Are OEM's Printheads that much better than Equivalent or Compatibles?

Industrial Print Specialists

The world of thermal printheads is ruled by three major players: Kyocera, Rohm, and Toshiba. These powerhouses produce the majority of OEM printheads used by various thermal printer manufacturers.

At Print Priorities, we recognise three types of printheads: OEM, OEM Equivalent, and Compatible; but we only sell two of them, here's why:

OEM Printhead: These printheads are designed specifically for the thermal printer manufacturer. Typically, one of the big three—Kyocera, Rohm, or Toshiba—builds them. These printheads adhere to the printer manufacturer’s specifications, sport the OEM logo, come in branded packaging, and carry the manufacturer's warranty. Of course we supply these printheads.

OEM Branded Printhead, manufactured by Kyocera.

OEM Equivalent Printhead: Although not true OEMs, these printheads are designed to be “drop-in replacements” and perform to the same specs as OEM printheads. Our OEM Equivalent Printheads are crafted on the same production lines by the same manufacturers who make the branded printheads for the OEMs. Our Honeywell OEM Equivalent printheads are also manufactured by Kyocera but come supplied in plain packaging.

OEM Compatible Printhead: This is where it gets tricky. Think of these as knockoffs. Built to the minimum specs at the lowest cost, they vary greatly in quality and parts. Reliability and longevity? Not often found in these models. Buyer beware! We don't and wont supply these.

Looking for printheads?

Come and checkout our store we offer an express delivery on a more extensive range of printheads and platen rollers. And if you cant find what you are looking for we pride ourselves in hunting down hard to find items outside of this guarantee, we love a challenge.

With over 40 years of hands-on experience, we’re the go-to experts for thermal printer repairs across the UK. We work with leading brands like Intermec, Honeywell, and Zebra, and we understand how critical these devices are to your business. Our goal? To get you back up and running – fast.