TSC TH240R and TH340R: the RFID printer for the shop office

What the TH240R is and who it was built for

TSC runs four desktop ranges: TH and DH, each in a 2-inch and a 4-inch format. Only one of them is a candidate for garment labels. The DH series prints direct thermal only and carries no RFID model in the 4-inch format; the 2-inch machines have HF RFID at 13.56 megahertz if anything — the technology inside an access card, reading over a few centimetres. The 4-inch TH series is the only TSC desktop range with built-in UHF RFID, and that means the TH240R at 203 dpi and the TH340R at 300 dpi, plus the healthcare versions TH240RHC and TH340RHC.

For its role in a shop the format matters more than the performance. The machine weighs 2.8 kilograms and measures 223 by 186 by 286 millimetres — it stands on the office desk or on a shelf in the stockroom, not on a stand of its own. It connects over Ethernet or USB, optionally Wi-Fi. And at eight labels a second it prints markedly faster than anyone can attach them to garments.

That is why we rarely recommend more for a single site. Tagging existing stock runs at 200 to 300 pieces per person per hour in our experience. A printer producing 12 labels a second instead of eight changes nothing about that; it changes the price and the footprint. Where an industrial machine genuinely pays off is set out on our TSC RFID printer overview.

A note on the model history: TSC revised the 4-inch TH series on 30 September 2025 and introduced RAIN UHF RFID with Encode During Print and automatic calibration. One US dealer also names part number TH240R-A001-0001 as the replacement for the discontinued part number of the older T820 — so the TH series is the more current of the two desktop ranges with UHF.

Technical data at a glance

Dimensions, weight and operating temperature are absent from the manufacturer's page; the figures above come from the Spanish dealer aidet.es and apply there to the TH340R. We do not quietly carry them over to the TH240R — the housings appear identical from the product pages, but that is not documented. ips means inches per second.

One line that matters day to day

The media width of 15 to 120 millimetres is the practically most important figure in this table. It decides which label rolls fit the machine at all, and it is generous enough for everything usual in fashion retail: narrow swing tickets as readily as wide carton labels for goods receiving. The roll diameter of 127 millimetres, by contrast, limits the quantity per roll. On a label 40 millimetres high that is a few thousand pieces depending on the material — for a shop, a roll change every few weeks; for a warehouse printing thousands of labels a day, too few.

What the printer does — and what TSC leaves open

Encoding works the same way on every RFID printer, and that is why automatic calibration is more than a convenience. Every RFID label has its chip in a particular place. The printer has to transmit at exactly the moment that chip passes the antenna. If a new label type puts the chip two millimetres further forward, an uncalibrated printer writes into thin air — or, worse, onto the neighbouring label. So calibration feeds a few labels through and establishes the position itself.

Encode During Print means that writing happens alongside printing rather than in a second pass. That saves time and makes the machine more tolerant of labels whose chip is not placed precisely. TSC brought both into the 4-inch TH series with the range update of 30 September 2025, expressly including the healthcare versions.

Through the TSC Console Web software the manufacturer lists three RFID functions: calibrate, read and write. That is exactly what a shop needs. A verification function that reads back every encoded label and reprints failures automatically is not among them — TSC offers that from the industrial class upwards.

Three figures we do not assert

The frequency band. Neither the product page nor any dealer listing we checked gives a range in megahertz for the TH240R or TH340R; they say only “RFID (UHF)”. For other TSC ranges dealers state “Global 865 to 928 MHz”, which bundles the European and the North American band together. We do not carry that over to the TH series. What you should do is in the radio approval section.

The protocol version. For the T4000 and the MB241 series TSC's datasheets say “RAIN UHF Passive (GS1 EPC Gen2 v2 / ISO 18000-63)”. For the TH series we found no model-specific statement. The difference between Gen2 and Gen2 V2 is of no consequence in a shop, but it is in a tender document — and a figure from another machine's datasheet is no evidence for this one.

The minimum label pitch. For the T800, T4000, MB241 and T6000e TSC states 0.625 inches, that is 15.9 millimetres. For the TH series that figure appears nowhere. If you are planning very short labels — ring tickets for jewellery, say — that is the figure to have confirmed before you order.

A fourth point is documented but limited: on-metal labels are supported only in selected builds verified by the maker's own RFID Label and Validation Lab. For textiles that is irrelevant. Anyone tagging jewellery, watches or goods in metal packaging should ask for the verified list rather than trying an arbitrary label.

Versions and ordering notes

Part numbers documented in dealer listings: TH340R-A001-0002, TH240R-A001-0211, TH340R-A001-0101 and TH240R-A001-0001. Which final digits stand for which wireless fit is not apparent from the listings; have the configuration confirmed in plain words, not only as a part number.

The most important sentence in this section is on TSC's own product page: RFID inside the printer is a factory option only. The sole retrofit is an external module fitted at the front as a tear-off or cutter unit. For a shop that means one single but expensive trap: an order for a “TSC TH240” is a printer without an RFID module, and it cannot be converted. The R belongs in the enquiry, in the quotation and on the order acknowledgement.

Two further lines belong in the same order. First the interface: Ethernet, USB and RS-232 are standard, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi cost extra — at Jarltech the Bluetooth version sits 223 euro above the base. Second the regional build, see below.

What this machine is not for

The most serious point is none of the technical ones but the ordering trap with the R. Every other limitation concerns applications a fashion shop does not have: if you tag no metal goods you need no on-metal approval; if you do not print for hours the roll diameter does not bother you; if no supplier specification demands label verification you will not miss it.

Honesty is due on the three unpublished figures. They do not make the machine worse — they make it harder to compare. Zebra writes the European band with transmit power in dBm into the datasheets of its RFID devices, and Chainway does the same. On a machine costing a good 1,600 euro that should not be different. It is no reason to rule it out, but it is a question to ask before ordering and to have answered in writing.

Prices, sources and running costs

Dealer prices are snapshots; project prices are frequently lower. Jarltech states its figures as a recommended retail price without saying whether they include VAT; we do not convert such amounts, because a figure we calculated ourselves is not a source. The Spanish offer price shows an order of magnitude, not your own quotation. All euro prices here are net, excluding VAT, and business buyers in another EU country with a valid VAT identification number are invoiced under the reverse-charge procedure. HANGCOUNT does not sell this machine at the dealer prices named.

What comes on top of the printer

• Labels. RFID labels cost roughly 12 to 15 cents apiece in the small quantities a fashion shop buys. For 4,000 existing pieces that is 480 to 600 euro to get started, then a running cost for every collection.
• Ribbon. For thermal transfer printing, rolls up to 300 metres. It has to match the label material — wax, wax-resin or resin, depending on how durable the print must be.
• Printhead. A wear part. At a few thousand labels a year it lasts a long time, but the price of a replacement belongs in the quotation before you need one.
• Wireless fit. Bluetooth costs 223 euro more than the base version at Jarltech. If the printer sits on a network cable anyway, that is a line you can save.
• Label layout. Size, typeface, logo and barcode position are set up once. With us that is part of the installation.

Alternatives compared

All figures as at 03.09.2026, tax basis as stated in the sources. The full comparison including the T4000, the 6-inch T6000e and the T800 is on the TSC RFID printer overview.

TH240R against MB241T. The MB241T is the sturdier and faster machine and is even listed lower by tsc-drucker.com — but without a stated surcharge for the RFID option. Until that surcharge is on the table the price comparison is not finished. Anyone who obtains it and lands at a similar level gets more machine for the money with the MB241T: metal housing, eight-inch rolls, 12 inches per second. The price for that is 9.1 instead of 2.8 kilograms and a good deal more bench space.

TH240R against Alpha-40L. Two different jobs. The Alpha-40L is a battery-powered machine for goods receiving that hangs at the pallet. But it prints direct thermal only, so its labels fade in the light, and it takes small rolls only. As the sole printer in a shop it is the wrong choice; as a second machine beside a desktop unit it can pay off.

And if it does not have to be TSC? The printer is rarely the first question. It makes more sense to start with the reader and a small batch of pre-encoded labels, and to buy the printer once it is settled that RFID carries its weight in your shop. An overview of the readers with ranges and prices is in the RFID hardware section.

Radio approval and operation in Europe

The rules themselves are manageable. ETSI EN 302 208, current edition V3.4.1 of December 2023, sets 865 to 868 MHz at up to 2 W ERP, with 915 to 921 MHz at up to 4 W in addition. National regulators implement this through general authorisations — the Bundesnetzagentur in Germany, ARCEP in France, UKE in Poland, RDI in the Netherlands, and their counterparts elsewhere; no separate registration of the individual device is needed as long as the device conforms. Machines that only handle the North American band of 902 to 928 MHz may not be operated here. The United Kingdom has been outside the EU framework since it left the Union; there Ofcom's Interface Requirement IR 2030 applies and equipment carries UKCA marking rather than CE.

That is exactly where the open point on this range lies. TSC gives no frequency band for the TH240R or TH340R, and the dealers we checked write only “RFID (UHF)”. That is no sign of a problem — European distributors normally ship the European build with CE marking. It is a reason to put one line in the enquiry: please confirm that the machine offered is the European build running 865 to 868 MHz, and to have that confirmation on the order acknowledgement.

The second point concerns the buying route. Anyone importing from outside the EU becomes the responsible economic operator under Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020: with their own address on the device, the duty to hold technical documentation for market surveillance, and liability for radio conformity. National implementations of the WEEE and packaging directives come on top. Buying through a European distributor removes that. The US price of 1,528 USD is therefore no invitation to import directly, only an orientation.

Frequently asked questions about the TSC TH240R

Printer, handheld, labels and software from one source

We deliver the hardware set up, with a finished label layout and about half an hour of training. The software costs 99 euro per month and location, the hardware of RFID printer and handheld 2,900 euro once, labels roughly 12 cents apiece as you use them. The handover to your point-of-sale system runs through CSV or Excel. All prices net, excluding VAT; business buyers in another EU country with a valid VAT identification number are invoiced under the reverse-charge procedure.

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Related pages

Sources and date of the figures

Every datasheet figure on this page is a manufacturer statement. Where we have interpreted, the text says so. Where a figure is missing, the text says that too — and it is not filled in from other TSC models. The retrieval date for all online sources is 03.09.2026.

• TSC Auto ID: product page, TH series 4-inch (EMEA) — built-in RFID as a factory option only, with an external tear-off or cutter module as the alternative; RFID functions available through TSC Console Web are calibration, read and write; on-metal labels only in selected builds verified by the maker’s own RFID Label and Validation Lab; 203 and 300 dpi, 8 and 6 ips, print width 108 and 105.7 mm, media width 15–120 mm, roll up to 127 mm, ribbon up to 300 m, 128 MB SDRAM and 128 MB flash, microSD up to 512 GB. Retrieved 03.09.2026.
• TSC Auto ID: news item “TSC Auto ID Unveils New Upgrades for TH Series Desktop Printers”, 30.09.2025 — RAIN UHF RFID with Encode During Print and automatic RFID calibration for the 4-inch TH series including the healthcare versions. Retrieved 03.09.2026.
• aidet.es (Spain): product pages TH340R and TH340RHC — 300 dpi, 152 mm/s, print width 105.7 mm, maximum label length 11,430 mm, 223 × 186 × 286 mm, 2.8 kg, 0 to 40 °C, 25–85 % RH non-condensing; list prices 1,819.00 € and 1,921.00 €, offer prices 1,364.25 € net / 1,650.74 € gross and 1,440.75 € net. Retrieved 03.09.2026.
• jarltech.com: TH240R prices — 1,626.00 € base, 1,752.00 € with MFi Bluetooth, 1,849.00 € with Bluetooth, stated as a recommended retail price without an explicit tax basis; the same page gives a 3.5-inch touch display for the TH240R. Retrieved 03.09.2026.
• barcodefactory.com (USA): TH240R at 1,528.00 USD, part numbers TH240R-A001-0211 and TH340R-A001-0101; advanced-automationinc.com names TH240R-A001-0001 as the replacement article for the T820 part number T82R-100-1, which it marks as discontinued. US figures expressly not converted into euro; no tax basis stated there. Retrieved 03.09.2026.
• thebarcodewarehouse.co.uk: part number TH340R-A001-0002. Retrieved 03.09.2026.
• Not documented and therefore not asserted on this page: the frequency range in megahertz, the protocol version (Gen2 or Gen2 V2) and the minimum label pitch for the TH240R and TH340R. The corresponding figures for other TSC ranges — 0.625 in label pitch, GS1 EPC Gen2 v2 / ISO 18000-63 — come from the datasheets of the T4000, MB241 and T6000e and apply there, not here.
• CEPT: recommendation ERC/REC 70-03 on short range devices. ETSI: EN 302 208 V3.4.1 (2023-12) — 865 to 868 MHz at up to 2 W ERP, with 915 to 921 MHz at up to 4 W in addition. Regulation (EU) 2019/1020, Article 4 — obligations of the responsible economic operator. Ofcom: Interface Requirement IR 2030 for the United Kingdom. Retrieved 03.09.2026.