TL;DR: Vertiq wall printers print at up to 2880 DPI. DPI describes how finely the printer places ink droplets, not how much detail your file contains. On a wall, what people actually see depends on viewing distance: a mural seen from across a room needs far less file resolution than a close-up print at eye level. Photographs benefit from higher-pass, higher-DPI modes; flat-color logos and vector art print crisply in faster modes. Prepare files at the final wall size and test the print mode on the real surface first.
DPI vs PPI: two different numbers
DPI (dots per inch) is a printer setting: how many ink droplets the printer can place along an inch. PPI (pixels per inch) is a property of your image file at the size it will be printed. A printer running at 2880 DPI can still produce a soft result if the image only contains a few pixels per inch at wall size.
Vertiq models list resolutions up to 2880 DPI; the Vertiq Nova, for example, runs from 720 up to 2880 DPI with 4, 6 and 8-pass modes. Some model pages show 2880 × 1440 DPI, meaning the horizontal and vertical droplet spacing differ.
Why viewing distance matters
People rarely look at a wall from a few inches away. The farther the viewer, the less detail the eye can resolve, so the image needs fewer pixels per inch to look sharp.
| Typical viewing situation | What to prioritize |
|---|---|
| Close-up, at arm's length (cafés, hallways, children's rooms) | Higher file resolution and a higher-quality print mode |
| Across a room (offices, lobbies, restaurants) | Moderate file resolution; balance quality and speed |
| From a distance (gyms, warehouses, exterior walls) | Lower file resolution is usually fine; faster modes suit large areas |
These are planning categories, not fixed numbers. The safest approach is to print a small test patch of the artwork at its final scale and view it from where people will actually stand.
Photographs vs flat-color artwork
Photographs and painterly art
Photos contain smooth gradients, skin tones and fine texture. They benefit from:
Upscaling a small photo can help, but it cannot invent detail that was never captured. If a client supplies a small image for a large wall, discuss expectations before printing.
Logos, text and vector art
Vector files (AI, EPS, PDF, CDR) scale to any size without losing sharpness. Flat colors and clean edges print crisply even in faster modes, which saves time on large walls. Converting text to outlines avoids font problems.
Print modes: quality vs speed
More passes mean finer results and slower printing. Vertiq lists print speeds where published — for example roughly 3–5 m² per hour for the Nova depending on pass count, 3–6 m² per hour for the Immersive Dual and about 2–3 m² per hour for the Spectra Dual. Speed ranges depend on mode and artwork, so plan the schedule around the mode you choose for each job.
A sensible default is to pick the fastest mode that looks right from the real viewing distance on a test patch.
How surfaces affect perceived sharpness
The same file can look different on different surfaces:
Vertiq machines use sensing to keep the printhead at a consistent distance from uneven walls — the Nova's ultrasonic sensing corrects for unevenness up to 10 cm — but texture still affects how detail appears.
File requirements
Vertiq printers accept PSD, CDR, JPG, JPEG, PNG, BMP, TIFF, EPS, AI and PDF files. To prepare a file:
Common mistakes
Choosing a mode on site: a short routine
Talking to clients about resolution
Clients often ask for "the highest resolution" because it sounds safest. Explain that the right setting is the one that looks sharp from where people stand, and that higher-pass modes take longer on site. Show them a printed test patch rather than a number. If their source image is small, show what it will look like at full wall size before agreeing a design, and suggest alternatives: a vector redraw, a different image or a design that uses the photo at a smaller scale within a larger graphic.
Resolution and print height
Most Vertiq models print up to 2.4 m high with width extending along the rail. A tall wall printed from a single file needs the file to be prepared at the full printed height. If a design is split across several rail positions, keep a single master file and let the software handle positioning so that the image stays continuous.