FAQs - Datacard Printers

The installed Driver version is displayed on the .exe file being run; e.g. XPSCardPrinter_V2.1.242.0. The current version of the driver is V2.1.242.0.
To establish the Firmware version installed use the LCD display:
USER BUTTON > ENTER > STATUS > FW REVISION The latest Firmware version is D2.11.44.0. We do not recommend using anything lower than the above revisions. For the latest Drivers please download from the following link http://www.datacard.com/support-and-drivers

1. Check that the USB port isn't faulty by plugging another item in to see if the PC recognises it. 
2. Ensure the USB cable isn't faulty by trying another cable for printer connection. 
3. Ensure the printer is plugged in and powered on.
4. If none of the above simple steps resolve the issue it usually means the printer has been plugged in without the driver being run first.
5. To solve this go into Device Manager and remove the device by clicking on ‘XPS card printer’ under ‘Network adapters’ and select uninstall. Note the printer must be plugged in at this time. Once you have uninstalled the device, unplug the printer and run the Driver installation. Upon successful Driver installation reconnect the printer.

Ensure that the printer is configured correctly for the network it is being placed on. You will need to decide whether it is going to be installed using DHCP or Static IP. Choosing between the two is done within the printers LCD: USER BUTTON > ENTER > CONFIGURATION > DCHP / STATIC IP

You will need to access the ‘Printer Manager’
USB - Establish what the ‘USB IP Address’ is. On the LCD go to:
USER BUTTON > ENTER > STATUS > USB IP ADDRESS
Once you have the USB IP Address simply open up a web browser (e.g. Internet Explorer etc) and type the address into the address bar; e.g. http://250.50.10.1
Ethernet - Establish what the ‘IP Address’ is. On the LCD go to: USER BUTTON > ENTER > STATUS > NETWORK STATUS > IP ADDRESS Once you have The IP Address simply open up a web browser (e.g. Internet Explorer etc) and type the address into the address bar; e.g. http://192.168.8.121

Once in here go to:
PRINTER SETTING > COMMUNICATION

The error codes are due to ribbon issues. First check that the RFID tag on the ribbon hasn’t been removed. If it has been removed you will get one of the error messages above and the ribbon will essentially be unusable. The same will apply if it has been placed back on again. Note: The ribbon’s cap has a sensor inside that communicates with the printer. The cap must not be removed.

Simply hold down the USER BUTTON until the printer clears the error message. Then try printing a card.

Ensure you have the latest firmware version D2.11.44.0. This is advertised as increasing the quality of monochrome printer but is also known to increase the quality of full colour prints.

Try increasing the YMC power in the Printer Manager. To increase the YMC Power / Power calibration go into the Printer Manager and go to: PRINTER SETTINGS > PRINT > YMC POWER/YMC POWER CALIBRATION If this doesn’t solve the problem we suggest that the printer is returned to manufacturer for investigation.

If you have cleaned your printers using a cleaning kit and you still have a white line going down the card it generally indicates a faulty print head. If you contact the printer’s service support company with the serial number of the printer they will raise an RMA for the unit to be returned to them for replacement and servicing. Note: there will be a charge for this.

This is common if you haven’t cleaned the printer in a while. The plastic cards are statically charged and this causes them to attract dust which then gets transferred to the printer. Simply clean the printer with a cleaning card.

This may mean that the cards have an overlay on them making them unsuitable for dye sublimation printing, or the card has already been through the printer and has feint pre-printing on them.

This could be down to the printing of dark colours or the printing of full colour cards which causes the print head to become very hot and thus the ribbon will start sticking to the cards. This can usually be rectified by going into the Printer Manager and reducing the YMC power in intervals of around 10 until it stops happening. However never reduce the YMC power to below -30 as this would normally indicate that there is something mechanically wrong with the printer.

If the customer has upgraded their SP Series printer firmware through the Datacard Go Green Upgrade program, the same ribbon part numbers can be used for SD and SP printers.

The shelf life is approximately 18 months with a warranty period of 12 months.

The Datacard® SD360 ™ card printer is a duplex printer and it replaces the SP55 Plus card printer. The Datacard® SD260 ™ card printer is a simplex printer, and it replaces the SP35 Plus card printer.

The manual feed option is a hopper-less design. Users can print one card at a time. The Datacard SD260 and SD360 card printers also have an exception card capability so users with a 100‐card hopper model can insert a card that will “bypass” the cards loaded in the input hopper.

Life expectancy is influenced by a number of factors, including proper maintenance; the number of cards produced annually, the operating environment, etc. Generally, we expect the life of the SD Series card printer to be approximately 5 years.

No, there is no difference in speed.

The SD Series direct ‐to‐card printing is extremely high‐quality printing, and the edge‐to‐edge printing performance is excellent. Retransfer printing also produces high‐quality printing with the advantage that the printing goes completely over the edge of the card, and also does a better job of printing on uneven card surfaces. A disadvantage of retransfer printing over the direct‐to‐card printing is that there is an additional expense associated with the retransfer ribbon. As far as the colour comparison, both printers produce brilliant, beautiful colour printing, however, some customers prefer the images produced by retransfer printing technology. It is really a matter of personal preference.

For customers using a USB connection, they would enter the USB IP address into the browser to access the print manager. The USB IP address can be looked up by using the LCD display.

Yes, magnetic stripe can be upgraded in the field by a Datacard authorized service representative.

• Dual contact/contactless reader for MIFARE/DESFire, ISO7816, ISO14443, A/B
• iCLASS by HID read/write reader
• iCLASS by HID read only reader
• HID PC Prox read only reader

The SD260 comes in two body styles: short and long. The short body style cannot be upgraded for smart card due to its compact size. The long-body style simplex printer, the SD260L, can be upgraded in the future for smart card.

It is not necessary to have access to the internet or a network in order to use the print manager. The browser acts as a viewer and is not dependent on the internet service provider.

If the network is down, the customer has the option to access the Print Manager by using the USB connection.

Yes, the printer driver supports printing on Windows 7 operating systems, both 32‐ and 64‐bit.

The Datacard SD Series card printer driver works on Microsoft® operating systems. Once the Datacard Printer Command Language documentation is available (coming in a future release), it will be possible for customers to create their own printer interface. This interface could allow customers to control the SD Series card printers on a MAC operating system. Datacard also provides support for custom interfaces through our Custom Solutions group.

It is not necessary to be using ID Works in order to take advantage of this feature. The separation is managed by the printer driver.

Either ID Works or ID Center software can be used with the SD printers. If you are using ID Center with an SD printer, it may be necessary to manually select the printer plug‐in when the software is installed. When using ID Works with an SD printer, this selection is made automatically. Note: for all printers purchased through The Smart Card Store we recommend and support E-Media software.

The licensing is accomplished through the EULA, and there is no USB dongle.