The M23 from Taiwan's TSC features a 3in wide print width, full-graphic LCD and several connectivity options, such as RS-232, USB, Bluetooth and 802.11b

Wired printers available; dot-matrix trail thermal printing as widely adopted printing method

Makers from Taiwan and mainland China provide mobile or portable printers that are mostly used in commercial business, traffic monitoring and transportation management. The product line started booming in 2007, and makers expect the uptrend will continue throughout 2008. Some makers predict that companies with strong R&D capability will be better positioned to nail a share of the market.

Among the four printing solutions offered by makers in Taiwan—dot-matrix, thermal, inkjet and Dye Diffusion Thermal Transfer Technology (D2T2)—the first two options are widely adopted by suppliers of portable printers. Thermal printing looks poised to lead supply due to its low cost.

According to makers, the cost of adopting inkjet for mobile printers is higher than using thermal or dot-matrix printing. Makers predict thermal printers will achieve a higher growth rate in the coming years. Most POS terminals are thermal and desktop or stationary types for cost considerations as well.

Wired and wireless printers are available. Despite the higher costs involved, wireless models are starting to gain ground, particularly in Taiwan. Most wireless models use Bluetooth technology, although some models also support 802.11b/g.

Product development trends in Taiwan are leaning toward new releases with lower cost yet longer operation time. In mainland China, most makers are focused on customizing their portable printers to market or client requirements.

Shipments of portable printers are mostly through project or customized orders, and are generally in small volumes. Because of this, some companies, such as POS makers with large production capacity, are not venturing into producing portable printers. Nonetheless, makers predict exports will start picking up despite the dominance of foreign brands, such as Canon, HP, Samsung and Zebra.

Many makers admit facing difficulties in building brand or company recognition in this foreign-dominated market. Suppliers said even the technology and supply of printer heads are dominated by foreign companies, particularly Japan.

The supplier population in Taiwan and mainland China for portable printers is small, yet stable. To boost their competitiveness, most makers are emphasizing R&D and product development.

Taiwan has about 10 suppliers of portable inkjet printers, including manufacturers and agents. Exact figures for mainland China’s supplier base can not be determined, as companies have different bases for categorizing portable inkjet printers. Makers focused on home- and office-use printers define portable inkjet printers as covering printers that can be carried easily and for use in both home and office. Companies specializing in POS systems base the portability on the capability to print receipts.

Taiwan’s suppliers of portable inkjet printers comprise IUT, Megadata Industrial Co. Ltd, TSC Auto ID Technology Co. Ltd, Fametech Inc. and HiTi Digital Inc. These companies are also suppliers of auto IDs, bar-code scanners, handy data collectors (terminals) and POS peripherals.

TSC supplies thermal printers. It also makes desktop, portable and industrial bar-code printers; CCD bar-code scanners and other peripherals. It released its first mobile printer in end-2005.

TSC has factories in Tianjin in mainland China and Ilan in Taiwan. The factories comply with ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. TSC handles design and product assembly in-house, and subcontracts tooling and SMT.

Fametech is a leading supplier of automatic identification and data collection (AIDC) solutions and POS peripherals. It offers POS systems and peripherals, including printers, and bar-code and magnetic stripe scanners. Fametech offers wired and wireless dot-matrix and thermal printers.

Fametech employs three R&D staff and seven QC staff. The company maintains a factory in Taipei equipped with oscilloscopes, ICE machines, logic analyzers, EMI/ESD testing equipment, and vibration and temperature chambers.

Megadata provides mobile printers and modules. The company has its own factory in Taichung, Taiwan, as well as subcontracting partners in the area and in Shanghai in mainland China. The company has a monthly production capacity of about 15,000 units. It has a 4-member R&D team that handles hardware and mechanical designs.

Mainland China’s Qingdao Unique Product Develop Co. Ltd is an R&D-focused manufacturer of portable inkjet printers. Unique offers own-brand products.

Systron Technologies Co. Ltd served as an agent of foreign-branded products for more than 10 years before expanding into the manufacture of portable inkjet printers. Systron is based in Beijing and has another office in Guangzhou, Guangdong province. Systron’s portable inkjet printers are mainly bar-code printers.

The majority of makers in Taiwan and mainland China cater to OEM and ODM buyers overseas. Some companies also pursue own-brand manufacturing (OBM). A few distribute their products in the domestic market.

OEM and ODM projects combined absorb 90 percent of Fametech’s portable inkjet printers. The company also does OBM products under the label Tysso, which constitutes the remaining 10 percent. All of TSC’s mobile printers are exported to the US. The company plans to expand its export business in Europe.

More than 80 percent of Fametech’s output is exported. The major export destinations are Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The company projects an increase in export volumes going to developing markets in 2008 and is looking to expand its export business in India, Brazil and Russia.

Thermal printers dominate Fametech’s shipments, with wireless models having only a 5 percent share of shipments. All of the company’s products are shipped on project basis.

Megadata generates 70 percent of its total sales from exports, and domestic sales make up the rest. Asia is the company’s major export market. Megadata, however, sees expansion potential in developed countries that promise long-term, stable orders. Megadata projects about
60 percent growth in its exports this year.

Megadata’s mobile printers are sold under its own brand, as well as on project orders. OBM makes up 30 percent of its sales, with sales under its own Posjet label mostly coming from the Taiwan domestic market. OEM business accounts for 40 percent of sales, and ODM accounts for 30 percent.

All of mainland China’s Unique’s portable inkjet printers are exported to Japan, Europe and the US.

Systron distributes its products in the domestic and overseas markets, with the latter contributing the lion’s share of sales.

Taiwan makers currently offer four printing solutions for mobile printers: dot-matrix, thermal, inkjet and D2T2. The majority of printers support thermal printing due to its low cost and higher growth potential. Most companies agree that it costs higher to use inkjet for mobile printers than thermal or dot-matrix printing.

Many portable printers made in Taiwan support wireless technology, mainly through Bluetooth.

Since mobile printers are produced on a per-project basis and are generally customized solutions, printer prices vary and are dependent on the products’ applications. Small wireless printers are quoted about 20 to 30 percent higher than wired models.

Megadata’s mobile printers are offered as complete systems or modules that support dot-matrix and thermal printing methods. The company’s wireless models use Bluetooth 2.0 for less noise and stable communication. These products, which draw power from NiMH or Li-ion batteries, are compatible with Chinese fonts.

Megadata’s portable printers are generally used for road inspection by the police and for issuing receipts in gas stations, parking lots and commercial establishments such as restaurants. The company’s general manager, Wonder Jan, projects that receipt issuance in taxis could be a key application in the next few years.

Megadata offers the PK-102T and the PK-101P. The former is a thermal printer module in a miniature size, and the PK-101P is a mini dot-matrix printer. Megadata is working on new applications for taxi receipts and restaurants. It expects that emerging applications such as the tobacco tax system combined with RFID technology will boost its market in Asia.

Fametech offers one wireless portable printer, the PRP085. The model supports Bluetooth 2.0 for short-distance data transmission.

The manufacturer is considering adopting wireless modems to lower both the cost and power consumption. Its wireless printers are mainly used in commercial establishments such as restaurants with POS systems, wholesalers with thin clients, and factories for inventory management.

TSC’s mobile printer, the M23, is a customized model designed for labeling in inventory management. The portable printer supports both wired and wireless printing. It can be used for item and price marking, shelf labeling, small signage and shelf talkers.

The M23 features an LCD screen, 3in print width and shock-resistance within a height of 1.8m. The model’s print width can fit papers with sizes 1in to 3.15in (25.4mm to 80mm), unlike most models that support 2in paper sizes. It also allows horizontal printing of shelf labels.

Unique’s products are designed for special printing. Unique manufactures portable printers that support extraordinary materials and environment, such as in moist environment and tough surfaces. The company aims to release more new products under this category.

Unique has an R&D team composed of 15 engineers. The company takes less than three months to develop a new product. It focuses its product development efforts on improving product performance, specifically printing speed and resolution. The company is also experimenting with new materials.

Systron’s products are mostly for industrial applications. The products are targeted at midrange and high-end markets, with prices starting at $1,000.

Systron’s R&D team, based in Beijing, is working on a wireless portable terminal that supports portable and wireless printing.

Unique disclosed that prices of portable printers are lower now than they were six months back. According to the company, it is confronted with difficulties in marketing and exporting its products. It is also affected by the revaluation of the yuan and the rising labor cost.