Compatible cartridges are made for your printer by a company other than the manufacturer and cost a lot less to buy. Many people are dubious about purchasing them because they have been incorrectly advised that they will damage their printer or void the warranty. This is not the case and using an inkjet cartridge that is cheaper and still works as well is an option for you.
“Genuine” inkjet cartridges are expensive and need to be replaced regularly. On average, you will print around 400 pages from a standard inkjet cartridge and when you buy the manufacturer’s cartridges, it works out to be much more expensive per page printed.
The compatible cartridges use the same ink and are made to suit your printer perfectly. The myth that using alternate cartridges will void your warranty is no longer true and they will not damage your printer in any way. A compatible version of the inkjet cartridge has to be made to meet the “Original Manufacturer Standards” (OEM standards), which means it has passed the test and will not be any different in your printer than the original genuine version.
What we often see happening in the printer market is printers being sold at ridiculously cheap prices and the replacement cartridges are very expensive in comparison. For example, you could have gone to your local computer store and purchased a Canon color inkjet printer for around $70, but the cartridges are about $40 to replace the color and $15 for the black. You could almost buy a new printer each time you run out of ink for the same amount of money! This means the companies are releasing the printers at a low price and using the ink cartridge sales to make their profits.
It used to be true that printer companies were refusing warranties if their genuine cartridges were not used exclusively. There was a law passed (Magnuson-Moss warranty improvement act) that specifies that a company cannot force a consumer to buy their genuine parts exclusively over the life of the warranty.
Companies still try to convince consumers that their cartridges are better in quality and performance because they have so much to lose if they don’t sell them. Often, genuine cartridges cost at least a quarter of the price of the printer itself and choosing a compatible option instead can save you hundreds of dollars per year.
Now, roughly around 10% of cartridges purchased in the states are compatible. About 80% bought are genuine and the remainder are counterfeits. This indicates that company scare tactics have been working in their favor, as they convince people to spend more for no reason. Why not try a compatible cartridge next time and see if you can see any differences? The photo printing is just as good and the colors and fonts all come out the same. You most likely will not be able to tell. You will never go back to wasting money again.
By: Frank Bolsom -