Sunday, January 25, 2009

The Cost Of Printing With Inkjet Is Half What It Used To Be

By Donald Bressellford

Inkjet printers contain detachable cartridges, which are where the ink is stored and dispensed from. This is the "inkjet cartridge" and, in addition to the ink it also usually functions as the printing head.

Every inkjet cartridge is made up from one or more individual color ink reservoirs and some producers also insert electronic contacts and a chip that provides information to the printer.

It's important to know how much ink is in the cartridge before you start printing because low ink levels mean trouble. Minimal ink will often cause ink drying on the printheads and create blotchy prints. Adequate ink volume assures sufficient ink flow for the highest quality prints.

To proper way to clean the dried ink from the printing head is to gently rub the head with isopropyl alcohol on a swab or paper towel.

New, original manufacturer's replacement inkjet cartridges are quite pricey so as consumers sought ways to save an entire industry was formed to serve just that need.

The first shock comes when you do the math and find out that one or two sets of new cartridges cost more than the printer that uses them. Most Manufacturers like Hewlett Packard, Lexmark, Dell, Canon, Epson and Brother sell their printers as "loss leaders" to get the ink sales for new cartridges.

Taking this business tack requires that manufactures get top dollar for their cartridges and that they get discarded after only one use. What a waste. In an attempt to eliminate all other options and force consumers to follow that model some manufacturers have even tried taking those companies that were recycling to court to stop them.

Good news is they lost that battle; bad news is they won't stop trying to force the outcome in other ways.

Many printer owners choose have their cartridges refilled or buy remanufactured cartridges from third parties over buying new cartridges.

This reduces their cost significantly (typically 50% or more) and can get them quality every bit as good as the original cartridges. Additionally it is far more ecologically sound as hundreds of millions of these cartridges needlessly end up in landfills every year.

Printer ink cartridge refilling is now a multi-billion dollar industry and like any other there are some good companies and some duds. It is important to be sure refilled or remanufactured cartridges are from a high quality source or there could be printer damage (unlikely) or more likely just low quality prints.

It is essential that the refilling of these delicate cartridges is done by someone with the extensive training that ensures the job will be done correctly.

A 100% Satisfaction Guarantee from a retailer with a strong reputation will ensure that your printing is carefree.

For general information Brother, Canon, Dell, HP, and Lexmark cartridges can be refilled although a chip re-set may be necessary.

You CAN have it all. You can do all the printing you want - get high quality prints and photos - while being ecologically prudent, and best of all, save big money. Happy Printing!

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