What's the difference between press printing and digital? The five key differences are process, quality, finishing options, cost and turnaround time.
| Press printing (eg. offset) | Digital | |
| Process | In press printing, the inked image is transferred as tiny dots from a plate to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface. |
Digital Printing encompasses anything from your inkjet or laser printer to a high end digital press, that can cost a half million dollars, and may be toner based or liquid ink based. |
| Quality | Excellent colour accuracy, and fine line screens mean that even under close inspection, the color will look smooth and seamless. It will also appear brighter and more intense. | Colour may be less saturated, and digital print is prone to fading quickly if not well preserved. |
| Finishing | The option to print on heavier paper stocks, like 420gsm card for your business card or DL card, along with a wide choice of finishing options. | Digital presses can only accommodate a limited paper thickness and sheet size, and finishing options such as metallic inks or die-cutting are not normally available. |
| Cost | Press printing involves higher setup costs, but once the press is running it's more economical to print larger quantities. Quantities over 500 or normally far more economical to print on a press. | Low setup costs, with a high per-unit cost to produce larger quantities. Smaller quantities, eg. 50-100, are likely to be more economical printed digitally. |
| Turnaround | Setup time includes making plates, setting up and adjusting the press press to ensure correct color matching. Additional time is needed to allow the ink of the printed material to dry. However, once set up, offset presses run at a much greater speed than digital presses do. | Requires little setup and the document can be printed immediately. However, as the quantity of copies increases the time-saving benefits of digital printing are diminished. |
So, in a nutshell, press printing is usually the higher quality choice, while digital printing is a convenient option when you need something in very small quantities.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Leisa Dent is a graphic designer of 18 years experience in the printing industry, providing unique design and quality printing throughout Australia, at a sensible price. Services include business card printing, logo design and stationery, brochures, postcards, advertising design and more. http://www.alexandradesign.com.au
