[Technology] Printer ink prices

[Bodian]

I have an HP printer and a subscription with them whereby I pay a fixed amount per month to print up to a certain amount, and they will automatically send a new cartridge when my machine tells them I'm running low, and even include an addressed envelope for me to return my empties for recycling. This works very well for us, as we only do occasional printing for personal stuff, and my subscription is just £1.99 a month, and there's no walloping cost to pay out for new cartridges when they need changing. Of course, if you are printing loads for work, a bigger subscription may not work out as cost effective.

Yes - we have this. I was initially quite sceptical - but then I discovered that they basically just charge you £x for up to y pages whether they be draft or best quality, B&W or colour. Which has revolutionised my photography as now I can print 50 A4 full colour prints on photo paper for next to nothing (same price as 50 B&W draft pages of type for instance).

 

[Wardy's twin]

The best printer I had was a Dell1660 W. A cheap A4 laser (£66) and the toners lasted a year with reasonable domestic use (kids at school printing of docs and homework) and replacement non Dell toners were £13. None of the issues with dried ink or needing to realign heads etc. Not a photo printer but quality pretty good and where I have printed some they have not faded.

I broke mine , i was too heavy handed getting some jammed paper out. Using an old printer at moment as kids no longer around and I wanted A3 and had a supply of inks for it (HP& nonHP) will bin it when my ink runs out. Printer ink is a rip off , even the 3rd party ones are expensive for what it is.

 

[Weststander]

Have tried compatibles in my Canon a few times. Every single time, I've found that the ink runs out quicker and/or disappears if the printer hasn't been used for a while. Gone back to using Canon and just make sure I do a jolly good google search - can normally find someone who's doing a deal undercutting everyone else.

Same for me.

 

[FatSuperman]

Strange how everyone has such different experiences. I detest the razor/razorblade model of the printer industry, however I suppose the market has forced us that way.

I currently usean Epson (XP-520) and immediately switched to non-genuine ink after the tiny freebies ran out. Printed loads for the kids schooling during Lockdown, so have tried several different 'brands', all via Amazon. They've all been really solid! I'm not trying to print photos etc, so perhaps there is a fundamental difference in quality when you do that?

 

[Brian Potter]

Like a few others have mentioned, I have an HP Instant Ink subscription. No hassle, never run out. Easy to move your subscription rate up and down if you find the amount of printing you are doing has changed. Not sure how it would work out at a business level of printing but for home use it is ideal

 

[Klaas]

[tweet]778897764981678081[/tweet]

 

[B-right-on]

Strange how everyone has such different experiences. I detest the razor/razorblade model of the printer industry, however I suppose the market has forced us that way.

I currently usean Epson (XP-520) and immediately switched to non-genuine ink after the tiny freebies ran out. Printed loads for the kids schooling during Lockdown, so have tried several different 'brands', all via Amazon. They've all been really solid! I'm not trying to print photos etc, so perhaps there is a fundamental difference in quality when you do that?

I had a Lexmark I inherited from a business, only a couple of years old. We print in B&W only and found that it uses all 4 CMYK colours just to print in black.

Bought an Epson XP for not much more than a couple of the cartridges a couple of years ago and it's been the dogs. Use non OEM cartridges too. My Mrs prints about 2-300 pages a month for her business and it's been faultless (touch wood).

 

[Arthritic Toe]

I've had a cheap monochrome samsung laser printer for about 6 years now. I think it was about 40 quid. In that time I think I've replaced the toner cartridge twice - about 10 quid a time. I've had no need o print anything in colour. All types of e-ticket etc are perfectly fine in black and white.

 

[Badger]

My Canon printer has been fine with compatible cartridges for the last 5 years but all of sudden it started coming up with error codes a couple of weeks ago. After a Google search I found out it was because of the cartridges. I tried taking them out and putting them back which worked for one print. Then I tried again a couple of days later and it's stuck on the error code no matter what I do. These are fairly new cartridges, so I'm guessing it's because I haven't been using the printer that often, which can be a problem. I've looked at official cartridges but they've gone way up in price since I last bought some.

I'm now looking at buying a cheap laser printer. Toner is obviously expensive but it lasts a lot longer than ink cartridges.

 

[Monkey Man]

Have you considered not printing? This is a serious question by the way.

Fair question – I need to print for proofreading purposes. I publish a monthly trade magazine and with the best will in the world, you can't do a detailed proofread on screen. Well, perhaps some people can ... but I can't!

 

[sydney]

35 up to 75 bucks a cartridge , printer says new cartridge is empty ...bla bla bla...over it.

 

[Deleted member 22389]

I have an old HP printer. No fancy display, just plug and play. Been fantastic and it also takes non branded cartridges.

 

[The Andy Naylor Fan Club]

I found that with my genuine HP ink cartridges after many months of non-use during the lockdown era. As a last resort, took the cartridges out, gave them a good shake, then re-inserted them. Worked good as new. Non-technical conclusion is that ink settles/separates due to protracted non-use

Our printer gets very little use over the course of a year, a great tip I learned a number of years ago was that printer ink will dry in the head/nozzle of the cartridge and then block the flow of the remaining ink inside. To resolve this hold the head/nozzle over the steam from a kettle for around 10 seconds ( tongs will come in very handy to hold the cartridge), then gently wipe the moisture with some tissue from the head. You will eventually see that the ink will flow freely again. This has brought my cartridges back to life on many occasions.

 

[Coldeanseagull]

I've had a cheap monochrome samsung laser printer for about 6 years now. I think it was about 40 quid. In that time I think I've replaced the toner cartridge twice - about 10 quid a time. I've had no need o print anything in colour. All types of e-ticket etc are perfectly fine in black and white.

Blimey, I thought I don't remember writing that! Then I realised, I only paid fifteen quid for my Samsung ten years ago!
I've also got an OKI all in one. It's about the size of a double decker bus and I'm still playing with the settings for photo printing.....they're too dark