Carla Weaffer asked:


Like many other long term owners of printers, over the years I’ve spent a fortune on printer ink. I even recall on one occasion I actually paid more for a replacement ink cartridge than I did for a bottle of good champagne. I always thought that as long as my printer kept printing then it was just another fact of life and there was little I could do about it so why complain?

Back then, on average, I paid anything from £20 to £25 for my branded ink cartridges because I simply didn’t know any better.

Although I’d heard of compatible ink cartridges, I didn’t really know enough about them to give them a try. I was a bit suspicious of them because the cartridges weren’t branded with a familiar name and I never gave it a second thought that they would be as good as branded cartridges. I even wondered if they might damage my printer.

Then one day, my partner came home with some compatible ink cartridges for my printer and although I wasn’t keen to use them I did. My existing ink cartridge was almost empty and I needed to get something printed so I cagily replaced the branded cartridge with the compatible, crossed my fingers and hit ‘print’.

I had visions of having to run out to buy a new branded ink cartridge or, in the worst case, a new printer and a new branded ink cartridge. The paper finally came out after what seemed to be an eternity and I was surprised to see that not only had my document printed as well as it ever had before, but my printer was still happily sitting on my desk, waiting for the next job.

I couldn’t believe it. The compatible ink turned out results that were just as good as with the branded ink I had previously spent a fortune on. At the same time, I was so happy to learn that the compatible cartridge had cost a tenth of the price I’d been paying and yet disappointed when I thought about all of the money I could have saved (and all of the champagne I could have had).

After sitting down and working on the figures, I’d come to the conclusion that I’d actually spent almost £500 on replacement, branded ink cartridges over the last 12 months alone. If I would have been using compatibles I would have saved an incredible 90% of my printing costs!

The next day, I went into work and told my colleagues all about what had happened and to my surprise two of them had also been spending more than they’d wanted on branded printer ink simply because they didn’t have enough knowledge about compatibles.

This inspired me to carry out research on compatible ink cartridges in order to find out the facts behind them; their advantages and disadvantages. I was astounded by what I discovered! Here are just a few of the things I found out:

* You can save between 60% and 80% on average from the price of a branded ink cartridge depending on the make and model of your printer.

* Despite the myths, compatible ink does not affect the warranty on your printer. By using compatible ink you’re cutting out a major profit source for the big brands so they may try to convince you that you can only use their own inks, but it’s actually illegal for them to void your warranty for using a compatible ink instead.

* Compatible ink provides the same number of printed pages as a branded cartridge.

* When buying your compatible ink, it’s always a good idea to ask the vendor if the cartridges are made to ISO 9000 standards. Ink made to these standards have the same amount of ink as original cartridges.

* Most compatible ink cartridges have a 24-month shelf life so you don’t have to worry about them spoiling in a short space of time.

Nowadays, I’m printing as much as I ever did, if not more. The great thing is that I’m spending less on printer ink, more on the enjoyable things in life and telling everyone I meet about the wonders of compatible printer inks!

Carla Weaffer asked:


Personal computers along with inkjet printers can be found in many homes these days both for personal and home office use. As prices for inkjet cartridges can become quite expensive, it can be a wise consumer decision to look into purchasing compatible printer ink cartridges.

What are compatible printer ink cartridges? Compatible printer ink cartridges are refurbished printer ink cartridges that are compatible with Epson and Canon printers just for example. Purchasing compatible printer ink cartridges can be beneficial in several ways. There are very few consumer printer models that are not compatible with compatible printer ink cartridges.

The first reason that it is a wise consumer decision to purchase compatible printer inks is that it will save you money. Replacement cartridges that are produced by printer manufacturers can a lot of the time end up to be more expensive then the printer itself. If you were to do some comparison shopping you will see that compatible printer ink cartridges will end up costing less than cartridges produced by manufacturers. Consumers that buy inkjet refill kits can greatly extend the life of a printer ink cartridge, thus saving them money.

Ease of purchase is another excellent benefit to purchasing and using both compatible printer ink cartridges as well as inkjet refill kits. It is extremely easy for consumers to locate a retailer of compatible printer ink cartridges online at more reasonable prices then brick and mortar stores. Most consumers appreciate the convenience of this as they do not even have to leave their home to order a new printer ink cartridge.

If you use an inkjet refill kit you will be helping to reduce the amount of solid waste getting disposed of into landfills. In addition to that the use of inkjet cartridge refill kits are very convenient as you can often refill a cartridge several times with one refill kit. Using a compatible printer ink cartridge along with an ink refill kit can greatly increase the life on an ink cartridge as long as the cartridge is refilled before reaching the empty point. Also as most ink contained in quality compatible ink cartridges and ink cartridge refill kits is very good quality it would be possible to purchase a number of cartridges and store them for later use. Since the printer ink is of a quality you should not have to worry about stored printer ink producing a poor quality print job.

Many consumers are under the impression that using a compatible printer ink cartridge or an inkjet refill kit will void the warranty on their computer. This is not the case, as typically the use of compatible printer ink cartridges will not void the warranty on a consumer printer. Another concern of individuals looking to purchase a new printer is that it will produce a print job that is inferior to a ink cartridge. A quality compatible printer inkjet cartridge will produce a print job equal to that of a cartridge produced from a manufacturer, sometimes even better in some cases.

So when you are looking into purchasing a new printer, remember all the great benefits that go along with using compatible printer inks.

Carla Weaffer asked:


Many consumers make use of a consumer printer in addition to a personal computer for a number of reasons. With the purchase of a consumer printer also comes the need to purchase replacement printer ink cartridges as the ink runs out of the cartridge you are currently using. Replacement printer ink cartridges that are purchased from printer manufacturers can often cause quite an expense for consumers. Many manufacturer-made replacement printer ink cartridges can even surpass the purchase price of the printer they are used with. This is why buying compatible printer inks is a wise consumer choice. There are many ways why using compatible printer ink cartridges can be beneficial.

The main reason that using compatible printer ink cartridges and inkjet refill kits appeals to many consumers is that it will save you money. Individuals will find that more often than not a compatible printer ink cartridge will be less of an expense than the purchase a replacement printer ink cartridge from a printer manufacturer. Inkjet refill kits is also a great money saving option for consumer printer owners that may be on a budget or those that just like saving some money. An ink refill kit can greatly extend the life of a printer ink cartridge if the cartridge is refilled before the ink cartridge is completely empty.

Another great benefit to purchasing an inkjet refill kit or a compatible printer in cartridge is that they are extremely easy to purchase. Most consumers very much appreciate that they can order a compatible printer ink cartridge online for a great price and have it delivered right to their front doorstep.

The quality of the print job a compatible printer ink cartridge can provide you with is another great reason to use compatible printer inks. If you have purchased a good quality compatible printer ink the quality of the print work should be equal to an ink cartridge purchase from a printer manufacturer.

If you are an ecologically conscious consumer you will appreciate that compatible printer ink cartridges and ink refill kits decrease the amount of solid waste dumped into landfills each year as the can be reused several times. Also if you wish to purchase compatible printer ink cartridges or refill kits in bulk if you buy a good quality ink you will not have to worry about the future print jobs you printer will produce as the ink should store quite well. This option is can be found to be a real money saver with a lot of consumers.

There are very few models of printers that will not work with compatible inkjet printers so you would not have to worry about limited choice when looking into buying a printer you can use compatible printer inks with. Deciding to use compatible printer ink cartridges instead of replacement ink cartridges from a manufacturer can provide you with high quality print work at a much more reasonable price. So keep all of this useful information about compatible printer inks in mind as soon as you begin shopping for a new printer or your current printer is in need of new ink.