It’s a phrase you’ll see quite a lot on the City Ink Express website – ‘page coverage’ is a crucial consideration when you’re trying to figure out how long an ink or toner cartridge will last. But what exactly is page coverage?

That’s the question we’re aiming to answer today. Put simply, ‘page coverage’ refers to the percentage of a page that is covered in ink. 5% is the industry standard; in case you’re curious, 5% page coverage looks something like this:

It’s a pretty sparse document, but that (roughly speaking) is what we in the printing industry use as a standard for calculating page yield. If you’re looking at a new toner cartridge on the City Ink website and it says ‘Page Yield: 2,5000 pages @ 5% coverage’, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get 2,500 pages out of it. That only applies if every page you print looks like the example above – in reality, you’ll most likely be printing far more densely-populated documents, so bear that in mind when you’re shopping for ink or toner.

Our Inkjet CISS (continuous ink supply system) and toner cartridges for laser printers are two of our most popular products. While each has its own individual benefits – which we will discuss – people often ask us which is best; in order to try and find an answer to this riddle, let’s take a look at how each performs in several critical area of printing. 

Cost

As with all electronic products, you can pay as much or as little as you choose to depending on the specifications you want. Generally an inkjet printer with a CISS system will cost you less than a laser printer upfront, especially if you need to purchase the toner on top of the cost of the printer itself. As far as everyday running costs go your CISS system will be cheaper to run too - though it is worth mentioning that toner does last a lot longer than conventional inkjet cartridges, so it’s still a sensible purchase.

Print Quality

Both printers are more than capable of producing high quality prints, but there are some differences. Laser printers fuelled by toner are able to print faster and sharper than inkjets. If you wish to print for photography purposes however, an inkjet CISS produces superior high-resolution photographs.

Longevity

Because toner cartridges do not have heads which burn out or clog up, they will last a lot longer than conventional inkjet printers, though the addition of one of our CISSs will help this. Another advantage of toner is that because it is dry it won’t dry up if you should not use your printer for long periods of time. Our Inkjet CISS printers do however have a smaller carbon footprint as they have a lesser heat output and lower electricity costs than laser printers.

As you can probably tell by now, there is no straightforward to this question. What we have ciphered though is where each printer is advantageous - all you need to do is assess what exactly you want from your printer, and make your choice accordingly.

We're delighted to announce that we've recently joined the exciting world of Pinterest, and we can't quite believe we were missing out for so long! Here at City Ink Express we'd consider ourselves experts in all things printing - we offer low cost, high quality solutions for almost all of your printing needs. This means that we naturally have a keen interest in photography and beautiful images, as well as how to print them of course. We use Pinterest to pore over stunning works of photography, which we consequently pin to our specific boards and share on social media - but only if the image is truly special.

We believe our interest in photography provides us with another dimension to engage with our customers and social media followers, and we love sharing images we think are great and seeing which photography inspires others. Though we're fairly new to Pinterest, we're really excited about our new social media venture, and we're really enjoying exploring some of the stunning photography that's available through Pinterest. Here are 3 of our favourite Pinterest boards and some of the gorgeous images we've pinned ot them! Don't forget to give us a follow.

1. Inspiring Scenery

Our Inspiring Scenery board is home to this beautiful image, which simply took our breath away when we saw it. The mesmerising scenery and incredible colour scheme just stops you in your tracks - we simply had to pin and share it. This image got some great responses on our Google + page - it seems you guys love this image of West Virginia from Joseph Rossbach just as much as we do!

2. Beautiful Photography

This picture doesn't really need an explanation does it? It lives on our Beautiful Photography board for the simple reason that it is such a beautiful shot! It perfectly captures how big and powerful lions really are, you certainly wouldn't want to mess with the one pictured here would you?

3. Portraits of People

Portraits of people make up some of the most simple but effective photography ever. This shot by Rebecca Cygnus is truly magical. Though not strictly a portrait, it's an image of a person - but the setting and the pose is what really brings this picture to life. The colours and the beautiful reflection in the water are why we just had to pin this image to our Portraits of People board. 

When the time comes around to get a new printer, we imagine a lot of head-scratching goes on!

We are printing specialists, but even to us it seems like every week there is a new manufacturer on the market, and every day there is a new model out vying for our attention.

As making any kind of decision can be difficult, we suggest finding a brand that caters to your needs, and taking it from there. As such, here are 3 of the most popular printing manufacturers available, and what they can offer you:

Brother – Function Over Thrills

Brother printers are a good all-round option that offers you solid function over any gimmicks – this makes them ideal for those who just need a reliable machine to print well and not much else. Ranging from around £50 to £200+ there is plenty of scope within their range for your particular needs, and their printers even frequent ‘best buy’ lists! They may not be pioneering cutting-edge print technology but their build quality is sound.

Canon – Image Is Everything

As you may well all know, Canon is an extremely well-known imaging brands who specialise in cameras and photocopiers alike. Their printers harness this knowledge and as such make some great quality prints – this makes them an ideal device for photographers and photo enthusiasts alike. It is not just photographers that can enjoy Canon products though as they can range from £29 - £350, making them accessible for a broad spectrum of users.

Samsung – All ‘Round Quality

 Samsung is probably better known for some of its other electronic products like mobile phones and televisions, but they have also lent their skills to the printing industry and done very well.  Samsung are now the UKs 2^nd biggest supplier of laser and all-in-one printers, so they must be doing something right! Ranging from around £50 – £250 you will be able to find a quality printer for your needs, and like Canon, Samsung also offer some great integration features if you have a Samsung digital camera.

Printers account for a mere fraction of Samsung’s vast product range, but don’t be fooled – just because they’re better known for mobile phones doesn’t mean that the Korean company is at all lacklustre in the printing department!

There are loads of Samsung printers on the market, and so we thought we’d help you to narrow it down a little bit. Here are a few of the best Samsung printers on the market; the best one for you will depend on what you need from it!

For high-quality colour printing...
SAMSUNG SL-C410W

  This model produces exceptional colour prints, especially for a laser printer. If you’re serious about the quality of your print-outs (perhaps you’re an avid photographer, for example) then this printer will be great for you.

Buy SL-C410W Toner Here

For fast bulk printing...
SAMSUNG ML-6510ND

Samsung make a variety of good high-volume printers, and this model won BLI’s Monochrome Printer Line of the Year award in 2012. The ML-6510ND is a good one for a busy office environment, offering no-nonsense monochrome printouts at a very quick pace indeed.

Buy ML-6510ND Toner Here

For printing on a budget...
SAMSUNG CLP-360

  A colour printer that, generally speaking, won’t cost you more that £100. This CLP-360 is a great choice for the home, with surprisingly good print quality considering the low cost.

Buy CLP-360 Toner Here

When it comes to technology of any kind, Samsung are some of the biggest players in the game. They’re infamous for their mobile devices, PCs, cameras and televisions, so it’s no surprise that their printers pack a mighty punch too. Samsung profess to provide competitive, advanced and high-quality printers on a global basis – but these printers won’t work if they run out of toner now will they?

That’s why we at City Ink Express offer a huge range of toner cartridges for Samsung printers. We’ve got toner for a number of Samsung printer models, both genuine Samsung toners and high-quality replacements which are slightly cheaper, but will still provide you with a guaranteed top-quality printing job every time.

To see which Samsung toner cartridges we have available simply select your model number from this list and you’ll be presented with a number of high quality Samsung toner cartridgeswhich are compatible with your printer.

If you need a toner cartridge for a Samsung printer that we haven’t listed, please get in touch with us and we will do our best to research and see if we can supply an appropriate Samsung toner cartridge for you. 

Ah, the age old question: just what is sublimation ink? This cause for pondering has haunted man since the dawn of time – well, that’s a tad of an exaggeration, but since the birth of the sublimination printer at least.

Sublimation itself is the act of using both heat and pressure to first convert ink on treated paper to gas, then impress the said image from the paper to the product – this could be on paper, a t-shirt, a mug, plastic, or even metal. The name ‘sublimation’ refers to how the dye goes from a solid state to gas without passing through the liquid state – pretty scientific, huh?

So what are the advantages to this super-snazzy form of printing? The main one is all about the quality of the tone that sublimation printing produces. Traditional inkjet printers can suffer from a process called dithering which means the colour of the dots is limited; sublimation printers on the other hand produce a truer, continuous tone like you’d expect to find on a chemical photograph.

Another advantage is that the printing is dry and ready to handle as soon as it exits the printer. It’s not all great tones and dry hands though as there are some drawbacks: only specially treated paper and materials will accept the ink itself; there is a lot of dye wasted so it’s not the most economical choice; and there is also a risk if you’re printing confidential documents that copies can be found on the waste roll – probably not the best choice for the MI5 then…

If you have any other questions or queries about this amazing ink and its wondrous process, check out our sublimation products page, or shout us (City Ink Express) a holla on social media!

Edible Ink allows you to create beautiful and edible decorations for cakes and other confectionary. It uses edible ink to print images on to edible paper, which then dissolves images on to your desired confectionary, providing you with a professional and personalised finish. If you consider yourself quite the cooking connoisseur and want to take your goodies to the next level, then we offer a number of edible ink starter kits for you. Alternatively, if you’re well accustomed to edible ink we offer some fantastic premium edible ink kits for you to sink your teeth in to! All of our edible printer bundles come with gorgeous template images to get you started with – so get baking!

1.       Edible Ink Starter Kit with Canon IP7250 Without Scanner Value

·         £120.00 Ex VAT

·         All-in-One IP7250 Canon Printer with built in wifi

·         5 refillable cartridges, 5 syringes and 5 needles

·         550ml of edible ink

·         50 edible wafer papers

·         Easy instructions

·         Free USB cable

·         Cityinkexpress templates and health certificates for the edible ink

2.       Edible Ink Kit with Canon MG5550 Printer With Scanner

·         £149.99 Ex VAT

·         MG5550 Canon Printer complete with scanner

·         5 refillable cartridges, 5 syringes and 5 needles

·         550ml of edible ink

·         200 edible wafer papers

·         Easy instructions

·         Free USB cable

·         Cityinkexpress templates and health certificates for edible ink

3. Premium Edible Ink Kit with Canon MG5550 Printer with Scanner

·         £170.00 Ex VAT

·         MG5550 Canon Printer complete with scanner

·         5 refillable cartridges, 5 syringes and 5 needles

·         550ml of edible ink

·         50 edible wafer papers

·         25 high quality décor paper

·         24 high quality frosting paper

·         Easy Instructions

·         Free USB cable

·         Cityinkexpress templates and health certificates for the edible ink

These are just 3 of our fantastic edible ink printer bundles – we have several more on offer for you to choose from! If you’ve already got the printer, we offer a fantastic range of edible ink products for you to stock up on too. 

There’s no question about it: Brother is simply one of the biggest names in the printing business. The company was founded in Japan, 100 years ago; they’ve been stamping their mark on the printer scene in Europe for over 50 years now, and some of their printers are the biggest and best in the game. However, when choosing your printer, you need to be sure that you’ve found the right one for you. Some people don’t need an all-singing, all-dancing expensive printer, because they simply would never use it – whereas some people might be looking for an advanced printer to cope with an excessive workload. Whatever your printing needs, this blog will help you find the Brother printer that’s right for you. 

Brother DCP-J132W
The Standard Printer

 We might have labelled this the ‘standard’ printer, but even though this is one of Brother’s most basic models...it is anything but standard! It offers extremely fast colour printing, built-in wireless networking (that’s right – no pesky cables) and our favourite function of all: mobile printing and scanning. This means you can simply download an app for your phone or tablet and print any document you need on the go!

Brother DCP-J4110DW
The Posh Printer

This is for those who like their luxury items, because this printer is pretty snazzy. This printer allows you to scan and copy your documents, as well as print on A3 paper. You can also scan and print wirelessly by downloading the app! It comes with a touch screen and it’s generally quite chic to look at, don’t you think?

Brother MFCJ5910DW
The Everything Printer

This is the printer with bells on, and it’s perfect for those who work from home. Not only can you scan, copy, and print in 3D, but this snazzy printer also has a fax machine function so you can fax documents quickly and easily. There’s also a fast and secure wifi connection and that snazzy Airprint app that lets you print documents on the go!

Brother HL-4150CDN
The Office Printer

This is the ideal Brother printer for an office where it will be used regularly. It’s packed with features and prints at an extremely high speed in both colour and black and white – it prints double-sided as standard and offers PIN-protected secure SSL printing. If your printer is heavily-used then this is most certainly the one for you!

We offer many excellent printers like these in our printer bundles section – which will come ready with a continuous ink supply system so you can print to your heart’s content! Alternatively, make sure to stock up on cheap Brother toner cartridges from City Ink Express.

One of City Ink Express's many specialities is edible ink. Some of you will be thoroughly educated on this marvellous invention, but unless you are planning to or already have personally used edible ink products, it's highly likely that you didn't know such a thing existed! This is where City Ink Express come in handy. In this blog post we're going to attempt to answer any possible questions you might have regarding what edible ink is, and then run you through which edible ink products we have available here. As always, if you have any questions what so ever then please don't hesitate to get in touch with us! 

So let's get down to it.

1. What is edible ink?

Edible Ink is printer ink which is actually edible (unsurprisingly). It consists of different edible food colours and edible ink can actually be placed in special edible ink printers, or even in some inkjet or bubblejet printers. Edible inks are flavourless and will not impair the taste of your food.

2. What is it used for?

Edible Ink is used to print images onto special edible paper which is then used on or in various confectionary. Edible paper dissolves when it comes in contact with a moist surface, but it maintains a high resolution. So any images you see on cakes or cupcakes were made using edible ink and edible paper! You can use edible ink on various pastries, cakes or cookies and if you get some edible ink and edible paper you can create amazing and professional looking confectionary within the comfort of your own home! 

3. What edible ink products do City Ink Express offer?

Now we've enlightened you and filled you in on the wonderful world of edible ink, which of these amazing products can you purchase from City Ink Express?

Bulk Edible Ink

Edible inks are primarily seen used in the food industry to create unique edible photos for cakes and cupcake toppers. All of our edible ink products are food safe and comply with EU food hygiene regulations, and each bottle comes with a use by date. We offer bulk ink refill kits to keep printing costs low. You can buy big bottles of edible ink in various colours, or bulk packs with a few different colours available. To buy in bulk is far cheaper, and ensures that your professional looking home goodie factory can keep running for longer! 

Edible Ink Cartridges Kit

Our edible ink refill kits are fantastic and contain compatible edible refill printer cartridges, edible printer ink and edible photo paper. Our compatible edible ink cartridges and edible inks for Epson and Canon printers are all food safe. Our edible ink refill kits all come with easy, step-by-step instructions which are specific to your printer on how to refill your cartridges. We lave lots of different bundles to fit specific Canon and Epson models, which you can browse by clicking the above link. 

Edible Paper 

You might be well stocked up in edible ink, but unless you've got edible paper to print it on then it's not much use is it? It can be used as normal paper, you just pop it in your printer and as long as you've got edible ink then you're good to go! We offer a variety of different types of edible paper from rice wafer papers to edible decor papers, we've even got pre-cut decor paper for you to pop on to your delicious treats! 

Edible Ink Starter Kit 

Our edible ink starter kits contain everything you need to start printing gorgeous edible pictures. We've got a variety of different printers to choose from (all varying in price of course), and each edible printer bundle comes with your chosen printer, compatible refillable ink cartridges, 550mls of edible ink and 50 sheets of wafer paper! Essentially, our edible ink starter kit is all you need to create stacks of yummy treats!

So what are you waiting for? Order your edible ink goodies from City Ink Express today!