale (I'd suggest 800-1200 ppi), but the
inkjet result will be superior.

Art

 

[Don Stauffer]

DPI makes a difference. Few decent priced laser printers have a high
dpi. The higher the dpi of the printer, the greater the number of dots
in each pseudo-pixel, and hence the higher the grey scale it can use.

Both laser printers and inkjets use the same sort of diffusion dither to
create 'mock' halftone cells. The more dots in each cell (a cell is the
same as a pixel) the more grey tones available. Thus high dpi inkjets
will have more tones than most lasers.

Even some of the dye subs dither. While many dye subs can alter the
amount of ink per dot, on some dye sub printers the amount of variation
is still not good enough for a large number of shades, so both variation
of dot size AND dithering are used.

 

[me]

DPI makes a difference. Few decent priced laser printers have a high
dpi. The higher the dpi of the printer, the greater the number of dots
in each pseudo-pixel, and hence the higher the grey scale it can use.

Both laser printers and inkjets use the same sort of diffusion dither
to create 'mock' halftone cells. The more dots in each cell (a cell is
the same as a pixel) the more grey tones available. Thus high dpi
inkjets will have more tones than most lasers.

Even some of the dye subs dither. While many dye subs can alter the
amount of ink per dot, on some dye sub printers the amount of variation
is still not good enough for a large number of shades, so both
variation of dot size AND dithering are used.

But, there is also the matter of bit depth, if you buy a new half decent
laser it will be able to vary the intensity of each dot, usually either
a 4 bit depth or 8 bit. As far as I can tell on non-production machines
this is done by varying the dot size. I _believe_ but haven't been able
to confirm it, that production machines vary the intensity by some
method involving the amount of developing that takes place as they tend
to be two stage prints using developer and toner.

For instance my new machine here a Minolta Bizhub says 256 shades per
pixel and 600 dpi - consequently it prints a very nice monochrome (and a
very nice colour). But the old machine a Canon CLC also said 256 shades
per pixel and only 400 dpi and it did produce a nicer copy - which it
should do as its equivalent model today is about 4 times the price of
the bizhub.

If you get a decent resolution an old black laser can produce a good
copy. I remember printing some pictures on an HP IIIP, the dot pattern
was noticeable if I tried to enlarge during printing, but as long as I
printed at the printer's 300dpi resolution it was fine, - so an
1800x1200 picture would get printed 6" x 4"