Greentrees Printer Supplies What’s OEM
NOTE- These are strictly Greentrees opinions that have come about from years of selling ink and toner cartridges, other manufactures and suppliers could have a different opinion, so this information should not be considered hard facts.
OEM INK or TONER CARTRIDGES
The same company that manufactured your printer makes OEM or Original Equipment Manufacturer ink and toner cartridges. They are 100% brand new. They also are the ones that have their brand name on the cartridge label or toner drum shutter. The brand name generally is the same as the printer manufacturer as Epson, Canon, Hewlett Packard, Lexmark, Brother, etc. This is the best of the best, with a defective return rate of less than 1%.
COMPATIBLE INK or TONER CARTRIDGES
As the name suggests these are not original ink or toner cartridges but are unbranded cartridges compatible to your printer needs. Most of these compatible inkjet and toner cartridges meet or exceed OEM specifications. They are also 100% brand new; they yield excellent output, but because most OEM printer companies have secret formulas for their ink and toners, compatible cartridges must use aftermarket inks and toners. This sometimes causes a sight difference in the colors on pictures, but most people would not notice this. There are a large number of manufacturers of this type of product whose quality varies according to the ink or toner used but generally they are normally reliable and work as well as the OEM ink and toner cartridges. They are less expensive than OEM, with a defective return rate of about 2%.
REMANUFACTURED INK or TONER CARTRIDGES
Remanufactured ink and toner cartridges are refurbished used OEM or compatible printer ink or toner cartridges. Manufacturer's break down used inkjet and toner cartridges, clean them and put them back together to be refilled. These are then reintroduced for sale as remanufactured cartridges. Basically inkjet cartridges are used cartridges that have been refilled with aftermarket ink. Remanufactured ink cartridges are available only for HP, Lexmark, Dell, Epson, and some Canon printers. They are normally less expensive than compatible inkjet cartridges, but have a defective return rate of about 2% for HP and Epson cartridges and about 5% on Lexmark, Dell, and Canon cartridges. The new Lexmark, Canon, and Dell printers that use the ink usage counter software mainly cause this higher return rate. Remanufactured toner cartridges normally have new aftermarket parts (drums, doctor blades, wiper blades, chips, Mylar strips, foam rollers, shipping seals, etc.) installed in a used OEM cartridge, but not necessary. It is up to the different remanufactures. But the more reliable remanufactured toner cartridges have most of these items replaced. Remanufactured toner cartridges are normally less the compatible cartridges, but also have a defective return rate of about 2%.
INK REFILL KITS
As for the ink refill kits; they are the least expensive way to get your printer ink, of all of the above. For best results, choose the correct ink for your cartridge. There are two different types of inks that are used in inkjet cartridges. Either Dye based or Pigmented. Dye base inks have high brilliance and wide color range but are not quick drying. Also they are not light or water fast. Pigmented inks on the other hand are fast drying, fade resistant and waterproof. When printing monochrome prints, dye based ink is better suited. For color printing, pigmented inks are used because different inks are being mixed, and quick drying is preferred to avoid blurring. Ink refill kits are great if you have the time to install them and you do not mine the mess they can make. Also you must remember that you can only refill your inkjet approx. 4 to 6 times before the print head just gets to worn out to use.