Evaluating output quality
When you evaluate output quality, avoid magnification, which can draw attention to insignificant differences. However, careful inspection is still necessary, and when doing this, look for the following characteristics:
Text quality—
•Text should be dark, not faded, and solid black, without hollow spots.
•Edges should be crisp and smooth, not jagged.
•There should be little or no toner scattered on the
•Reverse text should be fully visible, with no filling lines. Portrait and landscape text should have the same print quality.
Hollow spots:
Jagged edges:
Toner scatter:
Graphics quality—
•Fine lines should be distinct, not blending into each other or dropping out.
•Solid black areas should be consistent to the eye, with no lighter shades or lines.
•Solid black areas should not appear glossy. This reduces readability.
•There should be no bands across graphics.
Image quality—
•Images should be clear and sharp.
•There should be no bands across images.
•There should be no graininess or dot visibility.
•Gray shading should go from light to dark in many layers, giving detail and depth to the image.
Missing lines, | Distinct lines, |
bad detail | good detail |
Poor image | Good image |
quality | quality |
Evaluating copy quality
Copy the type of material typical for your office, whether a book, magazine, sales brochure, photo, or other
•Does the copy quality meet your expectations?
•How easy is it to adjust image quality and select output options from the control panel?
•Does it take multiple adjustments and multiple copies to get good copy quality?
Evaluating laser | 17 |