What's the difference between a genuine ink cartridge and a remanufactured ink cart

burtons

Would anyone know what's the difference between a genuine ink cartridge and a remanufactured ink cartridge.
I bought a remanufactured ink cartridges but when I put it in the printer it said it looks like you are using non-genuine ink cartridges so I took off the remanufactured sticker and it's a epson cartridge but I cannot see what's the difference between a genuine one apart from the colour of the cartridge and one is made in the uk and the other is made in indonesia

FluffityBunny

Manufactured ones are basically recycled cartridges that have been sent to a factory to be refilled, genuine ones are brand new.

Dandytf

Only difference Iv’e found is non genuine ink doesn’t last anywhere near the time of genuine ink.

That was from my previous Epsom printer.

Since replaced last year with a new Cannon AirPrint printer.

Almost a year old and I still have ink left from original supplied cartridges -they haven’t dried up at all.

Which is why I’ll replace them with Genuine Cannon cartridges late 2017 or early 2018.

I’ve. Found reliability and quality printing when r3equired as I’m a home user light printer only print a few pages per year when required.

The Epsom ink I did buy once were lots of cartridges for a few pounds from Amazon -they dried up exceptionally fast before I got a chance to use them a few months later.

burtons

FluffityBunny wrote: »

Manufactured ones are basically recycled cartridges that have been sent to a factory to be refilled, genuine ones are brand new.

If they have only been refilled why does it say it looks like you are using non-genuine ink cartridges.

dipsomaniac

you have found the main problem of using refils/remanufactured cartridges on this type of printer. its not worth the hassle imo

DUTR

burtons wrote: »

Would anyone know what's the difference between a genuine ink cartridge and a remanufactured ink cartridge.
I bought a remanufactured ink cartridges but when I put it in the printer it said it looks like you are using non-genuine ink cartridges so I took off the remanufactured sticker and it's a epson cartridge but I cannot see what's the difference between a genuine one apart from the colour of the cartridge and one is made in the uk and the other is made in indonesia

Often the cartidges have a chip in them which the data is extracted from, as others have pointed out, sometimes they are substandard, that said I notice my HP is keen to re-align and other tasks that waste ink, look out for special offers on genuine ink, I get 2*HP302 from argos for £16.

HonourlessWeasel

DUTR makes the point here - cartridges, toner and ink now tend to have chips on them that prove whether they're real or not. Some refilling companies get genuine outer shells of cartridges and refill them so they look genuine and they might be able to fool some printers by having original chips on them. Some refilling companies just make their shells look and fit the same. Some printers actually write to the chips when the toner/ink runs out so they can't be used again.

The problem with using refilled cartridges (more so toner than ink) is that you don't really know what they've put in them to make up the weight and volume. The genuine ones made by the original manufacturer will only use real toner (for a while it was pretty much the most expensive substance on the planet) but some refilling places have been found to pad it out with other powders, hence they're a lot cheaper. Great for your pocket, terrible for your printer.

If they're putting dodgy stuff into ink as well, it can clog up the inside of your printer, it can corrode tubes and make heads unusable. Same deal when it comes to chips on ink cartridges. I bought a Canon printer yesterday and saw the chips on the ink cartridges - I'd never buy non-genuine ones.

But, all this information is because I used to work in the commercial print industry, so I've seen first hand the damage the fake and refilled cartridges can do. It's a false economy, you might save money, but the print quality is never as good and they never last as long. You'll end up spending the money on more cartridges eventually or on replacing your printer.

SouthUKMan

I've had good and bad experiences with non-original / re-manufactured cartridges over the years.

However I have now stopped buying them because the lottery involved in getting a good one isn't worth it to me anymore. I've had cartridges that didn't work, cartridges that printed feint, cartridges that seemed to last only a very short time...... but I've also had some perfect cartridges.

On reflection though I have probably NOT saved money over buying original cartridges - which of course defeats the point of buying the cheaper cartridges in the first place. Add in the hassle I've had...and overall I've been a bit of a mug it seems lol

macman

burtons wrote: »

If they have only been refilled why does it say it looks like you are using non-genuine ink cartridges.

Because you are. Neither the ink supply nor the refilling process are carried out by the original provider.
As far as the manufacturers' are concerned, the carts are single use only, because that's where all the profit is made: that's why the printers themselves are so heavily subsidised.

cloud_dog

HonourlessWeasel wrote: »

It's a false economy, you might save money, but the print quality is never as good and they never last as long. You'll end up spending the money on more cartridges eventually or on replacing your printer.

You can argue over the quality aspect but not the value.

I've got a Canon Pixmania MG7750 and I've never bought Canon's own cartridges. The value saving is mind-blowing.

I get through approx 4 sets a year. I can buy a set (of 5) for £19.50 and have never had a problem with the compatible cartridges I've bought. I cannot say if they print less than branded cartridges or not but based on the cost savings I am happy.

As an example, I can buy a high capacity black cartridges:

• Canon branded - £16.37
• Compatible - £5.31

Multiply that our for 5 cartridges, that equates (at a very simple comparison level) for Canon £81.85, compatible £26.55. A saving of £55.30.

Multiply that out over the year and that is a saving of approx £220! If I buy multi-packs then the costs and savings reduce to approx £130 over 1 year but, I rarely do as after the first set different colours run out at different times so I tend to buy packs of replacement depending on high use colours.

Sooooo, if the printer or head dies I can buy another one (or two with the savings).

I'm sure the cartridge chip will catch up with me at some point but until I have to, I am happy with compatibles (certainly through the provider I have been using for years).

Robisere

It comes down to what you want from a printer. Now you have read about how cartridges can have a data chip in them, you will know that the lack of a data chip, or an unsuitable remanufatured chip, will stop the printer working.

I have an 8yo HP Photosmart 5-cartridge printer, have always used genuine HP cartridges and carried out regular HP upgrades. But I need the quality and reliability of genuine cartridges in order to design certain projects and print them, as well as photographs. Anyone without these kind of requirements, is better off using compatible cartridges, after the warranty is over.