Archive for the ‘ink’ tag
HP Printer Ink Costs You More Than Human Blood Or Fine Champagne
HP Viviera Brand Ink
As anyone who owns a printer knows well, printer ink is expensive. But exactly how expensive is it compared to other high-priced liquids?
A Gizmodo reader did a graphical comparison of the prices per milliliter for various liquids (HP #45 black ink being one of them). I was personally fairly surprised to see the results.
Is printer ink more expensive than a bottle of Dom Perignon champagne? What about gasoline, or even the price of human blood?
Remanufactured Cartridges Will NOT Void Your Printer’s Warranty
Your right to buy and use alternative printer ink cartridges is protected by the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act.
A common fear of consumers thinking about purchasing remanufactured ink cartridges is that their use will render the printer warranty void. Many brands of printers include messages that pop up after insertion of a remanufactured cartridge claiming that your warranty may become void, though these messages are primarily there to encourage loyalty to the original manufacturer’s brand (OEM) cartridges rather than stating the legal implications of using alternative cartridges.
The truth is that the use of remanufactured printer cartridges will NOT void your printer warranty. In fact, it would be illegal for printer companies to revoke warranty based on type of cartridge used. As a consumer you have the right of choice when it comes with refilling the ink for your printer, which means you are not obligated only to use OEM cartridges.
Compatible Ink Cartridges: Save Up To 300% Compared To Brand-Name Inks
Compatible ink cartridges provide significant cost savings.
A great way to save on your printing costs is to utilize compatible ink cartridges rather than full-price brand name ink. Original Equipment Manufacturer, or OEM, ink is found in office supply stores and sold by the original printer manufacturer in glossy boxes at a high price. Usually, you will hear claims about how OEM cartridges are of the highest quality and will produce better results than any competitive products. In truth, however, compatible cartridges can produce a high quality of output at a much lower cost basis than brand-name manufacturer ink, if you purchase them from reputable online suppliers.
OEM cartridges do often come with warranties and guarantees, but it's much more likely that any defects will occur due to the printer hardware than with any ink refill. The relatively high frequency of cartridge replacement will mean that you'll likely use up your ink before you have any mechanical problems with the cartridge itself; in the rare cases that there is a defect, you will be able to tell upon your first print from the cartridge, and, in those cases, you can usually just exchange the product.
Buying Compatible Ink Makes Sense
Even when OEM ink supplies have a longer life, when adjusted for per unit cost, compatible cartridges are still much less expensive. For example, a black ink OEM cartridge for the HP Officejet 7210 printer currently retails for $22.99 in office supply stores. Online, at retailers like 4Inkjets or 123Refills, a compatible black cartridge can be had for almost three times less, at only $9.95, a savings over close to $13 per cartridge. The savings only multiply when one considers the need to replace separate color cartridges.
ISO Manufacturing Standards Ensure High Inkjet Cartridge Quality
The International Organization for Standardization, or ISO, sets quality standards for various manufacturing processes. The ISO standard is comprehensive and touches on each aspect of the supply chain from raw source materials all the way to end-user delivery. While product defects are inevitable, the goal of ISO is continued improvement to limit any problems and constant work to improve the quality of outputs.
Buying an ISO-certified ink cartridge helps ensure that, while you are saving on your ink refills, you are not sacrificing quality standards.
Look For Ink Suppliers That Comply With ISO 9000 Certifications
The most common set of standards is the ISO 9001 standard which certifies a level of quality in manufacturer business operations, output improvement and product compliance. Ink manufacturers that are ISO 9000 certified have met a level of inspection quality that ensures quality control procedures; make sure to look for the ISO seal, especially when purchasing remanufactured ink cartridges as a safeguard for quality.