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Dymo LetraTag LT-100H
by slbhill
Once you have a label maker, it's amazing how many things you can find to label! From the plugs in the rats nest of wires behind the computer so that you know which is which, to tent poles so you can match them up correctly. The Dymo LetraTAG will label pretty much anything.
This is a hand-held machine (just a bit too big ... to be comfortable in one hand), it doesn't need a computer to make it work so you can use it anywhere. It takes a variety of colours and textures of tape - white paper, coloured plastic etc. all of which are sticky on the back. The tape comes in easy-to-load cassettes, they just clip in and you can change over part way through a cassette with no problem. It is battery powered - I've had mine a year and not yet needed to change the batteries.
The tapes are all the same width, so if you want a tiny label you can use the smaller font sizes but have to trim the tape, but that's about the only problem I've had with it. And if there were a variety of tape widths you'd never have the one you need anyway!
This machine is the natural and much more flexible successor to the old manual dymo tape machines where the letters were raised. There are various font sizes and decorative borders/edges including a steam train, hearts, flowers or a crocodile if you're labelling for kids. It also includes a reasonable set of symbols, rather like wingdings - things like smiley faces, a skull and crossbones and various arrows.
I can't really find any faults with this machine, if you want to label stuff or just play about it's great.
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Dymo Labelwriter 400
by tallpete33
There is one thing I don't like about Christmas and that is writing Christmas cards and even worse, the addresses on envelopes. I thought I'd got around this by printing labels from Word but anyone who has done that knows it's not that easy, especially if you change label sizes. Despite specifying the correct size, unless you make the ... font very small, the addresses often run over the edges and you can spend hours manually adjusting and wasting whole sheets to get the job done. Grrrr ! I actually came across this reviewed in dooyoo (see - it wworks lol!) and thought this could be the answer to my prayers - luckily I was right.
In the box is:
The labeller itself
USB cable
Mains adapter
Software CD
Paperwork (inc quick start guide and warranty info)
Small roll of 99012 size labels (approx 8.8 cm x 3.6cm)
The labeller is quite a smart looking and self-contained unit, about 18cm x w12 cm x h14cm. There is just a single button to feed labels if necessary. Using the Quick Start guide, I loaded the labels then easily installed the software, connecting the Dymo via the USB when prompted. For the record I run Windows Vista SP2. The mains cable (with adapter) is over 2m long and the USB is about 1.5m so it should stretch across a nice big desk.
I opened the Dymo software itself but to be honest found it a bit clunky and dated then explored further. Reading the User Guide (pdf file) I found that it had actually installed a Word add-in so I opened my Word (2007 version) doc, selected a couple of labels and clicked "Print DYMO Labels". Voila, perfectly aligned and printed labels in one second! No waiting for a whole sheet to feed through and the serrated edge makes it nice and easy to tear the labels off too. As it uses thermal printing, you don't have to worry about ink smudges or cartridges running dry either.
This is a great little device, a foolproof way to print 1 or 100 labels in seconds. The software acts as a template designer as well as address book but if your data is already in Word (or Excel), it's easiest to work from there and you won't need to duplicate your data. You can format and align the text how you want in the Dymo software and then print the label from the Word Add-in but you do not need to make any changes at all if you don't want, the printer itself automatically detects the label size thanks to the markings on the underside so you're good to go on power-up. Talking of labels, you can pick them up much more cheaply on ebay if you hunt around. I bought some non-Dymo ones for around half the price and they are just as good.
Printing from this little beaut is a cinch. The only disadvantage is it only prints in black and you need to use the Dymo software to adjust the formatting but it's worth it for the stress (and paper) it will save me this Christmas and beyond :o)
Currently just under £70 delivered from amazon
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Dymo Labelwriter 330 Turbo
by Stephoohla
In the small Surveying office I currently work in, we are constantly having to make labels for the millions of letters we have to send out.
Performing this task of making labels on a computer is not very pleasant at all, especially on the old fashioned computers we have. Having to set the margins perfectly on screen and then ... adjusting your printer so it will feed the envelope... nightmare!
I managed to persuade my boss to invest in a label maker, and after reading some reviews and the fact that our stationary supplier sells a limited amount of products, I chose this one.
As soon as it arrived I quickly set it up, very excited at the prospect of making labels easily! I found it was easy to do this, you simply plug one cable into the machine and the other end into a socket, and another cable also goes into the machine and the other end into your computer. (Not very good for fans of wireless IT gear... this does get rather fussy with all these wires).
There was some software that had to be installed on the computer, but this took no more than 3 minutes, and was immediately ready for use.
The device itself is quite small and compact, and does look fancy on your desk as opposed to some ugly old-fashioned-looking label makers. It's a sleek silver colour, with a burgundy bottom. Simple and neat.
For printing out normal labels, the machine is perfect. It is very easy to use. You simply highlight the address you wish to print out, then click the tiny label button which gets installed on your Word program or similar in the toolbar, and then you click print when the window pops up. Alternatively, you can go to your start menu, click on the Dymo option and do it from there, by typing your address in or copy and pasting it.
The machine will then print out a single label with your address/whatever text you used on it. The labels will be white text on a white label. (I don't actually know if you can different coloured labels, that would be very cool!). You simply peel the label off the backing, and voila, a neat label for you to use.
You can make different sized labels or have them doing fancy things, but to be honest that's not really an area I explore. A couple of times I've changed the alignment or made it bold/underlined, etc, and this is simple enough to do, but not a necessity for me and I could easily do without it. You can also make CD labels from the Dymo software too, although I'm yet to do this.
To re-fill the label maker with a new roll of labels can be a bit tricky and it took me quite a few tries to get the hang of it. It's a bit fiddly but as long as you stick to the instructions (some I failed to do as I lost them straighaway amongst lots of paperwork!) then you'll be okay. You just have to remember to put the roll in the right way round otherwise you're heading for trouble!
Overall, a great quality label maker. Cost us cheaper from our stationers, but I read up that in shops it's about £80 to buy brand new. Too much than I'd be willing to pay if I wanted it for private use, and I suppose it is generally for lazy people as it would be more cost efficient to use your printer or handwrite it! But for a convenient, professional-looking way of signing your envelopes, this label maker is definitely the way forward.
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