Customer Reviews

Casio CW-100-IH CD Label Printer

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I'm in a band, so it's really nice to have an inexpensive way of printing CD labels. And I think it looks more professional than paper adhesive labels, because you're printing directly on the disc. How easily the ink scratches off depends on your printing surface; use CDs with a nice matte finish and the ink will adhere well. I was not disappointed with the print quality; 300dpi is reasonable for this device. The ability to use True Type fonts and to preview the image is also nice. And while it has simple wizards for novices, I wasn't disappointed with the advanced layout features, such as front-to-back ordering and position locking. You could even do color graphics if you split an image into RGB separations and rotated the color ink ribbons. And it's great that the disc turns automatically to print on both sides. Overall, I think this is a great solution when you consider the costs of various CD printing options.

I needed a cheaper alternative to getting cds thermal printed through cd duplication houses (they can charge up to $300 per 100 cds). After reviewing the Primera Signature Z1 and TEAC P-11, I came across the Casio, which seemed to have a bit more going for it. From what I've read, it prints at a higher resolution and the thermal "sticks" better to the cd. So based on that, I purchased mine through Amazon and received it yesterday.
Hooking it up was very simple and I was printing cds within 5 minutes of taking it out of the box. Text looks very sharp and clean. Even very small 6-8 point font looked sharp and clear. I rubbed my fingers over it several times to see if it would smudge or come loose, but it was secure and did not smear. I didn't try to scratch at it, so I can't comment on how durable it is to scratching.
Also, another thing I really like about it is that it prints the top and bottom sections of the cd very quickly. It's much faster than an inkject printer. This is a definite bonus if you are printing off a large number of cds at once as long as you don't mind that it can't do as much detail or as many colors as an inkjet printer.
Overall, I'd highly recommend this to anyone who wants a cheap, professional solution for printing cds that look professionally made (or even those of you who are tired of those cheap labels that easily become delaminated).
As a side note: If you're looking for a printer that will do high res graphics or many colors at once on a disc, this is not the printer for you.

I've owned this device for about six months. Out of the box I had it up and running in just a few minutes, no compatability or driver or device location problems, running Win XP, and I'm not any kind of genius with computers. The printing looks very, very nice with the unbranded Taiyo Yudins I prefer. I also like that it can work positioned either horizontally or vertically. So, basically, the CW-100 works as promised and I'm happy with it.

Minus a star, however, because (1) the software interface is not as logical and easy to use as it should be when it comes to selecting font size and laying out your text (2) given that this is a single function device, it's not a great value at the presently prevailing street prices.

I've been looking for a thermal CD/DVD printer for months. There are a couple out there, but they cost big bucks, more than I wanted to spend. I'm so glad I found this Casio! It prints amazing quality in thermal (not inkjet) ink so it doesn't smear or get damaged by moisture easily. It suprised me how fast it prints also. This is a great printer for small print jobs!!

Don't listen to these whiners who complain about not finding CDs it will print on. It is a "thermal" printer and requires CDs that accept thermal printing (although I've found it prints reasonably well on non-thermal surfaces.) TDK, Memorex, HP, and others make these CDs. You just have to do your research and make sure you buy the right product, and you just can't use CDs with a lot of logos and writing on them. Just be reasonable.

I've had the printer for almost six months now and it does a great job.

If you realize that this is pretty much a simple text labeler, you'll be pretty happy with this unit. I've used it for quick black-only labeling of silver surface thermal labeling DVD's with just simple text so far. The text prints in two 0.75" x 2.5" blocks and is sharp and easy to read. I have not tried graphics or color (you have to change cartridges to change colors). I usually burn three to five dvd's of one title at a time. It only takes me a few minutes to type in changes to any one of the label files that I've previously created and print the new label file to the DVD's that I'm going to burn. I appear to be able to print 36 DVD's before I have to change cartridges (six weeks of use). I bought two three-packs of cartridges with the printer, so it will be a while before I run out (I figure I'll have to label 150 or so to get below $1.00 per disc factoring in the cost of the printer itself). There are times when it would be nice to use a ink-jet printer for fancy pictures on my DVD's, but then I'd have to spend a lot more time than I care to in setup and prep. So far, all of my friends and family have been impressed with the simple but clear to read labels I've made.

The printer works well, but first impressions are everything. An imortant message was taped to the top of the printer with a warning message advising that; before using the printer for the first time:
1. Remove the tape holding the front cover and disc tray in place.
2. Remove packing material from inside the printer.

What was missing from the message was "USING THE FOLLOWING STEPS".

The steps needed to accomplish the above were included in small type. The printer must be powered up and connected to the computer before the packing material can be removed. If one forces the printer open then the printer gets a terrible review.

Using the software was worse than trying to remove the packing material. Need I say more...

I initially bought this to create professional-quality CDs for a startup business of mine. However, it cannot handle custom fonts or images/logos, so I scrapped that idea.

If you are looking to use this for a customer-facing business, forget it--it looks a little cheap. Move on, instead, to a professional CD printing service. It's the most cost-effective solution that I found, and the quality is far superior to anything you can do yourself on a shoestring budget. (Just search on google for "CD replication service".)

I instead used this to just label my kids' home movies on DVD. For this application, it is great. Nothing fancy, but the printing is crisp, and it looks much better than using an inkjet printer and slapping on a bulky label that is sure to peel off in a few months.

Also, note that thermal printing is intended only for discs with a very smooth surface, preferably bare. I learned the hard way by trying to use this printer on an inkjet-printable DVD (one that has a rougher surface to capture the ink). Turns out, the printer only left a light shadow of what I intended to print...it's a good way to waste $30 on some DVDs if you just have too much money laying around.

Just a quick review to say that I am happy with its performance. It works as described and it is easy to figure out. Only draw back was that it can only print one color at a time, where I thought I could do multiple colors at once.

Much better than the old Sharpie, but the Casio CW-100 suffers from poor (non-intuitive) software and ribbon refills that cannot be found except online. It would be great if my local Office Depot or OfficeMax carried the ribbons, but nope--nada. Even the people at Staples that I have been to while traveling look at me like I'm insane. Otherwise, the quality of the printing on the CD-ROM is good, and the software gives you lots of choices with regard to layout and typefaces. However, the way the software orients the disk to write above or below the spindle hole is confusing and most people will give up in frustration.