The Perfect Gift for the Compulsive Organizer
Written: Apr 16 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Produces very durable laminated labels with strong adhesive
Cons: middling print resolution, no carrying handle, print button location, expensive tapes
The Bottom Line: A very good labeler that does its intended job. I believe that it would meet the needs of any organized household.
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| lokino's Full Review: Brother P-Touch 310 Printer |
Aloha! I have owned this label maker for almost two years, and it has come in very handy for various household labeling tasks. The PT310 uses 6 AA batteries that have not needed to be replaced yet. It is relatively easy to use. You simply type on the mini qwerty keyboard. There is a 15 character LCD that scrolls as you type. When you are ready, you simply press the green print button and out comes your label(s). The tricky part is separating the label from its backing. There is a little curling stick included which helps but it does take awhile before you get the hang of it.
Features
There is only one font, but this label maker can print in normal, italic, outline, bold, shadow, underline and vertical styles, with 6 different font sizes. There are also various symbols that may be added, including a heart, telephone, arrows, no smoking, handicapped access, etc. You can also print two lines on one label.
Tapes
The laminated labels are very durable. After almost two years, none of them have cracked, curled, yellowed, or fallen off. They are shiny and look as good as new. There is a great variety of tape cartridges that you can purchase. This model uses the TZ class of tape cartridges. If you go to the store look for tapes that have TZ on the label. Be careful not to buy the 1 or 1 1/2 inch wide TZ tapes. These will not fit your machine. The tapes come in four widths—1/4, 3/8, 1/2, and 3/4 inches and most are 26 feet long. There are also different colors, including black characters on white, black on clear, red on white, blue on white, gold on black, etc. There are also labels that have Looney Tunes Characters in the background, e.g., Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Taz, etc.
Keep in mind though that each cartridge with a specific width and color scheme is sold separately, and that the cartridges run approximately $10 to 18 dollars each. There are even more specialty tapes like cloth tape (to iron on clothes) and security tape to identify valuables, that cost even more. Just like ink cartridges, this is where I believe Brother, the manufacturer, makes its money.
Disadvantages
There are some things that I think could be improved about this product. First, the resolution of the printing is not that great--up close you can see the jaggies. Second, the unit doesn’t have a carrying handle. Also the print button, although somewhat indented and colored green, is too close to the other buttons and can be pressed inadvertently. Lastly I believe that the price of the tape cartridges could be better.
I'm not absolutely sure but I do believe that this model has been replaced by the 1700.
Hope this review helps you to make a decision!
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
lokino
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Member: Lance Okino
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Reviews written: 35
Trusted by: 8 members
About Me:
Being a self-employed math and science tutor, I love helping others to become more knowledgeable.
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