It is astonishing to see the cost of a new printer inkjet cartridge. It is a similar case when shopping for laser toner cartridges too. As more and more of us are using PCs and laptops, more of us are choosing to print our own documents and images whether it be for work or personal use. This is where the highly priced inkjet cartridge rears it's head. The first thing anybody considering purchasing a new printer needs to think about is future running cost. You are in the store looking at all the printers available. Inkjet printers, All-in-One printers, laser printers, scanners, Photo printers. Lots of printers that can do lots of things. Beware! Buying the cheapest printer in the store can be the biggest mistake. A printer can last for years, it's ink cartridges do not. Ink cartridges are consumables, they run out of ink, and this is when large printer manufacturers make their money. They make very little profit when they sell a printer. They do however make a lot more when you have to replace an empty inkjet cartridge. At Inkworldwide we suggest the following steps.
1. Check the cost of replacement ink cartridges.
Make sure you do your homework before buying a printer. Check the costs involved when you have to replace the ink cartridges. They vary greatly
2. Check the volume of ink contained in the cartridges.
Look at the actual ink volume of the cartridges, if it is 2ml then it obviously won't be long before it is empty and you are having to replace it. Remember, most OEM or genuine branded ink costs a lot more than the best champagnes!
3. Does the printer have individual ink cartridges.
Some printers have individual ink cartridges containing the different colours. Some have four which contain black, cyan, magenta and yellow. Some have six which have the ones just mentioned plus a light cyan and light magenta. Some have photo cartridges. Some printers use just two ink cartridges, a black and a colour. The colour cartridge usually has 3 or 5 colours in it. The problem with this is that if you like printing pictures that contain a lot of yellow ink, as soon as you run out of yellow ink, the cartridge is useless. It tells you that it is empty and off you go to the store again even though you probably still have lots of cyan and magenta left inside it. The printers with individual ink cartridges give you more options when printing. If you run out of yellow, you can just buy yellow. This is more cost effective.
4. The Use of Chip Resetters and Prolonging the Life of a Laser Toner Cartridge.
If you look at an ink cartridge you will see that it has a microchip on it. This microchip helps the printer to recognize the ink cartridge that you have installed. It also tells the printer how many times the ink cartridge has been used. An ink cartridge is designed to print a certain amount of pages. When the microchip calculates that the ink cartridge it is attached to has printed the maximum pages possible, it will stop it from working. You may have noticed that sometimes, when you have taken an 'empty ink cartridge' out of your printer and shaken it, there is still ink left inside. Using a chip resetter will tell the microchip that the ink cartridge is full and will continue to print. These can be found on many websites. If you are using a toner cartridge and your print quality becomes poor, simply remove the cartridge and shake it from side to side. This releases more toner powder inside the cartridge and normal printing quality will resume.
5. Remanufactured and Compatible Ink & Toner Cartridges Versus Original OEM Products.
When it comes to shopping, people like a bargain. If you enter a store and see a product you want to buy, you check it's price. You visit another store and see it cheaper, you buy it from there, common sense. OK. Think about your car. It needs a service and a few parts need replacing. Not the doors or your BMW badge! Just some tyres and an oil filter. Question. Do you go for the tyres that are the most expensive? Do you go for the BMW oil filter? Some people do, some people prefer to pay less and get the same performance from a cheaper alternative. The same applies to ink and toner cartridges. By using compatible and remanufactured cartridges you save money and if you buy from a reputable store, the print quality should equal that of the original products. You generally find that the cheaper ink and toner cartridge versions contain more ink and toner too. All printer manufacturers highlight warranty problems if you don't use their ink and toner cartridges in their printers.
Here are some statements published by websites regarding this issue:
1. According to Hewlett-Packard, the use of a refilled print cartridge does not affect the warranty unless failure or damage is attributable to it. This is typical of all manufacturers' warranties. Keep in mind that the ink does not touch any part of the printer or internal parts other than the cartridge and print head. The ink is applied to the paper as the paper is fed through the printer.
2. By using compatible or remanufactured cartridges you are cutting into their primary source of profit. Because of this, they will threaten to void your warranty if you use compatible or remanufactured cartridges. They are simply trying to protect their own interests anyway they can. It is however strictly ILLEGAL for them to do so, they CANNOT VOID YOUR WARRANTY simply for using compatible or remanufactured cartridges.
3. ABSOLUTELY NOT. Using a compatible/remanufactured inkjet or toner cartridge will not void the manufacturer's warranty. It is illegal for the manufacturer to prevent you from using inkjet/ toner cartridge from other sources than the original manufacturer. Similarly, it would be illegal for Radio Shack to mandate that you only use their batteries in their products. You are the consumer, and you have a choice. It is stipulated in "MAGNUSON-MOSS WARRANTY IMPROVEMENT ACT" passed by the US Congress. MAGNUSON-MOSS WARRANTY IMPROVEMENT ACT United States Code Annotated Title 15 Commerce and Trade Chapter 50 Consumer Product Warranties 15 Section 2302 (c) No warrantor of a consumer product may condition his written or implied warranty of such product on the consumer's using, in connection with such product, any article or service (other than article or service provided without charge under the terms of the warranty) which is identified by brand, trade or corporate name; except that the prohibition of this subsection be waived by the commission if: 1) The warrantor satisfies the Commission that the warranted product will function properly only if the article or service so identified is used in connection with the warranted product, and 2) The Commission finds that such a waiver is in the public interest.
So, there you have it. 5 Top Tips on How To Reduce The Cost of Printing from Inkworldwide.co.uk.
