Printer ink options can save money

Printer ink options can save moneyBY GREGORY KARP, a personal finance writer for The Morning Call, a Tribune Co. newspaper in Allentown, PaPublished July 2, 2006

If you think gasoline is expensive these days, imagine the price for a gallon of ink for your home inkjet printer. It could cost thousands of dollars.The price of printer ink may be the only liquid besides gasoline that infuriates consumers so much. It doesn't take long for the cost of ink-cartridge replacements to exceed the price of the printer.

So it makes sense to search for ink bargains, especially if you print many photos from your digital camera.The bad news is it's somewhat complicated. You can choose from many money-saving alternatives, and the best value is not clear-cut. But the decision is based on an age-old trade-off: price versus quality.Studies show the printer's manufacturer makes the best-quality inks. But think about what quality you need.

A child's grade-school project printed on regular copy paper doesn't need high-quality ink.Or maybe you take lots of photos of your grandchild to hang prints on the refrigerator, only to replace them a month later with newer photos. "In that case, you might want to go with an aftermarket ink because you'll be chewing through the cartridges," said Charles Brewer, managing editor of The Hard Copy Supplies Journal, a publication by imaging industry market-research firm Lyra Research.If you're worried about a printed photo fading after a few years, ask yourself whether that's a big deal. After all, if it fades, you could print it again from your computer.