The P-Touch 1230 was always a great printer for printing on 3.5mm to 12mm TZe tapes directly from your computer using the P-Touch Editor software. With its versatility of using either batteries or a mains power adaptor it's great for use both in the office and on the move. The software allows you to create labels and use your computer's massive selection of fonts that you wouldn't be able to accomplish with a hand-held unit. The P-Touch 2430 is the big brother to the 1230, which has 18mm and 24mm tape compatibility. Both the 1230 and 2430 have since been discontinued but the 1230 isn't being replaced. The 2430 however has been replaced with something miles better. There are now two options.
PT-P700
It has many of the same features as its predecessor such as 3.5mm to 24mm TZe tape compatibility, running on six AA batteries or the included power adaptor, and USB connectivity to a Windows or Mac computer. It also has a fully automatic cutter and now prints three times faster at up to 30mm per second. It also has a 180 DPI print resolution which is more than enough for several lines of text.
One thing that is new for the printer is the P-Touch Editor Lite edition*. When you first connect the printer, you can press the Litebutton on the top of the machine which will run a smaller version of the software directly on the computer without the need for installing it**. It is missing a lot of features but if all you need to do it quickly print some text then it's easily done. The Lite version also has a restriction on the maximum length on a label you can print.
PT-P750W
If you're looking for something with a wireless option then you should look no further than the PT-P750W. It's almost exactly the same as the PT-P700 but has NFC (for your phone), WiFi and the cutter also has a part-cut function. It'll print from an Android, iOS, Mac and Windows device through WiFi. If your computer doesn't have WiFi but is still connected to a wired network that has a wireless access point then that will work too. The Lite editor will only work on Windows through USB. Only phones equipped with NFC will be able to take advantage of this feature but it doesn't mean you can't use the WiFi. With the editing app open on your phone, simply place the NFC enabled phone on top of the printer to connect instantly. The part cut option is perfect for printing lots of labels such as from a database. Using the chain print option it will print every label with only one bit of wastage at the start. The part cut will cut through the label but not the backing paper, producing one long tape with individual labels ready to peel off and stick.
Personally, it's the part cut feature that's the seller for me. The wireless and NFC are a nice extra, but cutting down on waste and time by having the printer do all the cutting automatically is very sensible. Out of all the mobile phones I've owned so far, (I'm young, I've been through a few) only one had NFC capabilities. More phones are getting this feature as a way to pay in shops and restaurants with your phone. I can see the appeal of convenience. * Windows only. ** Drivers to run the printer will be installed automatically through Windows Update.