Bixolon SPP-L310 Mobile Label Printer: Specs and Buying Guide

The Bixolon SPP-L310 mobile label printer is a compact 3 inch direct thermal printer for printing labels where the work happens: in the aisle, at the dock, on a delivery route or at a market stall. Bixolon positions it as the mid-range model in its mobile label line, and our listing records up to 5 inches per second at 203 dpi with an IP54 rating.

The part number we list, the SPP-L310WK5, records Wi-Fi, USB and serial connectivity, which makes it a good match for sites that want printers on the network rather than paired to a single phone. This guide covers what that means in practice, which media it takes, how to set it up, and how it compares with the other Bixolon mobile printers we list. For the numbers alone, go straight to the Bixolon SPP-L310 specs table.

Products in our listing

The Bixolon SPP-L310 mobile label printer part number we currently list is below. Quote the full part number on the card when you order.

BixolonSPP-L310WK5Bixolon SPP-L310 3-Inch USB / Serial / Wi-Fi Mobile Thermal Label PrinterIn stockView Details →

The SPP-L310WK5 is new and carries the 30-Day Tech Seller USA warranty. Browse the full Bixolon printer range.

Bixolon SPP-L310 specs: SPP-L310WK5 in our listing

Every value below comes from our product listing for this part number. Anything we have not recorded is marked as not listed.

What the Bixolon SPP-L310 mobile label printer is built for

Bixolon describes the SPP-L310 as a super compact, lightweight 3 inch printer and lists inventory, fulfillment, logistics, food labeling and retail tagging as its target jobs. It quotes a printer weight of 385 g, which is light enough to wear on a belt or shoulder strap for a full shift. Our listing records a weight of 2 lbs for the SPP-L310WK5, so allow for packaging and accessories when planning shipments.

Typical uses look like this:

• Retail shelf and price labels printed in the aisle during a price change or a reset.
• Pick, pack and put away labels printed at the rack, so the label goes straight onto the item it describes.
• Food prep and date labels printed where the food is prepared, not at a shared station.
• Route and delivery labels printed at the stop, from the driver's handheld.

The 3 inch width is the middle ground of mobile printing. It fits most shelf, product and small carton labels without the extra weight of a 4 inch printer. Our mobile label printers buying guide explains how to choose between the 2, 3 and 4 inch classes.

Wi-Fi, USB and serial: who the SPP-L310WK5 suits

Most mobile label printers pair over Bluetooth to one phone or handheld. The SPP-L310WK5 in our listing records Wi-Fi, USB and serial instead, and Bluetooth is not recorded for this part number. That changes how the printer fits into a site.

As a Bixolon Wi-Fi mobile printer, the SPP-L310WK5 becomes a network device with its own address. Any handheld, tablet or PC on the same network can send to it, and IT can manage a fleet of printers centrally rather than pairing each one by hand. That suits:

• Warehouses and stores with good Wi-Fi coverage across the floor.
• Shared printers that move between workers or shifts.
• Apps that print from a server or a web system rather than from the handheld itself.

The weak point of any Wi-Fi printer is coverage and addressing. A printer that drops off the network in a dead spot or comes back on a new IP address after a reboot looks broken to the person holding it. Survey coverage where printers will be used, and give each printer a DHCP reservation so its address stays fixed. Our guide to warehouse Wi-Fi for scanners and mobile computers covers the coverage side, and printer connectivity explained covers the choice between Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB and serial.

USB and serial are the wired fallback. USB is handy for setup, firmware and configuration at a bench, and serial suits older systems that still send print data over a serial line. If your team needs Bluetooth pairing to a phone in the field, the SPP-L3000iK in our listing records Bluetooth and USB.

Key configuration choices

Width. Our listing records a 3 inch maximum print width. Bixolon lists 80 mm media as standard and 58 mm media as an option for the SPP-L310. Measure the widest label your workflow prints and make sure it fits.

Resolution. The SPP-L310 prints at 203 dpi. That is the norm for mobile printers and handles linear barcodes, prices, text and most 2D codes cleanly. Very small fonts and dense Data Matrix codes are better on a higher resolution desktop printer. Our 203 vs 300 vs 600 dpi guide shows the trade.

Print method. The SPP-L310 is direct thermal. No ribbon keeps the printer small and quick to reload, but direct thermal labels fade with heat, light and abrasion. They suit shelf labels, pick labels and food labels with a short life. Labels that must last years on equipment belong on a thermal transfer printer. See direct thermal versus thermal transfer printing.

Part number. Bixolon sells the SPP-L310 in several part numbers that differ by connectivity and options. When you replace a unit, read the full part number from its label and quote that, not just the family name.

Media and sensors

Bixolon lists a transmissive gap sensor and a reflective black mark sensor on the SPP-L310. In practice that means it can find the start of each label on gapped die cut stock and on continuous stock with a printed black mark on the back. Set the sensor type to match your media, and calibrate after every media change, because a printer set for gap sensing on black mark stock will skip or split labels.

Our listing records a 0.75 inch core for the SPP-L310WK5. Mobile printers take small rolls, so check the core size and outside diameter of your media before ordering, not just the width. Our listing also records a media width of 3.0 to 3.9 inches, while Bixolon lists 80 mm media with a 58 mm option, so confirm the exact media size with us before ordering stock in volume.

Direct thermal media quality varies. A label for a chilled food container needs an adhesive rated for cold and damp surfaces, and a label that sits in a hot van needs a topcoat that resists heat. Our label media selection guide covers matching stock to the job, including adhesives and topcoats for cold, damp or hot conditions.

Setup, languages and apps

Bixolon lists SLCS, BPL-Z and BPL-C as the programming languages for the SPP-L310, and supports Android, iOS and Windows through its software development kits. SLCS is Bixolon's own label command set. BPL-Z and BPL-C are designed so that label formats written for other common printer languages can run with fewer changes, which helps when the SPP-L310 joins a site that already uses another brand.

Bixolon also lists a Smart WiFi printer setting for mobile devices and Easy Bluetooth Pairing through an embedded NFC tag across the SPP-L310 range. Our listing does not record NFC or Bluetooth for the SPP-L310WK5, so plan Wi-Fi setup through the network and the configuration tools rather than tap to pair.

Before you deploy more than one unit:

• Join one printer to the production Wi-Fi network and give it a fixed address.
• Print every label format you use from the app or system that will send it in production.
• Scan the labels with the scanners used downstream, at the distance and angle they are used.
• Record the firmware version and settings, so every following unit is set up the same way.

Our guide to printer command languages explains why the same label can print differently on two brands, and our hardware acceptance testing guide sets out a simple test plan before rollout.

Bixolon SPP-L310 battery, durability and daily care

Our listing records a rechargeable battery included with the SPP-L310WK5. Bixolon lists a 7.4 V, 2,600 mAh Li-ion battery and up to 24 hours of standby on a full charge for the Bluetooth model in power save mode. Standby is not printing time. Wi-Fi uses more power than Bluetooth, and large dark labels use more than small ones, so test a real shift before deciding how many spare batteries you need.

Store and charge batteries as described in our device battery safety guide, and rotate spares so none sit flat for months.

For durability, our listing records an IP54 rating, and Bixolon lists a 1.8 m (6 ft) drop test onto concrete. That covers dust, splashes and the usual knocks of mobile work, but a belt clip or holster still saves more printers than any rating does.

The parts that wear are the printhead and platen roller. Label adhesive, dust and grit build up on both and shorten the life of the head. Clean on a schedule as described in our thermal printer maintenance guide, and if a white line appears through every label, read printhead failure diagnosis and replacement before assuming the printer is at fault.

How it compares with other Bixolon mobile printers we list

We list Bixolon mobile printers in 2, 3 and 4 inch classes. Width, connectivity and whether you print mostly labels or receipts decide the right one. The most common choice is SPP-L310 vs SPP-L3000, since both sit in the 3 inch class.

• SPP-L3000iK: the same 3 inch class and 5 ips speed, with an LCD display and embedded peeler listed by Bixolon. Our listing records Bluetooth and USB, which suits one printer paired to one device.
• XM7-40IK: a 4 inch mobile label printer for wider labels such as 4 inch shipping labels.
• SPP-R200IIIIK: a lighter 2 inch printer for receipts and simple labels, covered in our SPP-R200IIIIK guide and SPP-R200III guide.

Beyond the Bixolon SPP-L310 mobile label printer, our Bixolon label printers guide covers the wider Bixolon range, including desktop and industrial models. If you are weighing brands, the Zebra mobile label printers guide covers the closest alternatives.

Common questions