Windows & Color: The Hot Topics For Bar Code Printers
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Is That A True Windows Bar-Code Printer?
Do you know the difference between a bar code printer using a Windows driver and a Windows bar code printer? It is a very fine line in terms of word usage, but a huge gap in terms of printing efficiency. To put it simply, a Windows bar code printer is specifically built for the Windows platform. A Windows bar code printer has a high-speed parallel interface and is made specifically in its native form to accept a bitmap from Windows without any translation. With a Windows bar code printer there is a small delay (about one or two seconds) in the time a print job is sent to the print queue and the time it prints. However, a bar code printer using a Windows driver with a serial interface can take up to 45 seconds. This delay is caused by the data transfer involved with graphics and true-type fonts.
What Exactly Is a True Windows Bar-Code Printer?
Tom Thatcher, president of Tharo Systems, a vendor specializing in bar code printing solutions, stresses that it is important for VARs and end users to better understand the difference between the two. Tharo, based in Brunswick, OH with 25 employees and 1997 revenues in excess of $10 million, manufactures a Windows bar code printer, the Gemini. It was released about two years ago. "The Gemini has enjoyed moderate success, but did not do as well as expected," Thatcher says. "Too many VARs and end users think that a standard bar code printer using a Windows driver offers the same functionality. It doesn't by any stretch of the imagination. In time-critical applications, customers do not want to wait 45 seconds for a label to print. They want the speed and efficiency of a true Windows bar code printer."
Thatcher attributed Gemini's less-than-expected debut to the difficulty VARs may have in verbally explaining the difference to their customers between the two types of printers. "When customers visually see the difference, they understand. Customers, especially those in need of fast printing, will tell VARs they want a certain type of printer and the Windows driver that goes along with it. What they are really looking for is a Windows bar code printer."
How About Adding A Little Color To My Bar-Code Labels?
Single-pass, multi-color bar code printing is still relatively new to the bar code printer market. Dennis Kallaher, general manager of TEC America, sees the retail manufacturing arena as a large opportunity for VARs selling this type of printer. With more than 110 employees, TEC America (Atlanta, GA), a subsidiary of TEC Corporation (a multi-billion dollar manufacturer), is a supplier of thermal printers and retail information systems. TEC America is one of a handful of manufacturers to offer single-pass, multi-color bar code printing.
VARs Have One Of Three Options For Single-Pass, Multi-Color Bar-Code Printers
TEC America's color offering is the TEC CB-416 thermal transfer color printer. There are other printers that can print multi-colored labels, but in most, the label must be passed through the printer several times - one time for each color. Kallaher says the TEC CB-416 is one of only three printers like it on the market. The other two printers Kallaher mentions are produced by Novexx (Painesville, OH) and Astro-Med (West Warwick, RI).
Retail Manufacturing Is Good Opportunity For VARs Selling Multi-Color Bar-Code Printers
"Multi-color label printing is a relatively untapped market, but most retail manufacturers have a growing need to print color labels on-site, on-demand instead of buying pre-printed labels," Kallaher says. "Some retail manufacturers don't want to deal with the logistics and cost of having to deal with off-site printing. I think these manufacturers offer a very large opportunity for VARs and systems integrators." Kallaher suggests there will be typical growing pains involved with single-pass, multi-color bar code printing, but sees it as an emerging market.