Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: DPI... eh?

  1. #1
    Funking Prink! Raz316's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2003
    Location
    Deal, Kent, UK
    Posts
    2,978
    Thanks
    130
    Thanked
    62 times in 52 posts

    DPI... eh?

    Really not that important, but I've always wondered... what does dpi (dots per inch) actually mean? I ask because...

    We were sent some images with a res of 1277 x 960 and the image properties stated the dpi was 96. Now a company that does printing for us states all images need to be 300dpi. We go back to the original senders and say we need the images at 300dpi, 96 is not enough.

    So they've just sent back the images again, they are still 1277 x 960 but now the properties state 300dpi. That's not right is it? I know dpi relates to printing and pixels relate to viewing on screen, but clearly there is no notable improvement in quality, so why is 300dpi required?

    Im confuzzled...

  2. #2
    Anthropomorphic Personification shaithis's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    The Last Aerie
    Posts
    10,857
    Thanks
    645
    Thanked
    872 times in 736 posts
    • shaithis's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asus P8Z77 WS
      • CPU:
      • i7 3770k @ 4.5GHz
      • Memory:
      • 32GB HyperX 1866
      • Storage:
      • Lots!
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Sapphire Fury X
      • PSU:
      • Corsair HX850
      • Case:
      • Corsair 600T (White)
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 10 x64
      • Monitor(s):
      • 2 x Dell 3007
      • Internet:
      • Zen 80Mb Fibre

    Re: DPI... eh?

    Because a dot has no dimension.....depending on what you are viewing it on, the size will change.

    The image at 96dpi will print out a lot larger then the 300dpi image.
    Main PC: Asus Rampage IV Extreme / 3960X@4.5GHz / Antec H1200 Pro / 32GB DDR3-1866 Quad Channel / Sapphire Fury X / Areca 1680 / 850W EVGA SuperNOVA Gold 2 / Corsair 600T / 2x Dell 3007 / 4 x 250GB SSD + 2 x 80GB SSD / 4 x 1TB HDD (RAID 10) / Windows 10 Pro, Yosemite & Ubuntu
    HTPC: AsRock Z77 Pro 4 / 3770K@4.2GHz / 24GB / GTX 1080 / SST-LC20 / Antec TP-550 / Hisense 65k5510 4K TV / HTC Vive / 2 x 240GB SSD + 12TB HDD Space / Race Seat / Logitech G29 / Win 10 Pro
    HTPC2: Asus AM1I-A / 5150 / 4GB / Corsair Force 3 240GB / Silverstone SST-ML05B + ST30SF / Samsung UE60H6200 TV / Windows 10 Pro
    Spare/Loaner: Gigabyte EX58-UD5 / i950 / 12GB / HD7870 / Corsair 300R / Silverpower 700W modular
    NAS 1: HP N40L / 12GB ECC RAM / 2 x 3TB Arrays || NAS 2: Dell PowerEdge T110 II / 24GB ECC RAM / 2 x 3TB Hybrid arrays || Network:Buffalo WZR-1166DHP w/DD-WRT + HP ProCurve 1800-24G
    Laptop: Dell Precision 5510 Printer: HP CP1515n || Phone: Huawei P30 || Other: Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 Pro 10.1 CM14 / Playstation 4 + G29 + 2TB Hybrid drive

  3. #3
    Not a good person scaryjim's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Gateshead
    Posts
    15,196
    Thanks
    1,230
    Thanked
    2,291 times in 1,874 posts
    • scaryjim's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Dell Inspiron
      • CPU:
      • Core i5 8250U
      • Memory:
      • 2x 4GB DDR4 2666
      • Storage:
      • 128GB M.2 SSD + 1TB HDD
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Radeon R5 230
      • PSU:
      • Battery/Dell brick
      • Case:
      • Dell Inspiron 5570
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 10
      • Monitor(s):
      • 15" 1080p laptop panel

    Re: DPI... eh?

    Or, perhaps more relevantly, an image at 300dpi will print much *smaller* than one at 96dpi!

    so, your 1277 x 960 image will print at 13.3" x 10" at 96dpi, but the print will appear grainy and blurred. At 300dpi it will print much smaller - at 4.4" x 3.2", but the print quality will be much sharper and clearer. So whether they've sent you a suitable image depends entirely on what size it's meant to be printing at...

    A TFT monitor (well, my 17" one, anyway) has a screen density of ~ 96 pixels per inch, which means a 96dpi image will appear approx full size on my monitor, and is the reason many graphics programs have a default print resolution of 96dpi

  4. #4
    Does he need a reason? Funkstar's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Aberdeen
    Posts
    19,874
    Thanks
    630
    Thanked
    965 times in 816 posts
    • Funkstar's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Gigabyte EG45M-DS2H
      • CPU:
      • Intel Core2Quad Q9550 (2.83GHz)
      • Memory:
      • 8GB OCZ PC2-6400C5 800MHz Quad Channel
      • Storage:
      • 650GB Western Digital Caviar Blue
      • Graphics card(s):
      • 512MB ATI Radeon HD4550
      • PSU:
      • Antec 350W 80+ Efficient PSU
      • Case:
      • Antec NSK1480 Slim Mini Desktop Case
      • Operating System:
      • Vista Ultimate 64bit
      • Monitor(s):
      • Dell 2407 + 2408 monitors
      • Internet:
      • Zen 8mb

    Re: DPI... eh?

    Quote Originally Posted by Raz316 View Post
    Im confuzzled...
    I'm not surprised. It is complicated, and something the deisgners I worked with years back couldn't get their head around. Despite preping for output supposedly being part of their qualification from uni/collage and being their job, I ended up doing a lot of it.

    pixels are pixels, but DPI is more an interpretation of those pixels. Not something you have to worry about in a domestic setting, but when it comes to big print machines, I makes a huge difference.

  5. #5
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    West Sussex
    Posts
    1,616
    Thanks
    165
    Thanked
    227 times in 208 posts
    • kompukare's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asus P8Z77-V LX
      • CPU:
      • Intel i5-3570K
      • Memory:
      • 4 x 8GB DDR3
      • Storage:
      • Samsung 850 EVo 500GB | Corsair MP510 960GB | 2 x WD 4TB spinners
      • Graphics card(s):
      • Sappihre R7 260X 1GB (sic)
      • PSU:
      • Antec 650 Gold TruePower (Seasonic)
      • Case:
      • Aerocool DS 200 (silenced, 53.6 litres)l)
      • Operating System:
      • Windows 10-64
      • Monitor(s):
      • 2 x ViewSonic 27" 1440p

    Re: DPI... eh?

    Actually, the idea behind DPI settings for bitmaps is so that programs (and printers - in both the sense of a device which prints and somebody do prints stuff for other people) can know which size to print something.

    So for example a 600x600 picture would print out at 2" square if set to 300DPI and 6" square if set to 100DPI.

    Of course, since these are bitmaps the quality and level of detail would be far better printed at 300DPI - in other words with a bitmap (compared to a vector drawing) you can't simply magnify to whatever size you want!

    The OPs 1277x960 example picture would generate a print of 338x254mm (larger than A4) at 96DPI whereas at 300DPI it would only measure 108x81mm.

    I would have thought that with most printer-ready artwork getting ‘printed’ to PDF these days that the DPI settings are less relevant.

  6. #6
    Funking Prink! Raz316's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2003
    Location
    Deal, Kent, UK
    Posts
    2,978
    Thanks
    130
    Thanked
    62 times in 52 posts

    Re: DPI... eh?

    Thanks everyone

    the bit I didn't get though was the fact, as far as I am concerned I am sending the same image. I don't get why the designer/printer couldn't just resize it or whatever they do to fill the space that is required. (I think width wise the image needs to cover 10" when printed, so for all detail to be relevant, the image should be at least 3000 pixels wide, yeah?)

  7. #7
    Does he need a reason? Funkstar's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Aberdeen
    Posts
    19,874
    Thanks
    630
    Thanked
    965 times in 816 posts
    • Funkstar's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Gigabyte EG45M-DS2H
      • CPU:
      • Intel Core2Quad Q9550 (2.83GHz)
      • Memory:
      • 8GB OCZ PC2-6400C5 800MHz Quad Channel
      • Storage:
      • 650GB Western Digital Caviar Blue
      • Graphics card(s):
      • 512MB ATI Radeon HD4550
      • PSU:
      • Antec 350W 80+ Efficient PSU
      • Case:
      • Antec NSK1480 Slim Mini Desktop Case
      • Operating System:
      • Vista Ultimate 64bit
      • Monitor(s):
      • Dell 2407 + 2408 monitors
      • Internet:
      • Zen 8mb

    Re: DPI... eh?

    Yup that sounds right.

    Commercial printers will usually err on the side of causion and not leave anything to chance, basically just printing what you send them, they don't mess with your files or data. So the ownus is on you get it right.

    Also remember that many of their systems, even if they are "state of the art" as far as print houses are concerned, are a bit on the atiquated side as far as computers and technology is concerned. They also often use horrible software. Quark Express anyone? (makes me shiver just thinking about it). The only app i've ever seen that can't "save as", so if you loose your network connection before you save, you loose your changes. No way to save it somewhere else first. Crazy.

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads

  1. Cyber Snipa Stinger Gaming Mouse
    By shadowmaster in forum Reader Reviews
    Replies: 8
    Last Post: 20-02-2010, 10:22 PM
  2. Flatbed scanner recommendation
    By cotswoldcs in forum Consumer Electronics
    Replies: 8
    Last Post: 20-01-2008, 01:21 PM
  3. Dell 725 Printer, 4800x1200 Dpi - up to 14ppm - £31.70 delivered!
    By MD in forum Retail Therapy and Bargains
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 28-03-2007, 10:02 PM
  4. What DPI is the intellimouse optical 1.1?
    By Oobie- in forum PC Hardware and Components
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 27-01-2007, 02:55 PM
  5. DPI & icons
    By hoodmeister in forum Help! Quick Relief From Tech Headaches
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 01-10-2005, 02:33 PM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •