What is the difference between offset printing and digital?
• A: Simply put, offset printing applies ink on paper and digital printing uses toner. With offset, paper goes in and comes out the same. With digital, paper gets heated in order for the toner to transfer onto the page. Traditional offset presses are made to run large volumes of paper quickly. Setup for these presses can be time consuming. Also, when there are colors touching (see Exact Registration in Section B), not only must multiple plates be used but the colors must be trapped correctly so they touch or overlap properly. Therefore, to do short runs (usually 500 to 1000 or less depending on the item), offset press runs can be costly. Enter digital. Setup is basically telling the machine what kind of paper, color or black ink (toner, if you will) which tray to pull the paper from and exit to, and finally, how many copies. In other words, it takes a few minutes to setup for digital. It takes longer, or even much longer (for example if special ink colors must be mixed) for a press run
