Pigment Inks vs Dye Inks
Dye inks and pigment inks are used to print documents, photographs and almost any kind of small scale printing that you need to do from your printer on a regular basis. The difference between pigment ink and dye ink, is that pigment ink will sit on the paper, whereas, dye ink will be absorbed by the paper immediately, creating a slight difference in the final output.
Pigment inks are better than dye inks in some of the following areas: Pigment ink is more water resistant than dye ink. Dye ink will run very easily, and this will create a badly printed document. Pigment ink will also dry faster than dye ink, and this is advantageous when you are trying to print large amounts of information which you need to stack together. The colors of pigment inks are none fading when compared to dye ink, especially when you are running out of ink in your cartridge.
Pigment ink also has a longer life than dye ink. It will stay looking fresh for a longer period of time, which is something that is important for special presentations.
However, when comparing the differences between pigment ink and dye ink, we should also keep in mind that dye ink has better resolution, as it has a better contrast than pigment ink. The color combinations are also better for dye inks, and this can be a very important point, especially if you are thinking of printing photographs for special purposes.
The cost to buy dye ink is less than the cost of buying pigment ink. This is something important as well, as most people have a budget for the costs of the materials being reproduced. However, you should also be aware that there is a lot of research being done to try and make dye inks and pigment inks better.
Taking into consideration the above mentioned points, and some recommendations from the developers and producers of ink cartridges, it is advised to use pigment ink for color printing jobs, and dye ink for monochrome printing. The color combination on a printed paper needs to be very accurate, and the ink needs to dry quickly for this contrast to work effectively.
Another recommendation that can be taken into consideration, is the usage of pigment ink by those who are wanting to store their printed material for long periods of time. Compared to dye ink, pigment ink will keep your documents looking great, even after 20 years of storage.
However, please also remember that the difference between pigment ink and dye ink can be affected by the kind of paper that you are using. Paper plays a very important role in the printing resolution, and if you are finding that a type of ink is not really giving you the best results, and then perhaps trying a different kind of paper may be the solution.
Summary:
1. The difference between pigment ink and dye ink, is that pigment ink will sit on the paper, whereas, dye ink will be absorbed by the paper immediately, creating a slight difference in the final output.
2. Dye ink has better resolution, as it has a better contrast than pigment ink.
3. The cost to buy dye ink is less than the cost of buying pigment ink.