Well fortunately, there is a setting that you can use to do "chain printing" where if you have a number of labels to print, it simply won't cut the last one it prints, and then you can send another job to the printer and it'll cut that one out and print the next (leaving the last thing it printed uncut, if you still have the box checked).
I don't particularly doubt the waste of tape is somewhat necessary. The way TZe tape works is there's a double side sticky backing, a thin film with a coating of ink (selectively transfers, with the used tape re-rolled internally) when heated and pressed onto the sticky backing), and a clear coverlay. The problem is that because of the thickness of the cutter assembly (which is actually just a mechanized pair of scissors internally), there is about an inch of tape after the layers have been laminated, but before the tape is cut. The printer has to advance the tape to get it cut at the right place, but by the time it's gotten there, the tape now has a stub of white tape on it, which if not cut off, would get stuck to the next label.
"Chain printing" solves this problem by letting the printer delay the "advance and cut" operation until it has something to fill the otherwise wasted inch with.
The chain printing is not so user friendly, I find; I just ended up typing out multiple labels with spaces inbetween instead, and cutting them with a pair of scissors.
This (along with the chain printing) only works when you know you have a lot of (similar) labels to print beforehand.
To me, it's also less about the cost of the wasted tape, and more about the extra litter it produces.
I studied the mechanism, and while it’s true that some tape must be wasted, I think there is room for improvement (with a different idea or even small changes, given that I have a Dymo that uses the same mechanism but wastes much less tape). I simply believe there aren’t enough incentives to research something that saves tape.
I don't particularly doubt the waste of tape is somewhat necessary. The way TZe tape works is there's a double side sticky backing, a thin film with a coating of ink (selectively transfers, with the used tape re-rolled internally) when heated and pressed onto the sticky backing), and a clear coverlay. The problem is that because of the thickness of the cutter assembly (which is actually just a mechanized pair of scissors internally), there is about an inch of tape after the layers have been laminated, but before the tape is cut. The printer has to advance the tape to get it cut at the right place, but by the time it's gotten there, the tape now has a stub of white tape on it, which if not cut off, would get stuck to the next label.
"Chain printing" solves this problem by letting the printer delay the "advance and cut" operation until it has something to fill the otherwise wasted inch with.