Ideas on saving on printing & inks

Unorthodox on 09/03/2014 - 17:15

Note: not sure if this belongs in electronics or not, please move if necessary.

Hi oz bargain,

As many of you are aware, printers themselves are cheap because the companies rely on ink cartridge sales as their main source of revenue. (Ink is the most expensive liquid measured ml to ml with any other liquid).

So, as a uni student, I'm going to be expected to print off heaps of slides, notes etc (a lecturer won't allow electronics in class) and I'm not really happy paying $40+ for black ink + three colors every few months which will probably increase to every few weeks…

Printing at university is an option but they also charge quite a bit.

So, my question is, how do YOU save on printing?

General Discussion

Comments

  • msmhw on 09/03/2014 - 17:28
    +1

    I am uni student too, the cheapest way i found buy i good printer and refill the ink. You can find some good ink in ebay which will last you for long time. The bottle i bought last me for around two years! And stll there some ink on it.
    There is a clean method to refill the ink without any miss (at least for canon)

  • KBZ on 09/03/2014 - 17:38
    +5

    I was a uni student, just bought generic ink cartridges off ebay for like ~$10 a set and lasted much longer than the official ones.
    If they don't get recognized just replaced the microchip off the real one to the generic and override.

  • Unorthodox on 09/03/2014 - 18:10

    Yeah I'm trying to find ways to trick the chips because I don't want to have to buy colors when I don't need them… Yet my printer won't function without all cartridges having sufficient ink.

    I mainly use black and white (greyscale) but I still require colors so no chance in getting only a black inked printer.

    I'm considering using nonofficial inks at the moment.

    Thanks for the input! I'm feeling more confident about generic inks.

    • cwongtech on 09/03/2014 - 18:17

      I'm considering using nonofficial inks at the moment.

      Yeah just buy a cheapie printer that accepts generic inks (make sure they're available on ebay first), it's only lecture slides right?

    • KBZ on 09/03/2014 - 19:04

      Yet my printer won't function without all cartridges having sufficient ink.

      You sure? try googling with your printer brand name override. I know for my Canon it was to hold down OK or something to override.

      • sleepy120 on 13/03/2014 - 09:27

        I have read this is true about the insufficient ink of one colour for my Fuji Xerox laser.

  • altomic on 09/03/2014 - 18:47
    +3

    i'm a uni student (part time, and full time worker). make sure the printer you buy takes refills.

    canon,HP are usually pretty good for refilling.
    avoid lexmark, dell - useless usually for refilling.

    some printers require a physical hack - like the HP B110a that I have which took 10 minutes to "adjust" to accept refills. used it on and off for 2 years until it died recently. bought ink from ebay and refilled the original starter cartridges all that time.

    some ink cartridges can be refilled directly. some require the chips to be altered. some will take cheapo ebay cartridges with no prolem - some with a slight "adjustment".

    make sure you research the printer first.

  • iampoor on 09/03/2014 - 19:19
    +11

    A cheap laser printer is the way to go if you can do with grayscale. You can highlight notes without the ink smudging and the toner can last a really long time. My Fuji Xerox refused to print due to low toner, a quick search online revealed that the printer uses a light beam to determine the toner level…I used a black marker on the plastic window and three years on the starter toner is still going strong :)

    TOC of inkjet printers are way higher than a cheap laser jet, Brother ones are going for $49 from Dick Smith I think.

    Good luck

    • tebbybabes on 09/03/2014 - 23:00
      +4

      Must echo Iampoor on this one. Other than weighing a ton, Laser printers just can't be beat for reliability and affordability in terms of cost per page. Its just a higher up front cost compared to ink jets. If you don't need to print colour all too often, you can get a cheap mono laser and do up the coloured pages at uni. Or you could spring for a colour laser. It won't get you photo quality printing but it still comes out mighty nice.

      If you decide to go this route, research the price of consumables and factor them in when making your decision with regards to brand and model.

    • scotty on 10/03/2014 - 00:30
      +3

      +1 for iampoor and tebbybabes. You can also look for cheap, second hand older HP LaserJet that take heavy duty toners. Some of them built like a tank and can easily source compatible toners.

      Personally I have an old Brother laser bought 14 years ago that takes 6,000 pages toner that you can buy $40 genuine or $20 compatible on eBay.

      • Conka on 10/03/2014 - 10:01
        +2

        The HP Laserjets (4, 5 series) are absolutely magnificent. See if you can source one 2nd hand? They were made for business, and are generally better wearing than the throw-away gear that you buy today at consumer prices…

        2nd hand printers don't come with warranty.

        This guy has a reasonable list of things to check if buying 2nd hand … http://www.wonkity.com/~wblock/docs/html/usedlasers.html

        • netsurfer on 10/03/2014 - 22:36
          +1

          My experience with Laserjet 4 is mixed (second hand one). It was okay initially, but it starts to have paper jam regularly. I was told the roller needs to be replaced. Second hand items are not always that reliable.

          It is better to go for one of the cheap Fuji Xerox Laser ($40-$50) and compatible toners ($20-$30).

      • morpheu on 11/03/2014 - 20:32
        +1

        about 4 years ago i found a HP P1006 outside a block of units along with other bits, missing toner but otherwise looked good, took a gamble and bought a re-manufactured toner cart for $14.99 off ebay, good for over 1500 prints, still going strong, beat that!
        i gave up on inkjets long ago, unless used regularly they clog up and what's worse, everytime you turn it on/off the damn thing uses up more and more ink as if it's lubricating oil!

  • Unorthodox on 09/03/2014 - 19:51

    I'm using a cheapo Epson TX-100 that was on sale a while back.

    I definitely can't use the printer without having a chip that shows the cartridge has sufficient ink levels. (Tried the techniques regarding blocking the chip with tape to no avail).

    The majority require only black and white but cover pages and picture references require colours.

    I've never understood how unofficial ink can break printers…

    Thanks again for the advice. I'll do some research and find a suitable printer that can do the above^

    • nahi11 on 09/03/2014 - 21:12

      Haha I have that printer too!

      I'm trying to get rid of it but have stockpiles of ink left I bought for $2 each on ebay.

      • Unorthodox on 09/03/2014 - 21:23

        Ohh lol… it's noisy and unreliable haha

        Do the inks work?

        • nahi11 on 09/03/2014 - 21:29

          It's noisy, unreliable AND slow.

          The inks are quite old (2+ years) but they work perfectly fine. The quality has degraded which is probably due to a combination of cheap ink + old cheap printer.

    • [Deactivated] on 10/03/2014 - 22:27
      +1

      The epson nx-125 came with a starter toner cartridge that only did 10 pages for me and I went to an ink store and was told that they only put 12ml of ink into their cartridges at $25 a cartridge!

      All-in-all I learned that all printers are definitely not the same. It pays just to know which one is decent for what you need at a reasonable price. You don't need to research for days, just ask someone from an ink store what they would buy.

      I actually got brother HL-2132 and it worked great until the pages started smearing. Threw it out and asked wife to get a replacement one from officeworks for $50. She came home with a $35 inkjet and a $50 ink cartridge. It seems I'm still learning the hard way.

    • oringal on 11/03/2014 - 00:11

      the key with epson printers is to never update the software :P the software updates are mainly to determine generic ink cartridges. i have an epson workforce 645, best value printer imo. Auto duplex, extremely fast printing and paper tray holder.

  • blueskyfridays on 09/03/2014 - 23:19
    +2

    Ditch ink and get a laser b&w printer from officeworks. Get refills from cartridge world or new but look for number of pages printed @ 5% coverage to make sure get the right bang for buck. This is important before buying the printer!!

  • endotherm on 10/03/2014 - 00:42
    +3

    You could consider a continuous ink system for inkjets if you will be using it a lot or printing out a lot of photos etc. e.g. http://www.rihac.com.au/offers/?gclid=CMWC7_XJhb0CFQ8DvAodpF…

    • judyoz on 10/03/2014 - 10:27

      Definitely get a Continuous Ink System. We print A LOT of stuff and have been using CIS printers for years. We currently have an Epson TX650 and an Epson RX610 and both have been going strong for 3+ years with just an occasional ink top-up into their 100ml ink bottles.

      These guys are good too

      http://www.inkjetcity.com.au/

      • xyron on 12/03/2014 - 17:03

        I used to work for Inkjet City. They changed hands shortly after I finished my employment but are still excellent to deal with, especially if you are in Adelaide and want your CISS professionally installed.

        Personally, I use an A3 Brother inkjet multifunction that I picked up in hard rubbish near my house for free, and buy $2 cartridges off eBay for it. Works a treat.

  • johninmelb on 10/03/2014 - 08:10
    +2

    I have a Brother HL-2142 laser I got from Officeworks couple of years ago. I have seen them as low as $49. They come with a full toner cartridge, not a starter pack. I am still using the original cartridge, but admittedly, I do not do masses of printing. But it's now giving me the warning to replace. I bought a new high capacity cartridge online at a great price.

    I have always been skeptical of any printer other than a HP, but I was unemployed, and price rather than brand name dictated what I could buy to print job applications etc. I have to say, that despite getting a wonky printer to start with (Brother/Officeworks replaced it no problems), I have been more than happy with it.

    So as others have said, despite the upfront cost of a new printer, you will find a b&w laser far more economical if the bulk of your printing is grey scale etc. Just keep your colour inkjet for the stuff you have to print in colour.

  • ankor on 10/03/2014 - 08:13
    +2

    Is he allowed to ban electronics that are used as a learning aid?

    • kobrien456 on 12/03/2014 - 07:48

      So he's an educator and not following the principles of Universal Design for Learning?

  • Euphemistic on 10/03/2014 - 09:37

    I've had two canon printers now. Fr both I bought a chip resetter. A small device you pop your cartridge onto that then resets the chip on the cartridge to think it is full again. Both came with enough ink to make up for about 10-20 cartridges in each colour. The last one cost me about $70 for the ink and resetter. The resetter either has a small battery in it, or the current one runs off USB. Pop the cartridge on, small flash of the he led in It, as few seconds later a longer flash to tell you it's reset.

    It can get a bit messy refilling the cartridges (usually takes a day or two to clean my fingers) but works out so much cheaper. Genuine cartridge for the latest printer add up to about $120, generic about half that. The resetter more than pays for itself, especially the amount of ink my wife uses for work.

    • [Deactivated] on 10/03/2014 - 22:31
      +1

      Grab some plastic gloves next time you're at the servo.

      • Euphemistic on 11/03/2014 - 15:00

        I've got some gloves and You'd think I would have learnt by now, but no, each time I refill …

  • [Deactivated] on 10/03/2014 - 12:02
    +2

    I've owned four inkjets over the years. Every one of them was brilliant when I first got it. Started using refills and they all clogged eventually. (Epson & Canon.) I spent more time and money and flushed more ink through them trying to unclog the stupid things, than I ever spent actually printing. I read somewhere original inks have a tiny amount of solvent added to prevent the nozzles clogging. But most refills are made by importing coloured powder and simply adding water. (And yes, I used the better quality refills and ink.)

    Recently I purchased a Brother HL-2130 monochrome (black toner only) laser printer. (It often comes up on ozbargain marked down.) The starter cartridge began complaining about low toner a couple of months ago. So I looked up how to reset it on youtube. It's still printing two months on. (I print a couple of pages each day on average.) I also only print on "toner save". It looks nearly the same but uses less toner. I also picked up a couple of toner cartridges out of the recycle box at a Harvey Norman store. So when the sample one finally does run out, I'll try inserting those and see how much toner is really left in them too. If there's none left, I'll get some more next time I drive by.

    Colour prints. I go to Harvey Norman/Kmart/etc. Yes you pay a bit, but you usually don't need colour on every page. Print the black only pages on your laser. Using a store's colour printer is better than planning to print something, then discovering your inkjet is clogged - yet again. There's none of the cost or fuss of consumables. No ink on your hands, no running cleaning cycles (which flushes all the new ink you just refilled down the drain - which fills the sponge under the printhead - and the printer eventually demands a service and refuses to print)… (Years ago the clogging problem was so bad that people would seal them inside large plastic bags when they went on holiday to try and prevent them drying out!)

    You'll usually get two points of view. People that say they have no problems using refills - and those that do. Feeling lucky? ;-)

    Seriously tho', if you're printing ALL THE TIME and using ALL the colours regularly, then it MAY be worth it. That constant flow of ink keeps the nozzles clear. But if you only print once a week (or less) then there's a good chance it will clog. There are things you can do to unclog them and I've done them all. Take them apart, stand the print head in distilled water, flush with windex using a syringe (because it used to have a little ammonia in it)… You can spend hours/days and it's a real pain in the neck when it doesn't work. Even when it does, you often find you can never fully clean some nozzles - and they never print correctly again. So every print looks… shabby.

    You're stuck. Printer has clogged jets. Doesn't print good quality. But you have tonnes of refill ink left. So you hold off buying (yet another) new printer. So you're stuck handing in assignments that look poor when compared to everyone else.

    Of course another way could be to print on someone else's inkjet, and buy them an original ink cartridge now and then.

    • cwongtech on 10/03/2014 - 12:32

      Every one of them was brilliant when I first got it. Started using refills and they all clogged eventually. (Epson & Canon.) I spent more time and money and flushed more ink through them trying to unclog the stupid things, than I ever spent actually printing

      Just print regularly and you'll be fine (once every fortnight at least)

      But if you only print once a week (or less) then there's a good chance it will clog.

      I've only had problems if you haven't printed for a month.

  • machej on 10/03/2014 - 20:03

    Get a laser for sure. That way you can use compatible ink no worries.

  • jzdhgkd on 10/03/2014 - 21:45

    What kind of lecturer doesn't allow electronic devices in class?

    Anyway, I second the vote for a laser printer. You can get a cheap one (< $100) that would print something like 700-1000 pages, and genuine cartridges thereafter would give you something like 2000 pages for $80-100. Generics appear to be just as good in my opinion (at least for printing uni notes) and cost like $30 off ebay.

    If you must have proper colour, then consider a continuous ink supply (CIS) - my gf has the Rihac system for her inkjet (needs to print photos) and it work pretty damn well from what I can see! I don't know how many pages it would print, but it sure as hell lasts a lot longer than a traditional ink cartridge. Your printer is supported here and that has everything you need including 100mL of each colour ink. Refill bottles are $10-15 per 100mL bottle. Not sure if it's worth it though if your printer is old and dodgy =)

    P.S. scorpion venom is much more expensive than printer ink ;)

  • Hahuh on 10/03/2014 - 22:24

    I have a canon mx885 and a rihac cis

  • netsurfer on 10/03/2014 - 22:45
    +1

    Low end laser printer with compatible toners is the way to go if you only need black and white.

    With ink jet, there are 3 things you need to keep in mind:

    • Ink jet printers use ink to clean the print heads. This means you will regularly lose ink due to cleaning. If you print a lot regularly, then maybe it is okay.
    • Continuous ink supply is required if you want to save on printing on an ink jet printer in the long run. However, the initial cost of one is relatively high. I used to have such setup when I used to print on CDs/DVDs or photos a lot. However, even with CISS, there is a down side (see next point).
    • Ink jet printer has a waste ink pad. That pad will eventually get saturated. Most, if not all ink jet printers, have a counter to keep track of that. Eventually, with CISS, you will reach that limit. You could reset the counter with some software BUT that won't solve the problem. When the pad becomes saturated, excess waste ink will start to leak out. Only way is the drill a hole and re-pipe the waste ink tube to a waste ink container.

    SOHO ink jet printers are not made to last. Commercial ones have waste ink tank and better setup. Not to mention that even if you use CISS, the colours generally don't look as good as the original ones.

    Laser printers (even low end ones) have one big advantage over ink jet - speed. When you are in a rush to print your assignments / reports with quite a few pages, you would rather be printing to a laser printer. Sometimes, the ink jet decides to do some cleaning half way through a long print, which is annoying.

  • headlessfly on 11/03/2014 - 01:11
    +2

    I've gone through many printers in my life, and the most economical (overall - considering cost of printer, replacement cartridges/refills, drums, breakdowns, printhead problems, etc) I still find is a humble mono-laser.

  • adn on 11/03/2014 - 09:21

    while at uni, got a part time gig and used their printer to print my notes and assignments.

  • J5 on 11/03/2014 - 17:36

    as mentioned above , Brother laser printer well under $100

    I print 2 pages per day and get about 2 years out of 1 and throw it away and buy another one

    ink printers cost you about 10 cents a page

    the other tip is to tweak your print settings , i set mine down low so use less ink per print

    • cwongtech on 11/03/2014 - 19:52

      ink printers cost you about 10 cents a page

      Mine cost me 1c per page, I use ebay generic inks though, print in colour as well.

  • J6 on 11/03/2014 - 18:23
    +1

    Ebay your inks, i would by all my generic cartridge colours at once for less than half the price of one branded ink at harvey norman ect.

  • [Deactivated] on 12/03/2014 - 00:59

    Brother Inkjets do not use Chips, they are very easy to refill.

  • tanksinatra on 12/03/2014 - 08:08

    Cheapest way to print imo is to get a Colour laser and refill the powder. I have a Samsung colour laser (older model, CLP-620) and order replacement toner powder + cartridge chip on ebay. Costs about $15-30 and gets you 4000-5000 pages.

    The BEST PART is that the 'ink' doesn't expire and there's no printhead to get clogged when you don't print for a few months.

  • Schniz2 on 12/03/2014 - 09:27

    I use the Rihac continuous ink system. costs about $120 to start with (comes with well over $1000 worth of ink), then its about $13 for 100ml of ink… and its high grade ink… i have had generic cartridges and other refil kits ruin my print heads over time… but i have printed thousands of pages and photos with the rihac system and have had no problems.

  • ally ikon on 12/03/2014 - 10:05

    My vote is with brother laser. .I have a 2142 and its def worth the $50 in terms of cost/page and reliability. I stocked up on cartridges at HN a few years back when they had a good special..and by stocked up I mean 2, they are high yield so last thousands of pages. You don't want to be left with ink but no printer (ie your ink lasts longer than your printers life)

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