Posted on 02/22/2005 5:31:49 AM PST by infocats
"IT struck me recently that buying printers is a lot like buying hamsters. Both are so cute when you get them, not to mention cheap, and the whole family oohs and aahs about the fun times that lie ahead. Only later, when it is time to clean the cage - or in the case of the printers, to change the ink - do you realize what a hellish choice you have made.
Consider last Sunday night, for example. At 10 p.m., my daughter dropped a bombshell: a high school science report had to be printed. Although the problem at first seemed surmountable - we own three printers, all with both black and color ink cartridges - a crisis developed.
The printer in the girls' bedroom had no ink.
The printer in the kitchen had no ink.
Only my office printer (strictly off limits!) had ink."
I have to buy two. One color and one black. The color costs $28. The black, $22. I don't print much.
I have had this exact same thing happen at my house. My solution...a 24 WalMart. Shopping at midnight!!!
Always buy the same brand printer they have at work.
tsk!!
Just so you're familiar with the operation of course! ;)
Printer manufacturers are really in the ink business. They make almost no money on their printer, where they rape you is the inkjet and toner cartridges. I have a color laser printer, it cost $400 with starter catridges, buying replacement cartridges costs $320. They try to make them impossible to refill and they automatically tell you they are empty when they are over half-filled and they refuse to let you keep printing. You have to hack the cartridge to let you continue printer, and you have to destroy the little cap if you wish to refill. It is a racket.
So when the office runs out of ink they come over to my house? No way!
For massive quantities of monochrome printing, I gotta testify for the HP 1100 Laserjet. It's fast, quiet, trouble free and the cartridges last forever. I don't know if you can still find it, but I got a really good price on one at ****** a coupla years ago. If you want nice color prints go to your local drugstore.
Printer ink and razor blades - outrageous ripoffs. I decided that I didn't really need color printing and switched to a laser printer. It cost $215.00 and will print 5,000 pages before I have to buy a $60.00 toner to print 5,000 more. It will have paid for itself before I get 1/4 way through the first toner.
A $20 inkjet refill kit from Costco lasts me about 1 year and that's going through 1-2 black cartridges a month. I found that the cartridge itself lasts about 1 year before it dies completely.
I buy the off brand compatible cartridges. $6 each for black, $9 each for color. Work fine. Epson brand cartridges are ridiculously expensive.
Now I've had to replace the cartridges in this printer for I think $60-65... around there. But Sams Club has a $20 refill kit that will load up my cartridges 3 times.
The only downside I see is that if it leaks it will invalidate the printer warranty. Big freaking deal! I can just buy a new printer, and by the time I need ink again my printer won't be under warranty anyway.
I just want to know if anyone has had luck with refills and if they work as advertised.
www.printpal.com
I don't buy ink cartridges. I just buy a new printer .........
I tried the refill kits for a while. The savings weren't worth the hassle, especially since I can buy off-brand cartridges for about 1/3 less than the normal cartridges.
I have had great success refilling black. Last time it ran out, it took about 3 minutes to refill. The color isn't working for me though.
Or, just do like my dad does. He's got a whole stack of old Lexmark printers. Runs out of ink and checks the sale pages for the printers with the best rebates. He says Lexmark sells printers with full ink cartridges. HP and the others just fill them halfway when they come with printers
The article reads like a Pat Buchanan column.
In other words, the author gives a very good description of the problem.
But offers no solutions.
I buy the damned cartridges because I am too lazy to have to load a new program every time I switch printers. However it is a racket ,no doubt about that ,$35.00 for 25 cents worth of ink is outrageous. Another poster was correct if you want color pictures go to the drugstore, they cost a little more but they dont run if a drop of water hits them.
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