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Ink cartridges and how we use them

By: Andrew James

An inkjet cartridge is the replaceable component of an inkjet printer that contains the ink used when printing. The ink cartridge can also contain the print head itself. Every ink cartridge is made up from one or more partitioned ink reservoirs and some producers also insert electronic contacts and a chip that transmits information to the printer.

The printing depends on the smooth flow of ink, which can be hindered if the ink begins to dry at the print head, as can happen when an ink level becomes low. Dried ink can be cleaned from a cartridge print head by rubbing gently with isopropyl alcohol on a swab or folded paper towel.

Most of the time ink cartridges tend to be quite expensive, so customers started to use "compatible" ink cartridges. These cartridges are produced by companies other than the printer manufacturers. Compatible ink cartridges can come at the same quality as the original ones, depending on the manufacturing company. However, all compatible ink cartridges are cheaper than original ones. Many people use modified printers that allow the use of continuous ink systems. These printers use ink from external ink tanks. People can also use aftermarket inks to refill their cartridges, or take them to local refillers.

Consumers are often surprised at the price of replacing their printer cartridges, especially when compared with that of purchasing a brand new printer. The major printer manufacturers, Hewlett Packard, Lexmark, Dell, Canon, Epson and Brother often break even or loose money selling printers, and expect to recoup their losses by selling expensive cartridges over the life span of the printer. Since much of the printer manufacturer's profits are made up of ink and toner cartridge sales, some of these companies have taken various actions against aftermarket cartridges. Sometimes, even legal action was taken.

Many printer owners choose to refill their cartridges or buy remanufactured cartridges from third parties over buying new cartridges. This saves them a lot of money (they only have to buy the ink and a few other small raw materials) and gets them almost the same quality. A whole industry has grown up around ink cartridge refilling. Customers can find several qualities and types of refilling. However, some are safe and successful while other types can destroy the printer or produce low quality prints. Some of the options are to take the empty cartridges to refillers or remanufacturers, or buy store branded ink.

There is one more thing the consumer can do: refill their own cartridges. Most cartridges have instructions on how to use and refill on the Internet. Bulk ink sellers can also be found on the Internet. They offer pints, quarts, and even gallons of ink. One single pint (473 ml) can refill between 15 and 17 large cartridges (of 27 ml capacity).

Generally speaking, Brother, Canon, Dell, HP, and Lexmark cartridges are not difficult to refill (sometimes a syringe and ink are enough), while Epson cartridges usually require the additional purchase of a chip resetter to reset the counter chip inherent in the Epson cartridges. However, since it involves handling ink, the refill process can be inherently messy until some experience has been acquired.

Laser/toner cartridges found as "compatible" are, in most of the cases, refilled cartridges. However, you can find many third-party newly manufactured cartridges. On the other hand, inkjet cartridges sold as "compatible" are newly produced. "Remanufactured" inkjet cartridges have been used by consumers and then refilled by a third party. Be very careful what you buy. Used cartridges may not work as newly manufactured ones.

Italian Article Marketing Directory: http://www.articolando.com

Andrew James can supply a great deal of interesting information about ink cartridges as well as information about other subjects to do with printing supplies including inkjet cartridges




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