Print control - darkness (^MD), speed (^PR), cut (^MM), mirror (^PO)

These commands control the physical print result. zplCloud exposes them in the

Label settings dialog.

Darkness ^MD (0–30, default 15)

^XA
^MD20^FO50,50^A0N,30,30^FDDarker^FS
^XZ

Higher = darker/more burn. Too high → smearing and printhead wear; too low → weak,

unscannable barcodes. Typical: 15–20 on direct thermal, 10–15 on thermal transfer.

Speed ^PR (1–14 ips)

^PR8^XZ        ; 8 inches per second

Faster speed = lower quality. For fine graphics/QR start at 4–6 ips.

Cut / peel

^MMC^XZ        ; cut after every label
^MMD^XZ        ; cut after the last label (batch)

Only on printers with a cutter option.

Mirror / reverse

^POI^XZ        ; invert (mirror) the whole label horizontally
^PO1...        ; ^PO + 0=normal, 1=mirror horizontal, I=invert 180°, B=invert+motor reverse

Media settings

^PW600         ; print width in dots
^LL400         ; label length in dots (continuous media)
^MNN           ; media type: N = gap/notch, C = continuous, M = mark
^MNM^MNM       ; (mark sensing)
^JUS           ; calibrate media

Tips

• After changing media or ribbon, run a media calibration (^JUS or the printer

button) before judging darkness/speed.

• The Zebra Tools tab in zplCloud sends ^JUS and SGD commands directly to the printer.