Laminating speed
The maximum laminating speed provided by the device — in other words,
the length of the section that the laminator is able to laminate in a minute. The high speed rate makes it easier to operate with large volumes of media, but significantly affects the cost of the device. Therefore, it makes sense to look for a quick laminator only if you have to deal with large volumes of media, or if the ability to quickly handle the task is critical. If the device is bought for use from time to time, this indicator can be ignored.
Min. film thickness
The thinnest film (in microns) that the laminator can handle.
Different applications require different types of film;
a thin film can be useful for laminating thin sheets of paper or if you need to maintain the flexibility of the material. Detailed recommendations about the optimal film thickness for a specific type of work can be found in special sources. The most popular are
films with a thickness of 75 and
80 µm. There is also an intermediate type with thickness of
60 µm.
Max media thickness
The thickest media the laminator is capable of operating with.
If choosing the device is based on this spec, it makes sense not only to take into account the thickness of the media is being to operate with, but also to take a certain margin just in case. At the same time, we note that even the "thinnest" modern laminators are capable of processing materials up to 0.2 – 0.3 mm thick — this is comparable to thin cardboard or very thick paper. And in high-end professional models, this value can exceed 10 mm.
Lamination type
Lamination type supported by the device.
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Heated. During heated lamination, the media and the film are passed together through rollers or heating plates; while the adhesive layer inside the film is melted, it is fixed to the processed media. This method allows you to achieve good processing quality and reliable laminating, so, it is the most popular type of lamination so far.
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Cold. Lamination type, where the media and film are sealed together only by the pressure of the rollers, without heating. This type is often used as an optionless step in cases where you have to work with heat-sensitive materials — for example, synthetics or glossy media. Note that specialized devices with only a cold lamination type are rare, and principally met among professional ones; much more often modern laminators support both cold and heated lamination types (see below).
— Heated and cold. Ability to operate with any type of described above. As usual, heated lamination is a regular option for such models, and for cold type, the heating element is simply turned off. Such devices are as versatile as possible, and their cost essentially do not differ from their heat-only analogues, and that's why the combined type is the most common for modern laminators.
Power consumption
The electrical power consumed by the laminator in usual operation. Even in A2 format models (see above), this figure rarely exceeds 2 kW (which is comparable to the consumption of an electric kettle or iron), not to mention simpler devices. Therefore, in most cases, this spec is a reference and practically may be used only in rare cases. But when choosing a professional large-format laminator with media size of A0 or A1, you should pay special attention to power consumption — it can be up to 10 – 11 kW, which puts forward specific connection requirements.
