Minneapolis, MN (October 19, 2004) ? Fargo Electronics, Inc. (NASDAQ: FRGO) a global leader in secure technologies for card identity systems, today announced that it has received an additional order for its High Definition Card Printer/Encoders as part of its ongoing involvement with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) ?Common Access Card? Project.

The order includes 276 of Fargo?s new HDP600-LC laminating card printer/encoders and is a follow-on to the order for 125 HDP600-LCs received in April, 2004. The printers are currently expected to ship in the 2004 calendar year.

?We?re pleased with this order and the continuing relationship with the Department of Defense,? said Gary R. Holland, Fargo?s president and chief executive officer. ?We are proud to be contributing to the overall security of our service personnel through our participation in the Common Access Card project.?

The HDP600 is a new dual-sided, full-color printer/encoder that utilizes Fargo?s patented High Definition Printing? (HDP®) technology. HDP technology was designed for the personalization of RFID proximity, laser and smart cards with computer chips. By printing onto the underside of a special film, which is then fused into the surface of the card through heat and pressure, the HDP600 can print over the edge of cards, tightly around smart chips and on a variety of card surfaces. In addition, its inline encoding module provides seamless integration of encoding and printing on technology cards. The model chosen in this project also includes a built-in laminator that automatically transfers Fargo?s patented PolyGuard? overlaminate to the card, for increased security and durability.

?The DoD has established a state-of-the art identification card program that?s setting a standard for other agencies and organizations to follow,? said Kathleen Phillips, Fargo?s Vice President of Sales and Marketing. ?We are excited that they recognize reverse image printing as the premier technology to create their cards.?

Through the Common Access Card program, the DoD will issue standard identification cards for approximately 4,000,000 active duty uniformed service personnel, selected reserves, DoD civilians and eligible contractor personnel. The card contains credentials to authenticate personal identity and is based on smart card technology, which stores and processes information on an integrated microprocessor chip contained on the card itself.

Forward-looking Statements

Statements made in this release concerning the company?s expectations about future results or events are ?forward-looking statements?. Such statements are subject to the safe harbor created by the Private Securities Reform Act of 1995, and are necessarily subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those reflected in these forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions, and are subject to the risks and uncertainties inherent in general industry and market conditions, general domestic and international economic conditions, and other factors. These risks and uncertainties include: product acceptance and customer demand for Fargo?s card personalization systems and proprietary supplies; actions taken and alternative products marketed by Fargo?s competitors; supplier relationships, including reliance on sole and single-source suppliers; manufacturing or design defects that we may discover after shipment; lack of inventories of component parts or finished goods; our focus on the identification card personalization market; continuing technological changes in our industry; our dependence on a distribution network and the reaction of this network to changes in distribution programs; domestic and international regulations and standards; our dependence on international sales; material changes in orders placed by large end users; challenges in effectively managing growth; our dependence on technologies we do not own; complex design and manufacturing delays; protecting and enforcing intellectual property rights; inadequate protection against infringement claims; adverse economic and business conditions, including conditions resulting from the terrorist attack on the U.S. on September 11, 2001 and the resulting hostilities and the war with Iraq commenced in March 2003. For more detail, see the Company?s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2003.

About Fargo

Fargo is a global leader in secure technologies for card identity systems. The company manufactures and markets systems that include secure card printer/encoders, materials and software. Fargo helps organizations reduce security vulnerabilities and potential for loss of time, money and lives by continually improving the authenticity of identity credentials. More than 80,000 Fargo systems have been installed in the U.S. and in over 80 other countries through Fargo's global distribution network of professional security integrators.

Personalized ID cards produced by Fargo card identity systems provide physical, information, and transaction security for a wide variety of applications and industries including corporate, national IDs, drivers? licenses, universities, schools, government and membership. The company is headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, USA, a suburb of Minneapolis.

Minneapolis, MN (October 19, 2004) ? Fargo Electronics, Inc. (NASDAQ: FRGO) a global leader in secure technologies for card identity systems, today announced that it has received an additional order for its High Definition Card Printer/Encoders as part of its ongoing involvement with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) ?Common Access Card? Project.

The order includes 276 of Fargo?s new HDP600-LC laminating card printer/encoders and is a follow-on to the order for 125 HDP600-LCs received in April, 2004. The printers are currently expected to ship in the 2004 calendar year.

?We?re pleased with this order and the continuing relationship with the Department of Defense,? said Gary R. Holland, Fargo?s president and chief executive officer. ?We are proud to be contributing to the overall security of our service personnel through our participation in the Common Access Card project.?

The HDP600 is a new dual-sided, full-color printer/encoder that utilizes Fargo?s patented High Definition Printing? (HDP®) technology. HDP technology was designed for the personalization of RFID proximity, laser and smart cards with computer chips. By printing onto the underside of a special film, which is then fused into the surface of the card through heat and pressure, the HDP600 can print over the edge of cards, tightly around smart chips and on a variety of card surfaces. In addition, its inline encoding module provides seamless integration of encoding and printing on technology cards. The model chosen in this project also includes a built-in laminator that automatically transfers Fargo?s patented PolyGuard? overlaminate to the card, for increased security and durability.

?The DoD has established a state-of-the art identification card program that?s setting a standard for other agencies and organizations to follow,? said Kathleen Phillips, Fargo?s Vice President of Sales and Marketing. ?We are excited that they recognize reverse image printing as the premier technology to create their cards.?

Through the Common Access Card program, the DoD will issue standard identification cards for approximately 4,000,000 active