Lexmark Shmexmark
if Lexmark and other printer makers didn't charge rip-off prices for their ink cartridges then the 3rd party ink cartridge market would never have evolved in the first place
Lexmark files patent gripe against 24 cartridge makers
Printer maker Lexmark has probably run out of ink today after firing off 24 patent lawsuits to cartridge vendors on Monday. The Lexington, Kentucky-based company said in a statement yesterday that it had filed a patent infringement complaint with the US International Trade Commission against 24 firms. "The complaint alleges …
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Wednesday 25th August 2010 09:35 GMT Anonymous Coward
Any printer company will rip you off
"If people would pay a fair price for a printer, they wouldn't get ripped off with expensive ink."
A statement which don't have and cant have any contact with reality, ie. bullshit.
Lexmark will rip you as much they can and this act is showing it very clearly. Anyone thinking otherwise isn't actually living in the same world as the rest of us: Any printer company will rip you off. And there's nothing you can do about it: Except of course if not buying a printer is an option.
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Wednesday 25th August 2010 09:35 GMT Anonymous Coward
Bulk product, hand made price, why?
"Do you really think an inkjet printer should cost £30."
Actually I _know_ it doesn't. If you manage to use more than £15 to manufacture it, you've done something badly wtrong. If you sometime bother to think about it, you'll notice it has very few moving parts and not a single complicated part (except maybe the printing head).
_What_ is there to raise the cost? Nothing.
Plastic chassis in bulk cost less than £5 and the electronics needed is one IC, £1 per machine. You have to realize that these are bulk products, made in millions.
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Wednesday 25th August 2010 12:34 GMT Nuke
@ Fraser
You wrote :-
"If people would pay a fair price for a printer, they wouldn't get ripped off with expensive ink.
Do you really think an inkjet printer should cost £30 [?]"
I paid more like 10x that amount for a (HP) printer and I still get ripped off for ink. Costs nearly £100 for a new set of cartridges.
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Tuesday 24th August 2010 15:12 GMT dotdavid
Rip-off cartridges
When it is almost as cheap to buy a brand new printer than to buy a new ink cartridge you know they're basically just profiteering. Oh I'm sure some people argue that there's nothing wrong with this "razor blade" business model, but it does get on my nerves.
However considering how many 3rd party cartridge manufacturers there are around, I'm a bit puzzled why you can't seem to get Gilette-compatible 3rd party razor blades. Do the razor companies have better lawyers maybe?
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Tuesday 24th August 2010 16:00 GMT Anonymous Coward
Well...
"However considering how many 3rd party cartridge manufacturers there are around, I'm a bit puzzled why you can't seem to get Gilette-compatible 3rd party razor blades. Do the razor companies have better lawyers maybe?"
I'm puzzled why you haven't found them. Try looking in Boots and Superdrug, and read the boxes carefully.
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Tuesday 24th August 2010 15:12 GMT GettinSadda
Which companies?
Oh, please tell us which companies sell these cheaper inks/toners for Lexmark printers - then we can choose them rather than the total rip-off of the "original" ink.
The black ink for my printer works out at £1 per ml - that's over £500 per pint. Unless this is made from unicorn blood, there is no way in the world that there can be any justification for this price. It is simply a 100% rip-off.
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Monday 6th September 2010 09:57 GMT greyware is evil
NDA
Didn't your EULA include the NDA?
Unicorns are the salvation for the (living) planet! Their farts are the alternative fuel holy grail.
simply because it doesn't currently exist (or is otherwise unattainable) is no reason to not pass laws requiring unicorn fart power production with iron fisting penalties for non-compliance
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Wednesday 25th August 2010 11:18 GMT Anonymous Coward
Armstrong vs British Leyland
is the reason you can buy oil filters. Unfortunately when the Copyright Designs and Patents act was written it pretty much explicitly said it shouldn't extend to printer consumables due "supposedly" to a case in Hong Kong.
Basically they couldn't invalidate Armstrong Vs British Leyland but they hobbled how far it could extend.
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Tuesday 24th August 2010 15:12 GMT James 5
Agree with Sarah
Lexmark have always sold their printers dirt cheap so they could "reap" the benefits of the "dripping roast" of the continuous and expensive cartridges their users needed.
We live in a competitive market - that's what the "free" market is about. If Lexmark can't stand the heat they should get out of the kitchen (and yes, that is meant to tie in with the dripping roast !).
I once bought a Lexmark - it lasted until the ink ran out then it was put into the local recycle place where it belonged.
Could Lexmark be the Ratner of the printer world?
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Tuesday 24th August 2010 15:12 GMT Paul Crawford
How they have fallen
We have some old monochrome Lexmark laser printers, long lasting, good cost per page. But now, they are crap! A friend of mine got one of their ink jets as part of a PC deal, and it was cheaper to buy an Epson replacement printer than two new cartridges!
Advice for anyone: Never buy a printer without good 3rd party supplies, even if you intend sticking to the original (and often best) product. If they litigate (like Lexmark) then dump them! Otherwise you are just lining up with the lube ready...
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Tuesday 24th August 2010 15:12 GMT Anonymous Coward
Patenly nonesense
As has been demonstrated many times in the past, most of these patents that printer manufacturers bang on about are just systems specifically designed to try and stop other people making print cartridges. They have nothing at all to do with the actual functioning of the printer.
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Tuesday 24th August 2010 16:00 GMT Daniel M
Misleading article and wandering readers
"Lexmark has probably run out of ink today"
If you read further and follow the link, you will see that Lexmark is suing over TONER CARTRIDGES. Yes, Lexmark has some of the cheapest and worst INKJET printers and the most expensive INK CARTRIDGES in these United States, ... but that is not what the article is about.
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Wednesday 25th August 2010 09:35 GMT Alex McKenna
Greedy Ink Makers
I have decided to rely on PDFs rather than print out A4 sheets any more, because of the ridiculous price of HP laser toners.
I used to do laser proofs of every magazine page, and update every time a page was changed or corrected, but now we check everything on screen.
No more "Book" for this magazine.
When the HP inks finally die, I might just get something else for the few items we need prints for.
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Wednesday 25th August 2010 09:35 GMT Stu_The_Jock
Cheap printer - Extortion for ink/toner
It's a simple thing. If you only need to print a small amount occasionally, a cheap printer with expensive inks is fine.
If you print more, then pay more for your printer first, then less everytime you refuel it.
analogies about cars don't follow. Ford don't sell you a car below cost price.
It's not just the home / small office printer market works this way. If you lease a copier, most agreements will look at your expected use. Light use = higher monthly costs and per page pricing. If you plan on printing 1,000s of pages a day / week you can get a MUCH lower monthly price and per page costs, as the makers recover the costs of the machine that way.
Printer makers run a BUSINESS, and to run a business, you need to make a profit on the "total cost" of providing the machine to the customer. Either via higher purchase prices, or though higher ongoing costs for consumables.
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Wednesday 25th August 2010 09:35 GMT J. Cook
Their toner carts aren't all that cheaper either...
Ah, Lexmark, apparently you didn't see what happened to your friend HP when they pulled the same stunt a number of years ago for their inkjet carts.
And yes, while I will never buy a lexmark inkjet based on refill prices, I might still consider their old Optra line of laser printers if it were not for the fact that the toner carts cost over $200 for a new one that was good for ~20K pages.
Mines the one with the printer service manual pocket references in it.
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Wednesday 25th August 2010 09:35 GMT Lewis Paragraph
Not just Lexmark...
I used to have an Epson S21 which developed a habit of insisting that the brand new genuine Epson ink cartridges were not so after printing a couple of pages, and then refused to work unlkess I put in yet another brand new cartridge.
I eventually fixed the problem with a 14lb Sledge Hammer and bought a printer from a different manufacturer.
Not the most cost effective solution, but it sure felt good. Won't be buying another printer from that shower of shit anytime soon.
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Thursday 26th August 2010 09:29 GMT Anonymous Coward
Buy their cartridge once and again only if it clogs - learn to refill!
Hi, there are plenty of ways to get around expensive replacement cartridges. Just buy a refill kit with the black and all the colors. It comes with a syringe and blunt needle. Also includes instructions to refill. Just make sure you get it from company that matches the orginal ink, generic kits will clog the cartridge. After that just buy bulk ink in bottles. I get 16 oz of black and 4 oz of each color. costs about $75 and last me for years. Also invest in rubber gloves like doctors and nurses wear. Ammonia or dilute chlox will remove the ink. Even human spit works, the inks are all organic in nature. I buy maybe 2 cartidges a year because the do clog up after about 6 months.
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Biting the hand that feeds IT
