What is Direct Thermal Printing?

Direct thermal printing is the type of printing technology that is used in the Dymo LabelWriters series of printers, which is our most popular label printer for small and medium-sized businesses and offices.

What is Direct Thermal Printing?

Direct thermal label printing (or sometimes referred to as thermal printing) is a printing process that creates an image by applying heat to thermal paper. This is an efficient and effective way to print, especially if you are printing in volume. The reason is direct thermal printing is more effective is that it saves ink and doesn’t require cartridges.

Direct thermal label printing is a type of printing technology used for producing labels without the need for ink, toner, or ribbons. Instead, direct thermal printers use specially coated thermal paper or thermal label stock that changes color when exposed to heat. The process relies on the thermal print head selectively heating the coated paper to create text, graphics, or images.

Here's a brief overview of how direct thermal label printing works:

1. Thermal Paper: The label stock used in direct thermal printing has a special coating that is sensitive to heat.

2. Thermal Print Head: The printer has a thermal print head with thousands of tiny heating elements. These elements are arranged in a grid and are controlled electronically.

3. Selective Heating: When printing, the thermal print head selectively heats the coated areas of the paper based on the image or text to be printed.

4. Color Change: The heat causes a chemical reaction in the coating, resulting in a color change. The heated areas turn dark, creating the printed content on the label.

Direct thermal printing has several advantages:

• Simplicity: Since it doesn't require ink or toner cartridges, direct thermal printing is a simple and cost-effective solution.

• Speed: Direct thermal printers are often faster than other types of printers because they don't need to go through multiple passes or use complex mechanisms.

• Reliability: With fewer moving parts and no consumables like ink or toner to replace, direct thermal printers are often more reliable for certain applications.

However, there are also some limitations:

• Sensitivity to Heat: Labels printed using direct thermal technology can be sensitive to heat and light. Prolonged exposure to sunlight or high temperatures may cause the labels to darken over time.

• Limited Print Life: Direct thermal prints may fade over time, so they are not ideal for applications where long-term durability is crucial.

Thermochromic Paper

The type of paper direct thermal printing requires is Thermochromic paper, also known as thermal paper. Thermal paper is paper that is coated in a certain chemical that, when heated to a certain temperature, causes the material to change colors.

Thermal paper is used for label printers, adding machines, cash registers, and credit card terminals.

The limitations of direct thermal printing

It is better to use a thermal printer because it doesn’t use ink and it doesn’t require a ribbon-like a thermal transfer printer needs. So in the long run, for businesses that print labels on a daily basis, it saves money.

Using a direct thermal printer does have some downsides, however, such as durability and shorter print life on average.

If these issues are a concern for you, we can custom print labels to fit your business needs.