Penny wise - pound foolish inkjets

dawns when a "deal" really turns out to be to good to be true. Any and all inkjet printers have a high (total) cost per page. At least in my experience (which is as a user and as an independent repair shop), third-party replacements, remanufactured products, refill ("kits", too) don't save you enough money to justify the reduced print quality, waste due to "defectives", and added repair costs. The use of non-original cartridges can void the warranty and damage the printer. At least for me, I'll look for "sales" on the originals, and stay far away from the others... good luck!

Assume that you work for ABC Printers Inc. The
world's 4th largest manufacturer of printers.
You have a good reputation, you make good stuff.
But you are having sales flow problems. You
look for a new market. (If you can't make the
money on the printer, recoop on the cartridges.)

When I go to buy a printer, for anyone - I
balance the need. 1) How reliable does the
printer have to be, and does it see network
connection. 2) How much do the refils cost.
(Like the other fellow said, cheepo cartridges
can void your warranty as well and ruin the
printer.)

Based on these 2 things - I select a printer.
And most of the time ... I buy HP or LEXMARK.
NEVER ever Do I buy or recommend a printer that
costs lessthan $100. I usually am in the range
of minimum of $299.

How long do you want the printer to last? How
reliable does the printer need to be?

Age old wisdom ... Nothing is free.

I ran into this same problem with my Epson Stylus
I went down to my local drug store and for about 20.00 dollars I purchased a refill kit and I can refill my own for about $2.00 for all 4 colors and the quality of ink is better and more vivid than the Originals, hope this helps..
Gary.

Well, the printer is free, but the ink will cost you.

From what I have read, Lexmark has one of the highests costs per printed page. So, the cheap printer ends up costing you more over time.

The first question to ask before using refill kits, or off-brand cartridges, is what is the cost of a new print head.

If the lexmark is like HP's, then each cartridge has it's own print head, and you can try any and all options without any real risk. I have seen many a print head ruined by the useof refill kits, and off-brand cartridges.

That said, I have started using refill kits and off-brand cartridges in my Canon 7000. It has just become to dificult to find OEM ink for this printer.

My refill and off-brand cartridges come from Tyler Martin Company www.tylermartin.com

I have been happy with both the quality of the inks, and their service.

Other options, are to search the surplus sellers for ink cartridges.
Try www.compgeeks.com
and www.pcliquidator.com

Chas