Printer consumables are typically the biggest expense over the life of your printer. Normally consumables costs will far exceed the price of the printer. And yet this fact is often overlooked when purchasing a new printer. Too many people focus on the purchase price of the printer. They buy a cheap printer… only to regret it in the near future.
Just to be clear, printer consumables are not just limited to cartridges either. Consumables are the things you need to replace during the life of the printer, and can include:
- Toner cartridges
- Ink cartridges
- Printer fuser units
- Printer drums
- Feed rollers
- Transfer belts
- Waste toner boxes
What You Need To Know About Printer Consumables Before Deciding On A Printer
You’ll need to find out how many consumables the printer requires. The more parts you need to keep replacing, the more expensive the running costs are likely to be. Of course, some parts are going to cost more than others and some last much longer than others. So you need to do the calculations to get an idea of the cost per page over the life of the printer.
Some printers have all-in-one cartridges. This means the drum, waste bin and toner are all one unit. This can reduce the frequency of replacement consumables, but you’ll need to do the calculations to know whether it will saves you money over the long term.
As you’d expect, cheaper printers can have shorter consumable replacement cycles than high end printers. If you’re replacing parts more regularly and they’re short-life cartridges, it’s going to cost you more per page. Keep in mind the simple rule of thumb for buying a printer:
- Lower initial outlay = Higher cost per page
- Higher initial outlay = Lower cost per page
So generally speaking, a cheaper machine will have higher running costs. Having said that, in our experience the cheapest Brother inkjet printers tend to be way more economical to run than other Brands at the lower end of the market. Even the cheapest Brother inkjet printers are pretty economical to run.
How To Reduce Your Printer Consumables Cost
Because replacing printer consumables is not cheap, it’s a good idea to explore compatible printer cartridges. These are simply cartridges that are not made by the manufacturer of your printer. Compatibles work better with some brands and models than others. So you’ll want to check that compatibles are a good option for the next printer you buy.
Keep in mind that not all compatible cartridges are equal. The quality of compatibles ranges from rubbish, right up to a quality that’s comparable with genuine cartridges. So you’ll want to buy compatibles from a knowledgeable company you trust.
At Easyink, we sell only the best, and we guard our reputation with a passion. If ever you have a problem with compatibles supplied by us, we’ll do whatever it takes to keep you happy.
Click here to view our range of printer cartridges, including compatibles (simply type in your printer in the search box to find the right cartridge)…
Or click here to see a range of our Brother inkjet printers…
