Mirificam Press

Getting Stuff Printed Online: 4 Resources I've Actually Used

March 5th, 2008 in Product Reviews

by: Matthew Griffin

As much as we hate to admit it, web designers still have to get stuff printed from time to time. We can't do without our business cards and bumper stickers, our t-shirts and table tents. But when we're forced to go groveling to the printing industry, we can at least make sure we use an automated online printer. That's still stickin' it to the man a little bit, right? I've used a handful of these online printers over the past few years and I think my experiences could be a great benefit to a web designer looking for a place to print. So here they are—four online printing resources I've actually used.

The best way to describe PrintPlace is cheap and reliable. I've ordered several sets of business cards, postcards, and brochures from them and every order has met or exceeded my expectations. They have a wide range of products and a quick quote system that's very handy. PrintPlace typically takes a little longer to fulfill orders than their competitor 48hourprint.com but they do offer expedited printing and shipping for an additional charge. Also, they don't support as many file formats as 48hourprint and their ordering system can be a little frustrating at times. Other than that, they're golden.
 

When you want printing done quickly and you're willing to pay a little more, 48hourprint is the way to go. Keep in mind that when I say "pay a little more" I only mean relative to PrintPlace.com. 48hourprint's prices are awesome compared to most local printers you'll run into. Their quote and ordering system is smooth and they support most major image formats. Also, their turnaround time is incredible. Artwork literally goes to press within 48 hours of proof approval. I usually see a final product at my doorstep in a little less than a week. It's truly amazing. As I mentioned, though, their prices are a little higher than PrintPlace and their product selection isn't quite as illustrative. But overall, 48hourprint is awesome.
 

I have to start this review by giving Cafepress credit for being a pioneer and an innovator in the area of personal online t-shirt design. They were doing it when it wasn't cool. Unfortunately, I've never been really happy with their printing. White t-shirts look okay but the dark t-shirts are low quality. They don't look that good when you first get them, and after one wash—forget about it. Their other product—stickers, mugs, mousepads, etc.—are pretty good but not great. The biggest plus for Cafepress is their personal shop system. You can build your own t-shirt shop really fast and apply your own custom template to it. But without quality merchandise to back it up, I'm going to have to recommend that you steer clear of Cafepress.
 

Zazzle has been around almost as long as Cafepress, but for some reason, I didn't get around to using them until recently. I ordered a couple of black t-shirts imprinted with some pretty detailed artwork. I was impressed by their interactive t-shirt design program but I was a little skeptical about the quality of the product after my less-than-satisfying experiences with Cafepress. When the package came, I was stunned. The shirts looked like they were produced by a real screen-printer. The ink was thick and bright and the colors were flawless. After I washed the shirts a few times, they still looked brand new (am I gushing?). Needless to say, if you want quality t-shirt printing, go to Zazzle. I just wish they had a t-shirt shop program more like Cafepress.

Post Your Comment

Comments are closed.