Buying Printer Ink Cartridges Cheap – Top 3 Things I Learned the Hard Way
Buying printer ink cartridges cheap is an excellent way to save quite a bit of money over the year. Beware, though – not all companies and cartridges are created equal. You have to know what to look for in order to find a reputable supplier.
Give the following a quick read before you start your search for discount ink cartridges. These tips represent some of the things that I’ve learned (the hard way, unfortunately) and hopefully they will help you avoid problems.
Compatibility is Crucial
Naturally, you need to find cartridges that are compatible and meant to work with your model of printer. Some sites make that easy, however you may want to avoid companies that use obscure part numbers as you’ll never know before buying whether they are what you need or not.
Stick to products that either use the same part number your printer manufacturer recommends, or that spells out clearly which brand the cartridge is compatible with. Reputable companies will have compatibility charts for you to use. This information alone can save you headaches because you can seldom go wrong with compatibles.
Another nice thing about compatible cartridges is their reliability. They have been made specifically to work certain types of printers, so you can generally trust that they are good quality products that you’ll be happy with. You are not likely to have any issues with leakage, jamming or smudging and print performance and results should be as good as full priced brands.
Quality and low cost together is a beautiful thing, isn’t it?
Is Anybody Out There?
Ever had a complaint or a problem and been unable to reach a person for help? I have and it’s frustrating! Emails go unanswered and there you sit with a faulty product or no product at all because it never arrived. You’re out the money and you still don’t have a cartridge for your printer.
I once ordered an advertised discount printer ink cartridge incorrectly, It was my first time buying online, I wanted the convenience of not having to go out to shop but didn’t know what I was doing. Thought that I had matched the site’s part number with the item that I needed but I was wrong and needed to send it back and get a replacement. I needed help, so I contacted the company via their site and waited. Sent another email. And waited. That was two years ago and I still have not received a reply.
The issue of non-existent customer service gets me so hot under the collar that I just have to mention it here. Please make sure that whichever site you purchase from has customer service that actually pays attention to you. Being ignored when you need assistance is just plain maddening and rude. It also makes me uneasy, which leads me to the next tip.
Security is Vital!
When I did not hear back from the company mentioned in the previous section, I started to get nervous. I’m not referring to the product issue, I’m talking about theft. Because I was left feeling like I was swindled, I was concerned about what those people were going to do with my credit card information. Was I going to be seeing mysterious charges that I couldn’t prove didn’t come from me? I watched my statements like a hawk!
I lost a lot of sleep during that time, over the fear of having fallen into a scammer’s trap. The only thing I did wrong was misinterpret the company’s crappy part numbers, yet I felt like it was all my fault for trusting them. I felt really stupid. I didn’t tell anyone because I figured they’d realize what an idiot I was. This is the first time that I’ve raised the issue since it happened.
Luckily, no one took my information and used it for ill-gotten gain but you better believe that my credit card does not leave my wallet anymore until I see reassuring security badges on a site. What I’m spending may only be the price of an ink cartridge but I still want certified security before inputting sensitive data. Do yourself a favour and insist on the same standard for your own purchasing habits. Use only websites that are Authorize.Net, PayPal, McAfee, etc. Certified.
Better safe than sorry and you won’t have to go through the same stress that I did.
The Bright Side of Lessons Learned
I’ve had a lot of rather interesting experiences when it comes to ordering products online, especially when it comes to buying printer ink cartridges cheap. Some have been great, others horrible. The good news is that you can take a few shortcuts and avoid the bad stuff, just by reading these articles. I promise to do my best to steer you right in the right direction.
Best, Guenter
PS Oh, almost forgot! Click here to see where I buy mine! 
