I came across an idea proposed by a PCWorld writer . . . The cheaper your printer is, the more expensive your printer ink will be. Melissa Riofrio of PC World wrote:

You can get a single-function inkjet printer in this price range, but it will most likely be a very slow model with bare-bones features: slow performance, no control panel, skimpy paper handling. The inks will most likely be expensive, to compensate for the rock-bottom hardware price. Watch out for tricolor cartridges, which unite cyan, magenta, and yellow into one package–forcing you to replace all three inks when any single one runs out.

I found this line of thought to be interesting, so I did a little research.

First, I decided to take a look at some of the more popular HP inkjet printers. I chose HP because they dominate the inkjet printer market. They also come under the most fire because of the cost of their printer cartridges. The below table shows the data I collected. The asterisk next to the printer names means that the printer uses individual color cartridges (rather than a single color cartridge).

This is an over simplified bit of research, but I just wanted to see if there was any correlation between Ms. Riofrio’s thoughts and what is actually happening in the market place. Let’s take a look at what I found.

#1 - Inkjet printer prices essentially break out at $99, $199, $299. Inkjet printer prices can go as high at $999.

#2 - The $99 printer was the only printer that used a single color cartridge (one cartridge that contains cyan, magenta, and yellow ink. This is in line with Ms. Riofrio’s warning, “Watch our for the tricolor ink cartridge”. When one of the three inks runs out you have to replace the entire cartridge, even if you have not run out of the other two colors. You are not getting  your full $40.99 worth if you cannot use all the ink in the cartridge.

#3 - At the $149 to $199 price level we see the individual color ink cartridges emerge (at least in the most recent generation of HP inkjet printers). This means that your printer now takes four different cartridges (black, cyan, magenta, yellow). The advantage is that when run color runs out you only have to replace that color and not the entire cartridge. The $149 printer uses a black cartridge that costs $25.99 and color cartridges that cost $19.99 each. The $199 printer uses a black cartridge that costs $11.99 and color cartridges that cost $9.99 each.

This would seem to be some sort of natural break point. When we go from the $99-$149 printer price level to the $199 price level we see quite a drastic drop in cartridges prices. Fourteen dollars on the black cartridge and $10 for each color cartridge. Huh, maybe there is something to this theory!

#4 - Let’s jump up to the $299 printer price level. Now we see an increase in cartridge prices from the $199 level. The same holds true when we jump up to the $399 and $999 price levels. Cartridge prices are increasing as printer prices increase.

So, one would think that Ms. Riofrio’s theory is not all that valid. I’m not so quick to disagree with her, but don’t have the hard evidence to back it up. Intuitively it makes sense.

Most consumers are buying printers in the $150-$250 range. Also, given all the deals being offered by retailers, you almost always will pay less for a printer than the manufacturers suggested retail price. It is getting less expensive to manufacture printers with more technology in them.

As for printer cartridges, HP has become a lot more secretive about the amount of ink inside their cartridges, but you can guess from just looking at the cartridges, there is less ink in them now than there was 10 years ago. When I started in this business HP’s cartridges were quite large. Now they are less than half the size of what they were then. How can you argue they hold as much ink?

Can anyone lend a hand in defending this theory? Or, maybe you have some information that will refute it? Share it! Thanks.

Back in December I talked about printer page yields and gave a few tips on things you could do to save some money on printer cartridges. Well, this morning I found a story that provided a real life example of this change and the effect it can have.

A student at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay found a way to help his school’s budget, and all he did was switch the default font on the school’s email system from Arial to Century Gothic. The school’s director of computing says that the Century  Gothic font uses 30% less ink than the Arial font. How is this so? Well, take a look at the two fonts below.

The text on top was written in Arial, the text on the bottom was written in Century Gothic. Notice any differences? Yes, the top font is darker than the bottom. The letters on the top font are thicker than those on the bottom.

To print text that is darker and thicker means that you are using more ink. When your default font is Arial, you are going to go through more printer ink than someone who has their default font set at Century Gothic. Most people don’t pay attention to default fonts, nor do they pay attention to the fonts they use to create documents. More often than not, the determining factor on which font to use is how good it looks.

So, put the “font attractiveness” aside and do the majority of your printing with a low ink use font. You’ll find your ink cartridges will last you longer.

Take a minute to leave a comment below and let me know what you think about this. Thanks!

We recently added the Canon GPR-22 (0386B003AA) toner cartridge to product offering. This black toner cartridge will yield up to 8,400 pages.

The GPR-22 toner cartridge works in the following Canon printers: Canon imageRUNNER 1018, Canon imageRUNNER 1022, Canon imageRUNNER 1023, Canon imageRUNNER 1023iF, Canon imageRUNNER 1023N, Canon imageRUNNER 1025, Canon imageRUNNER 1025iF, Canon imageRUNNER 1025N

Have you had a chance to use this cartridge? If so, leave a few comments about how it worked for you. Thanks!

Everyone wants to save a little money. A good way to do it, from my perspective, is to cut back on your printer ink and paper use. Here’s a list of three software downloads you can use to do just that.

Bullzip PDF printer
Everyone knows what PDF stands for, right? If not, it stands for Portable Document Format. By turning  your documents in to PDF files you can email them to anyone without the worry of the recipient making unwanted changes. Additionally you can store your documents electronically (less clutter in your home). Anyone see the savings potential here? No more paper! Bullzip will allow you to save on the cost of paper. Best of all, when you do need to print a copy of a certain document, you can print the PDF.

Adobe has done a tremendous job making the PDF popular, but their software comes with a big price tag. Bullzip has some great features and is free. Check it out and download from PCWorld.

FinePrint
FinePrint is another program that will help you save paper and gain more control over what you print. By gaining control I mean that often when we print a page from the web we are never really sure how it will print. Web pages are designed to look good on the screen, but they often look horrible when printed. Printing a web page often means using a lot of paper and ink.

With FinePrint you can print up to eight pages on a single page as well as double sided pages (if you don’t have a duplexing printer you are still going to have to manually re-insert your paper to print the second side). The software also helps you eliminate wasting ink and paper by showing you how a printed web page is going to look, when printed, and letting you eliminate graphics and backgrounds (the stuff that really sucks up a lot of ink).

FinePrint is not a free software. You get a free 30 day trial, but then have to pay a one time $50 fee to continue to use the software. You can download FinePrint from PCWorld.

GreenPrint World
GreenPrint World is a program that will allow you to save on both paper and ink. You are giving up a little control here, because GreenPrint World accomplishes these savings by determining which pages, you are trying to print, are unnecessary. The program also allows you to remove pages or text you feel are unnecessary. You can also create PDF’s instead of printing them. You can download (32-bit | 64-bit) GreenPrint World, for free, from PCWorld.

To summarize . . . If you are looking to save money on printer ink and printer paper, the best thing you can do us print everything to a PDF format. You won’t be using any paper or ink and you’ll be able to store an electronic file that you can print when necessary. PDF’s are easy to email as an attachment, so if a friend or neighbor needs some kind of document from you, save it as a PDF and email it.

If you have to print something. One of these other software programs might be right for you. They allow you to limit what you do print to only the essentials. Any kind of reduction in use of ink and paper will certainly be noticeable.

Do you have any printer ink and paper saving tips? If so, let me know. Thanks!

(Note: This post was inspired by a list I found on the PCWorld web site)

This one is very cool. Forget that lame old senator stuff from the other day. This is what we should be talking about.

Scientists using an Organovo NovoGen printer recently created the first printed human vein. Okay, so I could print a picture of a human vein at any time using my HP OfficeJet 5610. Only difference is that the one printed on the Organovo printer might actually be something that could be placed in your body . . . and do something useful.

The printer is meant to be used in regenerative medicine. Instead of using synthetic body parts, parts from others, or parts from yourself, the printer will just print a new part for  you. Need a toe? Print it! The cartridges for this printer are loaded with “bio-ink”, which is a substance that acts as a framework for cells to retain their shape. A computer, linked to the printer, is pre-programed with a 3D blueprint of whatever organ needs to be made. Based on this blueprint, the printer lays down two dimensional layers of bio ink and cells, the cells then grow around the printed framework to eventually create a 3D body part.

What are the ramifications of this type of technology? First, it could eliminate the need to use plastics or metals when replacing body parts. Second, it could eliminate the need for donated organs from cadavers. Last, it could eliminate the need for doctors to remove tissue from one part of your body and use in another.

Obviously, being able to print a vein is a pretty small step toward being able to print a heart or liver, but it is a step.

How cool would it be to be able so say that your heart came out of a printer! Let me know what you think. Thanks!

I still get a kick out of seeing stories that involve printer ink and the leaders of our country. Not exactly sure why, but I suppose it might be because I feel they have more important things to discuss than printer cartridges.

Three republican senate candidates (Tom Campbell, Chuck DeVore, Carly Fiorina) met in a live radio debate back on March 5. The beginning of the debate focused on Mr. Campbell defending his stance on Israel. Campbell’s opponents are calling him anti-semetic.

It then turned to Mr. Campbell and Mr. DeVore focusing on Ms. Fiorina, accusing her of launching this sentiment against Mr. Campbell.

With all this going on, when did they have time to talk printer ink?

It came when they used the words printer ink and national security in the same sentence. The attack on Ms. Fiorina, a former HP executive, continued with comments about an HP subsidiary violating U.S. sanctions against Iran by selling printers to the country. Ms. Fiorina responded by saying that “Redistribution of printer ink in compliance with U.S. law is not a national security issue.”

Huh? Again, back to beginning comment, don’t these people have better things to talk about than printer ink?

Anyone agree or disagree? Let me know. Thanks!

I’ve got some new cartridge releases to share with you. This week Pacific Ink released 14 new compatible printer ink cartridges for use in Canon printers. These additions bring our the total number of cartridges we offer to 3,582!

First released was a set of 11 compatible cartridges that replace the  Canon PGI-9 cartridges. Just as Canon brand cartridges, these cartridges provide:

• Quality and reliability
• Ink formulation for photographic print quality when used photo paper
• Professional quality black and white Photos with matte black, photo black, and grey inks
• Individual black and color ink tanks so you only have to replace the cartridge that is empty

These cartridges work in the Canon PIXMA MX7600 and the Canon PIXMA Pro9500 printers.

Our other releases this week were:

• Compatible PGI-35 Black Ink Cartridge
• Compatible CLI-36 Color Ink Tank
• Compatible PGI-7 Black Ink Cartridge

Have you had the opportunity to use any of these cartridges yet? If so, let me know what you think about them. Thanks!

As I took a stroll though cyber space this morning, I noticed a few headlines pertaining to an increase in the sale of printer cartridge refill kits. As a seller of refill kits the headlines caught my attention. I had to click to find out more.

The articles behind the  headlines really did not contain much substance. Most were just generic news releases by companies that sell refill kits. They are looking for a way to gain some online eyeballs that might (they hope) lead to some sales. The basic idea is that the economy is causing consumers to look for more ways to save money. One way to do this is to buy printer cartridge refill kits to refill your printer cartridges. One article even touted that you could refill your cartridge for less than $1.00. Less than $1.00, really? I guess that would really just depend on how much a vendor charges for the refill kit.

I’ve been offering refill kits since 2000. Back then they were pretty popular, mostly because the quality of remanufactured cartridges was not all that high. But, as the quality of remanufactured cartridges has risen, the popularity of the refill kit has declined. The increased popularity of the retail refill services has also contributed to their decline. Not may folks, outside of tattoo artists, really want to mess around with ink and needles, so as these other options have improved the refill kit has become less popular. Today refill kits have become a product of the hard core “do-it-yourself’ crowd. Yes, they will save you money, but probably not as much as mentioned above.  Here’s an example that is grounded in a little more reality.

Most refill kits will allow you to refill a cartridge 3 times. According to the math at the beginning of this post, the vendor is selling their refill kit for less than $3.00. Probably not likely.

Here a better example. The HP 74 (CB335WN) black ink cartridge sells for $14.99. I offer a refill kit for $13.99 and it provides three refills of the black cartridge. You will be spending about $4.67 per cartridge refill. Much less than the $14.99 you pay for a new cartridge.

Here’s what you need to remember about using refill kits. Printer cartridges are designed as a single use product, meaning once they run out of ink they are technically supposed to be unusable. Damage to the print head or dried ink within the nozzles will limit the number of refills you can get. Because of this, I cannot guarantee that you will be able to refill your cartridge even one time, but you will always see at least refill kits advertised as providing, at least, three cartridge refills. The number three is an industry average. Remember, averages are made up of numbers that are higher and lower than the number shown.

Are you a refill kit user? Are you thinking of becoming a refill kit user? Take a minute and share your thoughts with me. Thanks!

The HP Officejet 6000 is HP’s latest offering in the single-function inkjet printer category. It doesn’t have many of the bells and whistles of the popular all-in-ones, but what it lacks in features, it makes up for in print quality and speed. Topping out at a competitive 0.46 full-color photos per minute, there’s no doubting the capability of the 6000, but it’s missing a few critical features such as a USB cord, LCD screen, and media card reader. The Officejet costs an affordable $90, but you can get much more office functionality out of the Canon Pixma MX330, a multifunction printer with a built-in fax machine, copier, scanner, color LCD, and an auto-document feeder for only $20 more than the HP. Check out the Canon if you want the most features for your dollar, but if all you’re looking for is a fast printer, you won’t be disappointed with the HP Officejet 6000. (Source: CNET)

If you own this printer, let me know what you think about it. Thanks!

— CNET Rating: 3.5 Stars —

The good: Prints high-quality text and photos, fast print speeds compared with the competition, network ready.

The bad: No USB cord included, no LCD makes it difficult to troubleshoot.

The bottom line: We like the simplicity of the HP Officejet 6000 single-function inkjet printer. The print quality meets HP’s high standards, and it outputs full color photos at an impressive rate, but its lack of an LCD screen takes some getting used to. Nevertheless, the HP Officjet 6000 performed well and earns our recommendation as a great single-function printer. (Read the full CNET review)

— PCWORLD  —

HP’s Officejet 6000 Wireless is an inexpensive four-color ink-jet printer that, as its name implies, has wireless 802.11b/g connectivity. It also has an inexpensive price per print–as long as you buy HP’s high capacity ink tanks. Though office ink-jets are nothing new, HP positions the Officejet 6000 as a greener and cheaper alternative to workplace color laser printers. (Read the rest of the PCWorld review)

— Consumer Ratings: 3.5 Stars —

A positive comment from Amazon.com:

Great wireless printer, ONCE IT’S SET UP…but

I gave the printer five stars, because of price point (at 89.00, the ability to print wirelessly and with such a good quality printer is amazing) and because the printer has worked seamlessly once it was set up. Also, because HP clearly cares enough to add (not so) little touches such as:

1. Including the USB cable with the printer (Canon does not do this, from what I remember).

2. Including (this is amazing) the actual cartridges with the printer instead of “starter” cartridges that print maybe fifty sheets before conking out. Truthfully, you have to factor that into the price of these “cheaper” printers and realize that you have to tack on another thirty or more dollars to the price to pay for decent cartridges. With the ones supplied, I should be able to print at least 400 pages of black and white letters, email, etc. befor replacing the black cartridge.

3. If, like most of us looking for a small business (or home business) printer, there is the option to use an extended black cartridge which will give you even more pages between changes. This wouldn’t be so important for a photo printer, but for what it is (it’s called an “Officejet,” remember) this is a wonderful feature.

4. The printer goes into standby mode and “wakes up” when needed. Perhaps all new printers do this (my last printer was from a few years ago) but I find this a great feature.

Some may be put off by the form factor – this is not a small printer and takes up a fair amount of desk space. Also, the majority of the plastic sides are in white, (or putty, I suppose) which I have a feeling will show dirt and smudges worse than a silver or black model.

Finally, let’s get to the frustrating elements. As I’ve said, none of these were bad enough for me to lower the five star rating, but they were a little annoying:

1. (this is trivial but if it saves someone else the headache, it’s worth mentioning) – the set up instructions included in the box clearly show a plastic back panel that looks to be inserted when one is not using the black duplex printing back that comes with this unit. Duplex printing means the ability to print on both sides of the page, and the black plastic back is called “optional” in the instructions. Well, upon unpacking the printer I couldn’t find the other panel anywhere in the box or on the printer -although it was clearly seen in the picture. I called HP and, as I surmised, the printer does NOT come with this flat back panel. You LEAVE the black duplex printing back (which sticks out in a bump from the back) in the printer all the time. The pictures in the instructions were for the NON-WIRELESS version of the printer. It would have been nice if someone had mentioned that the wireless printer ONLY comes with the black back.

2. It takes the printer up to ten minutes to set itself up when you turn it on for the first time. This is clearly marked in the instructions, but if you don’t notice it, you might think something is wrong as you wait…and wait…and wait…for it to print that magical first test page. NOTHING IS WRONG. Have patience.

3. As others have noted, the software is ridiculously slow to install. I will say that when I installed it in our XP (the second computer) it took a fraction of the time, so perhaps this is a Vista issue. But it took (I’m not kidding) forty-five minutes to load. I kept thinking it was hanging, but then it would inch foward another 1% and chug along. I have NEVER had software take this long to load since the DOS days! Oh, and make sure you disable your anit-virus software before you load it. I didn’t and it seemed to make it crash the first time I tried to install it. (obviously turn back your anti-virus software after installation).

The GOOD NEWS: Once installed, it found the router immediately and both computers found the printer with no problems whatsoever. To have a wireless printer that my wife can print her recipes without having to bother me or I can print without taking up a valuable USB slot on my laptop is fantastic. And the quality is great for basic office chores.

I have NO idea if it will last, but as of now, I’m am really delighted to have a wireless printer with so many features at thie price point.

A negative comment from Amazon.com:

A hundred-dollar headache

Over the years, I’ve used printers by Okidata, NEC, Brother and a couple of others with success and admiration for the technology. I was prepared to admire this one from HP, which would be a bargain for a color printer (wireless yet), if it could be made to work. My hookup is fine; I chose to use a USB cable. No software problem. No command-to-printer problem. After a little fussing, the color cartridges lock securely into place. That’s the end of it. There’s no apparent paper stop to guide the insertion of paper into the tray. The printer starts up with the huff and puff of a mighty machine, then spins its wheels, and spins then. Paper in further, nada. Paper in not so far, nada. Popups announcing a general printer failure. It doesn’t like 20 lb, doesn’t like 22 lb, doesn’t like 24 lb laid. Maybe there’s some finessing that will make this “bargain” work, but I’d rather pay more and get a machine that’s engineered for function. This isn’t it. (Read all Amazon.com user reviews)

Here’s an example of why you need to be careful when buying alternative brand printer cartridges.

Hewlett Packard has accused a Taiwanese maker of printer cartridges with using stolen HP cartridge parts to make printer cartridges and sell them, in the U.S., under the name MIPO.

HP claims the Taiwanese company, MicroJet, used more than 300,000 genuine HP color and black-and-white ink printheads to manufacture their cartridges. They claim this act infringes upon six patents held by HP that relate to ink jet printing technologies. Unfortunately, this type of manufacturing is not uncommon in countries such as Taiwan and China. It is not uncommon for manufacturers to use stolen parts (knowingly or unknowingly) to manufacture lower cost alternative brand or counterfeit ink cartridges.

Both of these types of cartridges provide an attractive revenue source for cartridge makers. Especially when their cost of production is virtually nothing (stolen goods)! The printer user’s desire to find a less expensive alternative to the manufacturer brand cartridge has dramatically increased the size of this market, and unfortunately promoted these types of illegal acts.

Most likely you will not know if you are using a printer cartridge that has been built with stolen parts. You best defense is to use common sense. Only buy from reputable vendors. If you want to take it a step further, only buy from authorized vendors.

Do you think you’ve ever used a cartridge made from stolen parts? If so let me know about it.