That's the minimum you'll need for decent-looking text in normal correspondence. To get sharp text at smaller sizes, as well as graphics and photos with a professional look, you'll want a 600 dpi printer, which produces 360,000 dots per square inch. Most of today's better laser printers are capable of 600 dpi resolution. Ink jets range from 360 to 720 dpi, although higher resolutions may require specially coated paper. Color capability .
Some ink jets are better at producing business graphics and text, while others excel at photos.
Printers designed specifically for photos often have color ink reservoirs that hold six colors of ink, instead of the normal three. Laser printers can churn out four to 24 ppm, but you'll pay a premium for anything that can print more than eight pages per minute. Ink jets can produce anywhere from two to seven pages per minute. But that's only half the story. Most manufacturers' speed ratings are based on printing text documents.