In order for the printer to work it needs to be connected with the computer. And the connection is done through a cable. It sometimes happens that you require buying a printer cable when it gets misplaced, lost or damaged somehow. It will be ridiculous to think that purchasing a printer cable will require some high tech knowledge and some advice on how to buy it. However, there can be instances when such innocuous simple thing like a printer cable can really transform into a big issue. Therefore it will be in order if you have some knowledge on how to buy the correct printer cable.
The printer cable that you buy should be matching with the printer otherwise you are unlikely to get any print output. Though a simple thing, the number of alternatives that exist in the market is enough to get you confused. Therefore care should be taken to buy one from the market. Here’s how you should go about buying the right printer cable.
On the basis of connectivity printer cables are divided into three kinds – parallel, serial and USB. Parallel printer cable can be identified by its flat and wide end with screws to secure it to the printer and computer. The serial one has 9 to 25 pins cylindrical connectors at both ends. The third is the USB that has a flat rectangular jack that can conveniently fit in small ports in the printer and computer. Therefore depending on the requirement of your printer you have to buy the printer cable.
Buying the correct printer cable is not all; you have to ensure that the printer matches the computer’s operating system. If they don’t match having the right cable is not going to work. You should hence check the requirement of the system before you shop for a cable.
You will find many brands of printer cable claiming very high transfer rate of data through their cable. Ads will convince you no doubt, but you should make it a point to see demonstration of the cables first in order to arrive at the right conclusion.
The span of the cable is also important; it should connect the computer and the printer with some length to spare. However, you should not have very lengthy cables as these tend to hamper the working of the printer and create problems.
Though not a very high value item, printer cable, no doubt, is very important and therefore should not be purchased carelessly. You need to be pragmatic when you intend to buy a printer cable.
