After you have printed a certain number of copies or graphics, printer cartridges have to be replaced. With the availability of cheaper printer cartridges from third-party companies, you may find yourself in the midst of wondering whether to stick with the printer cartridges produced by original manufacturers or go with the alternative sources.

The Cost

While you may be satisfied with the cost of your printer, you may find prices for original printer cartridges a bit too steep. On the other side of the spectrum, you have these refillers that offer cheap printer cartridges. In fact, you can save as low as 30% to as high as 80% of the cost of original printer cartridges if you opt to buy from third-party companies.

Manufacturers of printer cartridges justify their costs saying that they have incurred a significant amount of money just to develop the technology. On the other hand, third-party suppliers did not spend anything on technology development or on marketing printers at low recovery margins on production cost; for this reason they can well afford to market printer cartridges (compatibles or remanufactured) at huge discounts versus original printer cartridges, especially to customers to whom ink performance is of little concern.

The Print Quality

Tests have shown that the print quality of third-party printer cartridges produced variable results leading to a conclusion that when you replace original printer cartridges with those from third-party companies, you will get printouts with inconsistent quality.

However, the technology of refilling printer cartridges has improved in the last few years. Some third-party companies making printer cartridges produce acceptable quality, although these are limited to excellent refills for black text. Third-party printer cartridges rarely equal the top-notch photo quality you get from printer cartridges by original manufacturers.

If you find it practical for you to obtain printer cartridges from third-party companies, purchase one from a reputable firm. Ask retailers about their return and/or refund policies on defective printer cartridges. Any reliable company would not hesitate to give you a store credit or refund for defective refill printer cartridges.

The Page Yield

You should also consider the number of pages that printer cartridges produce. Remember that if you do not get the desired yield of printer cartridges, this only implies one thing: the cost you incur per page is higher than expected. A study has been conducted in the second quarter of 2007 to determine whether the refill printer cartridges can match the yields from the original manufacturers.

It was found out in the study that even the so-called good-quality refill printer cartridges were off by more than half of what the original printer cartridges can produce in terms of number of pages. In addition to the yield, it also showed that none of the original printer cartridges proved to be duds, or completely malfunctioned, upon arrival, whereas more than 20 percent of the refill printer cartridges tested were outright duds and would not function at all.

The Latest Entrant

A new entrant in the printer industry has caused other printer manufacturers to offer new packages on their printer cartridges. What this new original printer manufacturer does is to sell the printer at a higher price, and to offer reasonably priced original replacement printer cartridges.

Since this new entrant has joined the competition, traditional printer manufacturers have offered two choices on replacements for the printer cartridges on new printer models. One type costs less but yields fewer pages; the other type is priced higher but has more ink and a higher page yield.

Regardless of the recent trend in the printer industry, it still cannot be denied that the costs of refill printer cartridges give you substantial savings while at the same time helping the environment to recycle used printer cartridges. The best thing you can do is to use original printer cartridges when you need photo-quality prints. Otherwise, refill printer cartridges from reputable suppliers will suffice.