Buy Magicard Prima 4 ID Card Printers

It depends on how much information you need to put on your cards. For example, if you will only be placing the cardholder's photo and name on your cards, the single-sided Prima 4 printer may be ideal for you. However, if you need to place more information on your cards, we recommend the dual-sided Prima 4 printer so that you can print to both sides of the card in one, simple process.

Many customers ask if it is possible to print on both sides of the card with a single-sided printer by manually flipping the cards and sending them back through the printer. Doing so will subject your cards to dust, debris, and oil from your fingertips, which can affect the quality of the printed image and possibly damage your printer.

If you will be creating ID cards with limited cardholder information, choose a single-sided Magicard Prima 4 printer.

If you will be printing more information on your cards and want the ability to print on both sides of the card, choose a dual-sided Magicard Prima 4 printer.

View dual-sided card examples

Two ways to use the back of your cards:

Back

If you recall the days of cutting and pasting a paper ID card together, lamination may confuse you a bit. You might wonder why you would need lamination when printing directly to plastic. In plastic card printing, lamination is a clear protective layer that is applied over the top of your printed cards by a printer with lamination capability.

Lamination offers three primary benefits to a plastic ID card:

Choose a laminating Magicard Prima 4 printer if your cards will be swiped in a magnetic stripe reader or will be worn in extreme conditions, such as in the sun, or if your cards need high security features.

Watch a video on the benefits of lamination

This non-laminated ID card was placed in a badge holder in direct sunlight for 30 days. Due to the heat, the printed card image transfered from the card to the badge holder.

Back How wear and tear can affect a non-laminated card

Many experienced card printer users are familiar with the white border that direct-to-card printers leave around the edge of cards. Retransfer printers, on the other hand, produce "over-the-edge" prints that cover the entire surface of your cards. Direct-to-card printers print directly to the surface of cards. Any uneven surface of a card--including coming in contact with the edge of a card--can cause expensive printhead damage.

Retransfer printers, on the other hand, print your card image to retransfer film that is then fused onto the surface of the card. With this process, the printhead does not come in direct contact with your card, allowing you to print over the edge of your cards and to a wider variety of card surfaces including proximity cards, smart cards, pre-punched cards and key tag cards. Another benefit: retransfer printers produce imagery with rich, vibrant, saturated colors.

Choose a Magicard Prima 4 retransfer printer if your card design needs to print "over-the-edge" or if you will be printing on technology cards (smart cards, prox cards, etc.).

Watch a video on the benefits of retransfer printing