COMPARISON RULES
We are only comparing apples with apples.
To stay truthful and objective we obide by the following rules
:
- We have been in lasers for more than 25 years and trust us when
we say that 10W of power is not enough to last. All CO2 laser
tube power will decrease, so if you start with a 10W laser, you
will run out of gas (literally) very quickly. 30W is the laser
power to go for especially since the different in price is not
that important anymore.
- 60W of laser power is only useful if you have high speed lines,
so you can reach higher coding speed or if you are marking a large
scanning area. They are needed sometimes, but it is fairly rare
to be honest. Most applications require only 30W.
- All laser coder compared below are class 4 lasers, they will
need to be guarded to be legally installed in the Europe and many
other countries. Guading is fairly easily achieved with CO2 with
the relevant plexiglas / perspex enclosure, with interlocks to
ensure the operator safety.
- At the end of the day, there are only a few supplier of laser
tube and most manufacturer use the same, so the diferenciation
of the machine should be based on teh quality of built, software
friendliness / usability for your application and the knowledge
of your supplier (not the amount of technicians on the road ...)
- the market for CO2 laser is very controlled by inkjet companies
that slow down the laser uptake to protect their very lucrative
ink revenue stream. Very often their laser business is secondary
and their technicians are inkjet trained, not laser experienced
"We base our honest judjments on 25 years of laser marking experience,having worked with several laser companies at senior levels, globally. Trust us : we know what works and what doesn't."
WHAT WE ADVISE YOU SHOULD LOOK FOR WHEN CHOOSING A CO2 LASER CODER
Design and build quality
A laser coder is an industrial piece of kit, that you will rely on for years to come to finish your product. If the coder is not easy to use for the operator and will last for a long time, it will cause you headhaches and will cost you a lot of money.
The software
You should only buy the simpliest software for your application. If you don't it will create difficulties, marking mistakes and frustrations from the operator and the management.
Power
As mentioned above, a 30W CO2 laser (metal tube, RF) will do most applications. We recommend you do not consider 10W lasers and consider 60W only if you need it. Beware ... we also recommend that you do not fall for the Chinese glass tube that are super cheap, but you will change them like light bulbs !
Laser maintenance
It does not matter how many technicians your supplier has, what matter is if they are knowledgeable about lasers or not. Very often the company has different product to sell (inkjets (CIJ), vision systems, Thermal Transfer (TTO)) and the technicians are specialised in those fields ... not laser coding which is a specialit's subject !
Spares
Besides the filters of the fume extractor (if you have one fitted), there are no consummables associated with CO2 laser coders. However you need to pay attention to the cost of spares, should an electronic card or an electical part fails for exemple. Some suppliers use proprietay cards, that only them use and source : these are expensive and the leadtime is longer. You should only buy a laser coder that uses non-proprietary parts (PCBs especially) so you can be source from different sources and you don't run the risk of the part being obsolete quickly. You could loose a small fortune with these if you are not careful.
Environmentally friendly products
We all know how it is important to be reasonable with the environment for future generations. CO2 lasers are the best for that : they are super reliable, have no consummables and should last around 35,000 Hrs MTBF (application dependent). All metal RF laser tubes today are reliable, including the Chinese brands.
Top 6 CO2 laser coders for food, beverage, cosmetics, extrusion, packaging and many more industries, in the UK in 2024
All products and company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Their usage on this website does not imply any affiliation with or endorsement by them.
Domino |
Keyence |
Linx |
Macsa
/ Hitachi |
Markem
Imaje |
Videojet |
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| Model | D-Series | ML-Z9620 | CSL30 | SPA Series | C350 | 3340 |
| Price | 
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| Location | Bar Hill | Milton Keynes | St Ives | Shefford | Nottingham | Huntingdon |
| Industrial Design |  |
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| Tech support | Good | Not good | Limited | Not good | Not good | Not good |
| CO2 Laser expertise | |
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| Inkjet focused | |
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Not Sure | |
| Warranty | 2 years | 2 years | 2 years | 2 years | 2 years | 2 years |
| Bad point(s) | Price, Unflexible | Not industrial, Insist on their 3D "guimmick" which is unreliable | Price, lack of laser interest, complex software | Prone to reliability issues, price, software complexity | Little tech support, narrow enclosure | Support and knowledge is very questionable, lack of interest for lasers, high staff turnover, complex software |
| Good point (s) | Good software and good laser knowledge | German design (= Videopjet) | CO2 laser experience is questionable, Macsa is focused on Fiber laser | Good design, user-friendly software | German design (= Linx) but "Pile them high, sell them cheap" |
All models come with a range of options : Fume Extraction, variety of lens (but spot size change = be careful), foot stand, guarding, etc.
