Types of ID Card Printers
Single-sided vs. dual-sided
- Single-sided ID card printers are designed to print on one side of your cards. Affordable, compact and easy-to-use, single-sided ID card printers allow you to print all your cards and badges in full color or monochrome.
- Dual-sided ID card printers are designed to print on both sides of your cards. A dual-sided printer will automatically flip your cards to print the front and back of your cards in one pass. Flexible and versatile, dual-sided ID card printers allow you to print more information on all your cards and badges.
Encoding options
If you need to encode data on your cards, you have several options:
- Magnetic stripe ID card printers: choose an ID card printer with a magnetic encoder to print and encode data on cards with a magnetic stripe.
- Contact Smart card ID card printer: contact Smart cards have an embedded chip that can only be read when inserted into a reader. Card printers with a contact Smart card encoder will allow you to store and read data on these cards.
- Contactless Smart card ID card printer: these cards do not need to be inserted into a device to be read. To read and store information in the chip, contactless Smart cards only need to be passed within range of a radio frequency acceptor - the range of operation depending on the acceptor but being usually from about 2.5" to 3.9".
Security features
If you need highly-secure badges, you might consider laminating ID card printers. These printers include a lamination module to add a clear or custom patch or film to your printed cards. Laminating your cards significantly reduces the risk of counterfeiting and tampering while extending the lifespan of your cards.
Retransfer ID card printers are the only printers that offer "over the edge" printing for unmatched print quality. Retransfer ID card printers are also widely used to print on uneven surfaces such as proximity cards, smart cards, or pre-punched cards.
