Printer inks - can I get away with compatibles rather than originals?

[WriggleJiggle]

Just about to purchase some new printer ink. Do I have to buy original inks or are compatible ones ok? Will I kill my printer?

No they will be fine, you just have to make sure that they really are compatible.

we got compatibles for our old Epson and it totally buggered the printer heads - spent a fortune on head cleaning stuff too and it was still buggered so ended up getting a new printer. We wouldn't risk getting non original ink now.

We use compatable inks from selectafont and do photos and have had no problems thru epsom and canon printers.

We tried Tesco compatibles with our Lexmark and they were cr*p I'm afraid. We've gone back to originals now.

I did a bit of work a few years ago for friends who had stationery co. They stopped selling compatibles because they caused so many problems. Things may have moved on now though.

Make sure you buy your cartridges from a reputable place. There used to be (and possibly still are) lots of fake Lexmark cartridges around that are packaged to look like real ones but can damage your printer.

Basically if you buy from Rymans but not from car boot stalls/markets you'll be fine. Compatibles should be ok for a Lexmark.

I get mine from here. I have a Lexmark printer too. The only point I would make is that the ink indicator does not work when using a compatible ink, so you don't know you've run out til its too late! Don't know if its the same for all printers, but it certaily is on the Lexmark model I have.