| How much will a $50 dollar printer really | | | | Some of the people who owned older printers, |
| cost you? If you factor in the cost of | | | | feel they've been taken advantage of when |
| replacement ink cartridges, it could be a lot | | | | they see how fast their new printer uses up |
| more. | | | | the ink. |
| | | | |
| If you walk down the printer isle these days, | | | | Almost nobody realizes the true cost of |
| you'll probably see a few printers selling | | | | operating these printers until the first or |
| for about $50. You might see yourself , | | | | second time they need replacement cartridges. |
| "Hey, what a great deal" -- but is it really? | | | | |
| | | | HP is now attempting to squeeze out the |
| Lexmark was first manufacturer marketing $50 | | | | competitors by dominating shelf space with a |
| printers. The printer was a loss-leader and | | | | multitude of printer models. Most machines |
| the sales of replacement cartridges | | | | have the same general qualities but the more |
| subsidized the low initial cost. The cost of | | | | they have on the shelf, the less room for |
| 1 set of replacement cartridges exceeded the | | | | competitors. Hewlett Packard hopes to |
| value of the machine itself. | | | | captivate people with their brand-name and |
| | | | low initial cost. |
| Many people who never owned a printer before | | | | |
| didn't realize Lexmark's strategy. They were | | | | Once the consumer commits to their printer, |
| so happy with the printer price that they | | | | HP will have a continuous stream of |
| never thought about the purchase of the | | | | replacement cartridge business for the |
| printer cartridges themselves. As time went | | | | lifespan of the machine. It's in the |
| on Lexmark continued their tactics and also | | | | supplies where they make their money. |
| began to reduce the size of their ink | | | | |
| cartridges. Their cartridges got smaller and | | | | So the lesson here is this… It is |
| smaller and required more frequent replacing. | | | | critical that you investigate the price of |
| | | | replacement ink cartridges before you |
| Consider this: | | | | purchase a new printer. Comparison-shop both |
| | | | the printer and cartridges at the same time. |
| One Lexmark 10N0016 OEM Black cartridge | | | | |
| retails for about $30 and will yield 410 | | | | A short list of printers to avoid are |
| pages at 5% coverage | | | | printers using the HP 21 and HP 22 ink |
| | | | cartridges. (these contain only 5 milliliters |
| One Lexmark 10N0026 OEM Color cartridge | | | | of ink) |
| retails for about $32.00 and will yield 275 | | | | |
| pages at 5% coverage | | | | PSC 1410 Series, Officejet 4315, Deskjet |
| | | | F340, F380, HP Fax 1250, HP Deskjet 3910, |
| It became common practice to buy Lexmark | | | | Deskjet 3940 Series, Deskjet 3915, Deskjet |
| printer for $49 to get the 2 starter | | | | 3930 Series |
| cartridges that come with it. After ink had | | | | |
| been used up, sell the printer on eBay, or | | | | Printers Using HP 92 and HP 93 ink cartridges |
| throw it away and buy another one. What a | | | | (5 milliliters of ink) |
| waste… HP is now following suit with | | | | |
| the same strategy and is trying to flood the | | | | PSC 1510 Series, PSC 1507, Officejet 6310, |
| market at the same time. | | | | Deskjet 5440 Series, Photosmart 7850, Deskjet |
| | | | 5440 Series |
| Several new printers will enter the market in | | | | |
| July 2006. Many of which are cheap to buy | | | | The only people that should buy these |
| (starting at around $25.00), but can be | | | | particular new HP printers, are those who |
| expensive to operate. Many of these new | | | | print infrequently (less than 3 cartridges |
| cheap printers do not come with printer | | | | per year). |
| cables or both ink cartridges which entices | | | | |
| users by lowering the initial price. | | | | HP makes quality printers, however we |
| | | | recommend simply seeking out a model that |
| Over the course of a few years however, the | | | | does not use the #21 and #22 or #92 and #93 |
| low cost of the machine will be overshadowed | | | | cartridges. Many more of these new HP |
| by the large amount spent on replacement | | | | printers will be released this month. |
| inkjet cartridges | | | | |
| | | | Another option is to look for a different |
| The inkjet cartridges that most of the new HP | | | | manufacturer such as Canon, Epson or Brother. |
| printers use contain only 5 Milliliters of | | | | Their inkjet printers often get as good or |
| ink. In comparison, about 4 years ago the | | | | better reviews from users. |
| most common HP black cartridges contained 42 | | | | |
| milliliters of ink. That's almost 8 times | | | | Again, check the cost of replacement |
| more printing at about 1/3rd the cost (per | | | | cartridges, page yield or milliliters of ink |
| milliliter of ink). | | | | contained in the cartridge to be sure you are |
| | | | getting a good value in comparison. |