Epson Promises To Stop Making Laser Printers To Be More Eco-Friendly

Japanese electronics firm Epson recently announced it will stop producing and selling laser printers by 2026, claiming that inkjets have a “greater potential” than their counterparts to make “meaningful advances” in sustainability. 

According to The Register, the printer maker has already halted the sale of its laser printers in many countries, though they are still available for purchase in Asia and Europe. 

Of course, this leaves the problem of customers who have already bought a laser printer, and have no plans to switch. As per gHacks, the brand had faced criticism for allegedly bricking customer printers and leaving them unable to work. 

To address this concern, Epson promised that while it will no longer sell the hardware, it will continue to support existing machines with ink and spare parts. 

Epson Sales and Marketing Manager Koichi Kubota told the site the company was “committed to sustainable innovation,” and that it felt inkjet printers “simply use less energy and fewer consumable parts.” 

Just what exactly is the difference between a laser and an inkjet printer? Well, the former makes use of heat to fuse toner onto a page, while the latter works on heat-free technology that requires less electricity by mechanically firing the ink. 

It seems the environmental impact between the two is stark, with a blog post in 2019 reporting that inkjets used 85% less energy than comparable laser printers, as well as producing up to 85% less carbon dioxide, or the capacity of six cedar trees.

More tangibly, inkjet printers have up to 59% fewer replaceable components when compared to laser printers, which require the toner, drum, developer, and fusers to be replaced regularly. 

With the growing focus on sustainability, it’s no surprise even consumer brands are looking to market their products as being more eco-friendly. Will the switch from laser to inkjet printers really make a difference? Time will tell.

[via The Register and gHacks, cover image via Cineberg Ug | Dreamstime.com]