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General discussion

I'm sick of ink-sucking printers, buying advice needed

Mar 25, 2011 7:17AM PDT
Question:

I'm sick of ink-sucking printers, buying advice needed


I am so frustrated with printers and the amount of ink they now use, not to mention the cost of the ink. I don't do much scanning or printing in color and no faxing, so I don't need a high-end printer. I do a fair amount of grayscale printing each day. My problem is that the printers I have had in the past couple of years guzzle ink and use almost as much color ink as black ink, even though I am not printing pages in color. That was not the case in the past with my older printers. My color ink seemed to last forever. Not true, these days. Now that I have Windows 7, I haven't found a compatible printer that is efficient without costing an arm and a leg to operate. Can anyone give me any suggestions on what kind of printer I should purchase? Thanks.

-- Submitted by: Allison H.

Paper sucking ink --Submitted by: blmonster
http://forums.cnet.com/7726-7590_102-5106391.html

Money robbing printers--Submitted by: flrhcarr
http://forums.cnet.com/7726-7590_102-5106311.html

Inkaholic printers --Submitted by: Sidewinder34
http://forums.cnet.com/7726-7590_102-5106321.html

Why color ink runs out as fast as the B/W ink. --Submitted by: blmonster
http://forums.cnet.com/7726-7590_102-5106401.html

Laser, really?? NOT so fast. --Submitted by: jonsantacroce
http://forums.cnet.com/7726-7590_102-5106429.html

Thanks to all who contributed!

If you have any additional advice or recommendations for Allison, click the "reply" link below and submit away. If referring to product, providing a link to the product will be very helpful. Please be detailed as possible when providing a solution. Thanks!

Discussion is locked

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Brother Innobella MFC 235C
Apr 29, 2011 6:31PM PDT

I got my printer second hand for $15 but only for home use. The cartriges are cheap as on ebay and the thing goes like a new one, so far. I have had it for about 4 months and will be sticking to this brand as my previous printer although good was an ink user and leaker. This one however prints photos and word doc's on and on. Dont know about using it in a business environment but a small business maybe but I'm not up with that.

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Problem Solved - Fit giant ink tanks.
Apr 29, 2011 6:58PM PDT

CISS Ink Systems - Save up to 80% of your printing costs. Conventional ink cartridges are designed to be compact and contain a small amount of ink. These cartridges are often only available from the manufacturer and need to be replaced regularly, which can prove very expensive to businesses that print a lot of documents. CISS uses large ink tanks which are connected to the print-head nozzles via silicon tubing. The CISS tanks can be refilled from an ink bottle and have been developed to work with most major printer manufacturers, such as Epson, HP, Canon and Brother. A CISS ink system allows your business to use less expensive aftermarket inks, keeping printing costs low. I got mine from http://www.cityinkexpress.co.uk/. Also look on Youtube http://youtu.be/YJkHWb32oM8
Problem solved.

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Same thing here, but I found a Solution
Apr 29, 2011 7:37PM PDT

Dear Allison,

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I'm sick of ink-sucking printers, buying advice needed
Apr 29, 2011 8:07PM PDT

Dear Allison,
The major problem for using so much color ink is obviously the grey scaling; this is, just like normal composite black, a combination of grey (black) using all the colors to perform grey (or black).
Of course using the right kind of paper and setting the printer in the fast printing position will also help a lot.

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brother muti scanfax print
Apr 29, 2011 8:54PM PDT

i us a brother its slow to get its self going but its got single ink wells and i refill from bulk in in woolworths food at abount 46 dollarls abd get about 4 to 6 fills and i fill them full so its cheap to run
Erica

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Printer vs Paper vs Ink
Apr 29, 2011 10:54PM PDT

The most cost effective answer is to use an external ink cartridge system for your printer.

I recall my first Epson printer over 25 years ago. The choice of printer, paper and ink at that time was a no-brainer - limited selection of printers, the paper had holes and there was only black ink. As the printer market evolved, manufacturers discovered that the best business model was to drastically reduce the price of their printers and thus sell more but make their money from selling replacement ink cartridges. Naturally, they then linked their ink with their printing technology, just like iPhone and iTunes.

Clever people then came along and not only duplicated the ink cheaply but eventually also provided a design which allowed cartridges to be placed outside the printer itself. As new printers were introduced, coded chips were placed in the printers AND in the ink cartridges so that if the ink cartridge didn't have the correct factory made chip, it would not be recognized by the printer. The clever people then started adding coded chips so that today, the external ink cartridge system on my Epson printer/ scanner holds 100ml each of 4 inks; costs are minimal and will typically allow me to print around 3K pages. It is easily refillable (no need for needles) and will last me until the printer packs up (usually every 2 years) whereupon I will simply dispose of everything and get a new printer with an external ink cartridge system. I simply use copier, ink-jet or photo paper according to my needs.

Many years ago, I used many different brands of printers, all with their built-in ink cartridges and always fretted over the cost of the ink. During the past 10 years, I have only used printers that can be retro-fitted with an external ink cartridge system.

The clever people decided to work with just a few brands and as new printers are introduced regularly, chips have to be modified accordingly. If you want to seriously reduce your printing costs, look for a printer brand/model for which you can obtain external ink cartridges and replacement bulk ink.

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Black ink cartridges are killers of keepers of multi-f.p.'s.
Apr 29, 2011 11:16PM PDT

Myself, currently, am poised with the situation of buying a new black ink cartridge for my multi-function printer.

The new black ink cartridge for it is, by itself, costing well over 60$ Canadian.

Now, I think it would be best, to replace the unit of about three years of age, by a much newer one that comes with its included cartridges. The color ones and the black ones can easily surpass a 100$ price tag. And, the new one, will come with the price tag of about 50 to 70$ + all taxes.

My suggestion to you, is quite simple, check how old is your current printing unit and, decide if the replacement of such unit would be more of sound investment than, to just replace its ink cartridges. Chances are: replacing the unit will sound a lot better, money wise. Second, if you can, try to use your color cartridges as much as you can. I really do not know why, a regular, home based, person should ever use the grayscale or drafting mode of such printing unit. Unless, you are an avid word processing software user and, not using any color pictures into such documents.

Conclusion: For home use, all-in-one printing unit and, for intense office use, a laser printer that can do drafting documents an almost costless use of it over several months at a time. As for me, a color inkjet should be good enough to use for my bills printing over the internet and bank statements + the occasional one single sheet word processing documents that I might need once a season or a year at a time.

Hope I got as helpful as I can get. Wink

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buying printer
Apr 29, 2011 11:44PM PDT

This is what I have done. I first look at what I really print the most. I never print pictures as I think the cost of having my own printer vs the cost professional high in at stores is really a better choice. I have one color laser printer that I bought on sale for like 200.00. I set the default print que to print Black and white or I should say gray scale. I also hate managing papers. I mostly find myself printing to PDF using cute pdf for things I want to keep a record of.
My last color laser lasted me 4 years.It was an HP. I paid like 300 from costco. I sold it at that time for 150.00 and it still had almost 50% of all colors remaining. Today I have a Dell. It is 2 years old and still has 60+ percent color left.

I have some great pictures printed and framed. But for that I will never have or will buy my own personal one for that.

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Colour Laser
May 1, 2011 8:37AM PDT

I to was sick of high cost of ink with my Epson photo printer and did not have much luck with the off brand refills.That was two years ago. I then got a Kodak all in one and love it for photos and the scanner. Even though the ink cost were cheaper it seems I was buying a new ink set every month. I then bought a Samsung 315 colour laser when it was on sale for $120 and just love it . 70% of my printing is done with it and the total cost for a complete toner set is only $120 when you buy on line. A set of toners usually lasts me for a whole year and I use the Kodak for photos and scanning. Just my two cents worth.

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Inkjet v. laser
Apr 30, 2011 12:45AM PDT

The mistake many people make is to spend too little on a printer. It would seem that often cheap printer = expensive running costs. Buying for a school, I have always preferred HP for quality and reliability, e.g. in the staffroom there are two 199GBP Deskjets (no laser printers) that are still running faultlessly everyday after over four years of use - the black xl cartridge costs 24GBP for 900 pages. Some of the more expensive recent HP inkjet printers can be very economical. I have found that the HP page yield information is reliable - it comes from printing copies of "standard pages" continuously until the cartridge runs out.
Using two currently available models for the home office, the 149GBP HP Officejet Pro 8000 and the 180GBP HP Laserjet Pro CP1025W, both offering wireless connection, reveals that the cost of ink for the former is very much less than the cost of the toner for the latter, for both black AND colour printing. The black inkjet xl cartridge is rated at 2200 pages for 26GBP compared with the black toner cartridge's 1200 pages for 56GBP. Similarly each of the three colour inkjet xl cartridges is rated at 1400 pages for 18GBP each, whereas each colour toner cartridge does 1000 pages for 56GBP each.
Anyone can find this information for these and all HP printers by searching the HP website.

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About ink cartridges
Apr 30, 2011 1:08AM PDT

I recommend buying inkjet printers that have separate cartridges for each color, AND cartridges that you can see into. My Canon printer is great, because I can see exactly how much ink is in each cartridge. When the printer indicates that ink needs to be replaced, it also enables me to override the need to replace, and print anyway. Thereby using up as much of the ink in the cartridge as possible.

When looking at new printers recently, I found that many of them have individual-color cartridges now.

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LexMark Ink Cartridges Dry Out - Samsung Toners Never Do
Apr 30, 2011 1:18AM PDT

I bought A Samsung CLP-510 Duplex Laser Printer 6 years ago based on ZDNet's great recommendation for it. I'm still using the original toner cartridges. It has worked flawlessly. The two LexMark INkJet printers I had before my Samsung color Laser drove me nuts with the cartridges drying out. I bought ink refill kits - that worked, but refilling and spilling ink was a pain in the butt. I will never use inkjets again. The color print quality of my Samsung laser is better than the LexMark inkjets. AND I don't worry about ink cartridges drying out if I don't use it enough - laser printers eliminate that problem.

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What about the drum? A Trick 4 HP 2800 Series & Others
Apr 30, 2011 3:53AM PDT

Ink & Toner is killer and thanks for the advice, but what to do when the dreaded "drum" light comes on? Start saving your old toner cartridges. This trick works with an HP 2840. I'd imagine it would be worth trying with any chip-controlled HP laser. When your printer stops printing because of the drum. Remove it, and using an empty ink cartridge you've saved, swap the chips. Yup, worked like a charm. Keeping the alignment consistent, I took the chip off the drum, replaced it with a chip from an empty ink cartridge (they are only attached with double-sided tape, so no problem) and replaced the drum in the printer. You will get a message that non-HP parts are being used, but everything still works fine. I'm not an expert, but so far I'm probably 50%-75% into a "new" drum with no malfunctions, no streaking - no $200! This of course proves that there's much more life in the consumables than HP (or other manufacturers) would have us believe. My machine is out of warranty anyway, so there's nothing to lose.

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printer that doesn't use a lot of ink
Apr 30, 2011 4:04AM PDT

The Epson Stylus C88+ is the best printer. I print a lot of black and white and I only change the black cartridge once a month. Now, I print on draft mode, which saves a lot of ink and it prints good on draft mode. It is a simple printer, not fancy. I buy the my ink for $4 at professorink.com. The printer is only available through the Epson website and I would suggest buying the extended warranty through Epson. The print heads do get clogged on this printer about 1 - 1 1/2 years but all you have to do is call Epson and they send you a new printer (they don't hassle you). I have purchased 2 and love it. It is not a wireless printer but it works well with a wireless print server. The best part, the printer is under $100. Good luck!

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Epson C88
Apr 30, 2011 4:19AM PDT

On the Epson C88 don't forget to print color once a month to prevent clogging of the heads. I created a document with all of the colors and I print it once a month.

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Auto reset cartridges?
Apr 30, 2011 4:10AM PDT

What are auto reset cartridges? My epson 800 eats ink and it doesn't print legibly on draft mode.

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HP LaserJet3390 Printer - Older printer B and W
Apr 30, 2011 5:02AM PDT

I could no longer afford the $149/cartridge for this HP printer which does yield 6000 pages but couldn't afford the cartridge.

I searched on the web and found that Office Depot offers a cartridge for this printer and the cost, with a promotion, was $57. I was so happy to find an alternative I could afford at approx 1/3 the cost. So search the net for alternatives and also I see new promotions for a KODAK saying the cartridge cost is lower...don't know if this is really true but you might check it out.

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HP LaserJet 4100
Apr 30, 2011 5:10AM PDT

I currently have a HP LaserJet 4100n Duplex, and it's been an outstanding printer. It's been in use daily for over 8 years and it's gone through it's original toner cartridge which has printed over 10,000 sheets (20 reams) of paper (I'm now on the second toner cartridge). I've been very satisfied with the performance, reliability and print quality. Most of my print jobs only require B&W and it does a great job of translating color pictures to gray scale. I have considered a color laser, but the replacement price of the toner cartridge(s) along with the lower page count has kept me from purchasing one. It's not worth the extra cost. HP needs to bring the cost more in line with B&W and if they do, I may pop for one.

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Trusty Old Printer
Apr 30, 2011 6:21AM PDT

After upgrading to a USB Mac system I also "upgraded" my printer... over and over... trying to find a decent one that wasn't designed to waste ink on start-up and didn't jam constantly. Epson....HP... crap and more crap...

I finally gave up and now just print on a back-up computer (my old OS 9 Mac) using my trusty old Epson Stylus 600. I can't even remember how old it is, or even how old the cartridge is, which I refill often enough to keep it fresh. It was engineered and manufactured back before Epson succumbed to Infectious Corporate Greed Syndrome and joined the race to see who could milk the most pennies from their customer base.

I have to wonder how the engineers designing these new products feel. Are they proud to achieve new levels of scammy junk designed to fleece the suckers who buy it, or secretly ashamed for selling out their talents?

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Print to PDF
Apr 30, 2011 7:57AM PDT

One way to save money is to simply print less. I installed a free PDF printer on my computer (PrimoPDF) and whenever I get a screen that says, "save this page for your records", I make a PDF and just save the electronic file on my computer instead of printing it. There's the added bonus that I can actually find it if I ever really need to print a hard copy. It not only save ink, it saves paper and cuts down on clutter.

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Dump the inkjet
Apr 30, 2011 9:19AM PDT

If most of your printing is in black & white don't waste your money on an inkjet printer just go and get a basic black&white laserjet Printer. I had the same problem and spent $120 on an HP1020 and haven't looked back. I am still using the cartridge it came with and the price to replace the cartridge is about the same as or cheaper than inkjet cartridges and will print up to 3000 pages. You also don't need to wait an inordinate amount of time for the ink cartridges to prime themselves each time you want to print. I estimate I have saved literally hundreds if not thousands of dollars in last 4 years since I purchased it and have had perfect print jobs each time. Best investment I ever made.

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Lexmark Claims Lowest Black Ink Cost
Apr 30, 2011 11:10AM PDT
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Different printers
Apr 30, 2011 6:05PM PDT

I'm fairly new at all this, and I've bought 3 different printers. The best one for everyday printing is the one we use at work. It's a Laser Printer from Brother. It's a 2140 model. My boss is a cheap kind of guy but believe me this printer is a real work horse for printing in black and gray scale. I bought mine used thru ebay for 21.50 and it's proven to be a better printer then the name brand ones I've bought brand new when I bought my computer system. Staples has reconditioned Brother printers for sale on line for 49.00 or you can do the ebay thing. I lucked out and have been very happy with my used 4120. I bought another used one and shipped it to my Mother in Montana and it shipped well and she is very happy with it. My Mom is 78 and she has had NO trouble with it. On the other hand I've bought 2 or 3 HP printers and have been given compensation for ink because someone brought it to their attention about the ink signs calling for more ink when they weren't even empty. I've always liked the HP for their reliability, but honestly the Brother has been pain and worry free, easy to use and set up. You can get 2,500 pages from their toners and I really think I've gotten way more than that.

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I'm sick of ink-sucking printers
Apr 30, 2011 6:09PM PDT

Before spending yet more money on a new printer ask yourself each time that you are about to print a page "Do I really need a hard copy of this?". You'd be amazed at how much you can save.

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SAVING INK - A TIP THAT REALLY WORKS! PLEASE READ!
May 1, 2011 12:22AM PDT

i don't think anyone read my hint, so i shall repost it because it really does work!

"A simple trick to get the most out of your ink supply.... by keidee - 3/25/11 9:20 PM
In Reply to: I'm sick of ink-sucking printers, buying advice needed by CNET Event admin

Some years ago I read about a simple method to make your ink for an inkjet printer, go further. I use it all the time and it has never failed, nor has it done any harm to my Brother inkjet printer.

In a printer the inbuilt scanner 'reads' the ink level and frequently gives the 'cartridge empty' signal well before the actual cartridge is anywhere near empty. Therefore, to fool the scanner, cut a piece of black tape to the size of the ink surface (judging the size from when the cartridge would be full) In other words cover the side of the cartridge that is 'read' by the scanner, from ink level to base with the black tape.

This will always give the signal to the scanner that the cartridge is full. You will know when the relevant ink is getting low by the quality of your copying, this will be plenty of warning.
"

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A Huge Thank You!!
May 1, 2011 6:27AM PDT

Your tip is superb. Have had ink issues ever since my Canon i860 printer w/ soFt-sided, read "squeezable-to-the-last-drop-oF-ink" gave up (only because magenta printer head "died").
Bought the Kodak model touted as an "ink saver" several years ago. Big waste oF money. Never worked. Had to pay 5 bucks to recycler to get rid oF it.
Bought a solid Brother Laser printer--HL2270W Have been using it in same room where I spend hours online. Well, hello. My respiratory tract was aggravated beyond belieF by the toner. So yesterday, I had to store it in basement, until I can hopeFully WI-FI it From a closet.
Am using my Canon PIXMA 560 and will try your trick.
Thanx
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Lots of info on inkjets here
May 1, 2011 7:58AM PDT

So many replies to this post...just in case no one has directed to Neil Slade's website, here it is:

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This is a no-win situation
May 1, 2011 5:14PM PDT

I have had four printers since the early to mid-90s. Three Canons; BJ-100, BJC-2000 and now presently, a MP530 all in one, and an HP 1210 All in one.

The early printers were the best in my opinion because they weren't computerized as well as the ink tanks.

One could use any of the various refillable ink systems and get extensive mileage out of a cartridge before having to buy another. I did and it helped my meager budget.

The Canon BJ-100 that printed only in black I still have. It still works but I can't find a cartridge for it. It wouldn't surprise me that they didn't make it anymore.

The HP 1210 kept me mad half the time beause of the ink costs. $29 for a black cartridge and $35 for a tri-color cartridge. But I also did use refill ink on them which consisted of not having to buy the singles as much until I needed a new print head. The double pack of 56/57 cost $57 and still does.

Canon BJC-2000 was the printer which I loved the most dying shortly after the HP 1210 did due to a storm.

Now I have a Canon MP530. Print wise it is fine. You get quality. But I hate the duplex. When I got it, I wanted one that printed on both sides. Now it is nothing but a headache.

Due to the duplex feature, ink has gathered inside on a pad inside that can only be replaced by sending it back to Canon. When I print, there is a black streak down the back side despite cleaning it on the inside. I might as well as buy a new printer.

There is no way around the high prices until someone starts thinking of us consumers before the stockholders.

Besides getting a printer with low ink costs and decent paper, all you can do is:

1) Print when you have to, especially color.

2) If you do have to print something, may it be directions, recipes and/or coupons, print on draft or text

3) Lower the dpi as some have said.

4) Make sure those 'friends' of yours that need copies of documents made or want to you to receive a fax for contribute to the ink and paper fund. It is alright to be friends, but times are tough, especially if one lives in a rural area with no public transportation. I just saved you $10 for that fax and maybe that much in gas saving you from going to town to the public library for the same thing. Handing me a couple of dollars for my services isn't going to hurt.

As long as we need the convenience of printing and faxing at home, prices on printers and accessories that make it run will continue to go up. They got us and they know it.

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Never replace the ink when the printer says its empty
May 2, 2011 1:33AM PDT

This is kind of a repeat of what some others have said but what I have learned the hard expensive way is to NEVER replace the ink when the printer says it is empty. I used to replace the ink when the printer said it was empty and had the same wonder, why is it not printing the number of pages it said it would. Basically no matter what brand I had the printer always identifies that it is low on ink or out of ink way too rarely because they want you to have time to order and buy more from them most likely. I have a Dell printer (which is actually a Lexmark) that will typically print an additional 100 to 200 pages or more once it identifies it is out of blank ink. I just keep printing on it until the print gets too light to read. I also have an HP L7555 (7500 series) all in one unit and it has one blank ink cartridge and 3 color cartridges. The more different color cartridges I think is a very good idea as you only replace the colors you actually use. But this HP also says it is low or out of ink way before it is actually exhausted. I print about 70% black and about 30% color and can typically go for a month on an "empty cartridge" no matter what color or black. When the warning comes up I just hit the "OK" button and it will continue to print. Eventually, this printer, when 'actually' empty just stops printing until you replace the now "truly" empty cartridge. I would also recommend getting printers that can handle "extra" capacity cartridges. So in summary if getting another ink jet printer - get one with as many separate color cartridges as possible, get a printer that can handle extra capacity cartridges, and NEVER replace the ink when the printer tells you it is empty, let it actually go empty or stop printing because it is "actually" empty.

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I'm sick of ink-sucking printers, buying advice needed
May 2, 2011 1:06PM PDT

I tell everybody, on the subject of inkjet printers; Buy a CANON. They don't have the expensive cartridges; only ink tanks, and they are EASILY refillable. Even if you don't refill, the tanks are cheaper to replace than conventional cartridges. I have refilled mine so many times I have long ago lost count Plus you never waste ink, because each color has its own tank (some regular ink cartridges are individual color, but many have all colors in one. Don't EVER buy one of those.). So that's my advice. I don't know why more people have not picked up on that, or why more companies have not gone to the tank.

Milo