If you’ve ever created your own t-shirts, stickers, or labels at home, you know that it can be a time-consuming process. You’ll need to first create your design, cut out the vinyl, put it on the garment or adhesive, iron it onto the material for five seconds, pull off the sticker or vinyl, and let it dry.
Once you’ve done this two hundred times there are still more steps before you can enjoy your end product.
Luckily for us all, there are now heat laminators that make this process very easy. And they are specifically designed for smaller items that would not work with a traditional laminator. Here are some of the best heat laminates for small items on the market today.
List of 6 Best Heat Laminators for Small Items and Buying Guide 2022
There are heat laminators made specifically to laminate small items, the reason behind this is to help keep small items such as; business cards, name tags, employee cards, identification cards, badges for conferences, luggage tags, and many more DIY projects, from getting crumpled or ripped as easily.
Some of these machines are large and expensive but others are cheap and portable. Your choice of heat laminator would largely be affected by what you need it for, how often you will use it, and how much space you have available.
1. Scotch TL901X Laminator Machine
Make your own custom ID badges, stickers, stickers, decals, and more. It comes with a starter pack, so you can get started right away.
This machine is a state of the art easy to use laminating machine which produces high-quality lamination. With this laminator, you can feel confident laminating recipe cards, photos, important or frequently handled documents, arts & crafts, and more.
The machine has two temperature settings for both 3 mil and 5 mil pouches. This machine is a compact introduction to thermal laminating with 9 inches in width. Sold for $24.99, this is one of the cheapest laminators available, but this doesn’t affect its quality at all.
What We Like:
- Can laminate items up to 9 inches wide
- Two heated rollers create high quality professional, bubble and wrinkle-free results
- Safe to use on photos to help preserve precious memories
- Will laminate pouches up to 5 mils thick. – Two temperature settings
- Comes with a starter pack
What We Don’t Like:
- Takes a while before heating up, about 5 -8 minutes
Check Price and Reviews on Amazon
2. EasyIDea Minilab 450t
The EasyIDea Minilab 450t laminator is designed for those who need a compact, lightweight laminator and is very easy to use.
EasyIDea minilab 450t laminator is one of the best laminator brands out there. The laminator is compatible for both small and large size ID cards and other small items.
This laminator machine sold for $59.99. It is an easy to use and hassle-free machine. It can connect to both the USB port and power adapter. This laminator comes with temperature control so you don’t have to worry about burning your items.
What We Like:
- Has temperature control
- Designed specifically for easy do it yourself
- High-Quality Lamination
- Lightweight
- Moderately priced
- Secure protection for cards and badges
What We Don’t Like:
- Can’t laminate any item above 4.5 inches wide.
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3. Buyounger 4-IN-1 Thermal and Cold Laminator Machine
Laminate your Id card or other small items with this laminator. Buyounger Thermal is ideal for offices, schools, crafts and home use.
This Buyounger 4-IN-1 is a thermal and cold laminator that can laminate, shrink and staple with one machine, complete with one-step, easy to laminate toner, sticker, photo, document, cards and film. These machines can be used for on-site business. It is also applicable to home users and small offices. It is very convenient to use, it is a good helper for your life.
You can put your daily documents and cards into the machine and have them laminated. It is used to produce a high-quality finish and protect the document from the bad effect of water and dust. It is simple to operate and the output is faster. It can laminate 5-8 sheets at one time.
What We Like:
- Release papers or pouches are jammed with the press of a button
- Hot and cold dual mode
- Come with an instructional manual and starters kit
- Quick 1 minute warm up time.
- Ultra-low noise, no loud sounds while in operation.
What We Don’t Like:
- A little heavier than the others on the list, weighs 3.27 pounds
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4. Sinopuren 9 Inches Thermal Laminator
This is a high-quality laminator for office and school use, which has a 9 inches roller size, durable construction and low energy consumption.
Sinopuren laminator is laminator for home use. It is a 9” wide laminator and has many features. It is having transparent laminating film. It is having a home and school use, and it is a popular model for parents and teachers. There is a support roll of film and it is easy to load and unload it. The temperature of the heat is easy to adjust and it has an auto-shutoff power.
It has a push-button and it is easy to use, and the film is rewinding. It has an auto thickness sensor and with a roll width of 9” is suitable for laminating photographs, art, posters, and various school and office documents.
What We Like:
- Automatic shutdown systems can prevent overheating.
- Built-in paper trimmer and a built-in hole puncher.
- 2 Roller system
- One button resolves paper jam issues effectively and easily.
- 9 inches wide and can use 3-5 mils thick thermal pouches.
- Comes with 3 years warranty
What We Don’t Like:
- 4 minutes of warm-up time.
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5. Kosiant Thermal Laminator Machine
The Kosiant Thermal laminator is ideal for both small and wide documents. It is easy to operate and highly efficient.
Kosiant Thermal Laminating Machine is one of the best laminators to use for small items, it is affordable and high quality. The Laminating Machine is not only suitable for small items but others as well as it has 9 inches width.
It has a maximum temperature of 260 degrees. It is able to produce heat at a maximum power of 3800W. Moreover, it is equipped with an automatic temperature control system. In the meantime, it has the function of auto shut-off.
These functions can help you save energy. What is more, this machine is equipped with the auto-reverse function. You can use it to produce even heating. It is suitable to use the thermal laminating machine to produce the 3 mils, 5 mils, and 7 mil lamination.
What We Like:
- Affordable sold at $28.99
- Whisper-quiet operation mode makes you barely hear the sound of laminating.
- Simple and easy to operate
- ABS function is designed to prevent paper jams.
What We Don’t Like:
- 3 to 5 minutes for preheating
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6. Brainstorm ID 4.5″ Teslin ID Card Laminator
This laminator is perfect for ID badges, employee cards, drivers licenses and more. Has a simple design and is very durable.
If you’re thinking about going with a cheaper laminator to use with Teslin sheets, stop right now. The Brainstorm ID 4.5″ Teslin ID Card Laminator at $49.99 is the best tool for the job. This machine heats up in under five minutes and has an LED light to indicate when assistance is needed.
One of the reasons this laminator is one of the best laminators to get for small items is that most laminators only support the thinner 3, 5, and 7 mil laminating pouches that are used when making Teslin ID cards. But the Brainstorm ID 4.5″ Teslin ID Card Laminator was designed to work best with the thicker 10 mil laminating pouches.
What We Like:
- Compact design and lightweight
- Easy to use
- Made for small items, has a maximum Width of up to 4.5 inches, and does the job well.
What We Don’t Like:
- Only suitable for laminating ID cards and other small items. Can’t be used for larger documents.
Check Price and Reviews on Amazon
The Factors To Consider Before Choosing Laminator For Small Items
For those looking for the best heat laminator for small items, it is important to know what to look for in a product. There are many different factors that should be considered to find the best heat laminator for small items, they are;
– Lamination Type: This refers to whether or not it can be colored. Clear lamination will give you a card that is more durable than UV coating. The clear lamination will also allow you to see your design better, but it can’t be printed with different colors as UV coating can.
UV coating gives you a card with more durability than clear lamination, but it has an added layer of protection which makes it harder to read text on the card.
– Heat source: The best heat laminator for small items should have a hot plate to melt glue as it is being applied. The plate can be heated by an electrical heating element or gas burner. It’s important that the plate is not too hot, as this will scorch or burn an object.
– Timer: The best heat laminator for small items should come with a built-in timer. This will ensure that no one burns an item by accident due to forgetting about it on the machine after it has been heated up.
– Lamination thickness: The amount of thickness that your document needs will help you determine how much power the machine needs to have. If your document is thin, then it does not need much heat to adhere it together.
For thicker laminates, you will need more heat and pressure in order to get the job done well. If you want a very professional-looking document and your paper is very delicate then it may take more time than what other machines offer.
Conclusion
All the heat laminators mentioned in our lists are the best for laminating small items. Also, following the aforementioned factors to consider before making a purchase should be a perfect guide that would help you identify the best heat laminator for you.