A multifunction printer, or MFP, is a device that can print, fax, copy, and scan. They are marketed to small businesses and homes as a single device. The first MFP was introduced in the 1990s, and since then, prices have fallen and quality has improved. Inkjet technology is used for general consumers, while laser printing technology is used for the SoHo market. MFPs may also have built-in networking and OCR software.
A multifunction printer, sometimes abbreviated MFP, is a multipurpose device that prints, faxes, copies, and scans. Multifunction printers are typically marketed to small business owners and home offices as a single integrated device that can replace several bulky individual devices. A multifunction printer is also known as a mopier or all-in-one (AIO).
The first multifunction printer was introduced in the early 1990s. Based on inkjet technology, the device was expensive and relatively unreliable, and produced mediocre quality prints. Since then, prices have fallen and quality has improved as major manufacturers such as Hewlett-Packard, Canon, Lexmark, Xerox and Brother entered the market.
A multifunction printer aimed at general consumers is likely to still be based on inkjet technology. Although slow to print, these devices produce high-quality color prints. Some devices now come with media player slots, allowing users to insert flash memory cards from their digital cameras. This allows digital photos to be printed without having to access a computer. Recent models may also come with a standard port known as PictBridge. PictBridge allows users to connect virtually any recent digital camera directly to the printer, bypassing the home computer.
For the SoHo (Small Office, Home Office) market, a multifunction printer is likely to be based on laser printing technology. While they can’t offer the photorealistic output of inkjet printers, laser printers produce razor-sharp text, print much faster than inkjet printers, and cost much less. Models based on affordable color laser printers have also been introduced in recent years.
A multifunction printer aimed at the SoHo market may also have built-in networking. This allows the printer to be shared by everyone on the local network without having to dedicate a specific computer for printing. It can also be equipped with large hard drives, allowing it to be used for permanent document storage. If your multifunction printer comes with OCR or Optical Character Recognition software, scanned paper documents can be automatically transformed into standard computer files.
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