What is it with Remanufactured Printer Cartridges?
Hi,
A few weeks back I bought a "remanufactured" cartridge for an HP inkjet. The quality was appalling, so I took it back. At no point did it make sense to me why the quality should suffer, but I got a refund.
I decided to buy a Laser a couple of weeks ago. Having been assisted by Mr Saab Dastard, I got the laser working (by fluke, I picked it up from a liquidator without a manual).
So, the quality from the (registered Jan '06) auction laser was great, but ink was low.
Today, I went to the same store (silly me...) and picked up a remanufactured laser toner cartridge...
Compared to the genuine HP cart, the remanufactured unit looks feint and grey instead of solid black...
So, I know I'm a cheapskate and now wish I'd paid for the genuine HP (easier said than done by the looks of it as many firms claim to offer genuine HP but have small-print stating "equivalents" may be substituted...), but, my question is: why are the remakes such a nightmare? Do these stores that sell remakes profit from ignorant people who aren't bothered about the drop in quality, or is it just my luck?
What physical reason is there for the drop in quality?
I picked up the network-enabled laser for a fraction of its retail (nearly a tenth) and it claims to have printed less than 5,000 sheets in its lifetime... Still, I now wish I'd just forked out for a new one - it's been nothing but hassle, and now the print quality has suffered.
I feel like a cheapskate buying the remade part, but unless you've tried it, how are you to know? There's also the environment to think about as well...
Thanks for any comments in advance.