What is IPM (Image per Minute)?

What is IPM (Image per Minute)?

Image per Minute (IPM) is a way of measuring the speed of a printer. An IPM rate indicates the number of single-sided 8.5" x 11" sheets, a printer can complete in one minute. An IPM rate is more to graphics files, whereas a PPM rate is for more to text-only files.

Things you should know before you buy a printer.

Apparently IPM is used in the new ISO print and copy measurement standards which applicable to inkjet printers launched 2009 onwards. For printing, they have used a set of famous office document application, such as Word, Excel and Pdf (4 pages/set) to do the printing speed test (by measuring the printing time for each set). Let’s have a look on how the ISO applied in printing and copying speed for printer.
Description:
FSOT - Average print speed (Default mode) from first set.
ESAT - Average print speed (Default mode) from second set.
*Tested on 4 pages per set, One set per each application: Word, Excel, Pdf.


Subtle Shift Underway for Printer Specs

What? Printers aren't the sexiest, most dazzling tech topic ever?

Well listen up, because a tiny snippet of the fine print on those printer spec sheets is potentially set to change the devices, and the way you shop for them, in a serious way.

The change revolves around that age-old term "Pages per Minute (PPM)", used to describe how quickly a printer can spit pages out. For example: My laser printer is officially specified by the manufacturer at being able to print 24 pages per minute, but in the real world it doesn't even come close to that. Maybe it can do 12 or 14 ppm, max.

So why does the company say 24 ppm? Because there's no official standard for measuring pages per minute from printers. Manufacturers can print at lower resolution, can print pages with just a bare smattering of text on them, and can otherwise skew the tests to favor good results.

And of course, they do, because PPM is one of the first thing any buyer looks at when purchasing a printer (it's one of the few quantitative measurements the industry can offer), so manufacturers do whatever they can to pump that number up as high as possible.

Now an alternative is in the works, it's called "Images per Minute (IPM)", and it calls for a standardized test pattern to be used in lieu of the old "print whatever you want" system that was the hallmark of the "pages per minute" measurement.

Will IPM catch on? So far no major manufacturer has switched its ratings from PPM to IPM across the board.


IPM vs PPM

Here's a simple calculation which compare between IPM vs PPM.
1 IPM = 3 PPM
IPM synonym to Normal Mode Print
PPM synonym to Fast Draft Mode Print

Comparing IPM to PPM is like an apple to an orange, the figures above shows an estimated numbers for shoppers to compare between brands & models.

Courtesy : https://www.facebook.com/notes/atoz2ucom/what-is-ipm-image-per-minute/219999149766/