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Description
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
You know the old aphorism about giving away the razor but making money on the razorblades. That philosophy seems alive and well in our corner of the retail world, with a prime example being inkjet printers and ink cartridges.
Printer manufacturers aren't really in the printer business, they're in the ink business--or so the story goes.
Consumers, irked by the cost of a new cartridge--or set of them--search out less expensive, off-brand inks, often sourcing ink that is of a far lower quality than they might expect, if you go by what Wilhelm Imaging Research Inc. indicates. But it's not just consumers who make occasional photo prints for their own use who are looking for alternatives. So, too, are those who make scores of prints, whether for profit or not.
Printer manufacturers cannot tell you how many prints a cartridge will make, because it depends on the color mix of the print jobs. So another thing that bugs printer users is running out of ink in the middle of a print job.
"There has to be a better way," could be the rallying cry. Some retailers are selling their customers bulk ink systems. Other consumers have headed for the Internet for the same thing.
Ink supply systems
Products such as the MediaStreet Niagara Continuous Ink Flow System, and the InkRepublic.com i-INK system are designed... |
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