subject: Misgivings about compatible ink cartridges? [print this page] When your new inkjet printer has used up the ink cartridges that came with it, and this tends to happen quickly since the free ones that come with the machine are often only half filled by the manufacturer, you may be considering buying compatible ink cartridges instead of branded ink cartridges from the manufacturer. These compatible cartridges are a lot cheaper but many people have a few misgivings about the quality which we will look at briefly.
It is a perfectly sensible thing to worry that the quality will not be up to scratch but well respected companies that sell compatible ink cartridges live on their reputation and provide hundreds of thousands of cartridges a year. In many ways they are far more in the business of making ink cartridges than the computer companies that make the printers. The materials and inks they use in their compatible ink cartridges are of at least the same, and often better quality than the branded cartridges and because the turnaround is greater there is often not as much old stock which means the shelf life will often be longer than the branded ones. Good companies will use the highest quality inks in their cartridges and often offer different types, for instance cheaper ones for draft printing and more expensive ones for high quality photo printing. Because of the manufacturing process these cartridges will be completely filled when you get them so quite often you will find that they will even last longer than the more expensive manufacturer branded items.
