HP Ink prices

[Andrew Rossmann]

It seems as if HP massivly jacked up their prices over the past few
months. The 96/97 combo went from US$67 to $74! I buy that the most, so
it's hard to tell if others also went up.

 

[Mort]

It seems as if HP massivly jacked up their prices over the past few
months. The 96/97 combo went from US$67 to $74! I buy that the most, so
it's hard to tell if others also went up.

Staples has been running a series of sales with coupons, discounts,and
rebates on H-P inks. In addition, they give a $2.00 credit for each
empty cartridge turned in, up to a maximum of 10 cartridges per month.
By buying their ink-only combopack (O2 inks)and turning in old
cartridges, I do somewhat reduce the financial pain. One of the reasons
that these O2 cartridges are expensive is that each one has a built-in
head, eliminating clogged or damaged ink nozzles.

Don't misunderstand me, for I agree that these inks are much more
expensive than they need to be. It is marketing 101, started by Gillette
100 years ago. Make the razors cheap or free,and then make big bucks
selling a steady stream of razor blades.

Regards,

Mort Linder

 

[stan.birch]

It seems as if HP massivly jacked up their prices over the past few
months. The 96/97 combo went from US$67 to $74! I buy that the most, so
it's hard to tell if others also went up.

Canon did the same thing, but instead of jacking the price, they made the ink cartridges a whole lot
smaller.

Until now, I've been a big fan of Canon printers. I bought an MG5220 to replace my failed almost new
IP4800. The new Canons, not only have tiny tiny tiny ink cartridges, but Canon has also used opaque
black plastic for the cartridges so you can't visually determine how much ink is left them.

I only managed to get 25 8x10's before the printer was demanding a new set of cartridges!!

No way I'll ever buy another set of cartridges for this albatross, nor any other Canon printer for
that matter; until they come up with something a lot more attractive than their current offering!

Meanwhile, I am immensely enjoying my new 27" HP computer monitor!!!!!

 

[Gernot Hassenpflug]

Canon did the same thing, but instead of jacking the price, they made the ink cartridges a whole lot
smaller.

Until now, I've been a big fan of Canon printers. I bought an MG5220 to replace my failed almost new
IP4800. The new Canons, not only have tiny tiny tiny ink cartridges, but Canon has also used opaque
black plastic for the cartridges so you can't visually determine how much ink is left them.

I only managed to get 25 8x10's before the printer was demanding a new set of cartridges!!

No way I'll ever buy another set of cartridges for this albatross, nor any other Canon printer for
that matter; until they come up with something a lot more attractive than their current offering!

Meanwhile, I am immensely enjoying my new 27" HP computer monitor!!!!!

Yes, I was pretty disappointed, to the point of giggling, when I saw those miniature carts in the shops.
On the other hand, a set of refill bottles and a chip resetter is all you need to keep things smooth, although it is of course a pain to refill more often.
I'm still happy with my MP450, it has outlasted all the newer models so far.

 

[Joel]

It seems as if HP massivly jacked up their prices over the past few
months. The 96/97 combo went from US$67 to $74! I buy that the most, so
it's hard to tell if others also went up.

I am not HP user, but if you won't mind 3rd party ink then why not shop
around for cheap price. I just spent few seconds and fround the 2
cartridges set costs just $11

And I guess if you spend more time searching you may be able to find a
cheaper price too.

 

[Joel]

Yes, I was pretty disappointed, to the point of giggling, when I saw those miniature carts in the shops.
On the other hand, a set of refill bottles and a chip resetter is all you need to keep things smooth, although it is of course a pain to refill more often.
I'm still happy with my MP450, it has outlasted all the newer models so far.

I don't know how much you know about refilling, but if you can use the
current newest *refillable* cartridge then it should be PAIN-FREE.

No messy, and depending on the printer (I am Epson user) you may not even
have to remove the cartridge off the printer. But if you use the older
catridge with *sponge* inside then I agree it's messy and pain.

The new refillable ink cartridge has no sponge inside, so you just fill
the ink up to the rim, no sponge to cause any bubble (air), and no sponge to
cause dried ink building up. And they should have ARC (Auto Reset Chip) so
you don't even have to mess with the Chip Resetter.

And if there is Chip Resetter for your cartridge then there should be
*refillable* cartridge with built-in ARC. My epson uses 6-cartridges and it
costs around $20-25 for 6 cartridges (I paid $20 some years ago and still
going strong)

 

[Gernot Hassenpflug]

I don't know how much you know about refilling, but if you can use the
current newest *refillable* cartridge then it should be PAIN-FREE.

The short answer: not much!

In Japanese stores the products can be pretty variable, depending on
the pressure of the manufacturers on the retailers. For example, there
was a time when chip resetters were taboo.

I don't know about the refillable carts, I so far use the standard
method of drilling holes (or punching out the existing hole), filling
with thin-tipped bottle of ink, and taping the hole. Not messy per se,
but the bottom of the carts tend to leak when filling until the hole
is taped again.

No messy, and depending on the printer (I am Epson user) you may not even
have to remove the cartridge off the printer. But if you use the older
catridge with *sponge* inside then I agree it's messy and pain.

The new refillable ink cartridge has no sponge inside, so you just fill
the ink up to the rim, no sponge to cause any bubble (air), and no sponge to
cause dried ink building up. And they should have ARC (Auto Reset Chip) so
you don't even have to mess with the Chip Resetter.

Interesting. I'm not sure if such carts are even available generally
in Tokyo, but I will have a look. 3rd part carts are often opaque so
one cannot see if there is a sponge or not. Some are clear, without
sponge, but I have had a bad experience with one of those where the
chip is never recognized by the printer (this is a BCI-7e type).

Never heard of the ARC before, I'll have to read up on that on the web.

And if there is Chip Resetter for your cartridge then there should be
*refillable* cartridge with built-in ARC. My epson uses 6-cartridges and it
costs around $20-25 for 6 cartridges (I paid $20 some years ago and still
going strong)

Very nice!

Thanks for your information, that makes me feel a lot better about the
possibilities for maintaining my printers cheaply in the future.

 

[Brian]

And they should have ARC (Auto Reset Chip) so
you don't even have to mess with the Chip Resetter.

I bought a set of refillable cartridges with seemed to have Auto Reset
chips. These automatically set the level at "full" when you put them in
the printer, and remembered how much ink you've used. However when you
turn the printer off, the chips forget this ink level and revert to
showing them as "full".

So there is no warning when the cartridges are about to run dry, except
by taking them out of the printer and holding them up to the light! I
was not willing to let them run until they stopped printing, as this
wastes paper and can lead to a burnt-out print-head.

All together not a very satisfactory idea.

 

[Joel]

The short answer: not much!

In Japanese stores the products can be pretty variable, depending on
the pressure of the manufacturers on the retailers. For example, there
was a time when chip resetters were taboo.

I don't know about the refillable carts, I so far use the standard
method of drilling holes (or punching out the existing hole), filling
with thin-tipped bottle of ink, and taping the hole. Not messy per se,
but the bottom of the carts tend to leak when filling until the hole
is taped again.

You are talking about the OLD refilling technique which sure is messy, and
each cartridge can only be refilled up to around 3-4 times max. Because the
original cartridge has sponge inside, and the ink will be dried up over the
time. So, there will be lesser ink after each refilled.

Interesting. I'm not sure if such carts are even available generally
in Tokyo, but I will have a look. 3rd part carts are often opaque so
one cannot see if there is a sponge or not. Some are clear, without
sponge, but I have had a bad experience with one of those where the
chip is never recognized by the printer (this is a BCI-7e type).

Never heard of the ARC before, I'll have to read up on that on the web.

ARC (Auto Reset Chip) has been around for a decade or more (I have been
using too long to remember). Yes, GOOGLE is the best friend for asking for
help.

I don't know anything in Japan, but the refillable ink cartridge is all
over the world. If you can find in Japan then you may want to check with
eBay see if anyone will ship to Japan.

Just make sure to GOOGLE for more information about the refillable
catridge and the PRICE. The refillable catridge should be 100% CLEAR
*without* sponge inside, and it's just around $3-4 per cartridge

There are some store(s) selling up to $100-200, and trust me they are
exactly the same (or 99.99% similar)

Very nice!

Thanks for your information, that makes me feel a lot better about the
possibilities for maintaining my printers cheaply in the future.

And the best thing that you may not need to pull the catridge out of the
printer, or you may just stich the needle to 1 of the holes (it has 2 holes)
on top of the cartridge to inject the ink.

 

[Joel]

I bought a set of refillable cartridges with seemed to have Auto Reset
chips. These automatically set the level at "full" when you put them in
the printer, and remembered how much ink you've used. However when you
turn the printer off, the chips forget this ink level and revert to
showing them as "full".

So there is no warning when the cartridges are about to run dry, except
by taking them out of the printer and holding them up to the light! I
was not willing to let them run until they stopped printing, as this
wastes paper and can lead to a burnt-out print-head.

All together not a very satisfactory idea.

None of the chip can know exactly how much ink in the cartridge, so with
the refillable ink cartridge you just open up the printer, sticking the
needle to refill them anytime you think they are getting low.

The printer (manufacture) guessing the ink level by counting number of
print, the type of print etc.. to figure out the ink level.