Toner cartridge

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A toner cartridge, also called laser toner, is the consumable component of a laser printer. Toner cartridges contain toner powder, a fine, dry mixture of plastic particles, carbon, and black or other coloring agents that make the actual image on the paper. The toner is transferred to paper via an electrostatically charged drum unit, and fused onto the paper by heated rollers during the printing process.

Variants

Low-end to mid-range laser printers typically contain two consumable parts: the toner cartridge itself (which has a typical life of 2,000 pages) and the drum unit (a typical life of 40,000 pages). Some toner cartridges incorporate the drum unit in the design and therefore replacing the toner means replacing the drum unit every single time, although some consider this type unessential and therefore not cost-effective. Toner Cartridges are similar to ink cartridges, which are used in Inkjet printing.

Price

Toner cartridges can be expensive, sometimes exceeding the cost of cheaper laser printers. As a result some people dispose of the printer when it is out of toner (thereby negating any "green" or "eco friendly" claims made by the manufactures) and replace the entire machine. Ironically, new machines generally come with toners that are only ⅓ full. Consumers also can opt to buy generic brand laser toners, manufactured by companies other than the printer manufacturer. These toners are widely available at a fraction of the price of the genuine brand replacement. Toner refill kits are also an option, allowing the consumer to simply refill an empty cartridge.

Cartridge types

Genuine - Also known as "Original Equipment Manufacturer" or "OEM"[1]

These are manufactured by printer manufacturers. Manufacturers offer certain guarantees when you use genuine brand toner in your printer and makes certain threats if you don't, voiding warranty is a typical accusation made, although in many countries this is illegal. Genuine cartridges are more expensive than refills, compatibles or re-manufactured cartridges, however you can reduce the difference in price dramatically by purchasing cartridges from a specialist retailer.

Compatible - Also known as "Generic" or "Alternative Brand"

These cartridges are manufactured from scratch, they are not used cartridges that have been refilled or re-manufactured. They are produced by a third party companies and sold under different brand names. Often compatible cartridges may vary slightly in look, design and page yield to their genuine counterparts due to certain patents that restrict the exact copying of designs. Although some might say these generic cartridges are less reliable, they are undoubtedly a cost-effective alternative to the genuine article and many have exceeded the quality of the OEM. They can also be manufactured to contain more ink than the OEM versions, depending on the design of the cartridge itself (and cost aspects as well).

Re-manufactured

A process by which the OEM or other compatible cartridge is dismantled after the first use. Any worn or defective parts are replaced and the cartridge is cleaned then it is refilled with toner. The re-manufacturing process differs from one factory to another, as well as the quality of toner that the cartridge is filled with. These are important factors to take into account when purchasing re-manufactured toner cartridges because they can ultimately lead to leaking, printer malfunction, or even damaging the printer altogether.

Availability

Remanufactured, compatible, OEM and refilled toner cartridges are available from a variety of sources. While compatible and OEM cartridges are typically items that can be purchased off-the-shelf, companies that offer remanufactured cartridges typically require the customer to provide an empty cartridge, which is then remanufactured and provided back to the customer. [citation needed]


t.Although the remanufacturing process relies on there being an empty cartridge available, some companies (a handful of larger chain stores) are able to offer remanufactured cartridges off-the-shelf in the same manner that OEM and compatible cartridges are purchased. This is a factor of their size and volume which allows cartridges to be remanufactured centrally in bulk and later inventoried at store level to be picked up as an off-the-shelf item by the consumer. [citation needed] Worldwide, not many companies make empty cartridges. They buy the used cartridges from users through the scrap dealers, refurbish them and keep them ready for sale.[citation needed]

Sustainability

Each brand new toner cartridge requires the burning of over 2 quarts of petroleum in the manufacturing process. In North America alone, more than 200 million litres of petroleum are used to sustain the production of new toner cartridges with the majority of these cartridges ending up in the worlds landfills once empty. Manufactures have responded by developing recycling programs for their used cartridges. On August 1, 2011 Hewlett Packard issued a press release showing their recycling process involves a partnership with an Asian firm that reuses plastic collected from the empty cartridges.

Advocates[2][3] of more environmentally friendly processes claim that using refilled and remanufactured toner cartridges are much more environmentally friendly than using brand name new cartridges. Refilled and remanufactured cartridges reduce the dependency on petroleum that otherwise would have been used in the manufacture process of the new cartridge. Advocates also claim that the recycling programs devised by manufacturers are not always as environmentally friendly as consumers might think or in comparison to other options that may be available.

HP's recycling program involves the recycling of cartridges in partnership with a company in Asia. The process uses significant amounts of petroleum in the collection of empty cartridges on one continent and in transporting them half way around the world to be recycled. In this example, walking to your local remanufacturer is certainly more sustainable than the aforementioned process.

Lexmark also has a similar program which they claim is in place to assure that as many empties as possible are collected and reused.[4] The program is called the "Prebate return program". In their prebate model the toner cartridges are always owned by Lexmark and consumers purchase the right to use the cartridge until empty. Once empty, Lexmark requires that the cartridges are returned to Lexmark. Since the prebate program cartridges are much more inexpensive to purchase from Lexmark, consumers are pushed into choosing those cartridges over the non prebate program cartridges.

Advocates claim that since empty prebate cartridges are "owned" by Lexmark; and since Lexmark expressly forbids the remanufacturing or recycling of the cartridge by anyone other than themselves; and since third party remanufacturers cannot therefore remanufacture the empty cartridges; and since the majority of cartridges are never returned to Lexmark, the result is that the prebate program actually ensures fewer cartridges are recycled and customers are more often required to purchase brand name OEM cartridges.[citation needed]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "HP BLACK/WHITE Remanufactured Toners". Monoprice. Retrieved 26 August 2013. 
  2. ↑ Remanufactured Toner Cartridges: High Quality Standards
  3. ↑
  4. ↑ Judge, Tricia (2004). What is the Lexmark Prebate return program?. 

External links

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