Answering 3 common questions of printer users

Not all printers accept third-party inks, and whether a printer is cheap or expensive is relative to cost.

Why do some printers not accept external ink?

According to Which.co.uk, usersYou can save up to 80% by choosing third-party printer ink, instead of using cartridges from the device manufacturer. However, the major printer brands will not like this.

Because like the story of knife handles and razor blades, printers may be cheap, but ink is a different story. Because a significant portion of the profits of printer manufacturers come from selling consumables, such as ink and paper.Companies can't stop people from thinking, but they can afford topreventing them from looking for another ink for their device.

In 2016, the HP OfficeJet printer line began rejecting unofficial, non-HP-supplied ink cartridges. This was due to a "dynamic security" feature (dynamic security)has been activated from within the printer software.The company initially claimed that it was protecting “intellectual property,” but later had to fix the bug in an update soon after due to pressure from the community.

Currently, even if they do not outright refuse, manufacturers can still make it difficult by including warnings orno errorWhen using, users will encounter dangerous warnings threatening to use "non-genuine" ink. This can make many customers worried.

A typical message on an HP printer is: "Non-HP cartridges are installed. HP cannot guarantee the quality or reliability of non-HP supplies. Print service or repairs required due to the use of non-HP supplies are not covered by the warranty."

Similar complaints have also come from Epson printers and third-party inks. In a quick test of the Epson Expression Premium XP-630 printer, the device accepted third-party inks but displayed numerous warnings against using them.

Epson did not comment on its software update, stating only that:"There is a large market for non-genuine ink for Epson printers. The companyalways recommends and can only guarantee the use of genuine ink in its printers and does not test, approve or guarantee the quality of third party products".

Buy cheap or expensive printer?

According to Lifewire, with cheap printers, the initial purchase cost is not high but the cost to operate and use is quite expensive, mainly from ink. Not only do they often have problems, the ink on cheap printers oftenmust be supplemented during operation.

Meanwhile, with high-end printers, users benefit more as they all integrate automatic programs to save ink such as Brother's INKvestment, Epson's Eco Tank or HP's Instant Ink. With a large initial cost, users can be somewhat more assured because they have been compensated for a part of the ink cost during use.

Should I use third party ink?

Cheap printer ink is often not the same brand as the consumer printer.With low prices, many people have chosen to use this type of ink to replace genuine ink. However, in addition to the price, they also have their own points to consider before using.

First, not all printers are compatible with third-party inks, as mentioned above.This compatibility depends entirely on the printer, more specifically the software installed by the manufacturer. Sometimes cartridges are not recognized for installation or do not work with these models.

"I don't use third-party cartridges because I find that my printer doesn't even recognize that they're installed. So even though they're cheaper, it's a waste," user Convo Peter shared on Whick.

'Look, my printer started refusing to print when I used a third-party cartridge. But when I replaced it with the same brand of ink as the printer, it seemed to work fine again,' commented a member named Tony G.

Further, through testing, other types of ink do not bring better quality results than genuine ink. Only in some cases, the quality of both sides is equal. However, this is only determined on prints that need the highest quality, need to be kept for a long time or print photos. In fact, most users' needs are for prints that need average quality.

Therefore, for those who want to use third-party ink, they need to pay attention to three issues: "have the courage to use it, don't be too concerned about needing high-quality prints, and accept that it may take time to fix small problems that arise".

According to VNE