Most of the current generation of inkjet printers require high-quality coated or glossy paper for photo-realistic output. This can be very expensive, depending on which type and brand of paper you choose or require. One of the ultimate aims of inkjet printer manufacturers is to make color-printing media independent, and this goal is generally measured by the output quality achieved on plain copier paper. This has vastly improved over the past few years, but coated or glossy paper is still needed to achieve full-color photographic quality. All major printer manufacturers - HP®, CANON®, EPSON® etc. even offer their own (very expensive, just like their cartridges) proprietary papers. Epson's product, for example, is optimized for use with their piezo-electric technology.
Inkjet printing can be incredibly costly when printer manufacturers tie you to their proprietary consumables … not just cartridges, but also printing papers. A great deal of research has gone into the production of universal paper types, which are optimized specifically for color inkjet printers. Paper produced by independent companies is much cheaper than that supplied directly by printer manufacturers, but it tends to rely on more universal properties although new types now do take advantage of the idiosyncratic features of the specific manufacturer's printer models. Ink Sales Plus carries a wide variety of economical inkjet papers, including some optimised for specific printers.
Print quality - coated and uncoated papers
Good print quality depends on two parameters - Ink and Paper. The higher the DPI (dots per inch) of the printer, the more critical is the paper (to achieve the number of dots per inch that the printer can deliver). The way paper is actually made is also important - for example, the amount of fibre clumping as observed by holding a piece of paper to a strong light. In general, the coating and substrate of the paper must match the resolution of the printer.
In practice, most printers make a trade-off between opting for higher resolution and providing more levels per dot. This is often determined by the printer's intended use. Graphic arts professionals, for example, are interested in maximizing the number of levels per dot to deliver higher 'photographic' image quality, while general users will require reasonably high resolution so as to achieve good text quality and reasonable image quality.
A 600 dpi printer printing on plain paper will not yield a 600 dpi print, and a 720 dpi printer printing on 300 dpi paper will not deliver 720 dpi.
Dot spread on coated paper (at left) and uncoated / plain paper (at right)
Throughout the course of ink-jet development, ink chemists and media engineers realised that when a liquid ink droplet contacts the surface of paper, it tends to spread along paper fibre lines as well as penetrate into the paper "sizing" (coating) and voids. The spreading of ink droplets is often too excessive and too irregular to maintain the resolution required. The penetration of ink into the paper is often too slow to absorb multiple ink drops on the same spot within very short time intervals. The poor colour image quality due to ink spreading and inter-colour bleeding is recognised as the critical issue in the development of ink-jet technology.
Coated paper is expensive and the better the coating the higher the cost. Unless you are dealing with special applications (only handled by a few models of inkjet printers) such as true photographic reproduction, etc. you can print on standard inkjet papers and have quite good results. From one point of view, having paper with less resolution may actually be an advantage. For example, if we saw the letter
M (in the photo above) unmagnified, then the right-hand side of the letter
M in the photo above will actually appear darker and have more eye impact than the left portion, composed of discernible and independent dots.
Ink spreads and penetrates. Illustrated below (not to scale) are the effects of printing on ideal (coated papers) and on other papers. Spread is more accentuated when using water resistant inks, but this is quite acceptable. Looking at the print with a magnifying glass, you would see a continuous line rather than a string of minute dots.
Electron microscope photograph of ink droplets on plain paper.
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What is inkjet specialty paper?
Inkjet Specialty Papers are the smooth-surfaced (coated) papers whose specially formulated coating makes an ideal platform to absorb and fix the inks that are jetted from the inkjet printer for high quality, full color printing. This is why Ink Sales Plus offers customers only high quality Inkjet Papers. The special ink-jet-coated media must balance between many design parameters such as drop volume, evaporation rate, penetration rate, coating thickness, etc. Today, because of the popularity of digital cameras and color ink-jet printers, the demand for better printing media such as ink-jet Glossy and Photo media is increasing.
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Choosing the right paper for your inkjet printer.
There are numerous brands and kinds of Specialty Media around, to suit a multitude of applications. They can be divided into four basic groups:-
| Gloss | Gloss-coated / Photo Paper -has the look and feel of a real photograph. |
| Silk | Paper with a smoother surface reading. |
| Matt | Paper with a rougher, more tactile surface. |
| Specialist | Paper for applications -(OHP film, business & greeting cards, transfers etc). |
As we said earlier, each of the major printer manufacturers have their own range of inkjet papers that are optimised for their particular printers' ink delivery technology and ink formulations. Unfortunately, like their replacement cartridges, these papers are very expensive and while giving excellent results, the cost usually cannot be justified for the average person's printing needs.
To save you time, effort and the confusion caused by the numerous kinds of papers on the market, Ink Sales Plus has tested and selected a wide range of superior quality inkjet papers and specialty media to offer our customers.
For your interest, the following are the ten (10) main considerations for selection of paper:
- Absorption
This is how much a paper can absorb the ink while printing.
- Drying Time
The quicker the better, so as not to leave a "fingerprint" right after printing.
- Fixity
While the ink is penetrating into the paper, there should be no ink spread and inter-colour bleeding.
- Color Manifestation
When the ink is fixed to the paper, the colour has to maintain its original properties, hue etc.
- Pigment Absorption
Pigment ink of printers has to be absorbed quickly and not run, spread or blur, even with rubbing.
- Tactile Sense
This is how a paper feels to your touch. Although it's not always related to smoothness, paper with a rich tactile sense can create an image of elegance, luxury or superior quality. There shouldn't be a sticky feeling some time after printing.
- Water-resistance
This is how "water-proof" a paper is. Actually this is due to the water melting / dissolving the coating film.
- Gloss Quality
A high-gloss finish provides the brightest, clearest reproduction with a professional, photo-like quality.
- Curling
Needs to retain form without curling when exposed to light and high temperature.
- Archival Quality
This is how long a paper can be expected to last while still preserving its original color / coating. For example, a paper that is acid-free has an extended life of more than 200 years.
- Weight
A paper's weight affects its durability and ability to move through your printer. This is usually quoted in "gsm" (grams per square metre). The weight also effects the look / eye-appeal, opacity and curling properties.
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Any Trademarks or Registered Trademarks referred to remain the property of their respective owners and are used solely for product identification. The information contained herein has been accumulated by Ink Sales Plus over a lengthy period from our own knowledge or long-lost sources and much, much more is available on hundreds of sites on the internet. For your convenience, we have paraphrased, assembled and collated some of the more interesting and relevant aspects here. It is given as a matter of general interest and Ink Sales Plus makes no representation as to its accuracy. Some sections have been reproduced in part or in whole with permission from InkTec & Image Specialists Inc.
