The printing mechanism of impact printers, as their name implies, makes contact with the paper in order to create an image. Early in the 1970s and 1980s, impact printers were utilized. In Dot Matrix printers, a sequence of minuscule pins strike an ink-coated ribbon to transfer an image to the paper.

Other Impact Printers, such as Character printers, are essentially electronic typewriters. A sequence of bars or a ball bearing actual characters strikes the ink ribbon to transfer the characters to the paper. Only one character can be printed at a time. Daisy Wheel printers utilize a metal or plastic wheel. However, these printers have limited utility because they can only print characters or a single type of typeface, not images.

There are Line printers in which a string of characters or pins print a full line, making them relatively quick but with poor print quality. Thermal printers are nothing more than calculator and fax machine printers. They are economical to use. Thermal printers function by applying heated pins to heat-sensitive paper.

Utilizing innovative Non-impact Technology, more modern and efficient printers are now available.

Non-impact printers are those in which the printing mechanism never makes contact with the paper. This makes them quieter than impact printers when in operation.

Inkjet printers were introduced in the mid-1980s. These have been the most popular and commonly utilized printers to date. Inkjet printers changed color printing after their invention. The head of an inkjet printer features tiny nozzles that deposit extremely small ink droplets on the paper to generate an image. These dots are so minute that the diameter of a human hair is larger than their size. These dots are properly positioned and have a maximum resolution of 1440 x 720 per inch. Various combinations of ink cartridges are compatible with these printers.

Source: https://www.printercentral.co.uk/best-apple-airprint-printers-in-the-uk/