Popular Use Cases for Thermal Label Printers

In a world where high resolution color label printers are readily available, you may wonder why thermal label printers remain so popular with their single-color images (typically black) and low print resolutions. Both label printer types have their time and place, and having the right type of label printer for the task at hand is extremely important. Below are some of the more popular use cases for thermal label printers.

1.Barcode label printing — Barcodes and QR codes scan best when they are high contrast, and what better contrast is there than black on white? Whether you need to print a product barcode, shipping barcode, inventory control barcode, marketing QR code, asset management tracking code, or any other type of barcode, thermal label printers can print them with ease.

2.Shipping label printing — Shipping labels do not need to be fancy, nor do they need to last for years upon years, making direct thermal label printers a cheap and effective choice for printing shipping and address labels. From address and shipping labels to USPS, UPS, and FedEx labels, logistics labels, and transportation labels, thermal label printers are made for this job.

3.Healthcare label printing — Healthcare labels take many forms, several of which are ideal for thermal label printers. For example, thermal label printers are commonly used to print patient chart labels, specimen sample labels, and medication labels.

4.Food label printing — The food and beverage industry often uses thermal label printers to print nutritional labels and spot print information over preprinted color labels. In addition, thermal label printers are a mainstay at meat and deli counters in grocery stores and take-out restaurants. Many are now using linerless direct thermal label printers to print customer orders and affix to to-go cartons immediately with minimal waste.

5.Manufacturing and inventory control label printing — Speed, ease of use, and low costs combine to make thermal label printing the preferred choice in manufacturing and warehouse environments.

6.General purpose label printing — Desktop thermal label printers are small and easy to use. They don’t take up much space, yet help office administrators stay organized. With a desktop thermal label printer, it’s super easy to print address labels, file folder labels, report cover labels, binder labels, file cabinet labels, name tags, and more.

OptiMedia Labs has a large selection of both direct thermal and thermal transfer label printers for industrial, loffice, home office, and personal use cases. Direct thermal label printers do not need a ribbon while thermal transfer printers do. If label longevity is a concern, go with a thermal transfer printer. If you need labels for short term applications, a direct thermal label printer is an economical choice. Whichever choice you make, we have direct thermal media, linerless media, thermal transfer media, ribbons, and accessories for all of the popular thermal label printers on the market.