The ZM600 is a Zebra 6-inch industrial printer that takes labels up to 178 mm wide. It prints 168 mm wide with the 203 dpi printhead, and a 300 dpi printhead could also be chosen. The 600 dpi printhead, liner take-up, and gray ribbon spindle available on the 4-inch ZM400 cannot be chosen on the ZM600.
ZM600 and ZM400 specifications compared
| Item | ZM600 | ZM400 |
|---|---|---|
| Resolution | 203, 300 dpi | 203, 300, 600 dpi |
| Max print width (203 dpi) | 168 mm | 104 mm |
| Label width (tear-off, cutter) | 51-178 mm | 25.4-114 mm |
| Label width (peel, rewind max) | 171 mm | 108 mm |
| Ribbon width | 51-174 mm | 51-110 mm |
| Printhead pressure dial | 7 levels | 4 levels |
| Width and weight | 341 mm, 16 kg | 278 mm, 15 kg |
The 338 mm height and 475 mm depth are the same on both models, so placing a ZM600 on a bench that held a ZM400 adds only 63 mm of width. Narrow labels under 51 mm wide do not fit the ZM600.
Speed ranges of the 203 dpi and 300 dpi printheads
The 203 dpi printhead is set to a single 61 mm/s step or in 25 mm/s increments from 76 to 254 mm/s, and prints continuously up to 2,590 mm at a time. The 300 dpi printhead tops out at 203 mm/s, and its continuous print length drops to 1,143 mm.
At the same 203 dpi, the ZM400's continuous print length is 3,988 mm. When moving long continuous-media formats from a ZM400 to a ZM600, first check that they fit within 2,590 mm.
The 300 dpi ZM600 accepts ZPL II formats only. Firmware that interprets EPL II and APL-I and APL-D commands is on 203 dpi models only.
7-level printhead pressure dial settings
| Label width | Inner | Outer |
|---|---|---|
| 2 in | 6 | 1 |
| 3 in | 6 | 2 |
| 4 in | 7 | 3 |
| 5 in | 7 | 4 |
| 5.5 in or more | 6 | 6 |
If the whole print comes out faint on thick media, raise both dials one level together. If the media drifts to the right during printing, raise the inner dial or lower the outer one.
Cutter and delayed cut mode
With the cutter option installed, it cuts labels 25.4 mm or longer one at a time. Tear-off, peel, and rewind modes accept labels from 13 mm.
In delayed cut mode, it stops after printing a label and cuts only when the host sends the ZPL command ~JK. Normal cutter mode cuts immediately after each label is printed.
ZM600 discontinuation schedule and the successor ZT421
The ZM600 discontinuation date is September 30, 2014, and December 31, 2014 for the Asia-Pacific region. Zebra's end of service and support date, December 30, 2019 (Asia-Pacific March 31, 2020), has also passed.
The successor model designated by Zebra is the ZT421. Its 168 mm print width, 51-178 mm label width, 51-174 mm ribbon width, and 2,590 mm continuous print length at 203 dpi are the same as the ZM600.
The ZT421's top speed at 203 dpi is 305 mm/s, 51 mm per second faster than the ZM600. The ZT421 also has no 600 dpi printhead, so at 6-inch width, 300 dpi is the highest resolution in both generations.
Windows drivers for the ZM600 are available from the ZM600 downloads.
