Ways to Improve the Speed of Your Printer

 Print Quality

If you are sick of waiting for your output to inch slowly out of the printer, one easy solution is to change your printer?s output settings. Methods will vary slightly by model, but basically go to the ?Print? application in any program, and then look for properties. Select the appropriate tab such as ?Paper/Output? or ?Main?, and choose the ?Draft? mode. You can set this permanently through the ?Printers and Faxes? box in Windows XP by following the same steps.

2.     Fitting More on a Page 

If you can stand the smaller output, you can reduce the printing time in half by printing two pages on a single sheet of paper (both on the same side, not duplexed). This method might also vary by model, but try under the ?Layout? tab, if available.

3.     Connectivity

With inkjet printers, you may or may not have a choice other than USB 2.0, which is the fastest USB technology to date. However, if you have a network-ready printer (Some inkjet AIOs will be) you can connect it either wirelessly or via Ethernet cable. Of the two, Ethernet will be faster because of the dedicated link. Distance can have an effect on your printing speeds with Wi-Fi connections because the speed will change with the proximity to your computer. Try keeping it close for the fastest times.

4.     Printing from Websites 

Simple text will always print faster than graphics, and the more complex the graphics are, the slower they will print. If you don?t need to see the pictures from a website, then you can set your browser to load the pages without them. The site may offer a ?printer-friendly? format, so look for that first. Otherwise, here are a couple of ways to change settings manually. In Internet Exporer: select Tools and then Internet Options under the Advanced tab, go to the Multimedia section and uncheck the box for ?Show Pictures?. In Firefox: go under Tools, then Options, click the Content tab, and uncheck the box by ?Load images automatically?. Once you have printed, you can always set them back.

5.     Add Memory

Just as in your PC, adding RAM to your printer gives it the ability to do things more quickly. This is not an option you will find in inkjet printers, however with a good number of laser printers, you will be able to add on. It is not necessarily as cheap an option as it is with PCs. Check your printer?s owners manual or manufacturer website to see if in fact your printer is expandable.

Post a Question....