PrinterInks

Announcement: Mega Monday Deals on Printer

2011-11-28T03:00:00.001Z

We all need inks, especially with the holidays coming up. Recipes, shopping lists, vouchers, gift tags, greeting cards, photographs and more are in popular demand as the holiday season approaches.

Don't miss this Mega Monday sale, to save on all your printer ink and toner needs. Take 25% off remanufactured or compatible ink & toner cartridges, 5% off OEMs plus Free UK Delivery when you enter Discount Code: MEGA2011 at www.Printerinks.com

Win a Canvas of Dad!

2011-06-10T04:00:00.007+01:00

Enter to win a Free Canvas Poster of your favourite photo with Dad!

Father’s Day has been celebrated throughout the UK, US, Canada and beyond for over 100 years. This year, Father’s Day falls on the 19th of June, and I highly recommend that you honour Dad on this day.

Celebrate the Father in your life by submitting a photo on our Facebook page or via Twitter using the hashtag #CelebrateDad

All entries need to be in by Monday 20th June 2011, when the finalists will be posted on our Facebook page. The finalists’ photo that gets the most “Likes” will win an 81 X 61cm Canvas of their Photo.

Terms & Conditions

The Printerinks.com panel of judges will select a group of finalists and post them on our Facebook page to face the public vote.
Final voting on the Facebook page will end on the 24th of June and the votes will be counted by the Printerinks.com panel of judges and the winner announced.
Open to UK residents

Toner Removal

2011-02-09T04:00:00.001Z

Have you ever spilled toner powder from your printer cartridge? What do you do if you spill toner in your printer, or on your clothes or skin?

If toner particles spill into your laser printer or copier, a special type of vacuum cleaner with an electrically conductive hose and a HEPA filter is needed for safe and effective cleaning. These are called electrostatic discharge-safe (ESD-safe) or toner vacuums. Toner particles have electrostatic properties by design and can develop static-electric charges when they rub against other particles, or the interiors of transport systems and vacuum cleaner hoses. Because of this and the small particle size, toner should not be vacuumed with a conventional home vacuum cleaner. Static discharge from charged toner particles can ignite dust in the vacuum cleaner bag or create a small explosion if sufficient toner is airborne. This could possibly damage the vacuum cleaner or start a fire. In addition, toner particles are so fine that they are poorly filtered by regular household vacuum cleaners and can blow through the vacuum motor and into the room. At this point you would have taken what was a small spill and created a larger mess by spreading the toner particles across the entire room.

If you shook your toner, or spilled toner into your printer, there is a strong chance that some of it got onto your clothing. Toner that has not yet fused to your clothing is easily removed in a washing machine. Because toner is a wax or plastic powder with a low melting temperature, it must be kept as cool as possible until you are able to wash it. It is best to remove the article of clothing to avoid the transfer of toner onto other surfaces and your skin. The water temperature of the wash cycle must be set to cold only. Do not wash anything else with the affected garment. Using multiple wash cycles will improve your chance of success at removing the toner. For the first cycle, you may want to use dishwasher detergent. For the additional cycles you should use regular laundry detergent. Residual toner floating in the rinse water of the first cycle may remain and necessitate multiple wash cycles. If it was a large amount of toner spilled on the garment, you may want to remove it from the washing machine and run a second cycle to remove any excess toner from the washing machine basin. Avoid using the clothes dryer or an iron until all of the toner has been removed.

If you have toner on your clothing, you may have also gotten some of it on your skin. You are going to need to follow the same principles as removing it from your clothes, avoiding heat at all costs. Your first reaction is going to be to try and brush the toner off your skin, but you do not want to do this. The act of brushing the loose toner off of your skin will result in friction, which can create heat, which could fuse the toner to your skin. Shake as much of the loose toner off as possible. Next you will want to use soap and cold water. Once again you are going to have to assure that you turn the water to cold.

If you follow these steps, you should be able to clean up any spilled toner without a problem. The next thing you will want to do is order a new toner cartridge, most likely from Printerinks.com. If you purchase our remanufactured toner cartridges, you can save yourself money and stop shaking that toner.

Where Does Toner Come From?

2011-01-27T04:00:00.006Z

Every day we come across laser printers, at work, at the print shop, or we handle documents that have been printed with laser toner. The most common questions are what is toner, and how do toners and laser printers work? Why do toner cartridges cost so much, and how can I reduce my costs?

Toner is the powder used in laser printers and photocopiers to form the printed text and images on the paper. Toner granules are melted by the heat of the fuser which allows it to bind to the paper. In its early form it was simply carbon powder. In an effort to improve the quality of the printout, modern toner has the carbon particles mixed with various polymers to allow for better dispersion onto the drum.

In earlier designs, the carbon toner was poured by the user from a bottle into a reservoir in the machine. Usually a sizable amount of the toner was wasted, as it spilling always occured during the refilling process. Current machines feed directly from a sealed cartridge, which is usually a proprietary design. The specific polymer used today varies by manufacturer but can be a styrene acrylate copolymer, a polyester resin, a styrene butadiene copolymer, or a few other special polymers. Toner formulations vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and even from machine to machine. Typically formulation, granule size and melting point vary the most.

Originally, the granule size of toner averaged 14–16 micrometers. To improve image resolution, granule size was reduced, eventually reaching the current 8–10 micrometers for 600 dots per inch resolution. Further reductions in granule size producing further improvements in resolution are being developed through the application of new technologies. Toner has traditionally been made by compounding the ingredients and creating a slab which was broken or pelletised, then turned into a fine powder with a controlled granule size range by air jet milling. This process results in toner granules with varying sizes and aspherical shapes. To get a finer print, some companies are using a chemical process to grow toner granules from molecular reagents. This results in more uniform size and shapes of toner granules. The smaller, uniform shapes permit more accurate reproduction and more efficient toner use. Toner manufacturers maintain a quality control standard for granule size distribution in order to produce a powder suitable for use in their printers.

Now that you know what goes into that toner cartridge, and understand why they cost what they do, you still need to know how to reduce costs. The price of remanufactured toner cartridges are significantly less due to conservation of cartridges. When you purchase remanufactured toner cartridges from Printerinks.com, you help reduce the amount of cartridges that are disposed of into landfills and save yourself money at the same time!

How a Laser Printer Works

2011-01-23T04:00:00.023Z

The first desktop printers were impact printers, typically dot matrix. Everyone understood how these devices worked, as they functioned just like the electric typewriters of the time. A hard object struck an ink ribbon with enough force to transfer the ink onto the page. As technology evolved, along came the next generation, which included inkjet and laser printers. The inkjet printer works just like the name implies; an image is put on the paper by using microscopic jets of ink. The laser printer, on the other hand, is a bit of a mystery. How can a highly focused beam of light impart letters and images on a piece of paper? Is the laser inside my printer dangerous?

Following are the six key processes that happen inside a laser printer when you click print.

Charging: A charge roller (or corona wire in older machines) will project an electrostatic charge onto the photoreceptor. This is a revolving drum or belt which is capable of holding an electrostatic charge on its surface as long as it hasn't been exposed to wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation (and will be referred to as drum for the rest of this article).

Writing: A processor chip converts information for scanning onto the drum. The laser is aimed at a series of lenses and mirrors onto the drum. Lasers are used because they generate a coherent beam of light for a high degree of accuracy. Wherever the laser strikes the drum, it reverses the charge, thus creating a latent image on the surface.

Developing: The surface containing the latent image is exposed to toner, which is very fine particles of wax or plastic mixed with coloring agents. The charged toner particles are electrostatically attracted to the drum where the laser wrote the latent image.

Transferring: The drum is pressed or rolled over paper, transferring the image. Higher end machines use a positively charged transfer roller on the back-side of the paper to pull the toner from the photoreceptor to the paper.

Fusing: The paper passes through a fuser assembly, which has rollers that provide heat and pressure that bonds the toner to the paper.

Cleaning: When the print is complete, an electrically neutral rubber blade cleans any excess toner from the drum and deposits it into a waste reservoir, and a discharge lamp removes the remaining charge from the drum.

Each printer applies these steps in different ways. Most laser printers today actually use a linear array of light-emitting diodes to write the light on the drum. The toner is based on either wax or plastic, so that when the paper passes through the fuser assembly, the particles of toner melt. The paper may or may not be oppositely charged. The fuser can be an infrared oven, a heated pressure roller, or a xenon bulb. The warm up process that a laser printer goes through when power is initially applied to the printer consists mainly of heating the fuser element. Many printers have a toner-conservation mode which uses less toner but does yield prints with lower contrast. Color laser printers add colored toner in three additional, yet identical, processes.

So you now know that when you print that document, you are safe from an errant laser beam melting a hole in your monitor and when it is time to get a replacement for that laser toner cartridge, you need to go to Printernks.com. With your purchase of Printerinks toner cartridges, you get a quality laser toner cartridge and save yourself money at the same time.

Choosing the best font

2011-01-20T04:00:00.003Z

Different fonts use differing amounts of ink to create the same letters. The examples listed above are all the same font size and none of them have been set to bold. It becomes very obvious when you look at the examples side by side. You would potentially use less printer inks if you printed this in Calibri as opposed to Broadway or Bauhaus 93. A significant monetary savings can be found, especially for businesses and large organisations. A recent university study asked users to switch to Century Gothic for all printed documents, "The feedback we've gotten so far has been positive…Century Gothic is very readable."

Recently a popular website tested different fonts for their ink-friendly ways, and Century Gothic and Times New Roman came out on top. Century Gothic uses approximately 30% less ink than Arial. The amounts of ink used are generally determined by the thickness of the lines. A font with ‘light’ or ‘narrow’ in its name generally uses less ink that its ‘bold’ counterpart said Thom Brown, an ink researcher with Hewlett Packard. Additionally, serif fonts, those with short horizontal strokes at the top and bottom of the characters, tend to use thinner lines and therefore less ink than a sans serif counterpart.

Now here is where things get a little confusing and not so cut and dry. While changing fonts may help you use less ink and buy fewer ink cartridges, it’s not necessarily the best decision for the environment. That’s because some fonts that use less ink are also wider. A document that’s approximately one page in length in the Arial font could possibly extend onto a second page when printed with Century Gothic. UW-Green Bay said research suggests that the monetary cost of ink is the main cost of a printout. The environmental cost of the additional paper used when printing with these reduced ink fonts is higher. Maybe the individual characters use less ink, but if you're using more paper, that's not so green, is it?

Other tips for reducing printing costs includes printing in ‘draft mode’ whenever possible and re-use and print on both sides of a piece of paper for those drafts. Always use print preview to eliminate wasting pages on useless text, like unwanted images and copyright lines. The use of an ink saving font is just another technique when you’re trying to consider the environmental impact of your printing habits.

So what is the best way to save on printing costs and help the environment? Simple, buy remanufactured inks and toners. The use of remanufactured printer inks helps to reduce the number of empty cartridges that are disposed of into landfills. Our high quality, low cost remanufactured cartridges are great for both the environment and your bottom line.

The Printer Glossary

2011-01-19T04:00:00.000Z

Have you ever wondered what PictBridge, OEM, Remanufactured Cartridge or Pantone mean? In an effort to assist with all your printer needs, we have assembled this Printer Glossary below. Feel free to print and bookmark for reference.

All-in-One (AIO) - This is a multifunction printer that can also scan and copy. Many of these devices can send and receive faxes as well. These are sometimes referred to as multi function printers.

Anti-Aliasing - The process of removing or reducing the jagged distortions in curves and diagonal lines so that lines appear smooth or smoother.

Auto Answer - This is a setting on most fax machines, fax modems and multifunction devices with fax capability. With auto answer, the device automatically picks up incoming fax calls after a specified number of rings.

Automatic Document Feeder - A tray and/or attachment that feeds one page at a time into a fax, copier, printer or scanner.

Bit - The abbreviation for binary digit; the smallest unit of digital information, represented by 1 or 0. Computers use many bits to represent information.

Bit Depth - A digital image is represented as a bit-map (a grid of dots). Bit Depth is the number of colour tones that can be associated with each dot. A 1-bit colour, for example, can only contain 2 colours: black and white. But an 8-bit colour contains 256 shades (colour or gray), while a 24-bit colour contains 16.7 million shades.

Bitmap File - The standard graphics format carries the file extension .BMP.

Borderless Printing - Printing photos with no white space around the edges. Borderless prints look like the high quality prints from a photo lab.

Brightness - An adjustment to control the lightness and darkness of an image, measured by the percentage of reflected light.

Broadcast Faxing - A fax machine feature found on most all-in-ones that sends the same fax documents to multiple recipients.

Carriage - The fixture in the print device that holds the print head. Generally travels along carriage rods from side to side.

Central Processing Unit (CPU) – This is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, and is the primary element carrying out the computer's functions. The central processing unit carries out each instruction of the program in sequence, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system.

Charging Roller - One of the complex systems of rollers inside a typical laser printer or all-in-one. The charging roller transfers an electrical charge to the photo conductor, which repels particles to the toner.

CMYK - An acronym to represent cyan, magenta, yellow and black, the basic colorants (dyes, pigments or toners) used in digital imaging. These four colours alone are used to create all colours in an image.

Collation - A feature offered on some inkjet printers and laser printers. With collation turned on, multiple copies of a document are printed as separate documents.

Compatible Cartridges - A brand new printer cartridge that is made by a third party, not the OEM by the original printer manufacturer. Compatible cartridges are widely known as a trusted, affordable option when purchased from trusted companies like Printerinks.com.

Contrast Enhancement (Automatic) - Automatically brightens images that appear dark or hazy, and applies appropriate tone correction to deliver improved quality and clarity.

Corona Wires - A set of thin wires inside the body of a laser printer that transfers a static charge to each sheet of paper; this charge in turn attracts the toner to the paper.

Dedicated Print Server - A computer in a network dedicated to managing all available printers.

Dot Matrix - An older impact printer that used a grid of tiny pins to transfer ink from a ribbon to the page. Dot matrix printers can produce basic graphics, but have inferior print quality compared to inkjet or laser printers.

Dots Per Inch (DPI) - A measurement of print resolution. DPI indicates how many individual dots a device can address on a page per square inch of area. DPI is typically listed as horizontal resolution by vertical resolution.

Driver - Software that comes with a peripheral that allows the peripheral to communicate with the computer.

Duplex - Printing both sides of a two-sided document on a single sheet of paper.

Drum unit - The photoreceptor in a laser printer which is electrically charged, rotating and coated with organic photo conductors. The drum picks up toner and then prints the image onto paper by direct contact and heat, which fuses the ink to the paper.

Enhanced Capability Port (ECP) - This is an international specification describing bidirectional communications using a computer's parallel port. ECP focuses on printers and scanners.

Enhanced Parallel Port (EPP) - An international standard documenting bidirectional communications using a computer’s parallel port. EPP focuses on peripherals other than printers and scanner.

Ethernet Network - The simplest, slowest and least expensive network design, usually well-suited for home or small offices.

Fax Forwarding - A fax feature that enables the machine to automatically forward any document it receives to another fax.

Fax Header - An informational line of text printed at the top of every page by a fax machine; it includes a name, station ID and fax number.

FireWire - High-speed external connection used for connecting peripherals, also referred to as "IEEE 1394".

Firmware - Low-level software that runs in a digital camera, printer, scanner, etc. and controls the product's operation and user interface.

Font - A set of printing characters that share the same distinctive appearance. Fonts are used on a computer to display text on the monitor and print documents.

Fuser Roller - One of a system of rollers inside a laser printer. The fuser roller heats the page after the toner is applied, so the toner partially melts and sticks to the page for a permanent bond.

GIF Image - Short for Graphics Interchange Format; usually carries the file extension .GIF. The first truly universal standard format for file images, originally developed by CompuServe. Widely used on the web, GIF files are best used for small images in limited colours.

IEEE-1284 Standard - The international design specification for bidirectional parallel printer cables. Most inkjet and laser printers do not work properly unless the printer cable meets this specification. Most products now use USB for printer-to-computer communication.

Impact Printer - A class of printer that uses the force of an impact into an ink ribbon to create a printed character on a page. This impact is delivered by a rotating ball or wheel or through a grid of pins. This type of printer is generally slow, noisy and out-dated. These printers are useful for multipart forms such as invoices or shipping bills.

Individual Ink Cartridges (IIC) - Some inkjet manufacturers printing solution that has a different ink cartridge for each colour.

InfraRed (IR) - This is a type of connection that allows data to be wirelessly transmitted from one device directly to another device when the infrared window on the camera is lined up with an infrared sensor on the other device. This technology is similar to what most TV remote controls use.

Inkjet Cartridge - An inkjet cartridge is a replaceable component of an inkjet printer that contains the liquid ink (and sometimes a print head, micro-chip and other technology and moving parts).

Inkjet Printer - A printer or an all-in-one unit that shoots fast-drying ink through tiny nozzles onto a page to form characters. The inkjet is currently the standard for personal computer printing. Inkjets are fast, affordable and quiet. They provide high-quality graphics and print in colour.

Input/Output Card - Usually abbreviated I/O card. A standard computer adapter card that typically provides two serial ports for your modem and two parallel printer ports.

Interrupt Request - Usually abbreviated IRQ. A signal generated by an adapter card in the computer that alerts the CPU to handle incoming data from the keyboard, mouse, serial port or parallel port.

JPEG File - Usually carries the file extension .JPG. The current favorite image format among web surfers and graphics professionals, JPEG images are highly compressed to save more space than a .BMP or .GIF file.

Label Stock - A paper sheet carrying peel-off or perforated labels that are arranged in a specified pattern and often used for mailing.

Landscape Printing - Printing where the longer length of the page runs from side to side rather than top to bottom. Landscape mode is often used to print spreadsheets and larger photographs.

Large-format Printer - An inkjet printer designed to handle paper larger than stard A4. Some large-format printers also use continuous rolls of paper. These printers are generally designed to produce photo-quality posters, blueprints, maps, banners and signs.

Laser Printer – This is a device that uses static electricity and heat to bond particles of toner to the page to create the characters. This is the same technology used by many copy machines and is known as a best option for large businesses.

Local Area Network (LAN) - A group of computers in an office or building connected to one another by cabling. A network computer can access files on other computers in the network or enable others to open and use its files. Printers, modems and hard drives are also typically shared peripherals on a network.

Media - The material that the ink is printed upon, such as plain paper, mailing labels or transparency film.

Monochrome Printer - A printer that prints in only one colour, usually black. Some monochrome printers can also produce text and graphics in shades of gray, as well as strict black-and-white.

Network Interface Card (NIC) - An adapter card installed in a computer that enables it to connect to a network; most NICs support several different types of networks and network cabling.

Network Printer – This is a printer available for use by all of the workstations on a network. A network printer either has its own built-in network interface card or it is connected to a printer server on the network.

Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) - Products or components that are manufactured or purchased by a company and retailed under that company's brand name.

Page Description Language - A language recognised by computers and printers that define the physical characteristics of a page, including fonts, graphics, margins, spacing and colours.

Page Memory - The number of pages a fax can hold in its memory if it runs out of paper.

Pages Per Minute (PPM) - A measurement of printer speed, indicating how many finished pages a printer can produce over a 60 second period. PPM speeds are typically listed for both black-only and mixed text and colour documents.

Page Storage – This is the number of pages (text or graphics) that can be stored internally on the given device.

Pantone - A colour matching system supported by most desktop publishing and graphics design software.

Paper Capacity - Refers to how much paper the printer tray can accommodate.

Paper Guides - Adjustable plastic dividers that help hold paper in the proper alignment in a printer's paper feed tray. These guides can be moved to fit different dimensions, such as international sizes, envelopes or custom-sized paper.

Parallel Port - This is the common name for one type of printer connector on the back of a typical computer. I/O adapter cards are available that can provide a computer with up to four separate parallel ports, but most computers come with one as standard equipment.

Peripheral - This is a device attached to a host computer, but not part of it, and is more or less dependent on the host. It expands the host's capabilities, but does not form part of the core computer architecture.

Peer-to-Peer Network - A simple network design that uses no file or printer servers. All workstations on the network are connected by cabling, which enables users to share files and hardware, such as printers.

PictBridge - PictBridge allows digital cameras, camcorders and other image-capture devices to connect and print directly to photo printers and other output devices; no computer is required.

Pixel - A single element within a digital photograph. The typical digital photograph is made up of several million pixels.

Port Connection - A communication link between hardware components. Types of connections include FireWire, Parallel, USB, Serial, and SCSI.

Port Polling - A procedure performed by Windows® each time the computer is booted and each time a print job is sent from an application. The operating system automatically checks the parallel port to make sure that a printer is ready to receive a print job. In many cases, port polling can be turned off to improve printing speed.

Print Buffer - A separate, standalone print spooler with its own built-in memory that connects a computer and printing hardware. The print buffer can spool print jobs, freeing up all of a computer's resources for applications.

Printer Cartridge - The device that integrates the print head, ink container and ink delivery systems. A printer cartridge may contain ink or toner.

Printer Driver - The software that enables the operating system to properly build and format commands and data bound for the printer; in effect, a printer driver tells the operating system all it needs to know to successfully operate the printer.

Printer Emulation - This is software that enables a newer printer to act like an older, widely used printer so it can recognise and print documents formatted for that older model.

Printer Server - A computer solely dedicated to supporting a network printer. The server's system RAM and hard drive are used to store print jobs in the queue, and print jobs can be reordered, paused, or deleted from the server's keyboard.

Print Head - This is the element of a printer that applies the ink to the paper. In an inkjet device, the print head contains the nozzles and electronics that control the ejection of the ink onto the selected media.

Print Quality - A qualitative description of how pleasing printed output looks. Most printers enable the user to adjust the quality of print and the speed of printing. In general for inkjet printers, slower print speeds will result in higher print quality.

Print Resolution - The quantity of data capable of being printed, typically measured in dots per inch (DPI). Higher resolution is one of many factors that can improve print quality.

Queue - A sequence of documents sent to a printer to be processed sequentially, usually in the order in which they were sent by the computer.

Remanufactured Cartridge - Printerinks.com remanufactured cartridges are made from recycled cartridge cores. Each cartridge is cleaned, inspected and refilled to meet or exceed OEM specifications. Remanufactured cartridges from Printerinks.com contain the same amount of ink or more as the OEM ink cartridges, and print the same number of pages. Remanufactured cartridges are widely recognised as a more affordable and environmentally friendly option, keeping empty cartridges out of landfills

Serial Port - This is the common name for one type of printer connector on the back of a typical computer. This is a physical interface through which information transfers in or out one bit at a time.

Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) - Set of standards for physically connecting and transferring data between computers and peripheral devices.

Thermal Dye Sublimation - In dye-sublimation printing, the dyes vaporize and permeate the glossy surface of the paper before they return to solid form, creating a gentle gradation at the edges of each pixel. The colour infuses the paper and is less vulnerable to fading and distortion over time.

Tri-Chamber Cartridge – This is a descriptive term for a singular inkjet cartridge that contains all three colours of ink; cyan, magenta and yellow (CMY). Often marketed as a tri-colour cartridge.

Universal Serial Bus (USB) - A fast input/output (I/O) data transfer standard used for connecting peripherals to a computer. Typically, each device connected to a computer uses its own port. USB can connect up to 127 peripherals through a single port, and peripherals can be connected together. USB devices may be hot swapped, which means that power does not have to be turned off to connect or disconnect a peripheral. USB has become the primary means of connection for printers and other peripherals, and is supported by most major hardware, software and telecommunications providers.

Avoid Puppy Ink Poisoning

2011-01-12T04:00:00.030Z

I am here today to dispel a myth about ink poisoning. Today’s inks are not poisonous and it would take a very large amount to cause any harm to a human. There are other residents, however, in many homes. Cats and dogs are our four-legged family members that theoretically could be at risk. This is largely due to their lower body weight and naturally curious nature.

We have all been surprised at one point of time as to what our pets have gotten into. While the amount of ink that they could possibly ingest should not be harmful, you should be vigilant if they manage to chew on an ink cartridge or pen. They also are at risk of intestinal blockage or chocking on any plastic pieces they may have chewed off.

Unless you catch your pet in the act, you would probably have no idea that they ever got into ink, aside from the tell tale signs of finding an ink stained poodle. If you think your pet may have come in contact with ink, you need to remain cautious. Look for indicators of poisoning like agitation, drooling, staggering, seizures, vomiting, diarrhea, difficulty breathing and irritation around the mouth or eyes.

If the pet has ingested ink and appears fine, keep a watchful eye on it and contact your veterinarian at your earliest convenience. If all is well, a trip to visit the veterinarian may not be needed. You can also ring the Animal Poison Control Center.

If you find ink has gotten on your pets fur, the best method for cleaning it up is using a mild dish soap. This will keep the pet from trying to lick it off and also keeping it from staining anything in your home. Do not try to induce vomiting unless your veterinarian tells you to do so.

We all know that prevention is the best cure, so keep your and your pet’s environment clean and neat so there is not a chance for it to ingest a non-food item. Also do not throw those printer inks in the trash, help save the environment by recycling them. The more we can keep out of the landfills, the greener the future will be.

The Invention of Ink

2011-01-05T16:10:00.000Z

Ink is something used so much in our world that you may not think much about it, until your ink cartridge runs out. Ink is needed to help create art and to sign millionaire contracts. Where would we be without ink? And who do we have to thank for this?

There are many debates amongst historians (Really, what else do they have to do?) about who first invented ink. Ink was the natural evolution after humans invented drawing and writing. We could not continue carving on cave walls forever. Can you imagine relaxing on a tropical beach with an umbrella drink and reading a nice cave carving?

Some historians credit the invention of ink and paper to the Egyptians. This claim is because paper has its origin in the word papyrus. The papyrus plant is a wetland sage that was once abundant in the Nile Delta. Recorded history disputes those claims and lays all the credit to the Chinese.

Ink was originally created for marking the surfaces of hieroglyphics that were carved into stone. The first ink was a combination of soot and either animal glue or honey. This ink was invented by Tien-Lcheu, a noted Chinese philosopher of 2697 B.C. It became common throughout China by the year 1200 B.C. Other cultures soon adapted this invention and started adding colors derived from berries, plants, and other minerals. The colors of inks soon had ritualistic meanings attached to them.

As you see, ink has moved a long way from its humble origins. Ink has evolved from the printing press of the industrial revolution to today’s remanufactured printer ink cartridges. In a way you could say that ink has come almost full circle, with the newest biodegradable inks just a modern variation of what Tien-Lcheu first created!

Mega Holiday Deals are coming this way!

2010-11-19T21:18:00.011Z

Here at Printerinks.com we are over the moon excited to announce the upcoming Black Friday and Mega Monday deals coming your way! We have found some great discounts and prizes for you this year.

I can tell you now that these will be big! I will give you as many details as I can now, feel free to comment below, and be sure to subscribe as I will be able to reveal more as Black Friday grows closer.

* Monday, 22nd November PRE-BLACK FRIDAY SALE
1.Take 15% Off all our inks and toners!
2.Every order enters you in a daily draw for a Personalised Photo Book!
Expires midnight Thursday, 25^th Nov

* Friday, 26th November BLACK FRIDAY SALE
1.Take 20% Off all our inks and toners!
2.Every order enters you in a daily draw for a Customised Canvas print!
3.FREE Delivery on every order!
Expires midnight Friday, 26th November

Friday, 27^th Nov
1.15% off all Compatible and Remanufactured ink and toners
2.Every order enters you in a daily draw for a Photo book!
Expires Midnight Sunday, 28^th Nov

Monday, 29th Nov MEGA MONDAY SALE

1.Take 20% off Compatible and Remanufactured inks and toners + 5% on all OEMs!

2.Every order enters you in a daily draw for Free Canvas!

3.FREE Delivery on every order!

Expires Midnight Monday, 29^th Nov

The ABC's of a Laser Printer

2010-10-05T16:40:00.000+01:00

ASSEMBLY – Laser Printers are top notch, especially in an office. Know your printer, and know what you are purchasing. Some laser printers include an all-in-one drum and toner assembly, which can be easier to use if you run a smaller office. Most large office printers will use a separate drum unit, which will save you in the long run.

BREAKAGE – Learn to avoid breakage by following these simple steps

Use the correct paper for your printer, make sure that it is intended for a Laser Printer to avoid jams and achieve the best print quality.

If you hear any quirky noises, stop. Look for error lights and assure the toner is inserted correctly and has clicked into place.

CARTRIDGE - When running low on toner it is common to shake the cartridge, but do not take those office aggressions out on it, a light shake with no rocking is all that is needed.

If you encounter smears or streaks on your print out, you may need to replace the drum unit. If you print nothing but a blank page, you may need a new toner cartridge.

If toner powder spills in your printer vacuum out or clean with a dry cloth before printing.

One last Acronym for you: R.T.M. – Read The Manual.

Printing Perfect Labels

2010-08-14T04:00:00.001+01:00

Printing labels makes great use of your printer. By using your own printer to print labels, you save money and get more creative, custom designs while saving the time of hand writing.

If you have a large quantity of labels to print, it is nice to start with them in Excel. You will merge them into Word, which is where you can customise and print labels.

Set up your data in excel then create a mail merge, then save and close the spreadsheet. Open a new Word document, then select and follow the steps of the Mail Merge Wizard; when it is time to select recipients you will use the Excel list you saved.

Labels can be printed not only for addressing envelopes, but also for books and binders, CDs and DVDs, files, dividers and so much more.

You can choose professional black, or any fun colour printer ink, choose from clear, white, silver or decorative labels and there are even many different fonts, including some nice handwriting fonts to really personalise your labels.
What kind of projects have you created with print your own labels?

Contest Announcement: Tuesday Trivia

2010-08-09T04:00:00.010+01:00

This August, Printerinks will give fans, friends and followers a chance at winning free inks and toners. Test your knowledge each Tuesday, with Printerinks Tuesday Trivia.

Follow Printerinks on Facebook and Printerinks Twitter (@Printerinks), and be prepared to win. Trivia questions will be posted at a randomly selected time each Tuesday and the first Facebook comment plus first Tuesday Twitter Trivia @ reply will each win 1,000 Printerinks Loyalty Reward Points.

Open to residents of UK and Europe. 1 Facebook winner plus 1 Twitter Trivia winner awarded each week. For every 1000 loyalty points accumulated you can redeem £10 off your next purchase at Printerinks.com. Contest runs until 31 August, 2010.

We Have Our "Name Your Printer" Winner!

2010-08-04T16:47:00.000+01:00

What printer model do you use? Printerinks.com asked, and our customers answered. There are numerous ancient and newer Hewlett Packard printers out there, as well as numerous Epson printers. Canon, Lexmark, Kodak, Dell, Brother and even Kyocera are also present.

We offered 1 lucky winner from Printerinks.com Twitter and Printerinks.com Facebook fan pages replacement ink for their printer, and are so excited to announce the winners.

Alan Martin of Scotland will receive ink for his HP Photosmart C4480 and Inga Andersen will receive ink for her HP Photosmart C5180.

Thanks for playing, and follow along for more great chances to win your ink!

Is it time to switch to a Laser printer

2010-08-02T08:00:00.002+01:00

Home printers are nice to have at home, and ever so useful. Now that you are Making the Most out of your Home Printer, you may be questioning the quality of your printer.

Inkjet printers are nice to have if you are printing colour photos once a week. If not, you may want to look into the benefits of a laser printer.

Buy in bulk. You know to save money on food and paper products by buying in larger quantities, but did you know that laser toner can also save you money? You will find the laser printer, as well as the toner cartridges, at a higher initial purchase price, but once you figure in the yield of a toner cartridge versus inkjet, you will see the significant savings.

Longer lasting quality. To keep your inkjet from drying up, you need to print out all the colours once every week or so. If you are like me, daily printing is done in the office and the fun photos and useful vouchers are printed as needed, which may not occur until the next holiday. Laser toner is a powder, it will not dry up and will be top quality whenever you print.

Large jobs. Not only can a laser printer wait longer until use, it is more productive at printing those large jobs when they do arise. Laser printers are recommended for offices and for anyone running heaving printing jobs.

Print Faster. In an office, or in a hurry? Laser printers print, well, at laser speed. Pardon the pun.

Quality text. While inkjets are superior for often printing photos, laser printers offer a superior text quality. You will want to look at what you print, as well as how often you print, when making the decision to switch to a Laser printer.

Printing Your Own Digital Photographs

2010-07-28T08:00:00.005+01:00

Taking terrific photographs is only half the fun. That beautiful scenery, special events, loving family moments and fun times with friends out on the town deserve more than to live in your camera.

You want lovely photographs printed, so that you can scrapbook and frame them to cherish for years to come, but this no longer means you need to make a trip to a photo lab. Print those beautiful, full colour photographs from your own printer.

If you have not printed in a while, or do not currently get the results you are looking for in a photograph, it would be wise to run a printer alignment, colour calibration and print cartridge cleaning. These functions (accessible from the printer menu) prevent blurring, streaking and improperly aligned prints.

Set your printer for photo quality prints. While normal mode works well for drafts and text, you will get the finest photograph printed by switching to the best mode or photo mode. Choose your printer’s highest possible colour resolution. The greater the d.p.i. setting, the better your print outs will be. Also in your printer preferences, set your printer to accommodate the type of paper you are using.

Print on high quality photo paper. Colour photographs generally look best on glossy photo papers, if printing classic black and white photos you may want to choose a matte finish photo paper.

Once you have printed your stunning photographs, give the printer inks up to 12 hours to dry to be safe before placing in a frame or scrapbook.

Making the most out of Your Home Printer

2010-07-26T22:13:00.001+01:00

You probably have that printer sitting on the desk top, but do you take full advantage of this tool?

Print your photographs. We love our digital cameras, mobile phone cameras are a beloved convenience, and DSLR cameras are becoming increasingly popular by moms and budding photographers. Now that we have our photos in digital format, we sometimes forget to print photographs. It is so nice to hang photographs in your home and office, very nice to give framed photographs as gifts and always good to keep the most cherished photographs in an additional format. It is cheaper and easier to print at home than the days of film. Are you taking advantage of the photo printing ability of your printer? Make sure you change the settings to photo quality, purchase a pack of photo quality paper and print your favourite photos.

Put your printer to work for you. There are so many great coupons online, we no longer need to purchase newspapers, save junk mail and spend hours clipping. Websites like VoucherHub.com and Wow-Coupons.co.uk are dedicated to providing the latest retail and grocery coupons that you can use in your local stores. Make sure you change the printer settings to a lower, ink saving quality, and print coupons to save you money now.

Keep the children occupied. Print your own colouring books and puzzles, the preschoolers are sure to enjoy these on a rainy day. You can keep the children learning and reviewing all year round with home work sheets.

How do you make the most out of your home printer?

Name your printer model, win Free Printer inks

2010-07-08T17:37:00.002+01:00

What printer model do you use? Epson Stylus C50 inkjet? HP Colour LaserJet 1600? Brother MFC Multi-function 235C inkjet?

Let us know! Printerinks strives to supply printer ink and toner for all the most popular printers.

Post to our Facebook wall and let us know the name of your printer. A lucky Facebook Fan will receive their printerink!
Follow @Printerinks on Twitter and Tweet a message letting us know the name of your printer! A lucky Twitter Friend will receive their printerink!

Open to residents of UK and Europe. 1 Facebook winner plus 1 Twitter winner will be awarded their printer cartridge. Winners will be selected 31 July, 2010.

What do you like to print?

2010-07-02T16:20:00.004+01:00

Printerinks asked, and you answered. What do you like to print? We proposed the question to you, our fans, and were delighted with your overwhelming responses. From vouchers, to maps, photos, to invites, your printer is getting a work out. And it is a good thing you know how to save money on those printer inks at http://www.printerinks.com/

We are so excited to announce our winners of the £50 of inks

Facebook fans:

Sandy Goodson is a 'print-a-maniac'

Karen Tolhurst knocked our socks off with her creativity

Twitter friends:

Donna Burke needs an ink fairy in the form of Printerinks

Callum Fairhurst is printing for a good cause

Recycled Ink Cartridges Used To Create Cycle Path

2010-06-10T17:40:00.001+01:00

Here at Printerinks.com we do everything possible to create an eco-friendly business. We print using paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, recycle our waste materials, and even drive cars listed as environmentally friendly. Moreover, we offer customers £1 for every ink cartridge they recycle with us – meaning you can earn money by sending us your empty cartridges! Try it today!

Elsewhere meanwhile, the Australian National Park Service also strives hard to improve the environment. Authorities there recently unveiled a cycle path built entirely from recycle ink cartridges – giving residents a special 'green' way to enjoy local woodlands. The path stretches 17km in West Mcdonnell National Park, and is part of the Australian government's $8m tourism stimulus package.

Check out images of the cycle path below – and remember you can earn money by recycling your ink cartridges at Printerinks.com!

Offset Your Company's Carbon Footprint With Toshiba

2010-06-02T17:08:00.000+01:00

Are you concerned by the CO2 levels generated at your office? Then you may be interested in a new carbon offsetting scheme being run by ink cartridge manufacturer Toshiba. Named the African Energy Stove Project, the scheme gives businesses in the UK and Ireland the chance to offset their printing emissions.

The scheme is simple. Businesses that buy new Toshiba multi-function printers choose to offset all emissions produced in the printer's lifetime – including the original manufacture and while using peripherals like ink cartridges. This amounts to an offset worth either five years or one million copies. In return, Toshiba secures stoves for Kenyan people – offering appliances far more efficient than open fire cooking.

The carbon offsetting guaranteed by this scheme is substantial. For example, Toshiba states in a recent press release that each stove cuts firewood use by more than half, saving three million tonnes in CO2 emissions annually. Moreover, the fuel-efficient stoves reduce the 1.6 million Kenyan deaths caused by smoke inhalation each year.
Toshiba's scheme underwent a successful pilot programme last year, meaning businesses will soon be allowed to opt in. More information is available from Toshiba's Carbon Zero microsite. In the meantime, businesses interested in greener printing should looking into Printerinks.com ink cartridge recycling offer. We not only keep empty ink cartridges from landfills, but also give you £1 for every catrtridge you donate.

Ricoh Printer Line Win Prestigious Product Awards

2010-05-24T16:51:00.000+01:00

Looking for a new business printer? Then you ought to consider printers from Ricoh's well regarded SP range. They were recently named Most Outstanding Colour Printer Line Of The Year by the prestigious Buyer's Laboratory (BLI). Four Ricoh printers in particular received praise: the SP C821dn, the SP C820dn, the SP C232sf and the GX e3350n. They were commended for never misfeeding, and never requiring maintenance over 220,000 cumulative printouts. These Ricoh printers have in short proven themselves the last word in reliability.

BLI made its selections after two months of rigorous testing using several criteria: copy and print quality; productivity; ease of use; economy; and connectivity. In each of these areas Ricoh printers performed exceptionally, demonstrating the company's “dedication to providing quality colour products to its customers,” according to BLI print analst Marlene Orr.

Of course though these Ricoh business printers have been mutually recognised for their quality, each printer is suited to a different user. For example:

• The SP C821dn was recognised as an outstanding workgroup printer. It is suited to corporate offices and retails for under £4000.

• The SP C820dn was recognised as an outstanding workgroup laser printer. It is suited for businesses, and retails for under £3000.

• The SP C232cf was recognised as a small workgroup multifunction printer. It is suited to small offices, and includes a copier and scanner. It retails for under £400.

• The GX e3350n was recognised as an outstanding business inkjet printer. It retails for under £150.

BLI's accolades hence target a large range of budgets and organisations. Businesses of all sizes can appreciate Ricoh's recognised quality. Naturally, you can enjoy the highest quality cartridges for each printer at Printerinks.com.

Samsung Releases World's Smallest Laser Printer

2010-05-20T16:48:00.000+01:00

Business owners hoping to enjoy the benefits of high speed laser printing but suffering from lack of room might appreciate this item: Samsung has released the world's smallest laser printer. Adding to their ML Series, Samsung's newest printer is the ML-1665, and the printer boasts dimensions of only 34.1cm x 242cm x 18.4cm, meaning it will fit easily into the smallest nooks or crannies.

Small proportions aside, the ML-1665 is still capable of speedy printing – it prints 16 pages per minute. Moreover, it won't break the bank - Samsung are retailing the new printer for only £74.99, making it an excellent choice for businesses on a budget too!

The ML-1665 isn't yet available to buy. Once Samsung release the printer though, you can enjoy great quality compatible toner cartridges at a low price from Printerinks.com.

Free Software Helps You Print Less Waste Pages

2010-05-13T15:59:00.000+01:00

Have you ever tried printing a single page from the internet and noticed that you end up with two printed pages: one containing the information you're after and another showing only the url and an advert? That's one sheet of paper wasted every time you print from the internet and, over weeks and months, that total can really add up.

Fortunately then, some bright spark has released a program helping you eliminate this wasteful printing. GreenPrint enables you to double-check your print jobs before they're produced and even eliminate the page elements you don't want! For example then, perhaps you want to print out a cooking recipe from a webpage but don't want to waste colour ink on the image. GreenPrint lets you remove that image – helping you save ink, paper and ultimately money.

GreenPrint promises to reduce your printing costs by around £60-90 per year, and has been recognised by publications including The Wall Street Journal. Perhaps the best part though is that (as long as you're willing to tolerate some built-in advertising) GreenPrint is completely free. To see how it works and download for yourself, visit the website here: GreenPrint.

Of course, before you start messing with software to reduce your printing costs you could try the basics: Printerinks.com provides high quality ink cartridges for all brands at discount prices.

Printerinks needs YOUR eyes, and we pay £45!

2010-05-11T21:07:00.003+01:00

Printerinks needs YOUR eyes, and we are paying you each £45!

Go on a "Scavenger Hunt" around Printerinks.com, find any problems and we will give you £45 of Free Ink.

Come work for us now!

Provide detailed information of where and when the problem was discovered
Up to 100 entrants will be rewarded
Printerinks reserves the right to select winners and determine valid issues
Offer ends 31 May, 2010

Errors may include, but are not limited to: Dead links, Bad pages, Images, Pricing, Cartridge numbers or Incorrect printers models.

Any "finds" should be emailed to feedback@printerinks.com

Get Paid To Recycle With Printerinks.com! (Alternately You Can Build Desk Lamps)

2010-05-06T17:20:00.000+01:00

Did you know that Printerinks.com runs a recycling scheme giving you £1 for every empty ink cartridge you return to us? The cartridges are used to create our remanufactured products. Moreover, it's an excellent way to both help the environment and put some extra cash in your pocket. You can take advantage today!

Alternately there are more creative (though less profitable) ways to recycle your empty cartridges. For example, North Carolina resident David Winton creates desk lamps from his used Epson cartridges. His lamps feature normal electric wiring and plug into your socket like other household appliances. Moreover, the desk lamps can be hung almost anywhere because the plastic casings are so light. They're novel accessories and a unique way to keep used cartridges out of landfill.

Of course after you've removed the guts from your cartridge and installed the circuitry to create your first desk lamp, you have to ask yourself: “How many lamps made from empty ink cartridges can I really use?” Moreover, seeing the Epson or Lexmark name glowing in every room of your house must get quickly tiresome. In other words Winston's inventions are a smashing novelty. Really though, isn't it great that Printerinks.com offers a conventional alternative? Visit today and receive £1 for every ink cartridge you recycle.

Couple Turn Office Work Station Into Victorian Organ

2010-04-29T16:24:00.000+01:00

Here at Printerinks.com we keep abreast of the newest developments in ink cartridge and printer technology. For example - the innovative gel-based cartridge recently released by Ricoh? We have it covered. The new Konica printer programmed to periodically order new cartridges? We’re seasoned experts. The Mitsubishi Diamondstar 90 press – printing more than 1500 pages per minute? Ask us anything. After all, our incredible passion for ink cartridges leads us naturally to pursue new releases carefully.

In spite of our diligence though, we must confess the Victorianised office station – including printer and scanner – caught us off guard. Where's the WiFi connection for your iPhone? Where's the one-touch applications? Where – and we’re becoming desperate here – is the electric socket? This anachronistic invention Bruce and Melanies Rosenbaum offers none of these: instead, it just resembles a Victorian organ.

The chances of Hewlett Packard incorporating this novelty printer into its product range are sadly slim. However this needn’t prevent printer manufacturers learning lessons from the Rosenbaums’ printer: the brass and mahogany finish featured here is a distinct improvement on the conventional plastic casings!

[Via Gizmowatch.]

Recycling Ink is Twice as Nice

2010-04-09T16:45:00.000+01:00

Japanese Ink Cartridge Brands Make Recycling Twice As Nice With UNEP Donations

Here at Printerinks.com we run a Recycling programme through which you can contribute your empty cartridges. For every one you contribute we give you a pound – and we use your cartridges to create our top value remanufactured products. Recycling your cartrtridges is free to you – and it means together we can make a greener Planet Earth!

Of course, the ink cartridges you can contribute are originally manufactured through major brands – including Hewlett Packard and Lexmark. These brands maintain recycling schemes also – except they don’t give their customer anything for their efforts. Even riskier, there’s no guarantee the ink cartridges are really recycled.

The situation is a little different in Japan. There, major brands including Epson and Canon collaborate to encourage ink cartridge recycling among the Japanese public. The joint endeavour – called the Ink Cartridge Homecoming Project – runs in 3,639 post offices and local government buildings across Japan. Like the UK though, the public receive no compensation for their donations – that’s something only Printerinks.com provides.

Recently though these ink cartridge brands in Japan have redoubled their commitment to recycling. For every ink cartridge donated by the public, they donate 3 Yen (just over 2 pence) to the United Nations Environmental Programme. Projects like protecting biodiversity and reducing pollution receive a significant boost from this gesture.

Presently this scheme is restricted to Japan. Yet people seriously concerned about the environment could petition manufacturers to expand the Homecoming Project! This might not only encourage more people to recycle, but achieve added environmental benefit for UNEC. Alternately of course, you can take advantage of our existing recycling programme and get £1 for every cartridge – at Printerinks.com.

Canon’s Takeover Of Océ and You

2010-04-08T20:47:00.000+01:00

The full takeover of Océ by Canon looks inevitable. Last week the Japanese company announced ownership of 71.3% of Océ stock. Minority Shareholders including Hermes Asset Management refused to sell, even taking Canon to the Amsterdam commerce court over the deal. They failed. Now Canon have issued these companies an ultimatum, telling them they have until 19 November to surrender their shares or becoming minority investors in a company Canon controls.

What though are the consequences of the takeover for Consumers? What ought Printerinks.com customers be aware of, following the deal’s closure? Find listed below the biggest implications of Canon’s takeover of Océ:

The two companies will spend 3 years integrating their infrastructures. Canon will transfer their research and development to Océ’s Amsterdam headquarters in this period. The Océ board of shareholders will remain independent, though ultimately reporting to Canon.
Production of Océ branded printers will be halted. For years, Océ haven’t manufactured their office imaging equipment, instead rebranding technology sold by Konica Minolta. Following Canon’s takeover this will stop, and Océ products will disappear. Canon printers may become more visible.
Canon will introduce before-sales and after-sales services into their portfolio. Océ’s existing document management software is industry leading. They have especial expertise in mailroom automation. Using this, Canon can turn themselves from a printer manufacturer into a managed print services provider. This mostly affects businesses.
The takeover creates a global print provider comparable to Hewlett Packard or Xerox. Canon and Océ aim to become the No. 1 printer maker globally. Their combination gives them good market penetration in these important sectors: Europe, Asia and North America. They can hence compete on a scale comparable to HP and Xerox.

The takeover is therefore no reason to hide in the basement stockpiling baked beans. Nor does it justify removing your existing printer to await some über model. It does significantly alter the printing market though. Expect to see great things from the augmented Canon / Océ in the coming years!

HP Notebook Shipments To Fall Behind Taiwanese Rivals

2010-04-07T21:05:00.000+01:00

The notebook shipments of global vendor HP are predicted to fall behind Taiwanese makers Quanta Computers and Compal Electronics in 2010, according to anonymous industry sources.

In addition, Quanta and Compal shipments are expected to exceed those of fellow Taiwanese brand Acer – who have been competing with HP for first position.

Quanta Computer and Compal Electronics are expected to ship 50 million and 46-48 million laptops this year globally. By comparison, Hewlett Packard are predicted to ship only 45 million notebooks, and Acer a lesser 40 million units.

The shift is surprising, because Acer overtook Dell to the worldwide second place in 2008. In Q3 of that year, Acer shipped only 1.5 million fewer notebooks than Hewlett Packard, and appeared to be eating into HP’s 20.1% market share.

Today’s predictions will allow Quanta and Compal to command lower upstream material costs, in the production of their notebooks. Given this, vendors including HP may transfer procurement control of materials to their manufacturers, to reduce costs. This would further improve the Taiwanese makers’ position.

Motorola Droid Hack Enables USB Printer Use

2010-04-05T21:33:00.000+01:00

Modders Mike Baker and Mike Kershaw have pioneered a Motorola Droid hack, enabling the smartphone to host Linux-based USB devices like printers and cameras.

The Droid hack doesn’t require a re-installation of the Android OS, though owners must splice several cables together. Details are available at Chris Paget’s blog.

Presently the Android OS has limited driver support – meaning that few peripherals are enabled with the Droid hack, even in USB Host Mode. Paget promises this will change though, as hackers exploit the Android operating system.

HP Unveils Global First: Wind Cooled Data Centre

2010-04-02T21:39:00.000+01:00

Printer manufacturers Hewlett Packard have unveiled the world’s first wind cooled data centre: an IT services and management hub cooled by entirely external means.

Located in North West England, the facility maintains a fixed 24C temperate owing to eight 2.1 stainless steel and plastic intake fans. Modular filters remove impurities such as dust before the air is circulated, where it runs through the flooring and over the server racks. There the air is finally exhausted.

The Billingham facility is the most energy efficient hub built by Hewlett Packard: for every 1.2 watts spent on powering the server racks, 1 watt is spent cooling them. This gives the wind cooled data centre a 1.2 PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) measurement – when 1.5 PUE is the mark for an energy efficient site.

This is only feasible though because of the region’s temperate climate. Temperatures at Billingham exceed 24C for only 20 hours a year. Even this increase though necessitates electric coolers to keep the server racks regulated.

By contrast, when the outside temperate drops too much exhausted air is recirculated.

In addition to the intake fans, the Billingham facility uses light coloured server racks. These reflect sunlight more easily, saving 40% on electric lighting. What’s more, rain water is collected to increase the facility’s humidity. When the outside air becomes too dry, spray from the 80,000 litre tanks is released.

HP believes they’ll make power savings of £2.4m from the wind cooled data centre.

The IT services and management hub houses HP’s electronic data, and is very secure. A high perimeter fence lines the facility, while the corridors are accessed with biometric readings. When HP opened the facility to journalists last week, cameras were forbidden.

Yet the intake fans contribute to security, by making the facility more anonymous. To the unsuspecting observer, the wind cooled data centre would appear your average treatment plant. In fact the Billingham hub is not only really efficient, but the central nervous system for Hewlett Packard’s IT services.

[Via PCWorld.com]

Visconti Releases Pen Made with Lava

2010-03-31T19:32:00.001+01:00

The designers at Florence company Visconti Pens must expect a clientele of secret agents. How else to explain the shatter proof pen they’re releasing that’s built with lava?

The new fountain pen endures boiling liquids up to 300C, and features a palladium nib - a substitute for white gold. It contains no alloys. These traits make the Visconti lava pen a calligrapher dream come true, according to the press release:

“You will feel like you are writing on a cloud. We call the experience of writing with our palladium nib, Dreamtouch™ because it's like writing on air."*

The Visconti lava pen is part of the Homo Sapiens range, with available nibs ranging from Extra Fine to Stub. The fountain pen retails for $595, though a pencil version costs $345. What Visconti charges for lava cartridges is not stated.

*Of course, the unauthorised experience of Dreamtouch might result in legal action. Writers unsure if the fluidity of their fountain pen infringes on Visconti’s trademark should consult their solicitor.

Canon Europe Survey Optimistic About Printing’s Future

2010-03-30T18:00:00.000+01:00

The printing industry has weathered a difficult storm in 2009 and can look forward to a bright future, according to Canon Europe’s 3rd annual survey of print service providers.

Conducted by Prof. Emiratus Frank Romano and a graduate team from the USA’s Rochester Institute Of Technology, the survey in fact found that digital printing output rose by 27.2% in Western Europe in 2009 - while lithograph outputs fell 18.1%.

The figures suggest digital equipment offered a lease of life to the 840 printers surveyed. Though clients required smaller print runs during the recession, firms with digital equipment could provide these – unlike litho printers, whose equipment limited them to providing large runs no longer in demand.

This may explain why 81 of the printers surveyed in 2008 were no longer in business or had merged.

The survey also found that 86% of printers felt signage printing with wide format machines helped to weather the downturn. A large market for display printing in 2010 might drive future growth – which printers felt optimistic about.

Finally, printers who focused on select markets and provided multi-media services to their customers felt these helped them survive the recession. Printers used value-added services to differentiate themselves and promote loyalty.

The Canon press release for the survey – which is available in full from May 2010 – is available here.

Who Does Fiorina’s Demon Sheep Really Target?

2010-03-29T21:44:00.000+01:00

Former HP CEO Carly Fiorina’s ‘demon sheep’ ad has bought the US Senate hopeful centre stage. The video attacks fellow Republican primary contender Tom Campbell - branding him ‘Fiscally Conservative In Name Only’ (hence the sheep in wolf’s clothing imagery.)

Yet the newspapers have barely spent a breath on Fiorina’s claims; and the 650,000 people who’ve caught the YouTube video are unlikely to feel Campbell’s fiscal reputation has been muddied.

Instead, the 250+ Google News articles on the vid put a magnifying glass to Fiorina’s success in social media – and whether it will tank her campaign.

For example, in a 2 February article for HuffingtonPost.com Jason Linkins recognises in the video not a campaign ad but a grab for the social media market.

The video makes ‘Fiscally Conservative In Name Only’ into a mangled acronym. Linkins says regarding this: “Oh, sweetie. I hate to be the one to tell you this, but stop trying to make "FUH-SEE-NO" work because it is not happening.”

He shrieks as though Fiorina had championed an ill-thought out fashion craze. He assumes (rightly) that FCINO has value not as a political label but a popular term, and assumes the role of public barometer of its failure.

By the same thinking Fiorina’s ad has value not as political theatre (it’s inept) but as a social media exercise. Fiorina has earned exposure rare in national political races, let alone the Republican primary of a US Senate election.

Hence the question is not: Is Fiorina’s attack on Campbell fair? Instead, the question is: What kind of attention has the ex-HP CEO earned herself? Followed by: How will the vid affect her campaign?

The web’s shared gaze looms over Fiorina – but as someone at which to laugh, or accept for office?

At Cnet.com, Chris Matyszczyk recalls the parable of Tom Cruise in his 5 February article. The diminutive star wrecked Oprah’s upholstery in 2005, picking up countless YouTube hits for the pleasure. Yet he might have been driving nails through the coffin of his reputation.

In short, the internet’s gaze is not uncritical. Fiorina might follow up the ‘demon sheep’ video by appearing naked in public, and it might win her similarly stratospheric exposure. Yet (unless the species declared itself insolvent at the bank of morality) the stunt would drive her Senate campaign off a nearby cliff.

The net is a concert hall where ten million violinists play together. It’s tempting to start whacking yourself about the noggin with the instrument to stand out. The other violinists will goggle. But after that eyeful they’ll resume playing – and you’ll be bloodied and alone.

Of course, Fiorina’s demon sheep isn’t self-mutilation with a musical instrument - but it’s the same concept. The ex-Hewlett Packard CEO may think she’d unearthed a recipe for social media success. Her campaign promises more political ads in a similar vein.

Yet even if the net’s stare does not abandon her, with each release Fiorina becomes more bloodied. By the campaign’s end, her features may be misshapen completely.

Former HP CEO’s Demon Sheep Political Ad

2010-03-26T21:59:00.000Z

Carly Fiorina’s candidacy for the US Senate had received scant media attention until recently. Michael Hiltzik wrote for LATimes.com in November last year, arguing that the former Hewlett Packard CEO was unsuited to hold political office.

The ink cartridge brand’s stock fell 60% under Fiorina’s stewardship from 1999-2005. Moreover, Fiorina failed to vote in 75% of California state elections since 2000 (though HP spent $4.7m in political lobbying during her tenure.)

Aside from Hiltzik’s broadside though, the former HP CEO’s campaign had been smooth sailing.

That is – until last week, when Fiorina released her first campaign ad. Directed at fellow Republican candidate Tom Campbell, the ad depicts Campbell as a demon sheep – a free-spending wolf among the fiscally conservative flock.

The ad’s political message is lost though – in lightning strikes, glowing red eyes, and a sinister voice-over booming ‘Piety’ and ‘Purity.’

Newspaper reviews were scathing.

Since release however, the ad has become an internet hit racking nearly 650,000 YouTube hits. What’s more, Fiorina is reportedly smiling at the exposure.

A spokeswoman on her campaign, Julie Soderland, told Reuters on Friday 5 February: "We're very happy with how effective this controversial and eye-catching web video has been because it's drawn attention to Tom Campbell's record as a fiscal liberal.”

But journalists are debating whether Fiorina’s ad has helped her campaign in spite of the views.

Peter Greer at CSMonitor.com called the video “a cargo ship full of crazy” in his 5 February article. He observes that the media consultant responsible for the video also created adverts for John McCain’s presidential campaign.

Dena Cassella at Digitaltrends.com meanwhile says that Fiorina’s marketing camp can expect to design the monsters for the next Pirates of the Caribbean sequel.

The effect of Fiorina’s demon sheep ad won’t be known until the ballots are drawn for the Republican primary.

Yet the former CEO’s campaign team is treating any publicity as good publicity. According to Soderland “you can expect to see more shocking content out of our campaign moving forward.”

PrePeat Prints On Same Sheet 1,000 Times

2010-03-25T15:58:00.000Z

Fans of the TV show ‘Stars In Their Eyes’ might find themselves misty-eyed watching this printer. Paper enters the Japanese PrePeat wearing one outfit (sort of) and leaves wearing another – caked in mascara and warbling Elton John.

If only.

In fact the PrePeat doesn’t make karaoke singers out of documents – but does reprint them up to 1,000 times. Thanks to a thermal printer head and heat-sensitive plastic paper, instead of traditional printer paper, documents are erased and reprinted – using a single sheet.

Any softwood trees in the audience shouldn't relax yet though. The PrePeat leaves a $5,517 sized crater in your savings account, while 1,000 sheets add insult to injury at $3,300. Better break out the piggy bank if you plan to become the Matthew Kelly of office peripherals.

[Via Popsci.com]

Printer Ink Revenues Drop For First Time Ever

2010-03-24T17:50:00.000Z

Before 2009 global ink cartridge revenues copied the trajectory of a space shuttle – shooting skyward. Year on year you observed them by pointing your gaze higher.

For example, in 2004 HP America’s Print VP Vyomesh Joshi told NYTimes.com he wanted “to add $2 billion every year in revenues.” That year Hewlett Packard’s print revenues had already left earth’s atmosphere – they totalled $24 billion.

Yet according to a new report by Lyra Research, 2009 was the first year in history in which the trajectory fell. Though still orbiting above the $100 million stratosphere, global ink cartridge revenues dropped by 2% in the 12 months from 2008.

What caused this mission error?

According to the 2 February Lyra article, suppliers not only handed retailers a surfeit of ink cartridges given the recession, retailers compensated by taking fewer ink cartridges than they normally would.

This prompted a “disproportionately large decline in product shipments” last year.

Senior Lyra researcher Andrew Lippman says there’s no cause to call Houston though: the trajectory should correct itself next year. "Print volumes for desktop ink jet printers are expected to begin growing rapidly in 2012 as the technology enters more and more small office environments,” he says.

That’s great news for stargazers keeping an eye on the ink cartridge industry’s shuttle.

Printing With A Pencil Stub?

2010-03-23T18:18:00.002Z

Today the illustrious list of conceptual designs involving printers becomes still more illustrious. Take your feather pen and boldly write ‘Pencil Stub Printer’ on that parchment – below ‘PritStik: The World’s Smallest Printer,’ perhaps.

The Pencil Stub Printer has emerged from the innovative noggin of designer Hoyoung Lee. Earlier inventor of the solar powered road printer, Lee perhaps spends his days wondering how to combine printers with unrelated objects. Most surprising - he is not the sole member of this niche. The Meal Printer from two MIT post-grads combines a less obvious object than even pencil stubs with printers.

Long may their labours result in oddities such as this. Welcome to the list, pencil stub printer.

Xerox Patents Rise 16% In 2009

2010-03-22T16:12:00.000Z

You’d be forgiven for scanning past the headline that Xerox increased their patents by 16% last year. But when that company is responsible for recent inventions such as: (1) solid ink cartridges and (2) erasable paper, paying attention might prove worthwhile.

According to a 30 January 2010 report at Azooptics.com, the US Patent Office stamped 706 applications from Xerox last year – putting the ink cartridge manufacturer in the top 25 receivers of patents.

So what wondrous inventions number among those patents? XeroxTechnology.com lists such patents as U.S. 6,187,512: ‘Process for halomethylation of high performance polymers’ and U.S. 7,340,199: ‘Image forming device.’

Admittedly these aren’t too exciting-sounding – but no doubt they’ll be lynchpins in tomorrow’s printers. We’re excited to see those high performance polymers in action - especially when they’re the product of a total $1.5b annual funding!

P:log Brings Blogging To Prison Inmates

2010-03-21T04:00:00.008Z

You may wonder just what designer Yejin Mun is thinking with his system to bring blogging to prison inmates. Yet the P:log – a printer and scanner combo with which prisoners can upload their journals anonymously - serves a real purpose. The loneliness of prison life alienates inmates from society. What better way to reconnect than by unleashing their woes on an unsuspecting web?

Fortunately, the anonymity clause puts a stop to any great escapes being hatched by angst-ridden inmates. And we trust that prisoners wouldn’t service the P:log themselves – ink cartridges are deadly in the wrong hands!

[Via Yanko]

Konica Printers to Replenish Own Cartridges

2010-03-20T04:00:00.021Z

Have you ever exhausted your toner the moment tomorrow’s presentation needs printing? Even if you’re careful to keep a stock of cartridges, a search on Twitter at any one moment will reveal someone in a panic.

Until recently, these people could only broadcast their panic on the internet (natch) before rushing out. Whether they’d find toner in time was anyone’s guess.

Fortunately, cartridge brand Konica has teamed with Wireless Logic to create printers that make this predicament a thing of the past.

According to a January press release by Wireless Logic, future Konica printers will come equipped with GPRS SIM cards – letting Konica monitor each printer’s toner levels.

Once the printer runs low, new printer cartridges are automatically re-ordered.

The integrated Wireless Logic cards also check the printer’s performance, meaning faults can be detected more quickly. Any problems are registered on Konica’s CS Remote Care Service, and an engineer is dispatched to solve the problem.

Already Konica has noticed a 50% drop in its billing queue from customers using the new printers – who (according to the press release) have saved money too.

However, the Wireless Logic release does not address whether consumers can customise the service they receive. For example, can persons opt out of the monitoring service if they wish to purchase toner from a less expensive option such as Printerinks.com? Does Konica record each person’s printer use for marketing ends?

In May 2006 a report appeared in The New York Times addressing the privacy issues of ‘wireless tracking’ appliances. Writer Kevin J. O’Brien spoke of existing RFID tags in Underground Tube passes – with the potential to track people and their belongings.

Though nothing indicates that Konica’s intent is not innocent, customers ought ask how their information will be used.

New Market For Smellovision Cartridges?

2010-03-19T18:37:00.000Z

Given the destructive scenes often depicted in cinema, you might query the wisdom of a technology that brings contextual scents to the viewer. Would the firebombing in Avatar be improved by the whiff of burnt plant life in the theatre?

Yet the ubiquity of the smellovision concept made it a product development certainty. Enter Portuguese designer Nuno Teixeira with his SmellIt: a DVD player that employs an embedded ‘Smell CARD’ to bring up to 118 olfactory sensations to the viewer. Using smell cartridges and an internal fan, the SmellIt syncs with the onscreen image to give smells 20 seconds to cross the room.

According to Teixeira, the smell cartridges contain a patented ‘smell gel’ lasting 3 times longer than ink cartridges. Included among the flavours are popcorn, sea, restaurant and unclean(!) Of course, trust Printerinks.com to release a compatible smell cartridge (in a range of flavours!) as soon as SmellIt hits the market.

Xerox Q4 Earnings: Document Management World Dominion Looms

2010-03-18T14:47:00.000Z

For much of the printer industry, the economic downturn has meant profits flatter than a pancake. Yet the announcement of Q4 revenues by Xerox sees the ink cartridge manufacturer with only a 3% dip in revenues, compared to 2009.

CEO Ursula Burns announced Fourth Quarter total revenues of $4.2b in a recent presentation – and declared that the acquisition of BPO (business process outsourcing) company ACS would make Xerox ‘the world leader in business process and document management.’

Xerox recently received its fourth consecutive award for Excellence in Technology Service and Support from prestigious global marketing information firm J.D. Power & Associates. Citing ‘An Outstanding Customer Experience,’ the award will prove useful to Xerox’s credentials as a managed print services provider.

This is especially the case because sales of both black and white & colour equipment fell 11% in the Fourth Quarter, owing to a non-existent demand for printers.

Xerox paid $6.4 billion for ACS – in the ink cartridge brand’s largest ever market acquisition.

Yet Burns also announced that Xerox is cutting 5% of its workforce loose – a total of 2500 staff. The cuts derive from Burns’ strategy of “cost and expense management” while the economic recovery is ongoing, and also include a £250m restructuring charge.

"We delivered a strong close to a difficult year, with solid operational results that reflect our disciplined approach to generating cash and reducing costs," Burns said.

"During the fourth quarter, we saw signs of improvement in several areas, including developing markets, and we remain quite confident in our strong global competitive position."

HP MusicStation: Wasted Effort?

2010-03-17T18:12:00.000Z

A question for any illegal file-sharers in the audience: Would a download service packaged with a Hewlett Packard PC convince you to stop? How about the chance to download 10 DRM-free tracks (digital rights management) per month for £1 each? No? Might a 14-day free trial not convince you?

If you’ve answered ‘No,’ then already MusicStation – the music service being packed with new HP computers – is short another customer. Yet according to today’s article at The Independent, record labels including Warner and Sony Music are hoping the collaboration with cloud computing firm Omnifone will reduce piracy.

An endeavour between 4 major labels and several independents, MusicStation counts one more to the 400 legal music services available globally. What distinguishes MusicStation from the already popular iTunes and Spotify is unclear – except that it comes pre-packaged with HP computers, and covers Europe.

What’s more, the rhetoric of Rob Wells, Senior Vice President of Digital at Universal suggests MusicStation isn’t meant to compete with iTunes. Speaking with The Independent, he said:

“With its huge scale and user base, HP's 10 country introduction of Omnifone's MusicStation unlimited music service for the PC will help encourage legitimate access to digital music content from Universal Music and all the other major and independent labels."

What is telling here is the phrase ‘help encourage legitimate music access.’ Already legal downloads are widely available – yet according to a 21 January report by The Times, the music industry continues to be decimated by illegal sharing.

Far from competing with iTunes then – nor offering a service with any new benefits to consumers – nor encouraging a transition from CD to digital - MusicStation is an attempt do something (anything!) to deter piracy. Yet as we’ve already discovered, MusicStation offers terms no self-respecting file-sharer would accept.

Perhaps the collaboration with HP will succeed. Yet were the new service a genuine innovation, Mr. Well wouldn’t aim at changing the attitudes of his market. Far from ‘encouraging’ anything, he’d be selling the benefits of his product.

Office Copier Celebrates 50 Printerific Years

2010-03-16T20:46:00.000Z

For members of generation YouTube, the 50th anniversary of the copier machine prompts two possible reactions:

Dull-eyed indifference or
Panic-eyed incomprehension. For obvious reasons, the latter reaction is by far the preferred.

‘Words are digital!’ comes the cry of these hapless youths from sewer-like bedrooms. ‘How can printing words be possible?’ At which time their (we hope) less ignorant parents whack them with that otherwise obsolete object - the ‘book.’

For anyone born more than 5 minutes ago though, the 50th birthday of Xerox first copier machine ought be celebrated. Who cannot recall the fluorescent light of a working copier without a smile?

If there be such persons amongst you, throw an icy glance their way. Do so now! Yes – they feel the office chill. Never again will they know a coffee break without ignominy.

For readers not suffering the post-traumatic thump of a blow to the noggin – nor the hatred of a thousand cubicled eyes – the copier of course revolutionised office life. No longer did documents have to be copied by hand! Imagine the delight of the secretaries of 1960!

Indeed, we need not imagine - the delight is documented in a 22 January post by Stephanie Mehta for CNN.com. Quoth Mehta one Joseph C Wilson in September 1959, President of (then) Harold Xerox Inc: “they feel great pride when their copies all look like originals."

This strikes your humble Inks Correspondent as a surreal thing in which to take pride. Yet it was a different time; the office copier a novelty.

The original Xerox 914 (so dubbed because it copied 9 by 14 inch documents) weighed 650lbs and copied 7 pages per minute. What improvement this marked on the secretaries we cannot say – though chances are that they weighed less.

The Xerox 914 popularised copying, though even for Xerox it was not the first office copier. Before 1960 Xerox sold the Model A – a hand-operated copier criticised for being cumbersome (less cumbersome than a 650lb cube copying at glacial speeds!)

Moreover, printing presses had been in vogue since William Caxton in the fifteenth century.

The innovation of Xerox’s 914 – and what made the model infamous - was to market the copier as a democratising technology.

Speaking to CNN.com, Xerox’s Vice President of Global Software Solutions Stephen P Hoover said the 914 "gave people access to information and capabilities they just didn't have. It really changed how work was done."

Today Xerox is not only a synonym for copying but an informal verb. Aside from Google, what other brand is so closely linked with the process it pioneered?

Yet according to CNN.com, investors in 1958 saw no potential in the Xerox copier. Consulting firm Arthur D. Little Inc. (who ironically enough, predicted paper to be obsolete in offices by 1990) told IBM that the 914 had ‘no future in office copying.’

Thank goodness they were wrong.

How To Turn Your Dead Printer Into A Shredder

2010-03-15T17:43:00.000Z

Printers rarely stop working without warning. They cling to life, doing everything possible to prolong their existence. This often includes shredding printouts – what better way to tell the owner they require maintenance? Of course, this desperate action only hastens the printer’s journey to the scrap heap.

Yet this misguided behaviour has inspired a member of DIY website Instructables.com. The user Laxap recently created instructions for turning a broken printer into a shredder! It involves removing the printer’s organs and replacing them with shredder innards. The advantage? The printer tears the same quantities of paper, but saves toner!

Of course, until you decide to confuse your work colleagues with this device, Printerinks.com stocks the highest quality ink cartridges for your working printer.

Paperless Office? What Paperless Office?

2010-03-14T04:00:00.020Z

As printing co-habits with the digital, the ‘paperless office’ is proving a myth.

What are the chances you’ll print this article? Not great – say figures as influential as Bill Gates. Back on 29 October 2005 the Microsoft chairman told The Times that print was nearing obsolescence. “We’re right on the verge of something that could become mainstream,” he told Joe Bolger. The paperless office – first prophesied in a 1975 Business Week article – was becoming reality.

Of course The Times’ interview with Gates was 5 years ago, and we’re still waiting. So what happened? In fact, the failure of the Microsoft chairman’s prediction matches the failure of the Business Week article – which thought paper would be disregarded over the 1980s. It quoted Vincent E. Giuliano of Arthur D. Little, Inc: “by 1990, most record-handling will be electronic." Perhaps the temptation for trend-mongering made Gates and Business Week unrealistic?

Yet the fact remains that you’re unlikely to hold this article. So how to reconcile the lasting value of print to the fact that few articles are now printed? Does the sheer volume of text available (thanks to the internet) mean we’re at least printing more selectively? Has the time spent staring at a computer monitor led us to underestimate the vitality of print? According to Hewlett Packard’s Vice President of Consumer Inkjet Solutions Tuan Tran, this is probably the case.

Speaking in a 23 January interview with MercuryNews.com’s Chris O’Brien, Mr. Tran estimates that the quantity of documents printed has increased 4-5% annually since the early 1990s. We’re not pursuing the paperless office – printing is too “pervasive a human need” to be eliminated by digital trend-mongers. We’ve just placed a greater threshold on what articles make it to paper.

Given the proliferation of text on the net this was inevitable. The volume of words available at a mouse click would be overwhelming were they physically present. Moreover, given the low threshold for publishing on the net, the majority of articles would not be worth reading. Yet HP behavioural and ethnographic studies show our attitude to print hasn’t changed. It remains a valuable means of recording data – with emotional charge unequalled by the internet.

According to MercuryNews.com, Hewlett Packard acknowledges 3 key reasons why printing remains valued: documentation, comprehension and cherishing. Broken down, it amounts to this: we trust paper more than the net to preserve our documents; we find things easier to understand if we’re holding them; we’ve a greater attachment to things if they’re physical. The 2.5 billion photos uploaded each month on Facebook can’t compare to the sentimental value of a framed image.

“I spent hours over the holiday break taking all of our photos and putting them in a leather-bound album," Tran said. "It's a much more personal thing to hand someone. It's an emotional, communicative thing."

So print isn’t going anywhere. Yet isn’t there some means to integrate the digital realm with the paper one more closely? This is exactly what HP is pursuing. For example, the introduction of wireless printers reconciles the emotional benefits of the document with the ‘instant access’ ethos of the internet. Far from pursuing the paperless office then, we’re using digital technology to make printing more accessible – without doing away with its benefits.

MIT Food Printer Is G-astronomical

2010-03-13T04:00:00.015Z

Did you know that the word ‘gastronomy’ derives from the Ancient Greek for ‘food’ and ‘knowledge’? Today we place emphasis on the ‘food’ part of the equation – yet in earlier centuries the concept was tied to everything from painting to geology. Preparing and enjoying food were activities known in relation to all human existence.

Two members of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) may have it in mind to revive the ‘knowledge’ side of the concept. Their contribution to what is already called ‘molecular gastronomy’ is a food printer – enabling you to produce nutritious meals (without waste) simply with the use of pre-prepared cartridges.

Named ‘Cornucopia,’ the concept is described as a ‘personal food factory’ on MIT’s webpage. The brainchild of Marcelo Coelho and Amit Zoran, the 3D food printer works by “storing, precisely mixing, depositing and cooking layers of ingredients.” Though now in the conceptual stages, the pair is proceeding to build a working version.

Theoretically the food printer can accurately recreate the user’s favourite meal, without the waste associated with preparing food. Ingredients are kept refrigerated in canisters until wanted. Yet the Cornucopia might also supply gastronomes with hitherto impossible taste sensations – thanks to the novel combination of ingredients.

Fancy an ice cream steak? If this pair from MIT succeed, your salivation is nigh.

New AutoDesk: Sexiest Printer Ever?

2010-03-12T04:00:00.010Z

There can’t be many competitors for the title of ‘sexiest printer,’ for the simple reason that document printing belongs to the inhibited realm of the office. A Google search for the term returns multiple hits for the Samsung ML1630 and, bizarrely, the Zebra P1101.

The Samsung has a certain post-Matrix charm – but the Zebra? We’re in dire straits when this hippopotamus (which it resembles more than a zebra) gets called sexiest anything – let alone sexiest printer.

Yet the new AutoDesk conceptual images by designer Aaron Hughes might just convince us that printers can be sexy. This may be because the illustrations make it easy to forget you’re staring at a printer: as Ruchi of Waylou.com writes in a 21 January post, the Autodesk might have been the brainchild of Stark Industries. How could anything so clearly designed for space shuttle missions print documents?

AutoDesk have not indicated that the Hughes design will pass beyond the conceptual stage. Yet we’re already convinced these images beat out the meagre competition. Even on paper this AutoDesk surely deserves the title: sexiest printer.

Epson Digital Photo Frame Insecure About Itself

2010-03-11T18:32:00.001Z

Tough Love For Xerox writer Michael J writes that the notion of digital technology replacing print is the “figment of some politician’s imagination.” We’re inclined to agree – and what better proof than the Epson digital photo frame which doubles as a printer? Far from proving the redundancy of print, Epson’s new release demonstrates that digital technology is insecure about itself.

Described by Epson America’s Consumer Inkjets General Production Manager Stacey Tieu as a “convenient, portable printer,” some wonder why Epson fussed with the digital photo frame. As a printer, the PictureMate Show is too bulky for displaying on the mantelpiece. The printer’s whirring is also likely to interrupt any sentimental moments you may have admiring the displayed image.

What’s more, Epson are adamant about the quality of the PictureMate Show’s printing. Images are guaranteed for 96 years under glass and 200 years in a photo album – presumably for people passing the photos to their grandkids, rather than enjoying a lifespan more than twice the average. Epson doesn’t mention how long the PictureMate itself lasts – meaning that though digital images may last forever, it doesn’t mean much if they’re shown on a 1 year warranty device.

All in all, we’re surprised the PictureMate hasn’t taken to lopping off its digital display. At the very least the mobile printer must be suffering an identity crisis. Suffering that is – until the battery runs dead. Then the gadget doesn’t do anything.

Xerox CEO Ranks In Most Powerful Women List

2010-03-10T19:52:00.001Z

Xerox CEO Ursula Burns has been named among the 75 most powerful women in business by BlackEnterprise.com. Praised as a woman ‘positioned to change global commerce’ in the article, she took charge of printer and ink cartridge brand Xerox in July 2009.

Burns is the first African American woman to head a Standard & Poor’s 100 Corporation, and previously served as the President of Xerox’s Business Group Operations. She joined the ink cartridge brand in 1980 as a mechanical engineering summer intern, and from there worked up the copier manufacturer’s ranks.

According to BlackEnterprise.com, Burns intends to cut a larger slice of the £132 billion technology industry pie for Xerox through a combination of acquisitions and natural growth.

This isn’t the first time the Xerox CEO has appeared on a ‘Most Powerful Women’ list. In August, Burns ranked #14 in Forbes ‘100 Most Powerful Women In The World.’

Xerox Invents Erasable Paper; Hairdryer Manufacturers Rejoice

2010-03-09T20:43:00.000Z

Fans of pelting balls of waste paper into trashcans – beware. Researchers at Xerox have released word of a new erasable paper that makes your pastime redundant.

According to a 12 December report by T. M. Washington at Posterous.com, the images printed on the Xerox erasable paper last only a day. Subjecting the sheets to heat or light makes the images disappear more quickly though – as shown in a video by Xerox (see above.)

For offices eager to test the Xerox invention, this of course raises the question: how best to subject the erasable paper to heat? The Xerox video features a hairdryer – potentially sparking a new office supplies market for home appliance brands.

Though still in the preliminary stages, scientists at the Palo Alto Research Center believe Xerox erasable paper could be commercially available in 5-10 years. According to the Xerox press release, Xerox estimate 40% of sheets printed in offices are discarded after 1 day – suggesting a huge market for erasable paper.

Part of a Xerox initiative to develop “dynamic documents,” erasable paper became possible when scientists discovered how to create temporary images. Creating images with a special compound means they change colour when hit by certain wavelengths, then gradually disappear.

Scientists at PARC are developing a counterpart printer for Xerox’s erasable paper – which uses a specific frequency of light to generate images on the sheets. According to the Xerox press release, many clients have expressed an interest in “transient documents.” It will be years though, before erasable paper is commercially ready.

Paul Smith, Manager of Xerox Corporation’s materials design & synthesis lab, said: "Despite our reliance on computers to share and process information, there is still a strong dependence on the printed page for reading and absorbing content. Self-erasing documents for short-term use offers the best of both worlds.”

This is completely true; unless of course, you enjoy pelting balls of waste paper into trashcans.

How To Make Your Ink Cartridge Last Longer

2010-03-08T21:13:00.000Z

Do you know why original brand ink cartridges are so costly? Because brands including Hewlett Packard make their profits from them, rather than the printers. They undercharge for the printers, and increase the price of the cartridges customers depend on.

Compatible and remanufactured ink cartridges like those sold at Printerinks.com cost less than original brand cartridges, without reducing quality. They’re an excellent way to save money. However, making your cartridge last longer also saves money. Enjoy the following tips then, for extending the lifespan of your ink cartridge.

Print in ‘Draft’ instead of ‘Normal’ quality. Access this option in your printer software’s ‘Preferences’ window.
Use smaller font sizes and fonts without thick lettering.
Unclog the nozzle of a poorly working colour cartridge. Do this by: removing the cartridge and wiping the bottom with a damp paper towel.
Ignore your printer software’s low ink warning, order at the low ink warning so you have the ink, but you can continue to print until the document quality degrades. This will extend the cartridge lifespan.
Choose ‘Print in Greyscale’ in your printer software’s ‘Preferences’ window. This prints only in black and grey.
Before printing, use ‘Print Preview.’ This helps you optimise the document and avoid reprints.
Print only ‘Printer Friendly’ web pages. This helps avoid printing superfluous graphics and adverts.
Alter the ‘Document Settings’ to print multiple pages per sheet.
Prevent the ink cartridge drying by protecting it from extreme temperatures.
Use the colour cartridge sparingly. It is the most expensive.

Print Your Own Organ donation

2010-03-07T04:00:00.001Z

Inkjet Printing To Replace Organ Donation?

Recently we reported that OEM printer ink is more expensive than human blood.

We theorised two courses of economising to shocked consumers:
(1) opt for a quality compatible ink cartridge or
(2) simply print documents in their own blood. For many reasons, the first option struck us as preferable.

But now scientists may have legitimate cause for filling their cartridges with claret. According to a 22 October 2008 Cosmos Online post, Japanese scientist Makoto Nakamura is using inkjet printing technology in an attempt to “print” human organs.

In the same way that ink is used to print documents, Nakamura employs human cells – jetting out thousands per second to produce a 3D human organ.

The goal is to create alternative organs for patients languishing on donor lists. Speaking with Cosmos Online, Nakamura said: ‘Ultimately I would like to make a heart.’

Such organs could be mass produced using a patient’s cells – removing the possibility of rejection. Though Nakamura thinks it may take 20 years to “print” a heart, once the technology is workable it could eliminate organ shortages at a stroke.

According to the Japanese scientist, his organ printer works “like building a huge skyscraper on a micro level using different kinds of cells and other materials instead of steel beams, concrete and glass.” To date, Nakamura’s micro-huge skyscraper organs have not exceeded one millimetre in diameter, and combine only two cell types.

Yet Nakamura’s printer is incredibly precise. It works by layering cells, capable of adjustments in the order of one thousandth of a millimetre. Though this may sound slow, the device creates 1.5cm worth of cells every minute.

And because ink particles are roughly the size of human cells, it’s based on a normal inkjet printer.

Nakamura was among the first to make this discovery, back in 2003. At the time, he placed a call with Epson customer services, telling the advisor that he wanted to print cells.

Though initially rebuffed, he eventually made contact with a sympathetic official at the company – which has given him technical support.

Inkjet Wars: Kodak VS Hewlett Packard

2010-03-06T04:00:00.034Z

Back in 2007 Kodak entered the printer market with a revolutionary business plan: charge slightly more for inkjet printers than other manufacturers, but charge half for ink cartridges.

They released the EasyShare 5300: an inkjet with cartridges 50% cheaper than HP’s equivalent model, the PhotoSmart C5180. They created an advert campaign, warning consumers that ink cartridges sold by other manufacturers cost more than crude oil.

Moreover, Kodak employed a new pigment-based dying process in their printers, which certified their images for 120 years. This contrasted favourably with the single year guaranteed by Hewlett Packard. Finally, Kodak promised they’d save consumers $110 annually.

--

In 2007 Kodak sold 520,000 printers. Impressive? Not really, when you consider that 61 million inkjet multifunction printers were sold that year.

Yet Kodaks entry caused red alert at Hewlett Packard headquarters - both because Kodak aimed a stake at the heart of HP’s business model, and because Kodak targeted the most profitable consumers.

After all, Kodak’s promises of incredible savings wouldn’t mean anything to consumers for whom printers are dusty plastic boxes. It’s the printing maniacs – that 20% of inkjet consumers who purchase 80% of cartridges – with whom Kodak’s new strategy might resonate.

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Since 2007 then, the two brands have been launching grapeshot at each other. Kodak designed the (Star Trek influenced?) printandprosper.com to accompany their EasyShare launch.

This website details the savings available with Kodak, and explains why other printer brands are soulless profit mongers. Hewlett Packard receives the worst beating from this campaign - arguably because the 63 cartridges types available from HP contrast with the 3 from Kodak.

In reply, Hewlett Packard launched The Truth About Printing – a site targeted like a cruise missile at Kodak.

It illustrates an infinite queue of frowning Kodak consumers desperate to return their EasyShares, and promises $50 toward an HP printer. That’s the printing equivalent of removing your gloves.

--

More recently, this tussle has moved off the net and into the courts. Last year HP filed a complaint with the lengthily titled National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus (his friends call him NAD) that Kodak’s claim to save consumers $110 annually was inaccurate.

Kodak failed even to send a representative to the complaints proceeding. Instead, they released a short press statement saying their advertising claims had already been substantiated.

NAD responded by bundling the case off to the Federal Trade Commission.

--

Last December, the FTC decided that Kodak could claim their $110 savings – but on a minimum of four pages printed daily.

This tweaked text recognises that consumers must guzzle an ink minimum before Kodak’s claims become viable. Kodak has asserted this alteration to their advertising vindicates them.

On the other hand, Hewlett Packard continue making hay. They most recently quoted a Lyra Research report that 50% of consumers never reach Kodak’s savings threshold.

--

Who then does provide the cheapest printing? And do Kodak’s (seemingly) lower priced cartridges compromise quality? Comparisons of Kodak and Hewlett Packard’s printers are available through Google, though they report different things.

Broadly speaking – Kodak’s EasyShares give equal quality to HP’s PhotoSmart series, so long as Kodak photo paper is employed. This however cuts the potential savings of Kodak’s ink cartridges. By comparison, the PhotoSmarts offer a more vibrant printout – but degrade quickly.

Therefore neither brand is the undisputed champion of printing – putting to one side the minefield of ink cartridge pricing. The division between Kodak and Hewlett Packard will continue - while the consumer watches on, uncertain.

Sources
Jeff Burtolucci, ‘Printer Makers Clash Over Advertising Claims,’ PCWorld.com, 22 February 2010.
Michael Dow, ‘Kodak Vs HP: The Challenge,’ HardwareGeeks.com, 13 June 2009.
Scott Merrill, ‘Cage Match! HP Versus Kodak,’ CrunchGear.com, 9 September 2009.
Robert L Mitchell, ‘Kodak’s ESP-7: Print Quality Varies With Paper Type,’ ComputerWorld.com, 20 October 2009.
Taeho Lim, ‘HP Calls Out Kodak On Ink Cost Saving Claims,’ CartridgeNews.com, 30 September 2009

Lexmark Study Reveals European Printing Habits

2010-03-05T04:00:00.000Z

Lexmark released a new study detailing the printing habits of European professionals and home users. Conducted on the ink cartridge manufacturer’s behalf by market research company Information Resources, Inc (ICI) the study reveals that 58% of Europeans print mostly in black. Further, 74% of Europeans print between 0-30 pages weekly.

The study offers assurance for people concerned their printing habits are abnormal. For example, 1% of recipients in the 5 European nations surveyed* print entirely in colour. This 1 percentile may feel their colour cartridge habits make them unique. Alternately, they may choose to match the printing habits of most Europeans by replacing their colour cartridges with black cartridges.

Lexmark also reveals that 38% of professionals at work print more than 100 pages weekly. Other white collar Europeans may be concerned this makes them appear less productive than their print-happy colleagues, and print more frequently. 2% of white collar Europeans at work print less than 10 pages weekly. These people may find themselves compensating for their statistical inadequacy by printing documents several times.

The ICI study was conducted in April 2009 using interviews, focus groups and in-store observations. This probably means ICI researchers followed around the people wearing suits, or hid themselves in the ‘computer peripherals’ aisle at the supermarket.

*United Kingdom, France, Germany, Poland, Spain
Sources
Richard Thomas, ‘Professionals Focused on Reducing Costs,’ Lexmark.co.uk, 15 February 2010.

March Madness Printerinks Giveaway

2010-03-04T15:41:00.000Z

I am so excited to announce a new Printerinks Giveaway!

In February Printerinks.com held a popular Valentines Photo Contest, giving away an Apple iPod Touch to Cheryl Gauden of Canterbury.

Now March has come, and Printerinks.com is mad about the giveaways!

Make a wish and share! Join the March Madness giveaway and let Printerinks.com make your wishes come true. Let us know what you want and you may win your basket contents!

It is as simple as sharing your wish!

Become a fan on Facebook and Twitter, then share with us by post or tweet what you are wishing for. Save the items you would like in your shopping basket at Printerinks.com. At the end of March we will grant the wishes of 1 lucky winner!

Terms and Conditions

The Sweepstakes entry period begins on 1 March, 2010 and ends 31 March, 2010.
Printerinks.com shopping cart contents granted, up to £150!
Open to all residents of UK and Europe excluding employees of Printerinks.com and its affiliated companies.
The winner will be drawn at random from all valid entries received.
Printerinks.com reserves the right to substitute prizes of equal or greater value at any time.
The winner agrees to use of their name and information to be associated with the draw.

Remove Unwanted Ads From Web Pages And Save Ink!

2010-03-03T17:50:00.005Z

Do you frequently print from the internet, but find lots of ink wasted on images and adverts you don’t need? Then you might be interested in PrintWhatYouLike.com!

With this site, you enter the URL of the web page you’re interested in printing, and remove the elements you don’t like. Then hey presto! A handy saving for your ink cartridge.

PrintWhatYouLike.com is available free – check it out!

HP Sees Resurgence In PC And Printer Sales

2010-03-01T21:55:00.000Z

Hewlett Packard has encountered a resurgence in HP PC and HP printer sales, generating a 25% leap in net profit for 2010’s 1st fiscal quarter, which closed in January.

PC sales for Hewlett Packard rose 20% to $10.6bn, while printer shipments increased 16% - compared to the same period in 2009. The figures suggest the technology market is recovering, having fallen flat during the worldwide recession.

Hewlett Packard reported net profits of $2.3bn for the first quarter – $.4bn more than last year. Net revenue was up 8% from last year and totalled $31.2bn.

Given this, the company has raised its fiscal forecast for 2010, from $118bn revenue to $121.5bn.

Speaking in the press release, HP CEO Mark Hurd said: "The strength of our portfolio, leaner cost structure and accelerating market momentum give us the confidence to raise our full-year outlook.”

However, revenues were not up across all Hewlett Packard’s portfolio. The Services sector – largely responsible for bolstering HP’s finances in the recession – saw a 1% fall in revenue. Revenues at HP Software were stable at $878m.

Sources
Austine Modine, ‘HP’s PC and Printer Sales Back from the Depths,’ TheRegister.co.uk, 17 February 2010.
Antone Gonsalves, ‘HP Profits Jump 25%,’ InformationWeek.com, 18 February 2010.

Reports Of The Printer’s Death Are Greatly Exaggerated

2010-02-26T20:14:00.001Z

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes of ZDNet.com has declared his printer ready for the morgue.

Once, the technology journalist never surfed the net without his faithful device. Sheet after sheet of immaculate print-out was deposited onto the document tray. The whirr that accompanied a completed print was birdsong in March.

Now, the dust settled on the chassis dampens the sunlight, and the top cover hides a spider’s nest. Black ink trickles from the disused cartridges like drool, and the green LED flickers – like an injured man struggling to stay awake. Only the occasional whirr reminds Kingsley-Hughes that his printer exists.

Of course, Kingsley-Hughes is a technology journalist. He spends his days testing how many apps make an iPhone explode, and sneering at Internet Explorer 7 users. He pines to upload himself to the web, and escape fleshy existence.

Given this, what else could Kingsley-Hughes throw toward his printer but sneers?

Meanwhile, back in reality 32% of offices are stuffing their printers with greater quantities of paper than ever before, according to a recent AIIM release. Consumer ink revenues – now $100 million globally – will skyrocket again on 2011, according to Lyra Research. And printouts are warm like freshly baked bread.

Nothing stops Kingsley-Hughes dropping from silicon heaven and giving his printer’s eulogy. He might download an iPhone app to dig the peripheral’s grave. Everyone else will be taking sheaves of warm paper from the document tray.

Sources
Adrian Kingsley-Hughes, ‘The Slow Demise Of The Printer,’ ZDnet.com, 17 February 2010.
Image
Beth Hoffman, ‘Night of the Living Dead Printer,’ Flickr.com, 8 January 2009

UK Newspaper Sales In Double Digit Decline

2010-02-25T05:00:00.001Z

UK quality dailies including The Guardian and The Times have experienced double digit declines in sales figures, according to new figures from the Audit Bureau of Circulations.

The Audit Bureau, which tracks sales figures for newspapers and magazines worldwide, noted that The Times encountered the biggest year-on-year plummet among UK newspapers – dropping 17.69% in January to 508,250 copies.

The Guardian, meanwhile, experienced a 15.76% decline in circulation, though keeping above 300,000. Month-on-month The Guardian circulation in fact increased in January by 0.58%.

The Daily Telegraph reported a 11.76% drop in circulation rates, putting the newspaper’s sales below 700,000 for the first time.

This plummet in part reflects the paper’s decision to abandon bulk distribution – a mechanism by which restaurants etc. receive multiple copies for a nominal fee, then distribute these freely.

Only three newspapers – The Independent, The Daily Mail, and The Financial Times – now employ this circulation-bolstering tactic.

Newspaper sales at the lower end fared slightly better. The Sun raised its circulation back above 3 million copies, thanks to a month-on-month January increase of 5.02%. The paper though declined 4.43% year-on-year.

Of the tabloids, only The Star managed a year-on-year increase – at 1.41%. This reflects owner Richard Desmond’s decision to drop the paper’s price to 20p back in November 2008.

The Audit Bureau had some good news for print editions, however. Though the first half of 2009 saw circulations fall 1.8% for the UK’s 100 top-selling magazines, sales were flat during the second half. This suggest the print industry is weathering the recession.

Meanwhile, Political satire Private Eye enjoyed its highest circulation since 1992 in 2008’s second half - selling 210,218 copies. Editor Iain Hislip told The Times: “The Eye’s circulation figures are like John Terry’s shorts. In the past they may have gone down - but now they are firmly up again.”

Sources

Alexi Monstrous, ‘Private Eye Records Best Circulation In Eighteen Years,’ TimesOnline.co.uk 11 February 2010.

Chris Tryhorn, ‘ABCS: Daily Telegraph Slides Below 700,000 Sales,’ Guardian.co.uk, 12 February 2010.

Ewingsc, ‘Shock! Horror! Newspaper Readership Results,’ Uncensored.co.nz, 15 February 2010.

Anonymous, ‘ABC: Sun Back Over 3 Million But Star Is Only Climber,’ PressGazette.co.uk, 12 February.

Inkjet Printer, Laser Printer… Pencil Printer?

2010-02-24T13:17:00.002Z

Here at Printerinks.com we keep abreast of the newest printer technology. Consumers seeking out cartridges for the latest multi-function wireless-enabled touchscreen-toting printer need look nowhere else.

But when we stumbled on the pencil printer from designer Hoyoung Lee, we had to admit – we were stumped. Almost literally, because the printer uses pencil stubs to generate printouts.

Enjoy the pencil printer in action by clicking the YouTube video above. And until Lee’s design hits production, trust Printerinks.com for quality cartridges for all the latest inkjet and laser printers.

Epson Announces Buy Back Scheme

2010-02-23T21:13:00.001Z

Epson has announced a new Buy Back Scheme, enabling companies to remove their outdated equipment – regardless of brand or model – and apply the savings to new Epson machines.

From 9 February the scheme was available to customers of Epson resellers. Resellers submit a quote to Epson on the customer’s behalf, and quotes are determined case-by-case.

The Buy Back includes de-installation, but is contingent on firms replacing their equipment with Epson products. It covers all peripherals – including inkjet printers, laserjet printers, scanners, projectors, and also dot matrix printers.

The scheme also gives companies peace of mind that their equipment is being disposed responsibly. Epson dismantles or recycles old models according to European Union WEEED (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive) standards.

For more information (and a hilariously 80s image of two businessmen shaking hands) visit Epson’s website.

The World’s Fastest Printers

2010-02-19T16:03:00.015Z

By Peter Lavelle
Friday 19 February 2010 14:53 GMT

Forty seven pages per minute. That’s how quickly the recently released Dell 5130cdn spits out colour pages. Dell calls it the world’s fastest colour laser printer. But wait - surely there are even faster printers? Surely there are printers so speedy you’d need oven gloves to retrieve the printouts? Surely there are printers so bowel-wobblingly quick the document tray resembles an avalanche?

Not quite. But we’ve compiled the world’s fastest printers below – and they’d all outpace the Dell 5130cdn in the 100m sprint.*

HP PhotoSmart 8250 Photo Printer

Speed: 4 photos per minute
Price: $183
Rating: Dormant Volcano

Though technically slower than the Dell 5130cdn, this Hewlett Packard is a photo printer – and a really speedy one!

Silverbrook Research Memjet

Speed: 60 pages per minute
Price: $2995
Rating: Caffeinated Tortoise

The Memjet technology used by Silverbrook Research took 10 years to develop! Though this printer was announced in 2007, it has never seen commercial release.

Brother Codenamed Cobra

Speed: 170 pages per minute
Price: $499
Rating: Angry Humming Bird

Brother’s Codenamed Cobra was displayed at the World Fair in Japan five years ago. Since then, the super-fast inkjet has been off the radar.

Océ VarioPrint 6250

Speed: 250 pages per minute
Price: $540,000
Rating: Concord’s Cousin

Océ claims the VarioPrint 6250 is available at ‘Lightning Prices.’ That’s presumably what customers think has struck them after they receive the bill.

IBM InfoPrint 4100

Speed: 330 pages per minute
Price: $1,000,000
Rating: Fuel Injected Cheetah

The IBM InfoPrint 4100 can print Tolstoy’s War and Peace in under a minute. Wow.

Mitsubishi Diamondstar 90

Speed: 1500 pages per minute
Price: ?
Rating: Complete Deforestation

Mitsubishi’s Diamondstar 90 is actually a newspaper press. It stands taller than a 4 storey building, and prints 100 newspapers a second.

Sources

Anonymous, ‘World’s Fastest Inkjet Printer,’ Redferret.net, 7 June 2005.
Tudor Raiciu, ‘IBM Proposes The Fastest Laser Printer In The World,’ Softpedia.com, 12 September 2005.
Conrad Quilty-Harper, ‘Silverbrook Research Claims 2 Pages / Second Inkjet Invention,’ Endgadget.com, 18 March 2007.
Cory Doctorow, ‘Fastest Printer In The World,’ BoingBoing.net, 20 August 2005.
Tina Arakaki, ‘Silverjet’s Memjet Technology Available Soon, Says Company,’ Texyt.com, 21 March 2007.

*Obviously they’d need legs.

Ink Cartridge Labeling at a Standstill?

2010-02-16T20:56:00.000Z

Recently a face-off between labelling regulators and ink cartridge brands looked inevitable.

According to Steve Everly’s post at LATimes.com, the US Conference of Weights and Measures would compel manufacturers to improve their labelling standards.

No longer would Lexmark cartridges list misleading printout yields. No longer would HP hide the ink volume of their cartridges. Instead consumers would pick up an OEM cartridge – they’d see that it housed 20ml of ink – they’d realise it cost £24.99 – and they’d snort with disgust.

Years later and OEM cartridge profits would plummet an estimated $5 billion.

Of course that was last month, and the brilliant dawn of realisation hasn’t happened. There are two possibilities: (1) the labelling regulators and toner brands are still debating or (2) LATimes.com ‘sexed up’ the conference for readers.

That a journalist would distort facts for page views we can scarce believe. Post-conference though, because ink labelling standards remain the same, we must accept this truth. The Weights and Measures Conference solved nothing.

Yet there has been fallout in the blogging world.

On 2 February Taeho Lim at CatridgeNews.com outlined his scheme to help consumers keep track of their toner use. He proposes that consumers who know their rate of ink consumption could make more informed decisions, and that printer software ought display this.

In short, he takes the consumer desire for more information as literal. By doing this Lim misses the point of the labelling furore completely.

The absence of accurate labelling is a problem because OEM brands are hiding the real cost of ink from consumers. That consumers wish to precede each purchase with a quantitative analysis of how the last cartridge fared (as Lam suggests) is unlikely.

Dean Gallea of Consumer Reports even argues that the most useful information for consumers is that already given by OEM brands: pageyield. To label the volume of ink contained in a cartridge will not tell consumers how many prints the cartridge contains; some printouts use more ink than others.

Instead, stating the volume of ink on the cartridge is important because it tells consumers how much they’re paying per litre. It lets consumers compare what they pay with the cost of production. It reveals OEM brands for the price gougers they (likely) are.

Charles le Compte of Lyra Research puts it best: volume information “sets in motion a dynamic that will drive down cartridge prices over time.” Once the consumer not only complains but proves he’s being overcharged, prices must tumble.

Before The Conference of Weights and Measures, chief Max Gray told American Public Media why he targeted ink cartridge labeling: “All of this lack of clarity… led me to feel that maybe this should be addressed.”

To what end addressed?

Gray may intend that OEM brands give all possible facts, as Lim outlines. He may be launching a covert attack to make OEM brands lower their prices. The conference last month solved nothing: ink cartridge labels remain unclear.

With any luck what Gray intends will become clear in the near future.

Can The iPad Revolutionise Education?

2010-02-12T19:03:00.001Z

You may wonder why journalists don’t take aerial photographs of the Apple iPad’s announcement; they are determined to consider the tablet from all angles.

The topic circulating on websites recently (before the fruit goes rotten) is: Can the iPad revolutionise education? Of course, there’s scant fuelling this journalistic fire: Steve Jobs neglected schools in the iPad’s press release.

This doesn’t stop websites like Tauw.com from dredging up speeches Jobs made fifteen years ago as evidence that he wants textbooks replaced with tablets. Nor does it prevent The Wall Street Journal intimating that college students are buying e-textbooks in droves – leaving paper textbooks in the gutter.

Let’s examine their claims.

In a 2nd February article for The Wall Street Journal, Jeffrey Trachtenberg and Yukari Iwatani Kane read print a rather premature eulogy. They report that US education publishers have signed software firm ScrollMotion Ltd to adapt old textbooks for electronic platforms – like the iPad.

They quote market research firm Compass Intelligence that technology spending in US education “could” expand by almost $15 billion by 2013. They report education consultant Jeanne Hayes’ belief that the iPad’s price will “interest” schools.

In short they have speculation.

Here’s what Rik Kranenburg, Group President of Higher Education with publisher McGraw-Hill Cross said: "People have been talking about the impact of technology on education for 25 years. It feels like it is really going to happen in 2010.”

With due respect to Kranenburg, the people who felt it was going to happen two decades ago weren’t pretending. A feeling proves nothing; it’s how people throw away money gambling.

The closest The Wall Street Journal post comes to Apple’s college-conquering ambitions is by consulting unnamed “people familiar with Apple’s thinking.”

Elsewhere, the 25 January article by Michael Grothaus for Tauw.com also discusses the potential impact of the iPad on education. Grothaus’s post is superior to The Wall Street Journal for two reasons:
(1) it references Jobs’ speeches to derive his print-crushing schools agenda and
(2) it represents itself as speculation.

Envisioning a future without textbooks, Jobs told an education conference in Texas two years ago that computers provide “far more current material to our students.” Grothaus uses this to argue that Jobs “maybe sees the [iPad] tablet as a dynamic textbook.”

This is a baseless speculation in that Jobs has not outlined his education plans for the iPad; but it doesn’t pretend to be anything else.

Hence neither Tauw.com nor The Wall Street Journal have evidence that Jobs intends the iPad to replace print.

Tough Love For Xerox blogger Michael J recognises as much in his article: “iPad SchmiPad.” He suggests a group of “usual suspects” aligned against print are using iPad hype for commercial benefit. These are chiefly digital education companies including PLC Pearson Education and Kaplan Inc.

Whether these companies are truly aligned against print is speculation too. If their agenda is genuine however, it’s tragic seeing newspapers like The Wall Street Journal buying into their industry killing.

PrintStik: The World’s Smallest Printer

2010-02-11T22:25:00.006Z

Have you ever taken a printer as a travelling companion? They’re like people addicted to home comforts –who take their widescreen TV though it means carrying miles of extension cord. They might be fantastic people, but the baggage they insist on means they’re better left at home.

Until now.

We can’t recommend buying new friends when you go travelling. However, we can point to PlanOn’s PrintStik PS905ME: the world’s smallest printer. The PrintStik measures 2x2x11 inches – less than a 30cm ruler. Were it a person, you’d call it anorexic.

What’s more, the PrintStik weighs only 1.5lb – including the rolls of thermal paper and ink cartridges. Holding the Printstik is like holding a pebble - managed even by the weediest print-needy person. Jack the Printstik to your laptop or PDA, and you’re print happy anywhere.

Of course, all this portability doesn’t come without a cost. Paul Jasper of PCWorld.com writes that the Printstik print-outs recall an ‘old fashioned fax machine.’ This is because the Printstik forgoes inkjets in favour of thermal heating – convenient, but not very pretty.

Moreover, the Printstik’s cartridges generate only 20 sheets before they wither – and cost $25 for a packet of 3. A speedy deduction (or copying someone that’s already done the work) tells you that’s 33c for each printout. The printout from an average inkjet is roughly 10 times cheaper.

On the greener side, the Printstik uses rechargeable Lithium-ion polymer batteries. These beauties: (1) keep the landfills manageable and (2) use less energy than plug-in printers. You can print green while printing on the green!

Whether printing anywhere compensates for the Printstiks’s quality the buyer must judge for themselves. PlanOn’s website lists the Printstik at $199-$349 – depending on whether you opt for a Nylon case and car charger. The Printstik won’t replace your inkjet, but might beat a 50 mile extension cord.

Will iPad Apps Trigger Development Gold Rush?

2010-02-10T19:34:00.001Z

The unveiling of the Apple iPad triggered a flood of questions from curious consumers, including what apps would be available for the tablet. In fact though, Apple can’t tell consumers what iPad apps will be released.

According to a 12 January chart by Gigaom.com, the 140,000 iPhone apps in existence are the work of 27,000 developers – each of who must create iPad updates.

The flood has already begun. Peter Chubbs reports an iPad update of Active Print from Pocket Watch Software in his 30 January article for product-reviews.net. Active Print lets consumers print wirelessly from their Apple gadgets, printing photos at any laserjet or inkjet printer.

Moreover, the iPhone feeds an Apple economy of $250m according to Gigaom’s chart. It is unlikely firms will not use the iPad to grow their cottage industry. Indeed, Patrick Thibodeau writes in a 29 January article for ComputerWorld.com that iPad apps mark a rare opportunity for growth in IT software.

But equally, developers prefer to see if the iPad will succeed commercially before investing. Speaking to Crainsdetroit.com, Ignite Social Media LLC’s President Tim Jobin expresses concern that the iPad’s price ‘may discourage adoption.’

Yet in the same instance, it is the absence of iPad apps that may deter consumers. Argues James Holland of ElectricPig.com: ‘The iPad's success or failure… is in the hands of app developers. It is, quite literally, a blank slate waiting for someone to create a killer app.'

Hence consumers and iPad developers are taking their cues from each other presently. Mark Prigg of ThisIsLondon.co.uk refers to the ‘race’ to release a killer iPad app in his 1 Februrary article. Yet the uncertainty of those supporting the iPad may yet prevent the Apple tablet from going anywhere.

Scammers Exploit iPad Google Searches

2010-02-09T21:19:00.004Z

People searching Google for Apple iPad news should beware of scam websites, an employee at net security firm Symantec has warned. Up to the Apple tablet’s unveiling and after Steve Jobs’ recent presentation, people Googling the iPad risk attack from viruses hosted on malicious sites.

Searching for ‘Apple iPad rumour’ and ‘Apple iPad size’ can take people to ‘scraper sites’ - pages that take news from legitimate sources. These sites poison Google for high rankings using ‘black hat’ search optimisation techniques. These techniques exploit Google’s algorithms for their ranking, rather than using morally ‘upright’ methods – such as earning legitimate backlinks.

Once these scammer websites are open, the user’s computer is scanned for vulnerabilities. Either personal data is excavated, the PC is infected with a virus, or the user is petitioned for their credit card details for bogus security software.

In a 28 January post at Symantec.com, employee Joji Hamada recommended that network administrators blacklist the rogue domains already discovered. These include: youcanbesureforsafe.net and antyspywarescanblog.com.

Searchers can protect themselves by updating their anti-virus software and using a firewall. However, the best defence is making sure the domain clearly relates to the topic being searched. Sites with unrelated domains might be malicious.

The iPad announcement is not the first event to be targeted by search engine fraudsters. According to a 29 January report by the BBC, several malicious websites appeared after the Haiti earthquake. These encouraged people to donate to what were private accounts, rather than legitimate charities.

The Apple iPad has been discussed by every blog under the sun since it was unveiled on Friday. For the print & publishing industries, the tablet may catalyse the shift to e-readers – just as the iPod did for mp3 players.

Valentines Photography Contest

2010-02-03T19:33:00.004Z

Visit www.facebook.com/Printerinks

Click on Photos, and then add your favourite Valentines, romantic, loving photo to our Fan Photos.

Get all your friends to “like” your photo!

If you have the most liked Valentines photo, you will win an Apple iPod Touch!

Fan Photos at Christmas awarded 4 talented Printerinks contest winners with Cameras and Printerink vouchers!

Visit http://bit.ly/PIPhotoContest for additional details on this Valentines Photo Contest.

The Contest ends 28 February 2010 - so don’t wait!

HP MagCloud Brings Zine Printing Up To Date

2010-02-02T09:04:00.003Z

Do you contribute to websites like Wikia? Ever thought you’d reach a wider audience with a paper magazine, but thought the cost of printing made it impossible? If so then MagCloud – the internet publisher from ink cartridge manufacturer Hewlett Packard – could bring your dream to a cost effective reality.

HP MagCloud enables web communities to produce stand-alone print versions of their web pages. Members decide the articles for inclusion (printed at 20c each) and create a front and back cover – then upload them to the MagCloud website. Once they’ve approved the proofs, the community buys only as many copies as desired.

The beauty of HP MagCloud is that unsold copies of the magazines are never printed – unlike traditional printing. Instead, each issue remains publicly available online – even after the community has moved on, others can order copies of their magazine. This is because advances in printing make a once costly process relatively painless – see customised greeting cards company Moonpig for proof.

At a time when publishers are struggling to become relevant in the digital realm, HP MagCloud gives print real appeal for people who consume content online. The print application has received almost universally good reviews online – except from Derrick Harris of Gigaom.com, for misusing the term ‘cloud computing.’ To bring your articles off the internet, HP MagCloud could be worth looking at!

Brits Loyal To Single-Function Printers

2010-02-01T17:52:00.000Z

Brits are proving themselves more than fair weather friends to single-function printers, according to a 27 January post at PCR-Online.Biz. Speaking to Nicky Trup, printer product specialist Phil Miller of distributor Micro-P said the United Kingdom is ahead of Europe in not moving to all-in-one printers and sticking to traditional inkjets. However, the falling price of multifunction printers may break the British resolve.

“The UK has been slow to adopt the transition from single function to multifunction printers in the home and small business, compared to our European counterparts,’ Miller said. Yet Brits may break with their compatriots and abandon their old fashioned inkjets as “the price of multi-function printers continues to fall.”

Several printer manufacturers are preparing to storm the fortress of British loyalty to traditional printers. For example, Kodak no longer offers single-function printers – compelling Britons loyal to their brand to upgrade to integrated printer-scanners. Further, recent Canon studies reveal that the popularity of single-function printers is dwindling. The days of the traditional printer appear to be numbered – even for Britons not looking for anything else.

Zyxio SensaWaft Is Exhalirating

2010-01-29T19:48:00.000Z

Imagine yourself in sudden and desperate need of an ink cartridge. You might need it for your printer; you might be seeking a hitherto untested cocktail mixer. You decide to visit your favourite ink & toner online retailer (hint hint) but an obstacle then confronts you – you’re handcuffed. Why are you handcuffed? That’s not the issue. But in most circumstances your thirst for toner would go unsated.

Unsated that is unless you’d been prescient enough to purchase the Zyxio SensaWaft. Then the loss of your hands would present no difficulties at all: you’d merely dispatch an expert puff of breath into the SensaWaft’s blow interface, and the much-desired ink cartridge would be ordered in a snap. ‘Ordering ink & toner with this company really is a breeze!’ you might declare and, because of the Zyxio SensaWaft, you really wouldn’t be wrong. Thanks SensaWaft!

But wait – what marvel of early 21st century engineering enables persons to purchase ink without their hands? Not only without their hands – but dispensing with language itself? For answers we must turn to Pierre Bonnat’s 13 January interview with Priya Ganapati of Wired.com. The CEO of Zyxio believes the keyboard & mouse an antiquated means to interact with computers – with touch screens, voice recognition and the SensaWaft, we can check on Facebook au naturel.

The SensaWaft senses pressure variations in the air up to 7.8 inches from the Micro Electro-Mechanical (MEMS) chip into which the user exhales. Zyxio’s chipset interprets a variety of gestures (fortunately excepting the sneeze or cough) and can be integrated into hardware such as: mp3 players, phones and laptops. Bonnat notes that “70 percent of the technology is in the software,” - so anyone using the MEMS without the SensaWaft program is wasting their breath.

Zyxio plan to launch the SensaWaft later this year, integrated with a gaming headset. Look forward to buying ink if you’re handcuffed then - but not when you’re out jogging.

Prize Bonanza For Our December Winners!

2010-01-28T10:21:00.011Z

Long ago in the far reaches of time (we’re talking last decade here!) we at Printerinks.com celebrated the run up to Christmas by giving our lovely customers the chance to win a bonanza of prizes.

Well, the bonanza finally arrived – and we’ve got pictures to prove it! Take a peek at our gorgeous staff about to dispatch the prizes out to their lucky winners.

Of course, we’re not the type to make our other customers jealous. For the chance to get YOUR hands on a Nintendo Wii, just place an order for any item today!

French Hospital Gets Ambient With HP Latex Ink

2010-01-28T06:00:00.010Z

In the French region of Normandy, patients of the Deauville Hospital are finding life an altogether more relaxing affair than formerly.

They gaze about, and the corridors are smattered with soothing images of the countryside and sleepy towns. The walls imitate the texture of grass, or sand, meaning that patients need only stare intently to imagine themselves in a leafy meadow or secluded beach.

The cause of all this sudden relaxation? A number of wide format graphics produced in collaboration between the hospital’s director Tanguy de la Bourdonnaye, the photographer Bruno Macé, and the architect Marc Jitiaux.

By fixing on the concept ‘Inside, Outside,’ the dynamic trio created images that positively compel patients and staff to pause in their activities, and sigh contentedly.

Since September 2009, members of the hospital have enjoyed the ‘care’ space, which was produced using Hewlett Packard’s latex ink printers.

These devices print without the ‘voluble organic compounds’ normally found in ink, and are odourless. The images could hence be mounted without violating the Deauville Hospital’s health & safety regulations – which for some reason frowns on patients choking on ink particles.

M. Macé took his recreations of the outside world from the area surrounding Deauville, in waiting rooms and bedrooms. Aiming at trompe l'oeil’ (or ‘trick the eye’ for the Francophone-impaired), patients can enjoy the picturesque innards of a Bordeaux home without ever leaving their bed.

It was M. Macé who suggested using the odourless latex ink that has enabled staff to enjoy the scenes.

In a 20 December 2009 post on Global Print Monitor, M. de le Bourdonnaye is quoted: "Our story is a good example of why it is so important to choose the right printer, even if fine art printing isn't your core business.

“HP Latex technology provides a key benefit for businesses looking to produce prints for public places, where odours and VOCs are a cause for concern."

Hewlett Packard must be ecstatic at finding an individual so voluble in his endorsements.

Use EcoFont For Gunslinger Savings!

2010-01-27T17:49:00.002Z

This town ain’t big enough for overpriced ink cartridges. At Printerinks.com we’d like to serve a lead sandwich to the cowboys out there, riding into the sunset with the fistful of dollars they’ve extorted for poor quality ink & toner.

Until the day arrives for a showdown, you can sheriff the contents of your wallet with the EcoFont from Dutch marketing company Sprung. By shooting the words of your printout full of holes, the EcoFont uses 20% less ink than Bitstream Vera Sans – without reducing readability.

So download the EcoFont and you’ll soon have enough savings to fill a ten gallon hat!

Hull Ends Contract With Rugby Star Facing Counterfeit Ink Charges

2010-01-26T20:15:00.003Z

Following twelve months in which Hull FC winger Gareth Waynor has suffered a foot injury and faces 11 counts of ink counterfeiting, the rugby club has terminated his contract. In a recent article at Guardian.co.uk, Gareth Walker reported that an official statement confirming his departure will appear once the details are finalised.

Waynor has made only 14 Super League appearances in 2009, owing to a nagging foot injury. Moreover, he faces 11 counts of counterfeiting and 3 counts of fraud, concerning an alleged counterfeit ink cartridge trade on Ebay. This court case comes barely 18 months after Waynor was in court accused of assaulting a club bouncer. He escaped prosecution then, after being cleared of launching a flying tackle at the doorman.

Racist Facial Recognition Software Returns

2010-01-25T22:06:00.001Z

Only 3 weeks ago we reported on the Hewlett Packard webcam that failed to recognise non-caucasian users. Uncovered by African-American Desi Cryer, he accused HP’s facial recognition software of racism in his humorous YouTube video. He prompted a fast response from Hewlett Packard - while the video logs nearly 2 million views.

Now it transpires that glitchy facial recognition software is not unique to Hewlett Packard. According to a 22 January 2010 article by Adam Rose at Time.com, the software in Nikon and Sony digital cameras is also racially biased.

Unlike the HP Pavilion webcam though, which has trouble registering darker skin pigments, the Nikon Coolpix S630 confuses narrow eyelids with shut eyelids. Discovered by Taiwanese-American strategy consultant Joz Wang last year, the Coolpix S630 kept asking ‘Did someone blink?’ when she snapped her brother. Only when Wang’s brother stared bug-eyed did the facial recognition software register him.

“I thought the camera was broken!” Wang told Time.com. Like Desi Cryer, she posted proof of the glitchy software online (see above) – and soon received publicity through Gizmodo.com. Responses were quick to point to the especial irony of the Coolpix S630’s glitch. The camera’s manufacturers – Nikon – are Asian.

Xerox Is Managed Print Services Global Giant

2010-01-24T07:00:00.010Z

Printerinks.com News: Xerox Is Managed Print Services Global Giant

Xerox has long been recognised as a global player in the managed print services sector. However, a recent report by market research firm Gartner Inc. places the printing brand’s share of the market at an imposing 40%. This establishes Xerox’s position not only as a major provider of managed print services but the global leader.

Corroborating this, Gartner has placed Xerox in its Leaders Quadrant in the ‘Magic Quadrant for Managed Print Services for 2009.’ This quadrant measures both the vision of managed print services, and their ability to implement positive change for their clients. Of 7 major brand MPS providers assessed by Gartner, only HP shares the Leaders Quadrant with Xerox.

Gartner defines managed print services as ‘the ability for the service provider to take primary responsibility for meeting the customer's office printing needs.’ Placing Xerox in the Leader’s Quadrant is tantamount to rubber-stamping Xerox’s ability to meet this definition.

The analysis firm Quocirca meanwhile, has named Xerox its MPS European market leader for the year.

Xerox has especial reason to feel pleased by these announcements. According to Gartner, the managed print services market has seen double digits growth since 2008. These accolades will hence both reaffirm Xerox’s growth into managed print services, and encourage them to invest further.

The bracing financial climate has encouraged many companies to invest in MPS: global brands including Sun Microsystems and Universal Orlando have each sought Xerox’s expertise.

According to a 17 December 2009 article at Finchannel.com, Xerox monitors the output of as many as 1.5 million printing devices around the world. The printing brand’s Xerox Enterprise Print Services both generates new printing processes whilst measuring existing performance.

Xerox’s managed print services empire is kept in place through a global network of partners. These partners use Xerox’s supplies and technology support to establish their own branded expertise. Firms including Reuters and EMC are hence enabled to improve their infrastructure in offices around the world – benefiting from fixed assistance from Xerox.

The President of Xerox Global Services, Stephen Cronin, told Finchannel.com: "Success in MPS comes from effective execution, not up-front promises. Companies trust Xerox because we pioneered the market and continue to deliver validated and clearly measured results."

End In Sight For Xerox Ink Shortage

2010-01-23T06:00:00.014Z

Printerinks.com News: End In Sight For Xerox Ink Shortage

A Christmas miracle it may not be, but printing firms dependent on the Xerox 700 toner may be pleased to know that the global shortage for the ink is coming to an end. A recent article by Adam Hooker posted at Printweek.com includes an interview with the Head of Technical Services at BPIF, Peter Vicent, who has received “direct assurance by Xerox that things will be back to normal”.

This will be small comfort for printing firms, many of which have seen losses of estimated £20,000 in unfilled business. The shortage of the Xerox 700 toner, on which many companies depend for their print presses, began almost two weeks ago. Xerox have given scant explanation for the global lapse, except to mention an unseasonal rise in demand. Nor have they outlined the scale of the ink supplies shortage.

Aside from the loss in revenue, many firms are in fact peeved about the lack of transparency in Xerox’s responses. The print brand has reportedly given several different reasons for the ink shortage to different companies. As Peter Vincent told Printweek.com, during his private talks with Xerox “I made it clear to them they need to make sure their own people are giving the truth and consistent messages."

Several printers are considering seeking compensation from Xerox for their lost earnings. Printing industry specialist lawyer Phillippa Dempster told Printweek.com that firms should check their contract with Xerox. She said: “Sometimes, companies have it in the contract that something outside of their control enables them to escape responsibilities. The contract may also limit liability.”

Dempster’s advice suggests that, even once Xerox has resumed delivering the 700 toner supplies, this story will continue. Whether assurances from Xerox that they are working “very, very hard” will satisfy their clients as much as a cheque remains to be seen.

Hands Off For $100,000 HP ‘Wall Of Touch’

2010-01-22T21:39:00.001Z

Are you the owner of a large corporation? Or do you have $100,000 to spare and enjoy technology? Then the HP ‘Wall of Touch’ should be your next purchase.

Unveiled this week, the Hewlett Packard devices ties together nine 1080p resolution touch screens for 129 inches total length. It displays news, runs video chats, lets you update Twitter – and does this without needing you to touch the screen.

Hewlett Packard integrated touch screen technology into their laptops back in 2007. Though the screens were pristine, the same could not be said of the fingers pressing on them. This was fine – as long as consumers harboured ambitions to become window cleaners.

Yet for publicly displayed touch screens – bought for prestige - it was necessary that they remain immaculate. The ‘Wall of Touch’ hence senses the user’s presence – responding to gestures made near the screen, making touch redundant.

It does this using optical cameras and a magnetic strip, rather than the capacitive overlays familiar in touch screens. A z800 workstation keeps the screens ticking over.

Prototypes of the gesture-sensitive screens are already displayed at the NBA Headquarters and the Continental Airlines counter at Houston Airport. Yet according Phil McKinney (speaking in The Wall Street Journal video above) Hewlett Packard have received several requests to build more of the $100,000 screens.

When they’re made commercially available in 2011, interested parties will be able to spring for cheaper versions. Yet for features like HD video conferencing, the hefty price tag will remain.

Printer Brands Pledge Up To $1m Combined Haiti Relief

2010-01-21T17:49:00.000Z

Dozens of US companies have pledged 6 figure sums to aid Haiti relief in the last week. According to a (frequently updated) list by the US Chamber of Commerce, among the larger contributors are: Microsoft, which has donated $1.25m, and PepsiCo, which is pledging $1m.

Other contributors include Crocs, which is donating thousands of pairs of shoes, and Nestle, which has donated $1m in bottled water.

Leading printer brands are also adding to Haiti relief. According to a 15 January press release by Hewlett Packard, the household name has contributed $500,000 to the American Red Cross International Response Fund.

HP will also match $250,000 in contributions from its employees, coming to a possible $750,000.

The Canon Group has also pledged $220,000 to aid victims of the earthquake, which struck Haiti last week.

Speaking in the Canon Press Release, President and Chief Executive Officer at Canon USA Joe Adachi said: "A tragedy of this magnitude requires support from the global community and it is our hope that our contribution, along with all of the aid coming in from around the world, will help the people of Haiti begin the rebuilding and healing process."

According to the 17 January report at USAToday.com, US donations are set to exceed the $2b pledged after the Asian tsunami two years ago.

Notable pledges outside the corporate world include: $1m contributed by Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie to Doctors Without Borders, and $500,000 contributed by The New York Yankees.

Sal Fabens of United Way Worldwide says that cash is the most useful pledge, because donations of food etc. may not be able to reach the disaster-struck areas.

If you’d like to pledge Haiti relief, you’ll find information at the Facebook page.

Printerinks Photo Contest Winners have been selected!

2010-01-20T16:21:00.000Z

There were some terrific entries into the Printerinks Facebook Photo Contest! Some amazing talent has been discovered, and memories shared. Jack Hollingsorth, photographer and worldwide twitter notable, chose the top two winners out of numerous entries. There were an additional two winners chosen that had the most Fans to comment on a photograph.

The winners are as follows:

1st place - Per judges: Sylv Moony

2nd Place - Per judges: Dawn Downes

1st place - Most to comment: Ummarali Shaik

2nd place - Most to comment: Ellen Higgins

All of the entries photographs are terrific, as you can see from the selection of winners. This has really been an exciting and eye opening contest to see how a Facebook Photo Contest could inspire such effort and beauty. Not only did fans inspire each other, they inspired many to take notice of how great surges in fans can grow.

Ink Cartridges Reborn As Ball-Point Pens

2010-01-19T16:56:00.000Z

The pen is mightier than the printer for ink cartridge recyclers ‘Close the Loop.’

The humble ink cartridge has become a source of real creativity lately. Companies are eager to recycle their cartridges but unwilling to simply hand them over to recycle firms!

Last week, we reported on the Etsy seller turning his empty cartridges into fetching lamps. According to a 19 January post at Kentucky.com by Scott Sloan, a Kentucky firm is now creating pens from their ink cartridges.

‘Close the Loop,’ a seller of Lexmark ink cartridges operating out of North Kentucky, developed the recycled pens with Lexmark’s blessing over eighteen months.

Until now ‘Close the Loop’ has made revenue from sorting out the ink cartridge material of printer companies. Yet they plan to retail their pens from mid-2010 – which make use of the ink retained in the mostly emptied cartridges.

Speaking with Kentucky.com, ‘Close The Loop’ Vice President Josh Tocash said: "We had been storing the ink thinking there had to be ways we could make this ink usable.”

The ink in ink cartridges is a surprisingly complex compound, derived from several colours. Because of this it is normally unable to be recycled, and contributes greatly to CO2 levels when burnt.

Yet ‘Close the Loop’ discovered the ink proved effective in pens; and after months of incorporating the ink cartridge parts into a design, emerged with a pen made from 84% recycled materials.

John Gagel, Lexmark’s Manager of Sustainable Practices, Environmental, Health & Safety, told Kentucky.com: “We’re working toward getting it 100%.”

Lexmark is eager for its ink cartridges to be effectively re-used. The printer brand recently held a forum introducing its partners to product development engineers, aimed at making ink cartridges useful once they’re exhausted.

"It gives us the best opportunity to give them a new life," Gagel said.

In the meantime, ‘Close the Loop’ is searching for a retail partner for their pen. They’re eager to work with printers to revise the pen’s design into something marketable. Tocash said: "You can turn it into any shape you have a mould for.’

Gagel added: "I think we've got a good shot of being widely accepted from those looking for what you can purchase around sustainability."

Xerox Targeted Advertising Patent Speaks Directly To You

2010-01-18T17:06:00.000Z

Are you tired of TV shows that bear not the slightest relation to your interests? Think that watching the box would be time better spent if the program’s characters mentioned topics you enjoy? How about Hugh Laurie making mention of your local supermarket in an episode of House? Or is that too specific?

Whether or not you’re adverse to Gregory House M.D. making remarks about the local Tesco, it could soon happen. According to a 13 January post at GoRumors.com, Xerox has filed a patent for targeted advertising that speaks directly to viewers – altering the TV show’s content based on the viewer’s brand preferences and location.

The Xerox patent application uses for example a store front tailored to a viewer’s preference for sports. The store front becomes that of a leading trainers brand because the viewer enjoys running – and the character speaking refers to that trainers brand. The Xerox patent suggests this targeted advertising could even include lip-syncing.

Alternately, if the viewer has a known preference for handbags, the character might refer to Prada.

The Xerox patent is intended above all else for targeted advertising. The printing brand hopes that this will re-invigorate TV advertising – which in recent years has suffered falling revenues. According to a 14 January post at MediaPost.com by Joe Mandese, television channels are eager to compensate for advert avoidance.

The patent may also open targeted advertising to a wider array of firms than before. Until now, the insertion of a brand name into a TV show was the privilege of corporations, who paid millions to TV producers.

Yet the Xerox patent argues that local companies could benefit too, because the technology tailors for specific audiences. This improves on existing product placement, which “cannot be customized for smaller regions.”

Consumers may be less pleased by the patent. Already the use of targeted advertising on Google means computer users are haunted by companies eerily familiar with their preferences. The extension of this strategy to television means consumers may feel they are constantly being harangued by companies – companies with no respect for privacy.

GoRumors.com meanwhile argues the patent could be detrimental to the TV programs. Presently advertisers target their audience based on the program’s genre and its popularity – meaning (in theory) the best shows receive the highest revenues. Yet the targeted advertising envisioned by Xerox would destroy this correlation.

Of course, Xerox only filed the patent with the US Patent & Trademark Office last week. So there’s no way of telling how far off this kind of advertising might be.

Recycled Ink Cartridge Lamps

2010-01-15T06:00:00.014Z

Do you want to recycle your empty ink cartridges, but aren’t certain how to go about it? You might do battle with an octopus and return your ink to its original source. You might apply to any of the Recycling Programs run by the brand manufacturers. You might – if you’re really inventive – take a cue from Boxlightbox.

Tired of discarding the empty ink cartridges his company was generating, this Etsy seller did the sensible thing. He turned them into lamps to generate additional income. Available in several colours and ranging from $30-$150, Boxlightbox’s prove there’s life for ink cartridges even once they’ve been exhausted.

How To Save Money With Cheap Printing

2010-01-14T16:31:00.006Z

Thinking of buying a new printer? Beware! The major brands use a variety of tricks meant to maximise profits for themselves – but that make buying a new printer a minefield for the consumer. For example, did you know that most printer manufacturers sell their devices below cost, then charge an inflated amount for ink cartridges? The consumer pays a great deal in the long run, though the initial outlay is low.

Yet there are several tricks the consumer can use to ensure they find cheap printing. If you want to maximise savings without skimping on the quality of your prints, we at Printerinks.com recommend the following steps:

1. Check the Cost of Replacement Ink Cartridges

Cheap printing comes from checking the cost of replacement ink cartridges BEFORE you buy the printer. Depending on the model of printer you purchase, this can vary hugely. Do your homework and save yourself some heartache!

2. Check the Volume of The Ink Cartridge

It was recently shown that OEM ink is one of the most costly liquids on the planet. By checking the volume of ink in the cartridge, you can estimate how quickly it’ll run out. You won’t find cheap printing with a cartridge holding only 2mL of ink!

3. Check Whether the Printer Uses Individual Colour Cartridges

Before you buy the printer, find out: does the colour cartridge have lots of colours or do you buy the colours individually? If you print one colour more frequently, it makes sense to get a printer with individual colours. Otherwise every time you replace the cartridge, you’re paying for the cost of all the colours.

4. Check Websites for an Ink Cartridge Resetter

The microchip you’ll find on the side of ink cartridges helps the printer recognise what ink cartridge is installed. It also tells the printer how many pages have been printed. Unfortunately, because ink cartridges are designed to print only a certain number of pages, the microchip stops the printer working after this number has been reached.

Once this happens, shake the ink cartridge to found out if there’s any ink remaining. If there is, you can download a ‘chip resetter’: this fools the printer into thinking it’s dealing with a new cartridge. It will then print until the cartridge is emptied.

Alternately, if you’re using a toner cartridge, you can find cheap printing by simply shaking the cartridge from side to side. This releases more powder to improve the quality of your print-outs.

5. Check for Compatible & Remanufactured Cartridges

Imagine you could purchase ink & toner that prints at the same quality as OEM cartridges at a fraction of the cost. Sound like crazy talk? It’s in fact the honest truth.

Compatible & remanufactured cartridges are those made by third party vendors after the original cartridge has been emptied. As long as you buy from a reputable vendor such as Printerinks.com, you’ll find the quality equals that from major brands – except you’re paying a tiny amount by comparison. How’s that for cheap printing?

Nexus One Complaints Shake Church Of Google

2010-01-14T05:00:00.021Z

There exists a cult of individuals who believe Google the closest thing to God ever encountered. With the search engine indexing more than 9.5 billion web pages accessible from every corner of the globe, what entity comes closer to omnipresence?

Of course, if Google is God, the Nexus One mobile is a flawed first act of creation. Since launching on 5 January 2010, Google has received a torrent of complaints that may keep the search engine busy well into the Seventh Day.

According to a 9 January post at Slashgear.com by Paul Fang, the most frequent complaints include: (1) poor 3G connectivity, (2) trouble with the touch screen, (3) a contract termination fee more costly than the phone itself, (4) customer service more theoretical than not.

The most pressing concern is Google’s customer service. The search engine divinity opted only to provide email support, promising to answer complaints after one or two days. For people with faulty Nexus Ones, this response rate is painfully slow.

The problem is made worse because the Nexus One is available only direct from Google. With other phones, consumers direct their complaints at the mobile operator or vendor – with established customer service operations, they’re adept at responding to concerns. Yet Google’s decision means it has received the full wrath of its customer base.

Google has also received complaints about the Nexus One’s poor 3G coverage, carried by T-Mobile. According to a 12 January post by Priya Ganapati at Wired.com, the Google mobile either fails to connect or picks up the slower EDGE network.

And if a customer decides to end their contract with Google, the cancellation fee costs more than the Nexus One itself. Cancel within 180 days and consumers receive a $200 fee from T-Mobile, in addition to a $350 ‘equipment recovery’ fee from Google.

This adds up to more than the $530 consumers can pay to receive the phone unlocked.

Speaking to InformationWeek.com on January 12, Ken Dulaney of Garter said he thinks Google will eventually have to provide support with a retail store, perhaps through existing mobile operators. “The online model is not a good one,” he said.

A statement by Google meanwhile addresses the existing complaints: "We work quickly to solve any customer support issues as they come up, and we are trying to be as open and transparent as possible through our online customer help forums. We'll continue to address all issues in as timely of a manner as possible."

Google may yet change consumers’ minds about the Nexus One. Either way, the search engine’s record is no longer spotless; and the laity of the Church of Google may have had their faith shattered forever.

Lady Gaga Named Polaroid Creative Director

2010-01-13T21:28:00.001Z

Question: What do corporations with global brand recognition do to revive flagging fortunes? Answer: Hire pop stars as their Creative Directors, and give them license to invent specialty products.

At least, that’s Polaroid’s answer to this question. To reignite their dwindling star, they’ve hired Lady Gaga to create a line of products with the Polaroid name, and generally make them fashionable again.

According to an 8 January 2010 post by David Goldman and Julianne Pepitone at CNN.com, Polaroid intend to reinvent themselves, with Gaga’s signing part of this new campaign.

Though Polaroid was saved from bankruptcy in May last year, the brand is relaunching itself as a licensing firm – selling far more items than the instamatic for which Polaroid is famous.

The upshot of this? We may soon see printers bearing the mark of Lady Gaga available for purchase. We may also see TVs, cameras, and whatever else the songstress decides might benefit from her fashion sense.

Speaking in Polaroid’s Press Release, Gaga said: "The Haus of Gaga has been developing prototypes in the vein of fashion/technology/photography innovation--blending the iconic history of Polaroid and instant film with the digital era--and we are excited to collaborate on these ventures with the Polaroid brand.

“Lifestyle, music, art, fashion: I am so excited to extend myself behind the scenes as a designer, and to as my father puts it--finally, have a real job."

New Print Functions in Windows 7

2010-01-12T15:53:00.000Z

I just upgraded to Microsoft Windows 7, as have many avid computer users glad to see Windows 7 finally hit streets and hard drives everywhere. With Windows 7, Microsoft aims to please both consumers and businesses large and small. You may not have noticed, but there are quite a few new print management functions that you will want to take advantage of.

Windows 7 more robust Print Management functionality provides a central administration point for sharing printers on a network and managing print server and network printer tasks.

Windows 7 also allows users to easily share printers on a network and easily print to multiple printers depending on location, say home or office.

Windows 7 Print Management displays more data, such as ink, toner and paper levels on printers with web based management. You can view details about the current status of printers and print servers on the network with Print Management. Print Management can also be used to install printer connections to a group of client computers simultaneously, monitor print queues remotely and find printers that have error conditions, great for IT Technicians. It can even send e-mail notifications when printers need attention. With all of these additional functions, Windows 7 now allows you to print anytime, anywhere without error.

Autistic Children Access The Net With HP TouchSmart PCs

2010-01-11T22:16:00.002Z

The folks at HP Middle East have donated several TouchSmart PCs to the Dubai Autism Centre. Using simple multi-touch gestures, such as rotating, flicking, pinching and pressing, these TouchSmart PCs give autistic children access to a host of applications. For example, with TouchSmart Canvas users can organise photos, while with TouchSmart Live TV users can pause and record online TV shows.

The TouchSmart computers let autistic children use PCs with far greater ease than a keyboard and mouse. Previously, schools such as the Hope Technology School in California have used TouchSmart PCs with their own assistive communication software. The school enabled autistic children to record their voices and then select clips, in order to construct sentences and play them back.

The new Touchsmart PCs are commercially available to buy too, and include the TouchSmart 600 PC and HP Pavilion DV3 with TouchSmart. Users with previous versions of HP’s autism support software will be able to update to the new TouchSmart 3.0 versions. Touchsmart 3.0 boasts not only new visuals and higher levels of personalisation, but also an improved interface.

Hewlett Packard’s donation to the Dubai Autism Centre is not the printing brand’s only charitable offering. In August 2008, Mccormick.Northwestern.Edu reported that HP donated 3 TouchSmart PCs to ArticuLab, the research group at a US university. ArticuLab helps autistic children improve their social skills with PC technology.

HP Facial Recognition Software is Racist

2010-01-06T20:38:00.000Z

At a time when the BBC gives a national platform to racists, with the recent inclusion of the BNP’s Nick Griffin on Question Time, the battle to eradicate racism is hard fought. Yet the struggle is not made easier when new releases from PC brands as ubiquitous as Hewlett Packard discriminate against skin colour!

The facial recognition software packaged with HP’s webcam fails to recognise black people, according to a YouTube video that has gone viral. Reported two weeks ago by Jennifer Van Grove at Mashable.com, the video’s protagonists – one white, one black – use the buggy webcam to demonstrate its selective facial recognition.

Desi Cryer, who stars in the video, goes on to accuse the HP webcam of being “racist.”

The YouTube video is intended in a spirit of fun; Cryer is clearly enjoying himself, and his colleague Wanda Zamen spends the duration giggling. Yet the video has shed light on a serious glitch in HP’s facial recognition software. Moreover, Cryer’s accusation has prompted Hewlett Packard to respond with especial care.

A post by Frosty at HP’s blog two weeks ago notes tactfully that the facial recognition software “didn’t work for a customer.” Without referring to skin colour, he explains that the webcam’s software “might have difficulty “seeing” contrast [in areas of the face] in conditions where there is insufficient foreground lighting.”

Frosty doesn’t offer an explanation for how this glitch in the cam’s facial recognition software went unnoticed. In a response to the post, Tarhero posts that it indicates a less than racially balanced testing phase at Hewlett Packard!

Since Frosty’s post, the global brand has received queries about whether its facial recognition software is compatible with other non-caucasian skin tones.

Talking with Mashable.com meanwhile, Zamen has justified the sensationalist nature of the YouTube video. She underplays the racist claim, stating: “We do not really think that a machine can be racist, or that HP is purposely creating software that excludes people of color. We think it is just a glitch.”

Whether HP’s facial recognition software is racist or not, the YouTube video prompted a quick response from the brand. And as Zamen comments: “we are glad that it has folks talking.”

Brother Launches UK Garment Printer

2010-01-05T20:19:00.000Z

Printerinks.com News: Brother Launches UK Garment Printer

The man on the street may not know it, but the way his t-shirts are made is changing. Little does he realise that for almost five years experts in garment printing have been altering their methods. No longer dependent on old fashioned screen printing, there has been growing under the very nose of the man on the street a revolution in garment printing. The leaders of this revolution are Brother, and the broom with which they’ve swept away the old ways is direct to garment printing, otherwise known as digital garment printing.

Printers of a revolting inclination in the US have been using direct to garment printing for several years. They have found the quality of their garments improved and their costs reduced. Now, with Brother launching a direct to garment digital printer in the UK, merchants on this side of the Atlantic can join the garment revolution too. And all without the man on the street ever knowing about it.

Unless of course, you’re a man on the street who happens to subscribe to this news feed. In this case the details of the direct to garment printing revolution are ripe for your perusal. For example, you may be interested to know that direct to garment printing enables printers to replicate images on fabric direct from a computer. It does so using a single machine, housing every imaginable shade or colour. It does without the need for chemicals or stencils, which for garment printers are as a plague of boils on the face, or a mouth ulcer you can’t help tonguing. It does so at a fraction of the cost of the old method, which means theoretically that printing firms can pass their savings onto you, oh man on the street.

The miracle box through which printers might experience these benefits is the Brother GT 782. This is a second-generation direct to garment printer, necessary because the earlier GT 541 did not print white ink. Recipients of the GT 541 quickly discovered their direct to garment purchase only printed effectively on light colours. The new GT 782 corrects this, enabling printing firms to print designs on fabrics every colour of the rainbow. A shrewd man on the street may describe this is an improvement; or he may describe it as performing as the original GT 541 should have in the first place. Either way, the quality of the garments he may purchase with the new GT 782 is enough to cause uncontrollable weeping.

Should the man in the street not be afraid of crying in public, he may find the Brother GT 782 on display at the UKL open house in Swindon. Alternately, since there is little appeal in seeing a large grey box, however superb its printing powers, the man on the street may purchase a t-shirt from any printer using the direct to garment technology. Then he may both see the quality, and may wear it also.

Ricoh Develops Plant Biomass Toner

2009-12-31T16:45:00.000Z

Printerinks.com News: Ricoh Develops Plant Biomass Toner

With a release intended to reduce the dependency of the print industry on oil, Ricoh have created the world’s first green toner.

When a person decides to do their duty to the environment by recycling toner cartridges, they’ll usually think of the plastic casing in which the toner is contained. It’s the obviously ‘un-environmentally friendly’ component of the cartridge, after all. What is much less widely known is that the ink itself is produced using many processes and materials that are equally damaging to the planet. For example, the primary ingredient in toner is resin, which is derived from petroleum. With 200,000 tonnes of toner produced each year, according to a report published on 15 December at Megateamblog.com, this means the ink in ink cartridges contributes greatly to global warming, even without considering the casing.

To combat this, and reduce the dependency of the ink manufacturing industry on petroleum, printing brand Ricoh have announced the world’s first plant biomass toner. Biomass is an energy source derived from decomposed plant matter, and is already widely used for biofuel, an alternative to oil petrols. So attractive is biofuel that, according to a 28 June 2008 report published on BBC.co.uk, the EU intends for 10% of all transport to run using the renewable plant-based fuel by 2020.

For Ricoh though, the benefits of a plant biomass toner are several. For example, the CO2 emissions produced from burning paper are high because the sheets are coated in petroleum resin. The paper can be de-inked but this is another costly practice. By using a toner that is less rich in petroleum, the process of paper burning creates less CO2, and is therefore less environmentally harmful. What’s more, the plant biomass uses less petroleum in the first place, reducing our oil dependence.

The green toner isn’t entirely without petroleum – the plant biomass content is around 25% in fact – but Ricoh is describing its invention as an important first step. According to the 25 November 2009 press release from Ricoh’s website, “Sustainability is crucial to society’s survival. Ricoh believes that a company must take responsibility for all the materials used in its products.” The plant biomass is in fact commercially available, in a multi-function printer sold in Japan. It is not stated whether Ricoh plans to expand the availability of the toner; yet the brand’s website assures us of their “efforts to develop alternative materials to realize a low-carbon and resource-recirculating society.” With this conscientious mentality, the world-wide availability of the new toner is surely certain.

10 Incredible Crimes Against Printer Ink

2009-12-30T16:35:00.000Z

In recent years a variety of people have used printer ink as the basis for their criminal schemes. Whether using the toner cartridge slot of their printer to squirrel money from drug deals, or bullying government departments into buying thousands of dollars of surplus toner, the criminal mind has used the potential of printer ink for breaking the law to the utmost.

Below we’ve got some of the more audacious crimes against printer ink to hit the newspapers. In each of these stories not only is a victim hurt or an offence committed: ink toner is subjected to an end other than helping to print quality images. So when you read, think not only of the folly of the rugby star found guilty of an ink cartridge scam. Think of the printer ink, forced to an end other than the manufacturer intended.

April 2002: Grand Theft Printer Ink

In April 2002, two men were convicted of stealing $2,500 worth of printer ink by hiding the cartridges in a toy oven’s box. Edwin Velez and Natchaz Chillmel, both 23 at the time, entered a Meijer retail store in Middleton, Ohio and stuffed the empty box with cartridges. They then took the box to the store checkout, paying only for the toy oven.

They were caught only when they tried the same trick at a Meijer store in West Chester.

Reported by David Eck on 2 April 2002 at Enquirer.com.

May 2003: Spot The Difference Hits Printer Ink

By May 2003, the Imaging Supplies Coalition believed that 1 in 20 ink cartridges sold in the United States was counterfeit. Often indistinguishable from the real thing, the cartridges were (and are) unknowingly sold by retailers and online businesses. The total revenue lost to ink toner brands like Canon and Xerox was thought to top $2 billion and, as of November 2009, this figure had risen to $3 billion.

Reported by Tom Spring on 22 May 2003 at PCWorld.com

September 2005: Resell Printer Ink At Your Peril

A court ruling by the Ninth Circuit in September 2005 found that consumers of Lexmark ink toner who resold their empty cartridges to retailers besides Lexmark were guilty of patent infringement. Lexmark’s consumer agreement made its printer ink ‘single use only’ in an attempt to strangle the remanufacturing market. Yet the ruling made consumers of Lexmark printer ink vulnerable to legal action, should they violate the agreement.

Reported on 2 September 2005 at Corante.com.

April 2007: Thieves Filmed Stealing 60,000 Printer Ink Cartridges

In April 2007, several thieves were caught on camera making off with 60,000 ink cartridges from the UK premises of Blink Inkjet. Though the offices housed laptops and computers, the thieves limited their pilfering to the printer ink. Under less than half of the cartridges contained any ink but this did not discourage the culprits, who bundled the spoils into white vans. The whole proceedings were caught on CCTV.

Reported on 24 April 2007 at TheRecycler.com.

February 2008: Dead Official Secures Printer Ink Financing

A letter from dead Memphis school board attorney Percy Harvey was used to secure funding for the district’s schools in February 2008. Unable to secure the $207,000 for the 3 copiers, official Al Flowers enlisted the help of his colleague, who had passed on 7 months earlier. The anomaly was soon discovered, as was the fact that the copiers acquired through the duplicity were not compatible with the schools’ electric grid.

Reported on 3 February 2008 by Kristina Geotz at Typepad.com.

August 2008: Rugby Star In Ink Cartridge Scam

A 30 year old winger of Hull Rugby Club was arrested in connection with an Ebay printer ink scam in August 2008. Gareth Raynor was questioned by police regarding his involvement in the sale of counterfeit ink cartridges on the internet action site. The sportsman, a member of the Great Britain rugby league team, was released on police bail at the time.

Reported on 14 August 2008 at ThisIsHullAndEastRiding.co.uk.

October 2008: Official In $1 Million Printer Ink Scandal

In October 2008, school official Arthur Rose was found guilty of accepting a $3,500 dollar bribe from a Ricoh America sales representative to secure a $1 million contract for the corporation. The contract meant Ricoh would have supplied the school district with 73 digital copiers and related products over 5 years. Rose faced up 7 years in state prison for his crimes, which included bribe receiving, official misconduct and receiving unlawful gratuities.

Reported on 18 October 2008 at MidHudsonnews.com.

October 2009: Western Australia Bullied Into Buying Printer Ink

In October 2009, the Corruption and Crime Commission of Western Australia investigated claims that the State Government purchased hundreds of thousands of dollars more on printer ink than needed because of a bullying salesman. Trever Gould of the Department of Agriculture was pestered and bribed by Consumables Management Group salesman Kevin Taverner to buy unneeded toner in excess of $310,000. The investigation into how this happened is ongoing.

Reported on 2 October 2009 at Abc.Net.au.

December 2009: Bomb Squad Explodes Printer Ink Cartridges

The bomb squad of Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania exploded a package of printer ink earlier this month, after officials were unable to identify what the package contained. The Plaza at PPL was evacuated after police stumbled on the small white box housing the toner ink, and found it suspicious. It was only after explosives experts blew the package to pieces that it was found to contain toner, after reassembly.

Reported on 3 December 2009 by Frank Warner at Mcall.com.

December 2009: Drug Dealer Squirrels Earnings In Printer

A 20 year old drug dealer in Liverpool, England was found by police to house his earnings in the toner cartridge slot of his printer, earlier this month. Ashley Moorcroft kept £1,700 in his home, which was searched by inspectors after they scented cannabis in his car. Moorcroft admitted he received the money as payment for storing the cannabis for a drug dealer, and was sentenced to 6 months in prison.

Reported on 18 December by Linda Roughley at CrosbyHerald.com.

Printerinks.com Photo Contest

2009-12-29T15:53:00.001Z

Here at Printerinks.com we are all about saving you time and money on ink, allowing you to print your beautiful photographs throughout the seasons. We know that many of you take some terrific photos, especially during this beautiful Christmas/New Years/Holiday season. With that in mind we would like to invite you to participate in our first ever Facebook Photo Contest! We are giving away the following prizes:

2 Sony DSLR cameras

2 £50 Printerinks gift certificates

4 Certificates of Recognition!

How to Enter:

Visit our Printerinks Facebook Fan Page: http://bit.ly/XmasPhotos

Click on Photos, then add your favourite photo to our Fan Photos.

Get all your friends to comment on your photo!

The Contest runs through 12th January, 2010 - so don’t wait!

The Contest Details:

We are looking for the best holiday photo! There will be a 1st and second place winner as determined by Jack Hollingsworth, one of the best known stock photographers in the world, as well as a consultant and twitter notable!
There will also be another 1st and second place winner as determined by Facebook comments, so get your friends involved as they could help you win 1 of these terrific prizes.
We want you to impress us! Holiday settings are a plus, as are Printerinks scenes. Use your creativity, the more you impress us, the better your shot at winning!

IDC Reports 25% Slump In OEM Toner Sales

2009-12-24T14:55:00.000Z

Printerinks.com News: IDC Reports 25% Slump In OEM Toner Sales

The market research firm IDC has released a report finding that sales of OEM toner cartridges fell by 24.9% in the first half of 2009, compared with the same period last year. Similarly, sales of OEM inkjet cartridges fell by 19.2% in the same span. The loss in sales owes much to a slump in demand from the office sector: owing to difficult financial conditions they have become cautious in their spending. Yet businesses are not simply getting by with less toner: in the same period sales for compatible cartridges from third-party vendors rose by 5.1%. According to IDC, the compatible toner market share has grown 7.7% to 37.3% in 2009.

The IDC report refers to the EMEA (European, Middle Eastern and African) market, and is based on studies conducted in 17 countries. However, within this market, the extent of the switch to third-party vendors varied widely. Consumables Program Manager Joanna Pupkowska said: The demand is higher in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa than in Western Europe. This is because of different price sensitivities and the structure of local offers, with, for example, Russia and Ukraine being heavily dominated by bulk products and refill kits." However, the IDC release neglects to outline the extent of the sales variation within these countries.

The switch to compatible ink vendors is expected to be a lasting trend in the market, because businesses will have signed long-term contrasts with their new suppliers. Senior Analyst Mario Lombardo said of Western European markets in particular that the new market conditions will lead to “increased competition” between OEM brands and third-party vendors. This is especially so because IDC estimates that the overall market for ink supplies dropped by 13.1% in the first half of 2009.

Printers Hit By Low Xerox Ink Supplies

2009-12-23T22:59:00.000Z

An unexpected jump in demand for ink supplies has caught Xerox unawares, with printing firms losing up to £20,000 in revenue through unfilled orders and lost business.

For printing brand Xerox, the holiday month is normally a time of relatively low demand for their ink and toner supplies. But this year they’ve encountered an unexpected jump in requests for their ink products, so great that they’ve been unable to meet their orders. A near-worldwide shortage of ink for the Xerox 700 press has forced firms around the globe to stop production on their presses. Not only have existing orders gone unfilled, but printing companies are turning away business, losing revenue of up to an estimated £20,000 according to a 11th December 2009 report by Adam Hooker at Printweek.com. The shortage is affecting all Xerox customers outside Australia.

The shortage, which is affecting the Xerox 700 press in particular but other ink supplies too, was first reported by Printweek.com on the 8th. By this time though, customers may have been waiting for delivery of their ink supplies for up to 10 days. Xerox’s Vice President of Global Consumables Supply Chain Jim Brasser has acknowledged the problem, telling Printweek.com: “We are very much aware of the current, short-term situation concerning the supply of toner cartridges, resulting from growth in demand in certain situations.” Yet Brasser would not be drawn to discuss the exact details of the problem, nor how Xerox plan to speed up their deliveries.

Several printing companies have said they plan to extract compensation for lost revenue from Xerox. Speaking to Printweek.com, the Managing Director at Pro DM Solutions Martin Whetton complained that of the 10 toners requested in a 24th November order, only 2 had arrived by the 9th December. He said: "I would consider going after Xerox to cover our losses. I would hope that Xerox would offer compensation without the need for legal action,” estimating that the failure at Xerox has cost him £5,000 in lost income. Printweek.com spoke to 5 other printing firms who reported similar if not greater losses; some though are less concerned with exacting revenge upon Xerox than receiving their toner, so they can resume printing.

Mr Brasser was quick to emphasise that the shortage in toner supplies is only affecting a small percentage of Xerox supplies. He said: “"This is not a general shortage and only affects certain products. The vast majority of orders are being fulfilled within about a week, and we expect that pace to quicken.” Moreover, though printing firms in Europe, Asia and the US have been hit, Australia is exempt. Simon Lane of Fuji Xerox Australia told Proprint.com.au: “We have a sufficient supply of toner for the next 32-60 days which is in line with normal stock holding.’

Why the Australian market should remain unaffected is unclear, nor does Mr Lane speculate except to say that this sole wing of Xerox has been able to cope with increased demand. Elsewhere, though Xerox has offered assurances that “We aim to have the right amount of supply to satisfy demands,” as the European Head of Corporate Communications Kevin Perlmutter says, the worldwide shortage looks to continue.

How To Make Money From Empty Cartridges

2009-12-17T15:22:00.000Z

Recycling empty ink and toner cartridges is an excellent way of recouping the original cost of purchase. This article shows how to make money by recycling cartridges.

Not many people know that empty cartridges are a commodity. But in fact, brand manufacturers such as HP and Lexmark, as well as small independent firms, run programs encouraging people to return cartridges once they’re emptied. This is great for the environment, since it means that the plastics from which the cartridges are made are re-used. Refilling cartridges is also a less intensive practice in terms of the manufacturing costs than creating a cartridge from scratch. Moreover, it is also great for the consumer, because brands such as Lexmark offer substantial discounts on refilled toner purchases for those that recycle. Depending on the type of toner, up to £22 can be earned per recycled cartridge.

The first step is Googling a site to sell the empty cartridges. If the person’s feeling altruistic, they could donate the cartridges to charity. Here, profits accrued from the sale of the cartridges to the refillers aren’t divided between private companies. Instead, they go to the charities concerned. Moreover, the programs run by major brands often don’t recycle the empty cartridges at all. Instead, they scrap them. Donating cartridges to charity is therefore great for persons concerned with the environment – even if they don’t themselves make any money.

Alternately, consumers might sign up for a Return Program, run by a brand manufacturer. For example, Lexmark offers substantial discounts on its Cartridge Return Program, so long as consumers agree to return empty cartridges only to Lexmark. Hewlett Packard meanwhile, runs its recycling program in part through retailers like Staples. Though the brand doesn’t offer a fixed incentive, its Planet Partners scheme lets people earn ‘points’ for recycling, for use with PurchaseEdge.com. However, Staples pays £3 for empty cartridges returned while buying a new one – so it’s worthwhile using the retailer for returns to Hewlett Packard.

Consumers might also contact online businesses, which specialise in recycling cartridges as well as other plastics items, such as mobile phones. Online firms typically allow for people to have their empty cartridges collected, saving exertion. This is unlike major brands, which ask people to send their empty cartridges in a self-addressed envelope. To make the collection worthwhile, however, a minimum number of cartridges is required – this ranges from 5 to 30, depending on the firm. Moreover, while some firms offer a flat rate for empty cartridges, others vary the rate of compensation depending on the ink and toner concerned.

For people running an office, selling empty cartridges can create substantial revenue. CashForCartridges.co.uk notes that many schools save £2000 by recycling cartridges. However, even individuals running a home printer can make money by recycling toner – and over time, the total adds up to something really worthwhile.