Table of Contents
Students, teachers, and other people sought out different shops that can offer printing services because it is frequent for us to handle important documents every day.
It is cheap to avail of printing services if you are only looking to print out a few pages of documents but the price does get higher once you request to print high-quality pictures or a copious amount of pages.
But it’s actually much better and practical to have a printer of your own, but not just any kind of printer. It should be a multifunction printer. But how do multifunction printers work? And what is a multifunction printer?
Well, it’s basically a printer that acts more than just a printer, it has many features that are very useful, especially for teachers. If you are looking to invest in a printer, might as well get a printer that can do more than just print.
A multifunction printer might as well be the ticket for you to start your own printing business. If you are still confused about what is all the hype about multifunction printers, then let me lay out exactly how a multifunction printer works.
_______________
<<On the lookout for teacher-friendly printers? Check it out, we reviewed the top 10 best printers that are ideal for all teaching-related printing tasks.
_______________
The Way Multifunction Printers Work
Multifunction printers are the way to go if you’re looking for a printer that offers not just printing but also other features that teachers need to perform for their work every now and then—such as scanning, copying, as well as faxing.
But the intriguing question is, how do they work? Multifunction printers are like any other type of printer but just better.
It’s like all office devices that are needed such as a scanner, a printer, a copier, a fax machine, and a photo printer were packed into one device creating convenience and making the lives of teachers easier which is always a big check on a teacher’s list.
They can work wirelessly
Multifunction printers can work in different ways depending on the type of Multifunction Printer that you’re getting, but most of the MFPs that you can see in the market today offer power-saving modes and of course, WiFi connectivity feature which is highly important since most of us now work in a highly digitized environment, and everything is already online.
Some also even offer Bluetooth connectivity, which is handy just in case a WiFi connection is not available. Versatility is something that teachers will love about Multifunction printers, we no longer have to work with cords and such.
Other multifunction printers can also run using an App that is provided by the manufacturer so you can easily control it with just a few taps from your mobile phone or device.
They can be wired directly to your computer
If a wireless connection is not an option for you, you can still choose to have it connected through a USB B port connection to have wired up to your computer or laptop directly.
If you’re are planning to get a multifunction printer or if you’re using it for the first time, you need to have it set up first. Depending on the type of printer that you have or you’re planning to get, you can check the user’s manual on how to set it up for the first use.
Some can be set up wirelessly, while some can also be connected to a computer to complete the setup, but if you want to go the easy way, you can simply set it up wirelessly.
4 Ways Multifunction Printers Help Teachers
1.) As a Printer
The most important feature of a multifunction printer is, of course, printing out documents. This is a very important function and is the sole reason why a multifunction printer is well sought out for.
Unlike a regular printer, a multifunction printer will be able to print out documents either from a soft copy of a file from a computer or it can directly print out documents using only a flash drive. And that’s pretty convenient if you don’t have a laptop or a computer at the moment with you.
This is why there is no need to invest in a laptop or computer if you have a multifunction printer, you can simply insert your flash drive with the soft copy of the file and instantly print it out.
Additionally, there are all-in-one printers in the market right now where you can print straight out from your phone using Wifi or Bluetooth technology as well.
Multifunction printers offer convenience and also save you time and money as well because you no longer have to hop onto the computer just to print something.
The multifunction printer also uses less ink than your regular printer because it has various chambers of ink containers that have layers that prevent excess ink from leaking out or being used.
One of the few reasons why not many people do not own a printer is because it is too pricey to buy ink for it, but the multifunction printer will be able to conserve at least a third of the usual ink consumption of a regular printer.
Plus, you’re actually saving money when buying a multifunction printer because you no longer have to buy separate machines to do what it can do as a whole already.
_________________________________________
2.) As a Copier
The multifunction printer not only acts as a printer but is also a good device to cater to your copying needs.
It has a built-in copier that lets you copy hard copies of files and reproduce as many as you like, this is a good way to save budget from using expensive papers and wasting ink as it only uses a limited amount of ink.
This is a perfect function that teachers can use for printing out test questionnaires, there is no need to print it out one by one on expensive paper and waste too much ink on it that can only be used for one time.
Simply copy the original hard file and reproduce a large number of copies on inexpensive paper—this way it will allow you to save money to buy high-quality papers and ink. The copier can also be used for producing important letter announcements for students to read.
It is basically a budget-friendly feature of the multifunction printer that can also serve as an alternative if you do not want to waste money on printing.
_________________________________________
3.) As a Scanner
Printing and reproducing copies of original files are not the only things that the multifunction printer has to offer. It also provides the option to scan hard copies and pictures to convert them into a soft copy file.
So you see multifunction printers are really convenient for teachers to use, it’s an all-in-one machine ready to aid in all the paperwork that teachers need to produce and tend to.
If you ever find yourself printing out a hard copy of a document that needs to be revised, but then you accidentally deleted the soft copy of that file then do not panic.
You can easily retrieve the file again by scanning the hard copy itself, it will convert into a soft copy and you will be able to edit it without any problem. It is a convenient feature if this kind of problem will arise.
However, converting hard copies into soft copies is not the only thing you can do with the scanner.
You can also scan pictures that can be used for documents such as ID pictures for your resumes. It can also be used to save old photos through this feature and post it on social media for you to save and keep the memory of it.
I actually had this done with our old pictures, as printed pictures tend to face over time keeping soft copies of them will help preserve the memories to make them last forever.
Also, most people use a scanner for scanning their identification cards for important documents, that is why it is an included feature of the multifunction printer because it serves a big purpose.
_________________________________________
4.) As a Fax Machine
Finally, one of the most useful functions of a multifunction printer is its ability to also work as a fax machine.
Now, maybe some of you don’t know how a fax machine works or what it’s exactly for. Well, a fax machine is basically designed to send and receive documents from one fax machine to another in real-time.
The fax machine was a traditional way of sending important mails from one colleague to another, but today we now use e-mails for that matter but if the internet is down then a fax machine is a great alternative for passing documents from one place to another.
It may seem complicated at first, but it is a systematic way to send files without any face-to-face interaction.
The only downside to this feature is its inability to print out documents in colors other than black. But this is a good thing if you want to cut the cost of the usage of the ink.
This feature can be used if you are going to send an important hard copy file to your co-worker, instead of printing the file and delivering it to your co-worker you can just simply send it through the fax machine.
If you send the file through the fax machine then the fax machine will automatically print the document to your co-worker’s fax machine instead so there is no wastage of your ink if you were to send a file.
But it is a completely different story if you are at the receiving end, nonetheless, you will still conserve more ink rather than printing it out directly.
_________________________________________
Conclusion
These are the four ways a multifunction printer can help a teacher in the classroom. Knowing how a multifunction printer works is a first good step if you are looking to buy one.
Although there are more features that a multifunction printer can have, these 4 are the usual features found in most all-in-one printers. The rest of the multifunction printer has more complicated features that can be more pricey.
You can opt for other features as long as you can put them to good use to get your money’s worth after buying the printer itself. Also, try to know how to properly maintain them in order for you to be able to use them better and longer as well.
