An Overstock.com inkjet printer is an excellent, economical add-on for your personal home office or small business computers. Inkjet printers work by firing ink through tiny pin holes onto paper, so you will occasionally need to refill the ink. Inkjet printers don't create images as sharp as laser printers, but, unlike most lasers, inkjets are well within the budget of any home or small business user. Every printer manufacturer designs ink cartridges specifically for their printers. An ink cartridge may work in only one specific inkjet printer model, or it will fit a series of related models. Here is some basic information to help you understand how ink cartridges for printers work and how to get the best inkjet for your printer.
The first thing to check is manufacturer and model. Is it a compatible ink cartridge? If so, continue; if not, find another ink printer cartridge.
Ink cartridges for printers come in three main types: Original equipment manufacturer, compatible and remanufactured. Not every inkjet printing cartridge type is available for every printer model.
Original equipment manufacturer ink cartridges (OEM for short) are made by the printer companies themselves. Normally, these are the most expensive type; in fact, if you bought the printer on sale, you might pay more for a color printer cartridge than for a color printer! Since the printer maker knows more about their own machines than anyone else, OEM inkjet cartridges will have the highest quality and experience the fewest problems.
Compatible ink cartridges are, like OEMs, newly manufactured, but produced by companies other than the OEM. These discount ink cartridges are similar to generic drugs or aftermarket auto parts. It is not a cheap ink cartridge; it is built to OEM specifications, but without the 'name brand' so it can sell at a lower price. Usually, they are entirely reliable, but manufacturing processes vary and the quality varies with it. The reputable aftermarket supplier guarantees their discount ink cartridges to perform as well as the name brand when used properly. When thinking about buying an inkjet printer, be aware that some OEMs patent their cartridge design, and for them, you aren't likely to find compatible inkjet cartridges.
Remanufactured ink cartridges are previously used, like retread tires. In this ink cartridge replacement, empty cartridges are taken to a processor (the OEM or another company). Processors open the ink cartridge, and refill it after replacing defective or broken parts. Then the ink cartridge is tested for quality. Like compatibles, manufacturing quality varies, but again, reputable remanufacturers guarantee their products. Most inkjet cartridges can be remanufactured several times.
The printhead is the chip that operates the printing action. The printhead may be integrated into the inkjet printer or it may be part of the ink cartridge. This isn't usually noted on the box. If the printhead is on the printer, the ink cartridge is actually little more than a tank. If a printer-mounted printhead fails, you may find an Overstock.com replacement printer cheaper than paying a technician to do major surgery on your printer.
A color inkjet printer uses just four colored inks to produce its 26,000,000,000 colors--black, magenta (light red), yellow and cyan (light blue). Color inkjet cartridges may consist of 4 tanks, one for each color. A tri color ink cartridge contains only three colors. Some combine the colors to create black (not a very good black, say some people), while others are paired with a separate black ink cartridge. This is especially useful for those who print lots of text but not many pictures. Some inkjets have an individual cartridge or tank for each color. Higher end printers use additional colors (up to eight) and special inks to create film-quality photographic outputs.
If properly stored, OEM and remanufactured ink cartridges should still be good 12-24 months or more after purchase, while most compatibles should last 24-36 months. Keep them in their sealed packet, in the box, out of the sun and in a drawer in a room with a steady temperature.
Never run the printer when the ink cartridge is dry, this causes unnecessary wear and might make it unsuitable for recycling. Better to change the ink cartridge before it runs completely dry and 'waste' a tiny bit of ink.
Cartridges from different companies look the same, can I use them in my printer?
Appearance has nothing to do with compatibility. There are hardware issues (the exact shape and size of the ink cartridge) and software issues (the printhead) that make for serious incompatibility issues. Probably, your inkjet printer would just sit there and you would've wasted your money buying the look-a-like.
Can I save money refilling my own cartridges?
In theory, all cartridges are refillable ink cartridges and Overstock.com will happily sell you do-it-yourselfers an ink refill kit. Some users are very happy with this plan, refilling ink cartridge after ink cartridge over and over and saving loads of money. As with most other things, quality varies, and occasionally, some who refill have found it to be a mess and a hassle that produces very low quality printouts or cartridges that don't work at all. This is rare; generally, cartridges can be refilled several times. Still, avoid potential problems by getting your ink refill kit from a reputable company like Overstock.com.
Can ink cartridges be recycled?
Customer involvement is vital to the remanufacturing process, and recycling keeps tons of plastic out of landfills ever year. By the way, some companies give out free mailers so you can return empty cartridges to them 'for free.' Don't give away that empty cartridge; many office supply retailers will 'buy' empty ink cartridges by offering discount ink cartridges when you trade in the old one. If you do plan to recycle, take empty inkjet cartridges from the printer immediately, put them in a plastic bag with a small scrap of wet paper towel and recycle as soon as possible.
How often will I need to refill/replace cartridges?
That varies with the size of the ink cartridge and your personal use, depending on the amount of the page that needs to be covered with ink. For example, an ink printer cartridge might be rated at 300 pages if you only cover ten percent of the page with text and photos. The same cartridge might only have enough ink for about 30 full page images when printing photos from digital cameras or scanners. Ink cartridge capacity (also called reservoir size) ranges from 9ml (about 0.3 ounces) to 42ml (about 1.4 ounces).
Will using a remanufactured or new compatible cartridge void my printer warranty?
No, the Federal Trade Commission has ruled that manufacturers (all manufacturers, not just inkjet printers) must honor warranties even if the consumer uses aftermarket parts.
Before buying printers (laser or inkjet), research the printer toner cartridge or inkjet cartridge--that is where you will spend (or save, if buying at Overstock.com) most of your print budget. Do you need black & white only or full color? How big is the reservoir? Does the OEM offer remanufactured cartridges? Does anyone else offer remanufactured or compatible ink cartridges or an ink refill kit? What are the prices of each type and how often will you need to buy new ones? Is the cartridge up to the volume of inkjet printing you will do?
Now that you've decided on a printer, be sure to check Overstock's entire electronics store. Buy a couple of reams of printer paper and an extra set of cartridges--at Overstock.com, you can afford to indulge! Regardless of how many pages the manufacturer estimates, they can't predict your exact use and you do not want to get caught with an inkjet cartridge that suddenly runs dry.
You may also need some things to go with your new printer. In addition to our extensive ink cartridge inventory, Overstock.com features desktops, laptops, digital cameras, LCD TVs (many of which can be used as computer monitors), cell phones and a host of other great deals for work and entertainment. Our furniture store has a wide selection of home office desks, credenzas, files, chairs and everything else you need for your home or professional office. Likewise, our entertainment store includes several non-fiction business books that could help you increase your profitability.
