Printer Cartridges

[JeffL]

General question not directly Apple related. I use a Canon MG4250 printer and always use genuine Canon ink cartridges. (In the U.K. there is very little saving to be had using non-Canon ink). This printer has 1 x Black ink cartridge and 1 x Multi-Colour ink cartridge. The colour cartridge is now empty again and as I very rarely need to print in colour I have set the printer to Black Only printing. Has anyone on here done the same with their printer? I think I read somewhere, a long time ago, that coloured ink cartridges are depleted even when printing black text documents, is that correct? It is difficult to know if it is less expensive to have both ink cartridges in use all the time or to have just the black setting on. I mainly print black text documents for my own use and occasionally print an old-fashioned letter that needs to go into the postal system!

 

[toMACsh]

I have heard the same thing, and my experience (with Epson printers) is that, even though I only print in black, the color cartridges are eventually depleted. I get a 2X black cartridge, and regular ones for color. That seems to get me to depletion on roughly similar schedules.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

... I think I read somewhere, a long time ago, that coloured ink cartridges are depleted even when printing black text documents, is that correct? ...

The answer is...it depends. Really cheap inkjet printers don't have any true black at all. They mix several colors together to get an approximation of black.

Other inkjet printers may have a single black cartridge, or two, and it depends on the model what that black cartridge (or cartridges) is/are for. If it is a dye-based black, it's only for printing black in graphics, and colors will still be mixed together to print black text. If it is a pigment-based black, it is only for printing black as text in documents.

If your printer has BOTH a dye-based and a pigment-based black cartridge, as the wildly popular Canon MX922 did, then no dye-based black or any colors whatsoever will be used when printing documents.

Your Canon MG4250 takes the PG-540 black ink cartridge. I don't see anywhere on the Canon Web site whether it is dye or pigment ink. You'll have to look it up in your printer's manual.

 

[pine man]

I think the problem is that when youi turn on the printer it primes the cartridges and also cleans the heads.

I have had many canon printers and NEVER used Canon ink.

There are savings to be made and here is a typical site.

Canon MG4250 Ink Cartridges | Canon Pixma MG4250 Printer Ink

Exceptional deals on Canon Pixma MG4250 ink cartridges. Huge savings with next day delivery available and a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Buy today from Cartridge People.

www.cartridgepeople.com

 

[JeffL]

I think the problem is that when youi turn on the printer it primes the cartridges and also cleans the heads.

I have had many canon printers and NEVER used Canon ink.

There are savings to be made and here is a typical site.

Canon MG4250 Ink Cartridges | Canon Pixma MG4250 Printer Ink

Exceptional deals on Canon Pixma MG4250 ink cartridges. Huge savings with next day delivery available and a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Buy today from Cartridge People.

www.cartridgepeople.com

Yes I know that site and I appreciate the answer but I did say very little savings to be had and as I can buy the genuine Canon from Amazon at £21.22 and £19.95 total £41.17 there's only a saving of £4.18 on the two compatibles from cartridgepeople. Not a particularly attractive saving in monetary terms when all considered, but thanks for the response.

 

[chscag]

A suggestion @JeffL:

If you only need to print black, it may be less expensive for you in the long haul to purchase an inexpensive laser printer. Brother makes some very good laser printers that are not expensive and their toner cartridge under normal use will last a very long time.

I have a HP Laser printer that I use for black printing and the toner cartridge typically lasts me for several years. Toner cartridges do not dry out like ink cartridges eventually will.

 

[pm-r]

I think the problem is that when youi turn on the printer it primes the cartridges and also cleans the heads.

One thing I found with our Canon inkjet printers was to not turn them off and that reduced the printer ink priming and cleaning cycles drastically and saved a lot of wasted ink.

If we haven't done any printing for a week, I print a test page once a week to keep everything from plugging or drying up ink in any nozzles.

I can buy the genuine Canon from Amazon at £21.22 and £19.95 total £41.17 there's only a saving of £4.18 on the two compatibles from cartridgepeople

If you have a choice with those cartridges, you can usually save money by buying the slightly more expensive XL or XXL cartridges if they exist for that model as they contain much more ink.

- Patrick
=======

 

[JeffL]

One thing I found with our Canon inkjet printers was to not turn them off and that reduced the printer ink priming and cleaning cycles drastically and saved a lot of wasted ink.

If we haven't done any printing for a week, I print a test page once a week to keep everything from plugging or drying up ink in any nozzles.



If you have a choice with those cartridges, you can usually save money by buying the slightly more expensive XL or XXL cartridges if they exist for that model as they contain much more ink.

- Patrick
=======

Hi Patrick, yes those prices I quoted are for the XL versions, they do work out a lot cheaper. Very interesting to note that leaving the printer switched on reduces ink use, thanks.

 

[JeffL]

A suggestion @JeffL:

If you only need to print black, it may be less expensive for you in the long haul to purchase an inexpensive laser printer. Brother makes some very good laser printers that are not expensive and their toner cartridge under normal use will last a very long time.

I have a HP Laser printer that I use for black printing and the toner cartridge typically lasts me for several years. Toner cartridges do not dry out like ink cartridges eventually will.

Thanks for the info on laser printers, just been looking at some. Do you use the genuine toner cartridges or compatibles in your HP? BTW I remember we had a laser printer many years ago at work and we had to fill it from a container and it was a very messy job. I hadn't realised that cartridges are now available and therefore much easier and cleaner to replace.

 

[pm-r]

Very interesting to note that leaving the printer switched on reduces ink use, thanks.

I discovered this fact accidentally as otherwise it will go through the priming/cleaning process every time it is turned on.
But it is strongly suggested to do some printing at least once or twice a month, either using a test print or a cleaning cycle if the test print shows any errors.

The test print option is usually available in the Canon utility print window for most of their inkjet printers. Other brands are probably similar.


- Patrick
=======

 

[chscag]

Thanks for the info on laser printers, just been looking at some. Do you use the genuine toner cartridges or compatibles in your HP?

I buy third party refilled toner cartridges which are usually ⅓ the price of genuine HP cartridges. The refilled cartridges hold more toner and as I stated above typically last me two years. Over the many years I have been using third party refilled cartridges, I have never had a problem with any.

Brother refilled cartridges (third party) likewise can be found on line at much less the cost of the original.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

Brother refilled cartridges (third party) likewise can be found on line at much less the cost of the original.

I don't recommend "refilled" toner cartridges. I've found that the reliability often just isn't there. A better deal is getting "compatible" brand-new cartridges from third parties that have shown themselves to offer excellent quality over time.

I'm a huge fan of Brother black and white laser printers. Conversely, I recommend against HP laser printers because their support for Macintosh users tends to be lacking.

Here in the U.S., brother laser printers are extremely competitive price-wise. e.g.:

Brother HLL-5100DN
$210
Brother HLL5100DN | Business Monochrome Laser Printer - Networking

The above printer takes an 8,000 page TN850 toner cartridge. You can get replacement compatible cartridges here in the U.S. for an excellent price:

$18 (compared to $110 from Brother!!!)

Compatible Brother TN850 Toner High Yield Cartridge

The Compatible Brother TN850 Toner High Yield Cartridge is a top-quality printing solution designed to meet the needs of busy offices and businesses. With a page yield of up to 8,000 pages…

www.swiftink.com

Unfortunately, I don't have any information on good places to purchase any of the above in the U.K.

Note that since the advent of Covid that the supply of computer printers has been terribly constrained, and when you do find them in stock they are likely to have jacked up prices and sell out quickly.

 

[Lifeisabeach]

A suggestion @JeffL:

If you only need to print black, it may be less expensive for you in the long haul to purchase an inexpensive laser printer. Brother makes some very good laser printers that are not expensive and their toner cartridge under normal use will last a very long time.

I have a HP Laser printer that I use for black printing and the toner cartridge typically lasts me for several years. Toner cartridges do not dry out like ink cartridges eventually will.

BINGO! Exactly what I came to say. I used to have a Brother laser printer, although the model I had emitted a horribly high pitched noise when printing and it had to go. I've long since switched to a very compact HP laser printer that's been going on... gosh... 8 years now? Maybe more? (EDIT: I just checked... 9 1/2!) But anyway, yeah, we long ago realized that we didn't really NEED to print in color, especially with documents shared digitally these days. (EDIT: I just noticed Randy's advice against using HP's due to poor support for Macs. All I can say is it works well here, but I do use AirPrint rather than having it connected by USB, so it's effectively driver agnostic. As long as macOS and iOS support AirPrint, it will work).

One thing I was wondering with regards to ink jets... I wonder if it's not so much the ink getting used as maybe drying out if not used? The main reason I switched to a laser printer was because the ink jets just clogged up too easily when not used regularly. Maintenance was such a hassle.

 

[chscag]

I don't recommend "refilled" toner cartridges. I've found that the reliability often just isn't there. A better deal is getting "compatible" brand-new cartridges from third parties that have shown themselves to offer excellent quality over time.

My wording was a bit off. I should have said compatible cartridges - which I buy for my HP at around ⅓ the cost. The compatible cartridges I buy for my HP come sealed in a new toner carrier. The nice thing about HP Laser printers is that the toner cartridge also includes the drum.

It should be noted that Brother cartridges do not include the drum which must be changed out around every 3 toner replacements. (That's according to Brother.) Something to keep in mind.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

...EDIT: I just noticed Randy's advice against using HP's due to poor support for Macs. All I can say is it works well here...

I didn't say that HP laser printers don't work with Macs. Mostly HP laser printers, that is, their hardware, are excellent (if you don't get one of the real low-end models; but Brother is the same.) But they often treat Macintosh users terribly.

If I even mention HP on a certain Mac discussion list, I know that it will invoke a chorus of folks spitting on the ground. These folks all had HP models that weren't that old and which were working perfectly, but Apple upgraded the Mac OS and HP decided simply not to update the drivers for their model of printer, thus turning these folks printers into bricks for no good reason. All printer manufacturers do this from time to time, but none do it as often as HP does.

Next...when Apple comes out with a new version of the Mac OS that tends to require new printer drivers, of all the printer manufacturers, HP tends to be the most lethargic in updating their drivers. Often updated HP drivers will come out months after every other printer manufacturers has updated their drivers.

Lastly, if you need to get help from HP's tech support, sometimes, maybe most of the time, the experience can go well. But way too often the response from HP tech support is "get a Windows PC and everything will work perfectly." That should NEVER happen.

So, yes, you can get an HP printer and it's likely that you will have a mostly good experience with it. But HP has competition, and the competition (Brother) offers better prices, better features for the price, comparable quality, and better support for Mac users. I know which I'd go for.

 

[Lifeisabeach]

I didn't say that HP laser printers don't work with Macs. Mostly HP laser printers, that is, their hardware, are excellent (if you don't get one of the real low-end models; but Brother is the same.) But they often treat Macintosh users terribly.

If I even mention HP on a certain Mac discussion list, I know that it will invoke a chorus of folks spitting on the ground. These folks all had HP models that weren't that old and which were working perfectly, but Apple upgraded the Mac OS and HP decided simply not to update the drivers for their model of printer, thus turning these folks printers into bricks for no good reason. All printer manufacturers do this from time to time, but none do it as often as HP does.

Next...when Apple comes out with a new version of the Mac OS that tends to require new printer drivers, of all the printer manufacturers, HP tends to be the most lethargic in updating their drivers. Often updated HP drivers will come out months after every other printer manufacturers has updated their drivers.

Lastly, if you need to get help from HP's tech support, sometimes, maybe most of the time, the experience can go well. But way too often the response from HP tech support is "get a Windows PC and everything will work perfectly." That should NEVER happen.

So, yes, you can get an HP printer and it's likely that you will have a mostly good experience with it. But HP has competition, and the competition (Brother) offers better prices, better features for the price, comparable quality, and better support for Mac users. I know which I'd go for.

Yes, this has largely been my understanding over the years and was why I started with a Brother. I failed to make a point I had in mind, which was that AirPrint compatibility makes driver support a moot issue.

 

[chscag]

Yes, this has largely been my understanding over the years and was why I started with a Brother. I failed to make a point I had in mind, which was that AirPrint compatibility makes driver support a moot issue.

That's a good point about AirPrint. Unfortunately, my HP LaserJet is so old that it predates AirPrint but it works great from USB.

Plus I do not use the HP drivers but instead use CUPS + Gutenprint. Works great.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

I failed to make a point I had in mind, which was that AirPrint compatibility makes driver support a moot issue.

Does it?

It's nice that when HP orphans your printer that it doesn't become a brick. But there is a big difference between simply being able to print, and having access to all of the advanced features that a printer driver made specifically for your model of printer offers.

Those of us who purchased printers with multiple trays, for instance, would like to be able to continue to use those multiple trays.

 

[Lifeisabeach]

Does it?

It's nice that when HP orphans your printer that it doesn't become a brick. But there is a big difference between simply being able to print, and having access to all of the advanced features that a printer driver made specifically for your model of printer offers.

Those of us who purchased printers with multiple trays, for instance, would like to be able to continue to use those multiple trays.

AirPrint doesn't support multiple trays? I honestly have no idea. For my extremely limited needs, my HP printer works fine. I'm going on 10 years trouble-free with this one and no end in sight of its useful life. I've never had a printer of any kind for even half this long. I have no doubt a comparable Brother would suit me just fine. That one I had... that high pitch noise... aaargh! But this HP I have is crazy compact and partly why I have it. It actually looks like a typical inkjet. Anyway, I didn't intend to split hairs or suggest you were "wrong". One's usage scenario matters.

 

[toMACsh]

One thing I found with our Canon inkjet printers was to not turn them off and that reduced the printer ink priming and cleaning cycles drastically and saved a lot of wasted ink.

Ah, the age-old question: How much do I pay my electric utility for having things powered on all the time vs. just plugged in and at-the-ready, vs. unplugging when not in use? Thus, is the cost of leaving the printer on less than, about the same, or more than the cost of the ink saved? And then there's the question of the impact on the environment...

So, what I do, and I suspect most people do, is what is most convenient. That is, I leave devices plugged in, 'cause it would be a pain to unplug them when not in use. However, I do tend to power on to use, off when done, reboot in the morning, shut down for the night. That's not so inconvenient for me. And, I don't consider, even for a second, what I might do instead to save a little money. We're not talking big bucks here.