How I made my Inkjet printing cheaper and cost-effective

By | February 4, 2012

As I had lot of printing and scanning work for my B.Ed. instructional material, I decided to purchase a printer with scanner. Our first printer was HP with scanner, which I purchased in the year 2005 and it lasted for four years. Cartridges were very costly, but the printing and scanning quality was good. These printers which also have the function of scanning and Xeroxing are called All-in-Ones.

Everybody knows that cartridges are very costly. Keeping that in my mind, I have started doing homework before purchasing one. Went to eBay and searched for compatible cartridge prices of different brands (they are cheaper than original cartridges). Cannon and Epson had cheap compatible cartridges.

While searching on eBay, I came across a listing of refillable cartridges for Epson. That listing instantly attracted me. It costs around Rs.600 for four cartridges (CMYK) and all comes with plastic lids, which you can open and fill the ink ā€œnā€Ā number of times. eBay also has a listing of CISS (Continuous Ink Supply System) for various printer models of Epson, which makes printing cost dirt cheap.

Looking at these options, I settled down with Epson. I then did my research for an Epson All-in-one model, which is cheap. Epson Stylus TX121 was the cheapest and better one. Then, visited all the online e-commerce sites and found that IndiaPlaza offer is lowest. After applying a coupon code, I got it at Rs.2600 (MRP Rs.3999).

If you are using original cartridges, color print costs anywhere from 4-8 rupees for an A4 print (photo), black costs Rs.1-3 (depends on the brand). If you are using compatible cartridges, you can cut the price to half.

Refillable 73N cartridges with four color bottles of 100 mL each cost Rs.1050 on eBay. Only ink costs Rs.700, which you can use to fill all the cartridges 10 times. Assuming that one fill prints 300 prints (black and color), it will give a total of 3000 prints, which makes the cost per print 24 paise. If you are only printing black, then it becomes very, very cheap.
You might have doubt that these inks will damage the printer head, but think, two or three sets of original cartridges cost is equivalent to your printer. I have already experimented with my printer and the quality of print is same as that of original ink. What all you need to keep in mind is to purchase products from eBay Power Sellers and seller with good feedback. They tend to sell good products to maintain their feedback.

PS: Epson Printer with Ink Tank System is available at Rs.6800 on eBay.

37 thoughts on “How I made my Inkjet printing cheaper and cost-effective

  1. Rajendra Prasad S

    Though i receive your post at phased intervals the information provided
    is wonderful and shows your greatness in sharing with others, good job keep going

    Reply
  2. Vinod

    Dear Naveen

    I am a vivid reader of postings. Please let me know which LaseJet printer is available with All-in-One option i.e. fax/scan/copy/print preferable below 15,000/-

    Reply
    1. Naveen Post author

      Never searched for laser printers, but check with eBay.com, flipkart.com, indiaplaza.com. Compare the prices and search if any coupons available for those sites on Google, so that you can get them at the cheapest price.

      Reply
  3. Prabhakar

    thanks for the post naveen… but may I know how and where we can find such coupon codes and how to apply them

    Reply
    1. Naveen Post author

      If you can register with all the top e-commerce sites, they will send you e-mail when there are offers and coupons. I normally check at desidime . com for the latest offers.

      Reply
  4. Srikanth

    Hi Naveen,
    I went through your websites and posts. It is really good. I am a software developer. I am also looking for any freelancing work for part time. I can spend nearly 40 hrs per week. My skill are VBA macro development in ms office, also now i am working on mobile app development.
    Please if you find me useful, can you do the needfull.

    Reply
    1. Naveen Post author

      Look at guru.com and freelancer.com. There you can find the jobs related to your skills. Bid there for the projects and see if you can manage to get. It is free service. Only charged when you get project.

      Reply
      1. Naveen Post author

        They are refillable ones, so they come with a lid to easily fill. Normal cartridges are very difficult to fill. Enter the model number of cartridge in Youtube to see if anyone done that.

        Reply
  5. Ramesh

    Hi,

    I have hp All in one J410a printer. It uses small ink cartridges (one black, one tri-color).

    I get black cartridges for Rs.450 which ususally prints 30-35 text pages. It’s too expensive for me.
    I even tried refilling it from a local vendor for Rs.70 but print quality was not acceptable (lots of misaligned text & very rough print).

    Can I refill my cartridges? Cartridges are advertised as not-refillable by HP.

    If refillable, where should I look for tools & more info?

    Thanks in advance.

    Reply
    1. Naveen Post author

      Purchase just printer (if you don’t need the scan function). If something goes wrong, you can buy another. You also need refillable Epson cartridges. Search on eBay. Make sure that the cartridges model number is same. It did work for me. I have been using the printer for the last six months. I am using cheap ink, so color print quality is not that much better, but still looks good. Purchase good quality ink.

      Also, if you can spend more money, go for Epson printer with Ink Tank System.

      Reply
  6. Krishna Kudtarkar

    I was using HP ikjet printer,I used to refill the cartridges with sketch pen inks,and was getting very good printing.I used this way for about three or more years.But you have to be carefull for not getting cartridge dry out.When it get dryed, get it refilled by proffetionals.

    Reply
    1. Naveen Post author

      That sounds amazing. You should blog about the complete setup step by step, so that we can learn šŸ™‚

      Reply
  7. Manoj Kumar

    i need a all in one

    printer / scanner / copier / fax : will to copy (xerox) Legal size papers..

    can any one guide me chepast in cost and also copy cost should be very less to make it economicall to me.

    pls do email me…

    Thanks
    bt.manoj@gmail.com

    Reply
  8. SS JARYAL

    Dear Naveen,
    Very nice information, but u have left one question unresolved?

    Whether can u use refillable in HP Printer catridge?

    Reply
    1. Naveen Post author

      You need to find refillable cartridges suitable for your HP model. I searched on eBay and found few. You can also check on eBay.com to get more cheaper alternatives. Just put the word “refillable hp cartridges” in search box and you can find them.

      Reply
  9. nagaraj

    hey would that refillable cartridges works on Epson Stylus TX121 version 6.72 ?

    Reply
    1. Naveen Post author

      It will work, but ask the seller directly. Also, keep in mind that you are going to take the risk and if not done correctly can damage the printer. I did not worry because ink costs are way high and I had to print thousands of documents.

      Reply
  10. george

    Hi,
    Congrats for creating this Blog.

    Am planning to buy
    Epson Stylus Tx121 Multi function printer.
    Am from cochin Kerala.
    Can you tel me is it suitable attaching ink tank and where can i buy ink tank by online.
    And what will be the cost.
    Hopefully
    George

    Reply
    1. Naveen Post author

      I have seen one on eBay, but costs around 2.2k (www.ebay.in/itm/140862371224). Search the term “Epson CISS” and go through the listings. Ask the seller if it works for TX121. You need to do lot of homework.

      Reply
  11. ajit

    Dear Navin ,

    I have bought a TX121 printer like you and fed up with the cartridge costs … pls suggest which cartridge and ink you use so that i can order them .

    Reply
    1. Naveen Post author

      search on eBay.in for “Epson Refillable Cartridges” I don’t recall from whom I purchased.

      Reply
  12. Subhranil Das

    Sir,
    Can you please let me know what would be the cost of only BLACK ink for this printer(TX121)… I m a student and i often have to get a lot of prints and photocopies…. Which printer should I buy within the range of 3000-4000 so as to get minimum cost per page?… Which Refillable cartridge should I opt for…
    I would Always be grateful to you for your help….

    Reply
    1. Naveen Post author

      100 ml ink costs around Rs.150. Check eBay for those printer inks.

      You need to do your own research and see which printers have refillable cartridges on eBay and purchase that printer.

      Reply
  13. Latheef

    Sir,
    I have a printer Epson Stylus Photo R230 uses ink Cartridges (6-Pack). Actually it is very costly per print. I wish to convert it to use ink tank. Advice me how….?

    Reply
  14. shruthi

    Dear Navin ,i too have the same printer . Plz can h send me the link where to buy the refillable ink tank and the ink .plz . Thanks in advance

    Reply

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