Choosing a printer also implies considerations on consumables: let’s see together some aspects that just cannot be ignored
Buying a printing device involves a whole series of evaluations ranging from performance to unit cost per page, through to replacing consumables.
How much do consumables affect your choice of printer?
Regardless of the type of printing device you want to buy, it is undeniable that – sooner or later – we must ask ourselves the classic question of how to choose the cartridges for the printer without making mistakes in this sense. In order not to err in making evaluations in this sense, it is very important to keep in mind that, by now, the cost of the peripheral alone obviously does not represent a large part of the printing burden that one bears over time. While in the past the devices themselves had a considerable price, also thanks to the widespread use of these machines, it is rather the operating cost that must attract our attention when we choose a printer. The frequency with which we are going to change consumables, in fact, suggests to us how significant the impact of the purchase price of this product is. Another aspect on which we cannot overlook, of course, is that which concerns the inconvenience deriving from having to suspend the use of the peripheral: the latter, especially if the availability of consumables were not a simple matter, could represent a significant disadvantage. .
The different types of printers and consumables
Over time, the popularity of the different types of printing peripherals has changed together with the launch of new products that are increasingly efficient, easy to use and with the greatest potential in terms of quality. From dot matrix printers – famous for ensuring the creation of forms – we have moved on to inkjet printers, which represented a significant paradigm shift for the creation of more complex graphic contents. After inkjet machines, laser machines entered the market, initially widespread in the workplace: powerful and versatile, they established themselves as a real standard for producing large quantities of documents in a short time. Here, in the light of these simple considerations, it is easy to understand how a peripheral can be more suitable in contexts where the print volumes are larger (as in the case of laser printers). The inkjet ones, on the other hand, are often more suitable for those who need less frequently to use the printer. An aspect that, however, can at least partially mitigate the impact of the cost of replacing consumables is the availability of products of different types, among which the original and compatible ones stand out. But we will see this aspect better in the next paragraph.
Which consumables should you choose for your printing device?
To conclude our brief overview dedicated to printing devices, we cannot fail to focus our attention on a very relevant aspect, namely, that of the type of consumables to buy to replace those that are now out of stock. Self the original cartridges and toners are manufactured according to the technical specifications of the parent companies, taking into account the characteristics of the printing devices, these consumables obviously have a higher cost. The compatible products, on the other hand, are offered by third-party companies which, based on the needs of the printers, manufacture cartridges or toners that are suitable for use on these machines. The main advantage, in this case, is given by the greater convenience of these consumables: however, they could pose problems if the firmware of the devices were updated. In this case, in fact, the correct recognition of this product would no longer be guaranteed in any way. The choice of the first or second type of consumable is therefore also determined by the acceptability – or otherwise – of risks related to any inefficiencies in use with the printer.