GBC HeatSeal H110 Pouch Laminator Review

!±8± GBC HeatSeal H110 Pouch Laminator Review

Overview:
The GBC H110 pouch laminator is the new replacement model for the tried and true GBC H100 pouch laminator. The H110 is a 4.5 inch pouch laminating machine that is designed for laminating small documents such as name badges, photos, ID's, luggage tags and business cards. It is designed for the small office, home office user who laminates small numbers of documents but is looking for an easy to use photo quality laminator that won't take up much space.

Strengths / Features:
The New Heatseal H110 laminator now has the ability to accept either 5mil or 7mil laminating pouches. The old H100 only had the ability to use 3mil and 5mil pouches and since 3mil pouches aren't available in small sizes, this limited it to only laminating documents with 5mil pouches. This new machine can now handle 7mil pouches. However, GBC doesn't currently make 7mil laminating pouches so you will need to buy a generic brand if you want to use 7mil laminating pouches. The Heatseal H110 is extremely simple to operate. You have two choices for this machine: Hot or Cold. It laminates at a fixed speed of 13" per minute and there are really no settings or adjustments to mess with. It doesn't even require a carrier for your laminating pouches (we will discuss this more in a minute). The H110 comes with a one year warranty from GBC who is one of the best manufacturers in the industry to deal with. They will generally just replace the H110 if it fails within one year and won't hassle you in the process.

Weaknesses / Limitations:
The H110 specifically states on the box and on the machine that you should NOT use a carrier when laminating documents using this machine. This is definitely concerning. Over time there is a good chance that laminating adhesive will begin to build up on the rollers and eventually you may wrap a pouch around the rollers of this machine which would ruin it. For light volume use this won't realistically happen. However, if it does happen the laminator will be ruined and will need to be replaced. The H110 does not come with a jam release lever or a reverse feature. This means that if a laminating pouch does get stuck in the machine that it may be essentially impossible to remove it (without major surgery). This is something to keep in mind. The H110 does not have adjustments for heat and speed. Depending on the items that you are laminating this could be a problem. Thicker items may not receive enough heat to fully laminate and thinner items may become wavy if they receive too much heat. This machine does not allow you to adjust for these things. This means that you need to live with what you get which can be a little bit frustrating if a highly professional finished product is important to you.

Recommendation:
The H110 laminator is ideal for small offices and home offices that need to laminate a few documents at a time and are looking for a cost effective solution to do so. However, it does have a few limitations and potential problems that make it less than ideal for any type of volume applications. If you laminate small numbers of small items then the H110 is a laminator to consider. If you need to laminate a large number of items or need to laminate larger items then this machine isn't for you.