Printer Cartridges

Unlike years ago, when there were ribbons and toner cartridges, the introduction of printer ink cartridges has made changing printer ink so much cleaner, quicker, convenient and far more reliable. Printer ink cartridges print on many types and sizes of paper, film, fabric and other materials. Printer cartridges have a black and a color cartridge, with each model of printer taking a different cartridge type. Although printer manufacturers recommend that you use their replacement cartridges, there are compatible cartridges, remanufactured cartridges or you can refill the original cartridges. Inexpensive kits are available that let you refill your printer cartridges at a very reasonable price, or there are manufacturers that sell refilled cartridges. The refilled or remanufactured cartridges are resold after being taken apart, parts replaced if necessary and filled with ink, at a lower cost than the original ones. Some manufacturers make compatible cartridges that are exactly the same specifications but less costly.

Inkjet Printer Cartridges

Inkjet printers normally have two separate printer cartridges, with one having black ink and the other containing magenta, yellow and cyan ink, although some have an inkjet cartridge for each primary color. Some printer cartridges are made specifically for photograph printing. There are replaceable cartridges that usually contain several partitioned ink reservoirs and some of these have electronic contacts and a chip that lets the cartridge communicate with the printer. Most inkjet printers use thermal inkjet printer cartridges that have a small resistor or metal plate with a heating element inside each partition. The printer sends a signal to the printer causing it to warm up by using a small amount of current, which flows through the resistor or metal. This causes the ink surrounding this heated plate to vaporize into small bubbles of air inside the nozzle and makes the volume of ink exceed the nozzle, which then forces an ink droplet onto the paper in a matter of milliseconds.

Proprietary v Compatible Cartridges

Printer cartridges are expensive, so people often choose to use compatible cartridges made by other companies that are good quality but far less costly than the original printer manufacturer's. In larger industries, another alternative is continuous ink systems that use ink tanks, which are external. Refilling printer cartridges four or five times using an inexpensive ink kit may eventually damage the printer but the savings will normally pay for another printer. Many printer manufacturers sell their printers very inexpensively but make their profits by selling expensive printer cartridges over the printers’ lifespan. This is where the printer manufacturers make their profits and they are continuously trying to limit the options so consumers purchase their own replacement printer cartridges. Some consumers choose to purchase remanufactured cartridges, have their cartridges refilled or buy kits to refill their own printer cartridges. This is a great way to save money on your printer cartridges.