Comparing a Printed Book to a Home Printer

When using a home printer, there are a lot of variables that can affect the quality: calibration, paper type (weight, brightness, sheen/finish), ink quality & levels, settings, etc.
The printers Lightning Source uses are regularly calibrated for a consistent output (with reasonable variance) and are designed for high-speed output. Because these types of machines are so different from home printers, the output from a home printer can't truly be compared to our equipment.