Computer help: Why don't printers last ??
Why don't printers last ??
by henry higgins - 11/14/05 2:41 AMMy last printer, an Epson, didn't even last 2 years.
I now have a Canon S750 printer, about 3 years old. I don't print high volumes, maybe 300 A4 sheets per year, including some photos. I have been quite happy with it, but it has now stopped printing colour correctly. Over the course of about 10 full colour prints it went from perfect to streaky, then to hardly coloured at all. It still prints just fine in black.
I ran through all of the maintenance tasks, including head alignments, deep cleaning etc.,twice but to no avail. I renewed all 4 ink cartridges, but still no good.
Am I right in thinking that my only remaining options are a new printhead, or a new printer?
As far as I can see printheads cost about 60% of the cost of a comparable new printer. so it hardly seems worth it.
Am I missing something? Is there anything else I can try?
By the way, I have tried to economise by not using Canon original ink cartridges. Is that likely to have caused my problem?
Price
by - 11/14/05 4:09 AM In reply to: Why don't printers last ?? by henry higginsThe root of the problem is the low price of inkjet printers these days. Same goes for computers and virtually everything else you buy.
Every commercial company is out to make a profit. When the product becomes commoditized -- like printers and computers -- competition is based largely on price. This means the profit the company is making per unit gets less and less, so they start looking for other ways to cut costs. Moving jobs to Mexico, then China when Mexico got to expensive, and now they're being moved to Vietnam, Nigeria, and other third world countries, because even China is getting too expensive. In addition, every corner that can possibly be cut on production usually will be cut. The quality of parts going into computers since someone started offering a sub-$2000 computer has plummeted along with the price of systems.
The very simple reality, is that the great deal you thought you got, wasn't so great after all. It's just taken until now for some of the non-monetary hidden costs to show up. This isn't to say you always get what you pay for, but typically higher end items will have higher margins on them, and be higher quality.
With inkjet printers, the printers themselves are sold at a loss usually. Printer companies make it up on the back end with inflated cartridge prices. But the printers are still constructed pretty poorly most of the time, so they will break down. Usually the cheapest route is to just buy cheap printers, and then get a new one once the supplied ink runs out. Inkjet printers aren't worth getting attached to.
Inkjet Printers
by Levis Ouellet - 11/18/05 4:35 AM In reply to: Price byRight on thought_stazi!
I've been at this for a long time and do a lot of printing. I print a lot of photos for many folks, print on CDs and DVDs, print my daughters business cards, posters, circulars, gift cirtificates and a small Summer newspaper for the people at the lake ...etc. I have always used Epson printers and they have given me good service over the years. My last Epson Stylus Photo R200 has given up its ghost after a little over a year. Hey! Negative perspiration! Just went out and bought a new one for less than the cost of buying Epson ink cartriges.
In my view, the only negative issue on this is that ''through-away-printers'' and other low-cost and disposible items such as computers are filling up our dump sites and this cannot be good for the environment.
Heres an idea...
by eslorence - 11/18/05 10:01 AM In reply to: Inkjet Printers by Levis OuelletRebuild them and sell them back to the third world nations that made them! 
Inkjet printers
by gvhemert_ab - 11/18/05 3:58 PM In reply to: Heres an idea... by eslorenceThe price of replacement parts does not warant fixing them. By the time you factor in the cost of parts and the labour you can bye a new printer.
You would have a new 1 year waranty and ink cartrages.
The service alone would cost you around $75.00
Tha's the theory
by Willy - 11/14/05 6:15 AM In reply to: Why don't printers last ?? by henry higginsWelcome to "inkjet" printers. they work great for awhile and since many are made cheaply or low-cost in mind be happy with what you get. BUT, its important more than anything to try "cleaning cycles" in order to resolve some printing quality issues. Inkjets do get clogged and thier process for printing creates small amounts of dried ink(crud) to accumulate over time. Inkjet jets then tend to become less reliable and simple blockage in any matter reduce print quality. The best inkjets are those that replace the printhead along with the ink cart. In this matter, the ink clogs, etc. get replaced with a new printhead. the models you mention retain thier old printheads and thier cleaning cycles are even more important as the "old printhead" remains after ink carts are replaced. You can with deft care manually wipe printheads with a clean damp cloth/paper shop towel and remove such accumaltions. Plain old damp cloth(water) will do fine, some use alcohol, or even Windex, but try that before giving up. AND yes, sometimes its better to toss and buy another as costs associated with new ink, etc. make that possible to simply replace.
tada -----Willy
Well Done Willy
by henry higgins - 11/14/05 9:10 AM In reply to: Tha's the theory by WillyWilly, you are a star!
I'm embarrassed to admit that it hadn't occurred to me to remove the printhead (very easy) and wipe it all down with a wet piece of paper towel. It took a couple of attempts to get all 3 colours working properly again, but it's fine now.
Thanks, from a red faced, inky fingered, but much happier man.
Steve
Willy has the best advice--Read it and Reap
by tnhiker865 - 11/18/05 5:01 AM In reply to: Tha's the theory by WillyWilly's post is right on target regarding inkjet printers. The clogged/dried-up printheads on ink cartridges are usually the culprit when poor printing suddenly strikes. Clean-up can be a nasty business but if done carefully it can save you the $30 cost of a replacement.
Al
"It's A Tablesaw--Do You Know Where Your Fingers Are?"
Replace print heads
by chanks - 11/18/05 10:43 AM In reply to: Tha's the theory by WillyIn your message you said: "The best inkjets are those that replace the printhead along with the ink cart." That might apply to sub $100 printers, but not to high end printers. In a $400-500 printers the print head is of much higher quality, where the print head in a cheap printer is also cheaply made. The precision required for the tiny holes in the head is substantial and much higher in the better printers, thus less likely to clog.
How do you clean them?
by emshore - 11/23/05 12:00 PM In reply to: Tha's the theory by WillyThanks for the good advice. I have an Epson Stylus C66, still new. How does one clean the printer head? Does it come out? Honestly, I'm not even sure what it looks like, and which part it is.
A bit more of factual information on ink jet printers
by mhardye - 11/23/05 3:15 PM In reply to: Tha's the theory by WillyMany models have the printing heads rest in a special spot within the printer. In this place you usually find a small deposit that receives the extra ink that was not used, so in the long run they fill up and dirty your printing heads. Cleaning this area is useful and most of the time fixes your problem.
Also please donīt forget that the money comes from selling us new cartridges as the original ones usually are not full up to the top.
Bye, Mark
Dont buy an Epson printer
by eeffis - 11/14/05 12:11 PM In reply to: Why don't printers last ?? by henry higginsEpson printers are crap. I have worked at a local retailer who sells epsons for over 3 years. We gets epsons back all the time. The printheads on them clog up or dry quite often. I have had an HP printer and a canon both of which I like.
not entirely true
by steve66 - 11/16/05 1:07 AM In reply to: Dont buy an Epson printer by eeffisI can't vouch for current models, but my Epson Stylus 860, purchased with a Dell PC almost exactly five years ago, continues to function perfectly with almost daily use. Not heavy, but almost daily. The PC was long ago given to the Salivation Army, but the little Eppy still sits on my worktable, cranking out lovely text and photos.
inkjet cleaners
by terryfowler - 11/18/05 2:54 AM In reply to: not entirely true by steve66Has anyone tried the inkjet cleaning cartridges? I have some success with using them on Epson photo 750 bought in Feb 99 but it has just decided to give bad prints and cleaning cartridges did not revive it. I used compatible ink cartridges for Epson but will use originals for the Canon ip4200 that has replaced the Epson until the warranty runs out. I wonder whether the new printer will last as long?
Compatible inks cartridges?
by Gerald Brimacombe - 11/18/05 7:55 AM In reply to: inkjet cleaners by terryfowlerYou just keep messing around with "compatible" ink cartridges, and I promise that you will have recurring printing problems.
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