HID Global’s Breakthrough Inkjet Printer Introduces Personalized Credential Capabilities to Broader Markets

HID Global, a worldwide leader in trusted identity solutions, today announced HID® FARGO® INK1000 printer and encoder, the industry’s first thermal inkjet solution that brings secure, personalized credential issuance to entry- and mid-level markets. HID’s latest printer innovation is the first to offer inkjet technology to the global desktop card printer market, enabling cost effective, high-quality credentials and eliminating the need for specialized card media.

“Until now, small and medium-sized organization have had very limited options for personalized credential issuance due to high costs and complex maintenance requirements,” said Craig Sandness, Vice President and Managing Director of Secure Issuance with HID Global. “Our HID FARGO INK1000 solution resolves those challenges, creates an unmatched industry benchmark for affordability and ease-of-use, and extends the simplicity of inkjet printing popularized for home use to retail counters and office environments.”

HID FARGO INK1000 eliminates the print ribbons and specialized card media required by alternative direct-to-card (DTC) desktop solutions that use dye sublimation technology. The easy-to-install snap-in cartridges deliver the simplicity and reliability of inkjet printers and contain specially formulated inks for creating fade-resistant images and text that adhere to standard, off-the-shelf polyvinyl chloride (PVC) cards. A single ink cartridge has the potential to produce hundreds more cards than printers that use ribbons and create less waste while significantly improving total cost of ownership (TCO).

The HID FARGO INK1000 solution offers the following unique capabilities:

• Inkjet printing on standard PVC cards Accommodates most standard (PVC) card stock for single-side thermal inkjet card printing, including laminated PVC for credit card construction.
• High-quality, high-resolution, edge-to-edge printing 600 x 1200 dots per inch (DPI) resolution delivers sharp, brilliant and crisply defined full-color and composite-black text and barcode-readable images not possible with standard DTC printers.
• Superior image durability Heating technology and exclusively formulated ink support ink-to-card adherence, fast drying, and UV-stability prevents image fading.
• Easy deployment and use Intuitive operation, a small footprint and convenient same-side input and output.
• Optional contactless card encoding HID OMNIKEY® 5127CK-Mini reader functionality enables contactless encoding for door entry, cashless vending, time and attendance, gift and loyalty program applications, and entry-level market financial cards that use QR codes.