Compatible Ink Cartridges

[pjpattek]

I recently purshased a new printer and while searching the net for ink cartrides,I became aware of "compatible" cartridges. They are about half the price. Any one have experience with compatible ink cartridges? Thanks

[GaryK]

Hi

Some people have had some sucess using 3rd party ink. Personally, I thiink you may have problems. If you are critical about your quality then I would definately say, stay with the manufacturers ink.

Also be aware using 3rd pary ink will void your warranty.. at least as far a print heads are concerned (and they can tell).

I have heard of heads clogging and uneven quality. I have also heard some people swear by it. There are those that use every other cartridge as a 3rd party, supposedly keeping the heads clean.

If you are still in the warranty period stay away (why give them more reasons not to honour the warranty). If your printer is inexpesive then you may want to try it ..heck if you mess it up new printers are cheap.

Sorry for being long winded hare

[Carbone]

If you value your work (print on expensive photo paper), or don't have the money to replace your printer in case the compatible ink cartridges break it, then avoid them.

If, on the other hand, if you can easily replace your printer or you printer e-mails and web pages, compatible ink cartridges may mean savings for you.

Personnaly, I would never, ever touch that. Printer manufacturers design their inks to match their paper and printer. Though it may seem like plain coloured liquid, chemically those inks are different and they will display different result on different papers, not necessarily better results. You might end up looking to colour balance your printer (through PSE) because the printouts will be different.

Here's a link about that subject (it's an editorial) :
http://www.macnightowl.com/news/2005/07/week1.htm
Scroll about one third of the page, and check this Title :
Off-Brand Ink Cartridges: Don't Waste Your Time!

Ray

[TonyW]

I've tried both compatibles and refill kits with an older Epson 870 photo quality printer and had problems with both so gave up and now only use OEM cartridges with my newest Epson photo printer.

With a cheap C62 we had for general printing we did use the Staples recycled compatible cartridges and they seemed to work fine but this printer never got used for photo quality printing.

So I agree with the comments above - for photo quality printing stick with the OEM ink and paper.

I've also seen comments about print longevity with non-OEM ink and paper and the difference can be huge - some OEM ink and paper can give over 100 years of life while the wrong ink/paper combo may only give you a year of life. (you can find a recent article on the subject of ink-jet permanence here (http://aabc.bc.ca/aabc/newsletter/15_1/preservation_issues_and_ink_jet.htm))

Tony

[Richard Ellis]

I too tried the Staples 'compatible' cartridges for a Canon i900. They seemed to work fine on ordinary paper, but were very bad for photos. Also, I tried some HP paper in the Canon, and it was a disaster. I threw it away (50 sheets 4 x 6!)

Richard

Theatre is Life, Film is Art, TV is furniture.[/quote]

[Carbone]

Richard,

I too had to try HP paper on my Canon because the Canon replaced a defective HP. HP paper, all sorts, is a total disaster. On some paper, the ink wouldn't dry !

Staples' on Canon was a little under saturated.

The best remains the Canon papers (albeit a little expensive in certain areas). The best for the money is the Matte Photo paper. Inexpensive, deep colours, and well saturated :)

Ray

[Wendy]

Hi there ...

I do use the refills but once again not for printing out photos ... still they are a good saving for normal printing and I haven't had any problems with them :)

(Using them on the hp printer)

Wendy

[jwhitten]

There is a good article here that you might want to read before you but bargain cartridges.

http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,111767,00.asp

Joe

[jwhitten]

Sorry for that typo - but = buy :D

[bluesflues]

Non-OEM is either "compatible" or "remanufactured." You want remanufactured -- it's made from brand new parts and meets OEM stanards, but still a lot cheaper than OEM. Compatible is completely recycled, and in most models it'll void the warranty. Some good info here (http://www.pickyguide.com/computers_and_software/printer_inks_guide.html). :)

[TonyW]

I'd be cautious of either - there was a good study in the September 2005 issue of Consumer Reports - they looked at 500 cartridges for Canon, HP and Epson printers and concluded that you're saving little or no money on per photo costs with off-brand cartridges. Here's the link although it may not work if you're not a CR subscriber:

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/electronics-computers/printers/offbrand-ink-cartridges-905/overview/index.htm

If you're just printing black and white text you can be OK but for photo quality stick with the OEM cartridges.

Tony

[Wendy]

This confused me a little ...

then I realised that our new member bluesflues has picked up on a thread that is rather old ... it dates back to October 2005 :eek:


Wendy

[LeeOtsubo]

This confused me a little ...

then I realised that our new member bluesflues has picked up on a thread that is rather old ... it dates back to October 2005 :eek:


Wendy

Sometimes, it's good to recycle old wives' tales. In the US, use of 3rd party inks and cartidges, per se, can't void warranty based on the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act of 1975. That's not to say companies can't declare the warranty void in cases where 3rd party inks/cartridges actually damage the printer.

As for color fidelity, longevity and cost, it all depends. (That's the 2nd most important phrase I learned in grad school!) For snapshooters, the best policy is stick with OEM inks and papers. The savings probably won't be worth the hassles.

For people who are picky about their prints (serious amateurs, professional photographers, purists, etc), the science is quite advanced from 2005 and there are many 3rd party choices for Epson printers and some for Canon. There still aren't a lot of choices for HP.

I use Mediastreet (http://www.mediastreet.com) ink in most of my Epson printers. These are high quality inks that, with proper profiling, match the color fidelity of Epson inks. I have a preference for Mediastreet because I love their papers. If you print fine art prints, a 3rd party like Mediastreet can offer more choices than any OEM. Based on my own tests as well as WIR, MS G-Chrome inks display longevity on par with OEM inks. As for cost, there's no contest. I can buy a Mediastreet Niagara V continuous flow system that supplies my printers with 4oz of ink versus 0.5 oz in the OEM cart. As soon as I connect a bulk system, I save over US$400 over the life of the printer.

Bottom line, there are reasons for using 3rd party inks/papers and there are reasons for avoiding them but none of it has to do with warranty. As always, stick with reputable vendors and beware of cheap Chinese knock-offs on eBay.

You can read my testimonial re: Mediastreet HERE (http://info.mediastreet.com/support/niagara_testimonials.asp). Also, because I teach so many students each year, MS has extended a discount to me. If you order from the site, use the code "TDPG" for a 10% discount. As always, I have no financial interest in Mediastreet except as a satisfied customer.

[lowbone]

I tried some from Ink Farm on an older HP printer and they didn't work very well. Colors weren't right and they would start fading almost immediately.

[ljameso1]

I use ink4art in my canon printer for my 8.5X11 or smaller.Much cheaper and have had no problems for 4 yrs now in terms of fading as long as not in full sun. If bought a larger format printer would lean towards manufacturer inks as would be looking for much longer lasting print. For the cost is cheaper just to reprint if faded on a smaller size. I too, had problems with inkfarm(clogged heads). Linda

[Edmund]

I use Cartridge World and have not had any problems for the past year or so. It's half the price and I personally feel the ink jet printer manufactors are ripping us off at there high prices. Sort of like the old Gillette razor ....Give me a free razor and let me pay highly inflated prices for the nickle /dime blade. I have friends who have 2 epson printers one for text(cheap cartridges) and one for photos (epson ink). My inks have not faded at all.
Good luck,
Eddie

[BrendaC]

I used Cartridge World and it messed up my printer. WILL NOT use again!! just my experience
Brenda

[j.bravo]

I get my HP printer cartridges from united digital (http://uniteddigitalsolutions.com). Have yet to experience anything bad from refilling or buying non-oem. I refill my own cartridges and then when they are useless, I recycle. win-win for me :D

I refill my own cartridges and then when they are useless, I recycle.

You can also find a variety of compatibles like epson inkjet cartridges, cartridge laser minolta toner, bowes pitney ink cartridge, phaser 1235 and phaser 6200 toner. Luckily, I have yet to go through any of the consequences that other consumers have experienced with regard refilling and compatibles.

[BOBGRUETTER]

Personally, I like the idea of apples sticking with apples. Whatever your printer's name is I'd stick with their brand. It is designed for that equipment and the quality is there. The little extra in cost will be forgotten with the quality.

Bob
BOBGRUETTER

[lowbone]

I tried some from Inkfarm and they were terrible. I have used OEM since