Why Do Ink Cartridges Cost So Much?

PCWorld.com ^ | 8/28/2003 | Tom Spring

[Born Conservative]

Consumers revolt over the cost of inkjet cartridges, even as printer prices plummet.

At $22 per quarter-ounce, a Hewlett-Packard color ink-jet cartridge is more expensive, by weight, than imported Russian caviar.

Observing such high prices, Connecticut research consultant Zel Dolinsky wants to know the reasons for them. "How come, with printer prices falling, ink prices are still so outrageous?" Dolinsky asks. "I'm appalled."

[Voltage]

Nobody made you buy those printers! Well in some cases maybe your wife made you do it, but thats another story.

Just view your pretty color pictures on your computer.

For documents use a black/white laser printer...the price is right, a tiny fraction of what it costs to print on an ink jet.

Quit complaining!

[MHT]

I have the same problem with my epson, which really undermines one's confidence about when the ink well really IS empty. It can also mix colors to get a near-black, but goes crazy and will not print if you have black but your color inkjet isn't full. So---you have to buy a color set just to get the black side to work.

I have bought generic replacements from ebay, but have yet to find one that fits right (and have wasted postage money, etc., in the process). However, right now I am waiting for a $10 universal inkjet from bestbuy.com--and shipping was free. Can't wait to see if it works. Sure better at $10 than $23!

[MHT]

Any laser printer you recommend?

[Revolting cat!]

Get the goobermint to pay for your (shaving and printer cartridges. Vote Cruz Bustamante!

[Revolting cat!]

)

[Buckwheats]

For documents use a black/white laser printer...the price is right, a tiny fraction of what it costs to print on an ink jet.

Boy, you've got that right. Bought a Samsung ML-1430 last year for $200, and at the rate I print, the original toner cartridge will probably outlast the printer (print stuff for myself in "Toner Save" mode...only use the best quality for things I send out). I love it.

[hemogoblin]

Anybody know if those Lexmark refill-the-cartridge kits really work? I bought the printer for $32 when my Epson died, and the carts cost $31! Teach me to do my homework.

[BJungNan]

Regulators should leave this issue alone. A company will come that offers a printer with low cost ink refills or a simply filling system. If regulators get in the way, it won't happen.

If only they had let the market alone when electricity was going to take a 10 percent jump in California.

[Queen Jadis]

I'm printing right now with an Epson that cost 79.95 and uses two $30 carts. It ALMOST makes sense to replace the entire printer when the ink runs out, since a new one comes with two new cartridges. There was a story on FR here not long ago about a store that was selling inkjet printers in the $40 range. Ink for the color printers cost more than that. And customers were doing exactly as I'd mentioned - when the ink ran out, they just bought a new printer.

My husband wanted to get ink for his printer. It was an epson (older model) cost of ink around fifty bucks. HP new laser printer 5550 (GREAT PRINTER we already have one) was around seventy bucks. Of course we replaced the printer and now have two HP 5550. The printer comes with two new cartridges but the cartridges have less ink in them than a regular replacement cartridge....it is still worth buying the new printer.

I find that if you are careful about using "fast draft" and "black and white" as your printing option you run out of ink much more slowly. Problem is, I cant figure out how to make "fast draft" a default setting, I suspect it because HP and Epson want us to keep buying the overpriced ink cartridges...and will not allow these options to become default printing settings.

Has anyone figured how to get the default setting to stick on "fast draft"? I have windows xp...

[Queen Jadis]

wrong side of bed day?

[Voltage]

wrong side of bed day?

Not really...its just that the solution is so obvious..don't buy them if you don't like they way you are treated.

I guess if you are in California you could get Cruz Bust....to help you out. He could threaten to throw the printer manufacturers in jail if they didn't behave.

[Brandon]

I've been filling HP color and Black cartridged for years. For $100.00 you can purchase (3-Pints color + 1Pint Black) enough bulk ink to refill cartridges at a small business for over a year. I've filled the Black cartridge seven times before repalcement of the cartridge is necessary and the color five times.

I applaud you. I haven't been brave enough to do that, since in the manual that came with my HP printer, it says that doing my own refills voids the warranty. I don't know how they would know that I had done that, but it's made me skittish enough to stay away from that option.

[Vinnie]

Canon does not have embedded chips in the BCI-6xx series ink cartridges. No electrical connection exists between the ink cartridge and the printer. These cartridges are used in all of their 6-colour photo quality printers.

One of the reasons I bought a Canon S520 is the low price of replacement cartridges. They are much less expensive than Lexmark, HP, or Epson.

The printer is rated highly also.<$100.

[holyscroller]

I was doing color printing on my old HP Deskjet before there were color printers. I just saved the old ink cartridges and refilled them with a hypoodermic needle and bottles of ink from the stationery store (I think it was the non-waterproof variety, but I can't remember).

I would do my documents in stages...set the type for all the red stuff and run that thru, then again for the blue, green, black, etc. I had to run the same paper thru once for wach color. It was a crude system, but it worked, and I never had ink cartridge problems. I just wish I could remember which ink type I used, waterproof or non-waterproof.

[weegee]

Why do CD players now cost $20 or less while CDs cost $15-19?

[Sloth]

Why do parking spaces cost $0.25 when cars cost $25,000.00?

[Just playing dumb :) ]

[Paul Atreides]

I have been pretty well-pleased with Canon's printers. The ink cartridges are dirt-cheap compared to other brands.

[bert]

Buy the ink in volume

Global ink 877 534 1297

Buy it by the quart.

[Queen Jadis]

Not really...its just that the solution is so obvious..don't buy them if you don't like they way you are treated.

I guess if you are in California you could get Cruz Bust....to help you out. He could threaten to throw the printer manufacturers in jail if they didn't behave.

Printers are not a luxury item for those that MUST use them for work related functions. I fall within this catagory. So your "solution" doesn't work for me.

Neither does your comment about me being from California, where you make another attempt at off the cuff "wit". Stay on topic...there are other threads where you can post about "Cruz Bust".

[timydnuc]

Answer to title: Cause they cost $35.00.