Ink Cartridge – A Short Description
The ‘ink cartridge’ is a key part of an inkjet printer, and without this unit, inkjet printing is not possible; In fact, this is a plastic box, which can be thrown away after use, and it is in this box, the ink that is used for printing is stored. It should be noted here that, certain inkjet printers will have only a single ink cartridge, which will have black color or any of the primary colors. However, there are inkjet printers that have more than one ink cartridge, each of them holding specific colors. The different varieties of ink cartridges are ‘OEM’, ‘Compatible’, ‘Refilled’ and ‘Reprocessed’.
Original: This is generally termed as ‘OEM’, where ‘OEM’ is the short form of ‘Original Equipment Manufacturer’.
Compatible: This is the product manufactured by other companies, other than the original manufacturer, and will have all the specifications of the original product. Hence, it will be compatible for that specific printer.
Refilled: Refilled ink cartridges are the ones, which are refilled with new inks. An original cartridge can be used four or five times, by performing the process of ‘refilling’.
Reprocessed: This is also called recycling. The old and used ones are restored to life, by the process of recycling.
What is Toner Cartridge?
The ‘toner’, the dye used for laser printing, is stored in this container. A ‘toner cartridge’ is an essential part of a laser printer. ‘Toner’ comes in the powder form. While the printing process takes place, the ‘toner’ is applied on the paper or surface, where the printing is needed, by using electrostatic power, and thereby, blending it perfectly on the surface. Generally, same as in the case of ink cartridges, there are four different categories of toner cartridges; ‘original’, ‘compatible’, ‘refilled,’ and ‘reprocessed’.
What are the main dissimilarities between ‘Ink’ and ‘Toner’?
- Even though both products are used for printing documents, they are very much different.
- In the first place, ‘ink’ will be in ‘fluid’ form, whereas ‘toner’ will be ‘powder’.
- Ink is used in the ‘inkjet’ printers, while ‘toner’ is used in ‘laser printers’ or in ‘Xerox machines’.
- In an inkjet printer, the ink is injected to the paper, in which the printing has to be done, promptly and swiftly. However, the toner blends into the surface, where the printing has to be done and this process is carried out by creating intense heat.
- Laser printing can be done in a rapid manner, and the output will be very much clear and defined. The process of inkjet printing will consume a little more time.
- In general, laser printing is used for commercial purposes, because of the fastness and well-defined nature. Inkjet printers are used for domestic purposes or for small office functions.
Purchasing ‘ink cartridges’ or ‘toner cartridges’
In our time, this is not a problem. One and all can purchase these items from online stores; these days, online purchasing has actually turned out to be the best way of purchasing any product. There are some professionally managed online stores out there such as cartridgeink.co.uk , from where you can buy all computer-printing related materials; a simple google search will lead the searcher to the web pages of such reliable online stores.
