| HP is one of the oldest printer manufacturers | | | | costs as much or more as buying a whole new |
| still in business, and their printers have | | | | printer so at this point the printer often |
| long been considered some of the best. Is | | | | gets thrown out and replaced. |
| this accurate, however, or do people just | | | | |
| assume they're good because their name is so | | | | By putting the printhead on the cartridge |
| well known? | | | | itself, HP avoids this problem of the head |
| | | | wearing out. Over the course of months or |
| HP's inkjet printers cover a wide spectrum. | | | | years, the print quality will stay pretty |
| They have photo printers in various sizes, | | | | much the same as it was when the printer was |
| business printers, value models for home use | | | | brand new because each time the ink is |
| and a number of specialized models for | | | | replaced, so is the printhead. |
| various applications. | | | | |
| | | | There are a couple of drawbacks to this |
| In any given category, HP tends to be one of | | | | system, however. The first is that the |
| if not the best print quality when compared | | | | cartridges tend to be a little more expensive |
| to the competition. A big part of the reason | | | | than some of the competition's. Each time you |
| for this is the technology they put into | | | | replace the ink you'll have to pay a little |
| their cartridges. | | | | more, but this added cost will even out when |
| | | | you consider you would eventually have to pay |
| Most HP ink cartridges include not only the | | | | to repair or replace most other brands. |
| ink but also the printhead. The printhead is | | | | |
| the component in a printer that actually | | | | The other disadvantage to HP's system is that |
| sprays the ink onto the paper. In most other | | | | their cartridges tend not to work very well |
| brands of printers, the printhead is part of | | | | when refilled. Because the head is part of |
| the printer itself rather than the cartridge. | | | | the cartridge and is not designed to last |
| | | | beyond the expected life of the ink, it can |
| Over a period of time, as the printer gets | | | | wear out if the empty cartridge is reused. |
| used more and more, this printhead can start | | | | |
| to deteriorate and the quality of printing | | | | You're usually safe with a single refill but |
| can suffer because of it. Eventually this | | | | after refilling it once, it's hit or miss as |
| printhead will wear out and need to be | | | | to whether you'll run into problems. |
| replaced. In most cases, replacing the head | | | | |