Input and output devices sheet capacity Printers can hold a certain amount of paper at one time. A lower sheet capacity means you will have to refill the paper tray more often. Laser printers and some inkjet printers store documents you select to print in built-in memory before printing. The amount of memory a printer offers is usually measured in megabytes (MB). More memory increases the printing speed when printing long or complex documents. Some printers allow you to add memory modules to the printer. Printer manufacturers usually indicate the amount of memory installed and the maximum amount of memory you can add to a printer.

Types of Paper Each printer can print on different types of paper and materials, such as envelopes, labels, photo paper, transparencies and iron-on transfers. Make sure the printer you choose can print on the type of paper and materials you plan to use.

Paper Size Most printers can print on 8.5 x 11 inch paper. Some printers can print on larger paper sizes, such as legal paper, which is 8.5 x 14 inches. Make sure the printer you choose can print the size of paper you plan to use.

Types of Connections Printers usually connect to a computer through a Universal Serial Bus (USB), parallel or network (Ethernet) connection. A parallel port offers the slowest type of connection to a computer. A network connection is useful if you want to connect a printer directly to a network so more than one computer can use the printer.