A laminating machine counts among the key machines and appliances that make up an office’s inventory. It is also used in schools and households, albeit smaller in size and less complicated in use. Scroll below for a round-up of the top models, perfect for any budget and use.
A laminating machine is essential for preserving and safeguarding various small documents and paperwork like ID card, badge IDs, important documents, certificates and even validating xeroxes and document copies. Whether at home or school for kids projects or at the office for heavy-duty use, there’s no doubting the usefulness of such an appliance.
There are 2 main types of laminating machines, based on the type of physical parts present. A laminator can have a roller mechanism or use the pouch system, where the object to be laminated, has to be placed in a pouch for the laminating process to take place. The best laminating machine for home use is usually the pouch type as these are meant for less or moderate use and less complex to maneuver.
For office use, which is usually heavy-duty, the roller mechanism is preferred. The roller type are capable of larger or wider document lamination as compared to pouch and can handle a larger load. The paper size or width that can be laminated, as well as allowed document thickness are 2 key factors to look for in a laminating machine. A reverse mode is a error or damage proof mechanism which allows you to disengage stuck pouches or documents and prevent damage. This mode is also useful in cleaning the machine, when needed. In this article, the 10 best laminating machines are listed, with a brief description of their features.
Top 10 Laminating Machines:
♦ Xyron eZLaminator Laminating Machine
Machine Dimensions (Inches): 16 x 10 x 8.2
Area of Use: Home use
Document Size Accepted: 9 inches
Extra Features:
- Manual operation through hand crank
- Laminating ink is refillable through cartridge
- Cold seal allows photographs lamination
Price: $80
♦ Banner American Pouch Laminator – PL135-4
Machine Dimensions (Inches): 21 x 7 x 4
Area of Use: School and home
Document Size Accepted: 12×18 inches
Extra Features:
- Both hot and cold lamination allowed
- 5 minute warm up
- Capable of laminating through 250 microns thick pouch
Price: $280
♦ Banner American Easy-Lam II Roll Laminator
Machine Dimensions (Inches): NA
Area of Use: School
Document Size Accepted: Up to 27 inches wide
Extra Features:
- Adjustable heat, temperature and feed table
- Safety shield and bottom idler attached
- Reverse switch feature
Price: $1230
♦ Banner American Heavy Duty Pouch Laminator – PL12
Machine Type: Pouch
Machine Dimensions (Inches): 19 x 8.5 x 4.8
Area of Use: Office
Document Size Accepted: Up to 12 inches
Extra Features:
- Machine ready for use in 4 minutes
- Heavy duty use
- Adjustable temperature rate and thermometer display
- Hot and cold laminating possible
- Separate “Heat” and “Run” controls
Price: $300
♦ Fellowes Saturn 125 Laminator
Machine Dimensions (Inches): 3.6 x 21 x 8
Area of Use: Office
Document Size Accepted: Up to 12 inches wide
Extra Features:
- Start up time of 5 minutes
- Hot lamination ability will laminate up to 3 – 5 microns thick pouch
- HeatGuard® – heat is kept within the machine, it is always cool to touch
- If a pouch gets jammed, use release lever to remove it easily
- Portable with built-in handle and cord storage part
Price: $230
♦ Fellowes EXL 45-3 Laminator
Machine Dimensions (Inches): 3 x 10 x 6
Area of Use: Home
Document Size Accepted: Up to 4½ inches wide
Extra Features:
- Hot lamination machine
- Warm up time of 4 minutes
- Auto shut-off feature cuts off heat when machine not in use
- Ideal for quick, small document lamination in 1 minute
- Will laminate objects up to 5 microns thick
Price: $85
♦ Fellowes Venus 125 Laminator
Machine Dimensions (Inches): 4.8 x 21.8 x 9.6
Area of Use: Heavy-duty office use
Document Size Accepted: Up to 12½ inches wide documents
Extra Features:
- Hot and cold laminating ability with 5 adjustable temperature settings
- Machine ready for laminating in 4 minutes
- Will laminate documents up to 10 microns thickness
- Easy maintenance and cleaning – remove the top or certain parts to clean
- Efficient functioning – Double internal walls for heat, HeatGuard Technology™, auto off when not in use
- Reverse mode facility
Price: $450
♦ GBC HeatSeal® QuickStart H320 Pouch Laminator
Machine Dimensions (Inches): 7 x 23 x 8
Area of Use: Home and office
Document Size Accepted: Up to 12½ wide documents
Extra Features:
- Hot laminating feature
- Warm up time of 1 minute
- Machine will auto-turn off after 30 minutes of no use
- Extra fast laminating speed – 18 inch feet per minute
- Easy and quick user interface through touch buttons
- No jams with JamFree spec
- Mistakenly fed documents can be retrieved with QuickRelease spec
Price: $240
♦ GBC HeatSeal H700PRO Pouch Laminator
Machine Dimensions (Inches): 18 x 31 x 12
Area of Use: Office
Document Size Accepted: Up to 18 inches wide
Extra Features:
- Will laminate documents up to 10 microns thick
- Hot laminating ability
- Efficient heat management with auto-turn off feature and cooling fan
- Easy control system with LCD screen
- Reverse motor function for dealing with jams
Price: $2440
♦ Scotch™ Thermal Laminator TL-901
Machine Dimensions (Inches): NA
Area of Use: Home
Document Size Accepted: Up to 9 inches wide
Extra Features:
- 2 heat settings present
- No fear of jams – use lever to eject document
- Will laminate documents up to 5 microns thick
- Can be used with photos
- Two 9.4 inch pouches included free of charge
Price: $30 (approx)
It is clear from the above listed laminating machines, that price is a variable factor when it comes to choosing such a machine. Small in size pouch models are usually cheaper than their roller counterparts. The more the allowed paper width, the more the price. So in your search for the ideal laminating machine for your home or office, keep it simple – choose a simple machine, easy to operate with the specs that are useful for you.