PCA Forums

http://consumerist.com/2009/12/hp-ink-c ... blood.html

I have never understood why ink refills cost more than a printer that comes with ink.

I have a canon pixma p2600 that ran out of ink. I went to walmart get more ink and saw the same printer for less that the refills. I bought the printer so when the cats break one I will have a spare.

Printer ink isn't sexy but ounce for ounce it is more expensive than a bottle of Dom Perignon Champagne.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aA-uN2Dmn0M

After a few bad experiences trying to find cheaper solutions to Canons cartridges at $15 each (X5) for a $100 all in one printer (MP 620), I finally found a retailer via Amazon where you can get a 5 pack for $18 and it works, no problems.

http://www.amazon.com/Compatible-PGI-22 ... 600&sr=1-1

I just use Laser.. For black printing, there is no way to beat a laser in terms of cost.. And you don't have to worry about the toner drying out if you don't print that often.

eGo

Ditto on the laser. I have an old HP Laserjet 6P. Thing prints for a year and a half on one toner cartridge and I print a LOT.

I bought a brother 2040 laser a few years ago for $100 and I'm still on the same toner. I don't print too often, but it's nice to have it never dry out. When this toner is done I'll buy another as the newer ones are only $80 and toner is $60. Color laser is another story however. We have an hp and each toner is around $100. 4 toners in a set is quite costly.

CaterpillarAssassin wrote:When this toner is done I'll buy another as the newer ones are only $80 and toner is $60.

Beware the starter cartridge! We bought some Lexmarks for a client and the starter cartridge printed about 500 pages instead of 3-5000...

eGo

eGoCeNTRoNiX wrote:Beware the starter cartridge! We bought some Lexmarks for a client and the starter cartridge printed about 500 pages instead of 3-5000...

eGo

Ditto that.

This thread is why I installed CISS (Constant Ink Supply System) in my Canon printer. In fact, I bought the printer specifically because I knew it was fairly easily compatible. So far, I've had it installed for 4-5 months. I print daily & on occasion, I print up to 20 sheets a day (many full color prints & none are in economy mode). I even printed all the wrapping paper for the Christmas presents (my wife loves zebra print). Yet, my tanks are all over half full except the black which is getting to about 1/4. The refill kit with all 5 colors (4oz. bottles) are $22 shipped for a reliable brand (ink that won't gunk up the heads) & since there's never any cartridge removal (tanks are outside the printer) it's only about 30 seconds with a syringe to completely refill a tank. Oh & the system was only about $60-80, which right there is already less than the original cartridges. Heck, I still have the originals to replace in an emergency.

I tryed a CISS for my Canon MP 620 but there was no way to route the lines so returned it. I then tryed refillable cartidges but their chips sucked and customer service also sucked. The cartidges I now use via Amazon has been the best solution for my printer and they're affordable.

I typically buy my HP inks bulk on ebay, but haven't found a reliable source for generic ink for it, yet. I usually buy printers based upon the availability of generic ink cartridges, but this was the one printer I could find that still carried the capability to print on CD/DVD for the DVDs of my daughter.

Luckily, I also purchased a Brother Laser Printer when I started graduate school with all the journal article printing I have to do. With the tape trick on the toner, it's been going strong for a little under a thousand pages.

On some printers, the CISS kit requires some dremel work. Mine was pretty nice because it only required scotch tape & a tiny bit of trimming with a razor blade.