In a recent trip to Asia I was faced with an experience that we don’t tend to encounter in New Zealand and other western countries anymore. There was along queue which seemed to be taking forever to move through and it wasn’t until i got to the front that I realised what the issue actually was. The point of sale receipt printer was an old paper roll and ribbon setup. In New Zealand. thermal printers now dominate the point of sale area and you can understand why. Not only are thermal printer quick and efficient but they also provide a crisp clear image that this old ribbon printer afield to do. It is interesting to see how something as simple as thermal paper has revolutionised the way and speed in which we can now checkout with. 

Though it might not seem it, thermal paper has become an important addition to any quality point of sale setup.

We have now started stocking a large range of ink and toner products.

It has been our mission for a while now to diversify into other areas which complement what we have currently been offering. We think this is the right time to start offering additional printer consumable products to our faithful customers.

We have a large range of compatible, remanufactured and genuine ink and toner products from brands including Brother, Canon, HP Kyocera and Konica Minolta, amongst others. Though the addition of ink and toner products has added around 800 products to our catalogue we will continue to add further products to our range.

If there is a specific product you are looking for, let us know and we will get it online!

We are very pleased to announce that we are now offering free shipping on all purchases of at least a box of rolls. This extends to all our thermal rolls, bond rolls and multiple ply roll products. Not only do we have some of the most competitive pricing on the market, but we now can couple that with free shipping, continuing to deliver greater value to our customers.

People use a lot of different words to describe the type of products they are looking for. Below is a list of these terms and what they will most likely mean:

Thermal Roll - A thermal roll is a type of roll that creates an image through heat and must be used in conjunction with a thermal printer.

Bond Roll - A bond roll is a type of roll that requires the use of a ribbon to create an image. The ribbon is an ink.

POS (point of sale) roll - A POS roll is a roll that is used in a point of sale system. Generally these will be 80x80.

Receipt roll - This could mean a number of things however likely refers to a tax receipt printed from a point of sale system, which would be an 80x80 thermal roll. Note: you can also have an eftpos receipt.

Till roll - Till rolls will generally be an 80x80 thermal roll used in a businesses POS system however can also refer to a type of roll (either thermal or bond) used in a businesses cash register

Eftpos roll - An eftpos roll will always be a thermal roll. They are all 57mm wide and vary in diameter size depending on the type of terminal that the roll is being used in.

Kitchen rolls - Kitchen rolls will generally be multiple ply rolls. And generally will be a 76x76mm roll.

Multi ply roll - These are rolls that have multiple layers. 2 ply will generally have a white and yellow layer while 3 ply will have white yellow and pink. These are most commonly used in kitchen printers.

Many people get confused as to what paper rolls they need for their printer. The main 2 types that you will see are thermal rolls and bond rolls. The difference between these 2 types of rolls is the way in which they create the image. Thermal rolls require no ink to create an image. The printers use heat to produce the desired image/text on the roll. For that reason thermal rolls are very sensitive to heat and friction. Bond /2 ply rolls use ribbons. Ribbons, in short, provide the ink to print on the roll. These rolls are much more like normal paper. 

MIt can be quite difficult to tell the type of products apart if you are not sure what you are looking for. Thermal rolls are often described as having a "glossy" appearance. They also mark very easily as they are sensitive to heat/friction. To test whether a roll is thermal, run a finger nail along the surface. If they are thermal rolls it will leave a grey line.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to send us an email or a call.

We often get asked – “How can your rolls be any different? A paper roll is a paper roll”. And yes that is partly true. But often one thing that purchasers do not consider is that those cheap thermal or bond rolls could actually be doing damage to their printers.

The more abrasive a roll is the more likely the potential damage it could do. That is why we always ensure we only use the highest quality eftpos and till rolls. We had a client recently who came to us that had been importing rolls from Asia to use. These cheap rolls they had been importing had been damaging their printers and they had to replace the printer heads every 3 months! Luckily, we were able to provide them with high quality point of sale rolls that will not damage their printers. Though they were able to import those rolls quite cheaply, it ended up costing them far more.

So to those who have continuing issues with your till printers or any other – you may want to have a look at you roll purchases.  

In the next week or two we will be uploading a whole range of new products to address your business consumable needs, and as always, these will be at the best value you can find!

We are excited to bring a a greater selection of thermal rolls that will be available through our online store. Though we stock the major rolls that will satisfy 95% of your needs currently, we will begin selling several more specialist sizes for some of the more unique applications our clients are using thermal rolls for. In addition, we are excited to begin stocking an eco 80x80 roll. As it is our most popular roll currently, there will now be coloured, eco and standard options available in that size.

We are also adding further products in our bond and 2 ply selection. Though out most popular size is in the 76x76 range, there are also different sizes that people have been requesting for several different applications.

We will also be adding a completely new section - ribbons. Printer ribbons go hand in hand with the rolls and therefore we see it as essential that we can supply our customers with the ability to purchase both items from the same supplier. Printer ribbons will be available for all major printer brands. 

Keep an eye out for the new products soon!

Hamish