Don’t trust that ‘empty cartridge’ warning
May 4, 2009 by Sam NarisiPosted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views
If you’ve always suspected you’re being told to replace ink and toner cartridges before they’re empty, here’s the proof you were looking for.
Most printers will display warnings about an empty cartridge while there’s still a significant amount of ink remaining, according to a recent study published in PC World. Sometimes, the “empty” cartridges are nearly half full.
Researchers tested both OEM and aftermarket ink cartridges. The amount of unused ink leftover ranged from 8% in an Epson-brand cartridge to 45% in an aftermarket cartridge meant for a Canon printer. In general, the aftermarket products had more ink left over than the OEM brands.
If ink is replaced as soon as a warning appears, those remaining percentages could add up to a lot of cash.
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Tags: empty cartridge, ink
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May 6th, 2009 at 10:49 am
I have found this to be true of all inkjet printers. What I do is run them dry and replace them immediately. You must have an extra set of cartridges on hand or by the time you get back from the store your inkjet will be ruined with clogged print heads.
August 20th, 2009 at 9:50 am
some of hp’s printers let you select when it gives you the warning — so you can say warn me at 10%, or 5%, and they also let you have a way to show an estimate of how many pages you have left on the supply. Then you just kind of keep an eye on your printing.
October 7th, 2009 at 1:02 pm
For laser printers, when the low toner message comes one, take the cartridge out and shake it side-to-side to redistribute the toner piled up at each end to the middle area. (Since margins aren’t printed, the toner at each end just sits there unused.)
Put the cartridge back in, and if necessary, turn the printer off for a few seconds, then back on. You can get 75-125 more pages using this method, and on high-yield models, can do it twice or three times, although the third time might not give as many more pages.
November 4th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
We have a color laser that has been reporting low on magenta toner for a couple of years now. The color is as good as it was when the printer was new. I’m holding out as long as possible, since a new complement of toner cartridges will cost more than the printer did after the mail-in rebate.
November 4th, 2009 at 7:09 pm
A lot of times the messages are misinterpreted. The initial messages aren’t really meant to say that the toner or ink cartridge needs to be replaced, they usually mean that it’s time to buy or order a replacement.
If there is no advanced warning, people get pissed because they run out of ink/toner after the stores are closed, etc. With the advanced warning, people get pissed because they think they are being told to replace ink/toner caridges that still have a lot of ink/toner left…
November 11th, 2009 at 11:23 am
As a small business I find the copiers I use/can afford not only give me that early warning but soon stop printing or in the case of the combo fax/copier will not allow me to receive faxes. Any tricks for resolving this problem?
I’m to the point where every color ink shows at least 50% full but the machine says I have to replace them. I guess if you are going to buy a cheaper machine…you have to use original ink cartridges to avoid this problem or find machines that are not as sensitive. Kamala
January 5th, 2010 at 8:49 am
How about this for shoddy behavior by a printer company?
My Brother ink jet fax tells me it is out of toner when the cartridges are still 1/2 full. It then refuses to even try to print until I buy a new cartridge. Taking out the cartridge and putting it back does not help.
March 1st, 2010 at 5:32 pm
Our Ricoh printer / cartridges has this issue – I remove the cartridge, shake it a bunch and replace. This will usually get me about 200+ copies before I really have to replace it. It’s worked with black and colors.