Issues and Fears relating to remanufactured ink...

With the cost of remanufactured ink cartridges at least 30% lower than original manufacturer ink, remanufactured ink cartridges are an affordable way to keep your printer stocked with ink. While the price is lower, many times fear of poor print quality or voided warranties keeps many from purchasing remanufactured cartridges.

Poor Quality: For regular print jobs and day-to-day printing, remanufactured ink cartridges produce nearly the same if not in some cases better quality as original manufacturer ink. Many original manufacturers say that remanufactured cartridges will damage printers, causing clogged print heads or even leaks within the printer. Remanufactured cartridges are put through a rigorous set of testing to ensure the best quality of cartridge.

Voided warranty: Original manufacturers word their warranties to imply that the use of remanufactured cartridges will void warranty. The federal Magnusson-Moss Warranty Improvement Act prohibits manufacturers from voiding warranties based on customer preference of aftermarket products.

Remanufactured ink cartridges are the most affordable way to print. At the same time, remanufactured ink cartridges are beneficial to the environment, keeping plastic waste out of landfills. Many remanufactured ink cartridge companies offer a greater return or exchange warranty than the original manufacturer. This helps to ease any concerns with purchasing a remanufactured cartridge.   

Vivera Ink? vs. Aftermarket Ink?

HP has recently launched a new brand of ink called Vivera Printer inks. If you are a heavy-user, printing mostly photos, then Vivera ink may work very well for you. Vivera ink boasts affordability, full-color printing and durability and is said to be one of the best photo printer inks on the market. Testing has also shown that images printed will resist fading for over one hundred years.

While there are many benefits to Vivera ink, there are some downsides as well. Compared to remanufactured ink, Vivera ink costs over three times more. Also, many of the Vivera ink’s are best in newer style printers. If you have an older model printer, the ink may not work as well or may not work at all on your printer. In addition, there have been reports of Vivera ink not drying well or very quickly on the paper. On a normal print job, the ink may not stick to the paper and will rub off.

Remanufactured ink cartridges are high quality and very affordable. Many of the same print jobs done on a Vivera cartridge can be accomplished using the remanufactured cartridge, at a fraction of the cost.

I keep Getting Cartridge Recognition Errors!!!

When installing a remanufactured cartridge, you may get an error on your screen. This is happening because print cartridges are designed by the original manufacturer to only be used once. Depending on the error, many times it is an easy fix.

• Low Ink Error:

  • All remanufactured cartridges are filled to capacity. However, when the cartridge is remanufactured, the ink level is always going to show at the level it was at before remanufacturing. Many times you will get this error every time you print, although you are still able to print clearly. To get rid of this error, make sure that the ink-tracking level feature is turned off in your Printer settings.

• Cartridge Not Recognized:

  • New software updates have come out that prevent printers from recognizing remanufactured cartridges. In order to clear this message, make sure that both cartridges installed are remanufactured. For example, if you have one original Dell cartridge and one remanufactured cartridge, you may get this error. If you have both remanufactured cartridges for your black and color cartridges then you will not get this error. Re-installing your original printer software may also resolve this issue.

If your cartridge still does not print after resolving the errors, try cleaning the cartridge. You can do this by placing the cartridge on a damp paper towel until you see ink on the paper towel. This should clear any obstructions that may have been in the ink path. Still getting errors? Try calling the customer support for where you purchased your cartridge.