Dot-matrix printers use electromagnet-driven pins in a moving print head to create characters and graphics by impacting an ink ribbon. Their ability to produce carbon copies, handle continuous or multi-part forms, and endure harsh environments keeps them in industrial and point-of-sale niches, even though inkjet and laser printers replaced them in mainstream home and office use during the 1990s and 2000s.
What dot-matrix printers are
Dot-matrix (impact) printers use a print head that runs across the page and strikes an ink-soaked ribbon against the paper, forming characters and graphics out of individual dots. Because the mechanism actually impacts the paper, these printers can produce carbon copies and work reliably with multi-part forms and continuous tractor-fed paper.
How they print
Each dot is made by a tiny metal pin driven forward by an electromagnet or solenoid. Pins are guided through a small plate (often made from a hard jewel such as sapphire or garnet) that keeps their travel precise. The moving assembly that houses the pins is called the print head. Typical consumer print heads have a single vertical column of pins; higher-density or industrial heads may use multiple interleaved rows to increase dot resolution.
Color and variations
Some dot-matrix printers used multi-color ribbons and printed each line with multiple passes to composite colors. This produced simple color charts and graphics but not photo-realistic images. Thermal-transfer and later inkjet and laser technologies offered much higher color fidelity and became preferred for color work.
Industrial and point-of-sale use
Although largely displaced in home and office markets by inkjet and laser printers since the 1990s, impact printers remain common where their unique strengths matter: printing through carbon copies, running on continuous rolls or fanfold stock, operating in harsh environments, and low per-page cost for high-volume text. Industrial models are built into cabinets or integrated into production lines; some use multiple full-width printheads to print a page with minimal carriage movement.
Why they fell out of mainstream use
Non-impact technologies such as inkjet and laser became dominant because they are quieter, faster for many graphics tasks, and offer much higher print quality for text and images. Broad adoption of affordable inkjet heads and the growth of color printing in the home and office in the 1990s and 2000s accelerated the shift away from dot-matrix for general-purpose printing.
Today's reality
Dot-matrix and other impact printers survive in niches that require their mechanical advantages: logistics, banking, point-of-sale receipts with carbon copies, and industrial forms. Manufacturers still supply new impact models, spare parts and ribbons, and a global aftermarket supports repairs and long-life installations.
- Confirm exact dates and details for Hewlett-Packard's key inkjet patent expirations and how they affected mass adoption [[CHECK]]
- Verify current corporate status or acquisitions of historical impact-printer suppliers mentioned historically (Mannesmann-Tally, Genicom, PSI) [[CHECK]]
- Confirm technical details and historical use of multi-pass color ribbons and the Apple ImageWriter II color implementation [[CHECK]]