Do you have trouble finding the right Ink Cartridges? December 01, 2011 12:33 by Matt Bird
We’ve made shopping for online ink cartridges as simple as can be. All you need to know is your printer model or ink cartridge number, we’ll do the rest.
Know your model of inkjet printer? Use the dropdowns or navigation above to find your dedicated inkjet printer page. All of the ink cartridges for your printer will be on that page, taking the hassle out of shopping.
Know your ink cartridge? Just type it’s name or product reference into our search bar above and you’ll see your ink cartridge in the results. Click through and you’ll find the ink cartridge you’re after, with all the relevant information and a list of printers that cartridge works in, giving you everything you need in one place.
Need ink cartridges quickly? We have free next day delivery
Not only is delivery free on all the ink cartridges we sell, but we ship all orders the very same day they’re placed up until 4pm. Order after 4pm and we’ll post it the next morning for you.
- Jim orders some Epson ink cartridges at 3:50pm on Monday. They’ll be in the post Monday evening by Royal Mail First Class, arriving with Jim Tuesday.
- Sandra placed her order for HP ink cartridges at 5pm on Monday. We’ll process and pick this order for her 8:30 Tuesday morning, so Sandra can get her much-needed printer ink on Wednesday!
We also make every effort to post your ink cartridges in a “post-box friendly” manner, so you don't even have to be at home when it's delivered.
After cheap ink cartridges?
We specialise in both manufacturer original ink cartridges and money-saving selections of cheap ink cartridges. When browsing our website for these cheap ink cartridges you will come across varying types, so we’ve outlined them below to help you understand what you’re about to buy.
- Original / Genuine Ink Cartridges
An Original / Genuine ink cartridge is one manufactured by your printer manufacturer, often referred to as an OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) ink cartridge.
e.g. An Original HP Ink Cartridge is one manufactured by HP for a HP printer.
These cartridges are the most expensive option for your printer, but if you're looking to do photo printing on dedicated photo paper (e.g. HP paper in a HP printer), genuine cartridges willl give you the best results.
- Compatible ink cartridges
Compatible cartridges are brand new ink cartridges that have been manufactured by a third party rather than the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), and will tend to offer significant price savings over original ink cartridges.
These brand new cartridges will look almost identical to your OEM printer inks, contain at least as much ink in them (they can contain up to 4x as much ink), and are the industries favoured method of saving money when buying ink cartridges.
All compatible printer ink cartridges at Stinkyink.com are manufactured by ISO approved suppliers, meeting quality guidelines as stringent as genuine manufacturer cartridges.
- Refilled ink cartridges
A refilled ink cartridge is an original cartridge that has been used once, reconditioned and refilled. All parts of the printer cartridge that experience wear are replaced with new versions, guaranteeing a longer performance.
The refilled printer ink is again from ISO approved suppliers, guaranteeing you fantastic quality prints at an amazingly low price.
Why do you get both refilled and compatible ink cartridges? Is one better than the other?
There are no performance differences between these cheap ink cartridges, it is merely due to the kind of replacement ink cartridge.
Certain ink cartridges have their print head built into the physical cartridge instead of in the printer itself, traditionally in select HP, Lexmark and Dell machines. Manufacturing a compatible ink cartridge with an integrated print head is very expensive, so these cartridges are reconditioned and refilled with printer ink as a money saving option.
In printers where the ink cartridge is simply a tank, compatible ink cartridges are manufactured instead.
Buying Printer Ink Online? Find Out What You’re Buying
Printer Ink cartridges can make up a significant chunk of a home offices running costs, so it’s nice to know where your money is going. We’ve put together the following information on ink cartridges for inkjet printers, so you know what you’re getting for your money - happy reading!
Did You Know?!? - a judge at Strasbourg ruled that ink cartridges are a form of ink. Epson previously claimed they were ‘parts’ which attracted 0% duty rather than ‘ink’, which attract 6.5% duty, so now you know ink cartridges are actually ink!
Inside an Ink Cartridge
Ink cartridges are made up of partitioned ink reservoirs, the number of partitions dependant on the type of cartridge.
Black cartridges, and individual colour cartridges, have a single tank containing just their respective ink colour.
Tri-colour and five-colour ink cartridges contain three and five chambers respectively, each with individual colours for your printing in. For example a tri-colour contains three partitions of Magenta (red), Cyan (Blue) and Yellow inks.
Technology in an ink cartridge
There are two main types of ink cartridges produced; Thermal and Piezo electric
- Thermal/Bubblejet ink Cartridges are manufactured by HP, Canon, Lexmark, and Dell
- Piezo Electric ink Cartridges are manufactured by Epson
Thermal Ink Cartridges:
Developed in the early 1970’s by HP, this printing methods involves a heating element with a tiny metal plate or resistor within the cartridge, and is used by the vast majority of ink cartridge manufacturers.
When printing, a pulse of current is sent through this resistor, heating the element. This heat causes the ink surrounding the heated plate to vaporize into a tiny air bubble inside the nozzle.
The sudden expansion of this air bubble creates significant pressure within the cartridge, forcing some ink through the nozzle of the ink cartridge onto the paper, hence the name “Bubble Jet”.
The sudden contraction of this vapor bubble pulls a further charge of ink into the ink cartridge chamber, meaning your printer is ready for the next pulse nigh-on instantly.
This process takes a matter of milliseconds, and will happen millions of times in a single print. So next time you look at your printout, just remember how many pulses were sent through your ink cartridge!
Piezo Electric Ink Cartridges:
Piezo electric print technology is a patented Epson design which is used exclusively in all of their printers. Each ink cartridge contains a piezoelectric crystal instead of the heating element we described in thermal printing.
When a current passes through this crystal it changes shape. This expansion creates the same pressure imbalance within the ink cartridge as thermal printing produces with an air bubble, resulting in a droplet of ink to be released from the nozzle.
While not too dissimilar to the thermal printing method (confined space, expansion of a material forcing ink out of a nozzle) it does have its benefits! Printer inks which react badly to heat become possible, and the technology can produce a smaller ink drop in some situations than thermal inkjet methods.
Types of Ink for your printer
Printer ink is typically an aqueous solution with colourant molecules, so that you can enjoy your high quality colour prints from a liquid that is easily dispersed on a page. Not many people know that there are two types of ink for inkjet printers: pigmented and dye-based.
- Pigmented printer ink
Pigment ink has much larger colourant molecules, which means they tend to sit on the surface of the paper as they can’t squeeze between its fibres.
With much faster drying times, pigmented inks are renowned for crisp, exact prints as they don’t soak into the paper. Additionally, the large molecules in the pigmented ink are more resistant to ozone attack and are generally more fade resistant, so your prints last much longer visibly but often produce duller colours in your printouts.
- Dye-based printer ink
Dye-based prints tend to look brighter, because they form a smoother coating on the paper, and have a wider colour range. They have much smaller molecules, so can fit down between the paper fibres and sink into the body of the paper, resulting in slower drying times.
This slow drying can be a problem when printing duplex pages, as the print speed has to drop to avoid smearing your prints.
