SCOTUS on Lexmark vs Impression

[xoxoxoBruce]

Impression is a small company that re-manufactures ink cartridges. You know who $3.5 Billion a year Lexmark is.

At issue before the justices is whether Lexmark can use a customer license to block a re-manufacturer like Impression from buying and refurbishing used Lexmark toner cartridges. Beginning in the 1990s, Lexmark has offered consumers a 20 percent discount — what it originally called a "prebate" — for agreeing in advance not to reuse or resell the cartridge. Lexmark uses a form of what's commonly called a shrink-wrap license: the terms appear on the cartridge box itself, and the customer accepts these terms by opening the box.

Lexmark won in a lower court, and this decision has a lot of industries nervous about the outcome.

link

[Gravdigr]

I wouldn't buy replacement cartridges for a Lexmark if ya gave me the printer. WAY too damn much money.

[xoxoxoBruce]

They all are, Canon is outrageous so I buy remans. I save a fortune searching online for what's available. The last time I got 5 each of the 5 cartridges, for less than $40.

[BigV]

Originally Posted by Gravdigr

I wouldn't buy replacement cartridges for a Lexmark if ya gave me the printer. WAY too damn much money.

I have seen lexmark printers on sale at Office Depot for less than the cost of the cartridge for that same printer in the same store at the same time. Buy a cartridge, get a free printer!

[xoxoxoBruce]

Then donated the old one to charity and take a tax deduction.

[glatt]

That's all a charity need. You crappy printer nobody wants and they have to dispose of.

[BigV]

Sans cartridge

[Gravdigr]

The black cartridges for our Canon printer (iP1700, a cheapie) cost around $8-$12. Color cartridges run right around $18-$22. Cartridge cost was what we looked for when we got it.

These are genuine Canon cartridges.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Canon IP4500 (takes 5 cartridges) Canon ink at Staples.

3 cli-8 colors $54.99
4 cli-8 colors $69.99 (includes cli-8 black)
1 cli-8 black $19.99
1 pgi-5 black $21.99

[glatt]

Brother accepts 3rd party cartridges. That's why we got a Brother. And we get cheap 3rd party cartridges online.

[Clodfobble]

We used to get 3rd party cartridges and they were always shit. Ink dried out after a few uses, or they never printed right in the first place, stuff like that. With the branded kind (we have an HP) we go through about one cartridge a year maybe, so we just decided we'll pay for it, it's not worth the hassle.

[Undertoad]

The very cheapest way to print is to buy a used color laser printer that still has a lot of toner left. If you do a very large amount of printering, like a professional amount, you can sometimes find WILD bargains this way, as offices simply do not consider their toner when selling their printers.

If the planned life of the thing is less than 1000 pages, and you're not looking to print photos, just buy a color laser and forget about ink carts forever. Toner is twice as expensive as ink, if you have to restock it; but most printers will come with enough to do a serious bit of printering. I've never had to buy toner for mine, and I've had it for 7 years. (And it doesn't go dry.) Personal color lasers are now available for like $120.

The ink jet printer, as a technology, is dead to me. I think I've said this here before but I can't find it in searches.

[xoxoxoBruce]

I have a photoprinter, that's why the 5 cartridges, and it does a beautiful job. I always get ink on my fingers changing cartridges and shudder at all the pictures of toner strewn hither and yon. That would be my luck.

[BigV]

Ala' Holi?

[xoxoxoBruce]

Not as colorful.