Why are ink cartridges so expensive, is ink that valuable?
by 
Second Hand Lion
ANSWERS: 7
-
Ink is expensive because the people who make the printers and the ink have a strangle hold as soon as you buy the printer. People don't seem to understand that while they can pick up a ink printer for $40+, your gonna get raped in the ink, however you can pick up a standard laserjet printer for $100 that can print 45k pages.
-
It's not the ink it is the cartridge that is spendey. Look at a 12 pack of coke cans v. a 2 litter jug. It's the packaging.
-
ink is marked up by many multiples of its manufacturing cost (500-700% and perhaps as high as 1000%) I would suggest that under no circumstances should you buy a printer on the basis of its initial cost -- as it turns out to be a sort of constricting contract with HP, who are giving printers away for under $40, and charging more than that (up to $100) for a single ink replacement. Shop for the cheapest ink/toner thats on the shelf at stapls or office depot, determine its page capacity (easier said than done AND for a reason) and figure out your "Cost per page" for color, b&w or photo applications, for whichever the printer's function is. Laser printers that hold Toner instead of Ink, get the best cost per page, and toner doesn't dry out from not using it (2-3mos of no use turns an ink cartridge dry) -Delton Arno
-
No just their way of making more money.
-
No, that is why printers are as cheap as they are. The companies like Lexmark can sell you their printers at cost, figuring they can make their money on the ink cartridges. One way around this is to: Look for the biggest, cheapest cartridge you can find, then buy a printer that uses that cartridge. Around here, Walgreens Rx are refilling cartridges, black for $10. By using refills, you can extend their use and make the most out of each cartridge. Long run, get a lazer printer. Cartridges are more expensive but they last so much longer plus they are faster printing too.
-
Because printer manufacturers think we are all stupid and offer very cheap printers and make their profits from ridiculously priced ink cartridges. I kept a record of ALL my printing from one pair of cartridges, and with mixed size and colour and a VERY few photos (11) my Canon MP210 averaged 30c per page which is far too much compared to my old TI laser printer at 3c per page (B&W only). My solution is to buy a laser toner printer and get all my SD chips processed at electronic stores.
-
Forgot to mention in my last answer, don't be mislead into buying a new printer because it's cheaper than the cartridges. The ink cartridges in new Canon printers contain only 30% of the ink of a replacement cartridge and have different codes eg Original- PG37 & CL38 and Replacement PG40 & CL41. Just like razor blades, two "free" cartridges with the razor, then you pay through the nose for the replacements.
RELATED QUESTIONS
Copyright 2023, Wired Ivy, LLC