Why Do Printer Ink Cartridges Cost So Much?
I’m so glad that I hardly use my old HP printer as printer ink cartridges cost a ridiculous amount. It’s a well known fact that most printers are sold at cost (”give away the razor and sell the blades”) so that they seem attractively priced, only for consumers to be stung with expensive cartridge costs. Some cartridges costing up to $100 each for a measly 20ml, making printer ink one of the most expensive liquids on the planet.
As a consumer there’s not a lot you can do to avoid contributing to the $21 billion ink cartridge replacement. You could try and buy cartridges from independent manufacturers, despite the efforts of the big printer manufacturers like Canon, Epson etc who tend to sue these companies for alleged patent violations. Not surprising when you consider what’s at stake - Analysts say ink and toner supplies made up more than 50% of fiscal 2004 profits for the HP, although they brought in less than a quarter of the company’s $80 billion in sales.
One site that sells Printer Cartridges for up to 75% off is www.inkshop.co.uk, who have just purchased this review. Inkshop.co.uk is very well laid out with hotlinks on the homepage to the main ink cartridges. There’s even a ink&toner refill service for even bigger savings.
Many cheaper Ink Cartridges are available on the site that provide identical quality to expensive brand-name cartridges. Don’t believe the claims from printer manufacturers that Printer Ink from 3rd parties is inferior. I’ve had no problems with independant cartridges in the past. The only mistake I think I made was buying too many, as I have a funny feeling the 3 cartridges I have in my cupboard will be no good by the time I get around to using them.
Even though I don’t use my printer that often, I have been contemplating getting a new one as I can’t get the scanner to work with Vista. At the moment I have a HP 2210 All-In-One which is 5 years old now. Any recommendations for a combo scanner/photocopier/printer? I don’t really need a fax anymore - I probably only send one fax per year now.
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Comment by Angie on 18 June 2007:
It’s all a racket, as my dad would say!
Comment by Angie on 18 June 2007:
It’s all a racket, as my dad would say! We nned the ink, though. We are dependent on this sort of technology. May as well buy it as inexpensively as possible.
Comment by Martin on 18 June 2007:
I’d say it is that expensive because the market pays the price. It is probably cheaper to replace the printer instead of buying a new cartridge for it.
Comment by Mike on 18 June 2007:
My weapon of choice is the HP 2575 - it’s an awesome piece of kit for it’s price. Made even better now I’ve found a cheap place to pick up cartridges!
Comment by Ceglie Messapica on 18 June 2007:
Because printers cost so little.
Comment by Everton on 18 June 2007:
I finally went to the HP site to see if I could get my scanner to work….very embarassing. The scanner was setup by Vista. I didn’t realise I had to use Windows Photo Gallery
I guess I can use the money I would have spent on a new printer to fund cartridges!
Comment by Mosey on 19 June 2007:
I bought my parents an HP Officejet 7410 which works quite well (the black and white printing is almost as fast as some older lasers!) The only downside is that it’s a little noisy when printing, and the HP software that comes with the thing (should you choose to install the full package) is more bloated than a full-blown puffer fish.
Absolutely agree about the printer cartridge prices! Aside from CDs/DVDs, they’re probably the next big consumer rip-off?
Comment by Sanketh on 19 June 2007:
I think the price is because of the demand in the market…
Comment by Everton on 19 June 2007:
definitely not! If it wasn’t for price fixing from the big guys and 3rd parties being prevented from entering the market, prices would be significantly lower
Comment by NLP Master on 27 August 2007:
HP, Canon and EPSON sell printers at near cost of goods simply to promote their extremely high margin ink products. The money is in the ink!
And now that ink manufacturers realize this, they offer alternative inks at prices 1/6th that of what Epson offers.
I never believed “Use only Original Epson Ink”. All my printers used none-originals and lasted for 4 years on the average.
All thirty printers!
Comment by Sergio on 11 November 2007:
Dell and lexmark printers ink cartridges are ridiculously high. I would rather but a refill kit for it.
Comment by STEREO on 14 January 2008:
Interesting, how these are priced in different world regions?
Here in Ukraine a typical laser printer (Xerox) is $100, while a cartridge for 3000 copies goes for $70.
Comment by Plastkort on 5 June 2008:
Good job explaining and I do agree - buy the generics whenever you can. In most cases, these are just as good as the name brands.
Comment by Lucy WItty on 5 June 2008:
I totaly agree they are 2 expencive
Comment by Au pair on 9 June 2008:
It is like selling drugs to the inocent, first for free and when your hooked you pay
Comment by hp ink cartridges on 16 June 2008:
yup this is how they get everyone. The replacements are nearly as much as the printer. Just for my black inkjet its like 30.00. I use to own a cheap laser printer i mean cheap 130.00. Im sure the replacement toner cost that alone. So its a disposable. It never did run out and I printer a load of labels with it. I just gave it away to someone who needed a printer.Â
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