The Zebra ZXP1 is a reskin of the popular P100 printer with some nice added improvements, including up to 15% faster print speeds and mobile printer support.
The P100 series was a good value class line for Zebra and I am happy to see it is still “in production” so to speak.
A Compact Contender for Small Office Single-Side Printing
The ZXP1 is well-suited for use in a small office with single-sided printing needs. However, if you did want some static information on the back of your cards, you could preprint them with a monochrome ribbon. To me, this maximizes the ZXP1’s potential.
From a technical perspective, I am puzzled why Zebra didn’t offer dual-sided printing as an option here. The flip mechanism is already in the unit – making the option easy to enable. In my opinion, this would have given the ZXP1 a bigger boost in this class of printers.
In general, if you need to print about 10-15 plastic cards a day – and don’t need smart card encoding – the ZXP1 is a compact contender.
Large Input Hopper with Nice Print Speeds & Card Quality
The ZXP1 printer offers a 100 card input hopper and a 50 card output hopper. Even in a printer that is designed for low volume, I do appreciate that it will hold 100 cards.
In terms of print speed and quality, the ZXP 1 is right there with the rest of the pack. Printing color at 30 seconds per card and monocolor at 7 seconds per card, its print speeds are noteworthy. The ZXP1 also offers 300 dpi print quality and good card coverage.
In addition, Zebra also adds a 2-year warranty and the first year includes a hotswap loaner.
Mobile Printer Support via NFC
One thing Zebra added to its redesigned printer line is a new near-field communication (NFC) chip. Using your NFC-enabled smartphone or tablet device, you can automatically load up a handy little mobile web page.
The page gives you links to a number of Zebra web pages/resources that – unfortunately – don’t appear to be formatted for your smartphone, making it somewhat cumbersome.
One link that seems to work fairly well is to the videos. 
The video link takes you to a page similar to the one shown here – and most of the videos will load in your native video player, so that’s helpful.
A Higher Price Point But Better Coverage & Card Hopper
The price point on ZXP1 sits roughly 10 percent higher than others in the entry level class:
- Magicard Pronto – cards or ribbon are not included
- Evolis Badgy – cards and a ribbon included
- Zebra ZXP1 – Color Media pack, which includes a pack of cards and a color ribbon, is an additional $39
Note: While the ZXP1 MSRP is high, as Zebra Premier partners IDCardGroup.com can offer it at a significantly reduced rate – placing it in a similar price bracket as the Pronto and Badgy.
Despite the price disadvantage, the ZXP1 does win out in a few other areas. Its card coverage wins out over the Evolis Badgy. And the ZXP1’s card hopper wins out over Magicard’s single feed design.
Have More Questions about the ZXP1 Printer?
We’re here to help – call us at (877) 868-0012, email us at [email protected], or check out these helpful resources:
The ID Card Group Advantage
As a Zebra Premier Partner, ID Card Group can offer all Zebra card printers and genuine Zebra Color Ribbons and Monochrome Ribbons, Zebra PVC Cards, and Zebra Cleaning Supplies & Kits with the full technical support team at Zebra standing behind us – and we are able to do this at the lowest possible cost to you.
If you need additional help choosing the best ID card printer or supplies for your organization’s needs, call our ID experts at 877-868-0012 or [email protected]. We’ll make it easy for you!
ID Card Group offers a price match guarantee, provides free shipping on orders over $100, and accepts purchase orders.
