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    I must say that your service is absolutely exceptional and I have recommended your company and products to several friends today; all are serious "printer" people.I retired last year and my friends are all into, or are still working in the photo industry. Sincerely,Gerhard

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    Dear, just to let you know than i realy appreciate your costumer service.
    Thank you
    Denis

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    Just a Thank you and all the best
    Grigore

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    Ce message est simplement pour vous dire que j'ai bien reçu la commande XXXXXX et que je suis très satisfait de la rapidité de la livraison et aussi de la qualité de l'encre. C'est la première fois que j'utilise de l'encre "autre que l'originale" et pour le moment je suis très satisfait. Soyez certain que je vais vous référez à mes amis et collègues de travail et c'est certain que je vais commander à nouveau de chez vous. Merci beaucoup.
    Stéphane

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    Je veux seulement vous dire un gros merci pour la rapidité avec lequel vous avez traité ma demande et aussi pour le petit extra en papier photos,c'est très apprécié.

    Céline

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    I received my order, thank you for your great customer service..
    Judy

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    Hello:

    It is not often people write emails or letters of praise but consider this one of the rare ones!
    I must say, ordering your product was about the easiest imaginable. Coupled with the fact that it arrived here basically “next day” I am thoroughly happy. To tell you the truth, I was expecting to have to go pay full retail for one black cartridge thinking that your’s would take at least a week to arrive but I was wrong, the order arrived before I could even go out to get one!
    Congrats people, I WILL tell all my friends and neighbours about you!

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Lexmark to dump inkjet printers

Posted on August 28, 2012 by kflack

Lexmark to dump inkjet printers and cut 1,700 jobs.

To close Philippines plant by end 2015

To eliminate inkjet development globally

Aug 28 (Reuters) – Printer maker Lexmark International Inc said it will stop making inkjet printers, cutting about 1,700 jobs, and focus on its more profitable imaging and software businesses.

Lexmark has been phasing out inkjet printers, used by consumers, and focusing on selling more sophisticated laser printers. It has also been beefing up its print services through several acquisitions over the last couple of years.

Revenue from the company’s legacy inkjet hardware business declined 66 percent in the first half of 2012, forcing the company to cut its full-year forecast.

Most printer makers are struggling with falling sales as printing, considered one of the most dispensable parts of a company’s budget, is always the first target of cost cutting.

Rival Xerox Corp cut its full-year profit outlook in July, while Canon Inc trimmed its operating profit fo recast, as the companies braced for tough economic conditions in Europe.

Lexmark laid off 625 employees related to manufacturing of consumer supplies in January.

The company said on Tuesday that it will take a pre-tax charge of $160 million related to the restructuring, with $110 million incurred in 2012, and the remaining in the next three years.

The company also said it is working with its strategic advisors to explore the sale of its inkjet-related technology, adding that it will close its Cebu, Philippines-based plant by 2015.

The company, which expects annual savings of $95 million once the restructuring is complete, also said it would buy back an additional $100 million shares in the second half of 2012.

Lexmark, which had about 13,300 employees worldwide, as of Dec. 31, 2011, said it will continue to provide service, support and aftermarket supplies for its inkjet installed base.

The Perceptive Software business, which Lexmark bought in 2010, provides software and services used to manage documents, workflows, imaging, and other content.

The company also bought Brainware Inc, ISYS Search Software and Nolij Corp earlier this year and added them to its Perceptive Software unit.

The business accounted for nearly 5 percent of second-quarter revenue, up from about 2 percent in the year-ago period

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Non-branded printer cartridges will save you a bundle

Posted on November 15, 2010 by kflack

Non-branded printer cartridges will save you a bundle

So says one supplier

15 Nov 2010 08:27 | by Andrea Petrou | posted in Business

Non-branded printer cartridges will save you a bundle - Wikimedia

People that switch from branded inkjet printer cartridges to private label versions could save themselves a bundle of cash, research has found.
In a YouGov survey of 2000 households, for Environmental Business Products, the company found that switching labels could save households a combined £440 million a year.
It also found that the average home gets through 4.85 cartridges a year. Half of those questioned admitted they only ever buy branded cartridges from printer manufacturers such as Hewlett Packard, Epson, Lexmark or Canon.
According to the research, branded cartridges typically cost £30 each, which creates an annual bill of £145.50 – the same as a television licence. It said if buyers of branded cartridges – approximately 10.1 million households – instead bought private label versions from high-street retailers and supermarkets, which are around 30 percent cheaper, they would save £43.65 per household per annum or a combined £440 million. Currently only 18 percent of households exclusively buy private-label versions.
Patrick Stead, founder and chief executive of Environmental Business Products, which -surprise, surprise – supplies private-label cartridges to many high street retailers across Europe said: “When most items in the shopping basket are rising in price, the printer cartridge is one product where there are easy savings to be made, so it is surprising that so many people continue to pay a premium.
“Buying a private-label ink cartridge gives consumers a saving of 25 percent to 35 percent which is very welcome at any time, but especially in the current climate. Once people realise there is no compromise in quality, regardless of misleading propaganda, they’re likely to stick with the cheaper option rather than returning to branded.”
The survey also found that 10 percent of households buy 10 or more cartridges a year, giving a potential saving of £90 each per year, if they switched to compatible cartridges. Additionally  66 percent say a cheaper price is likely to encourage them to switch from printer manufacturers cartridges to retailers’ versions, while 43 percent would be motivated to switch cartridges because of environmental credentials.

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Smell-O-Vision

Posted on October 26, 2010 by kflack

Imagine watching television’s Master chef and actually smelling the sultry aromas of the contestants’ classic dishes? Or watching Match of the Day and smelling that freshly cut football pitch? This could all now be possible, thanks to Japanese scientists, who have taken a humble ink jet printer and adapted it into a intriguing smell-o-vision device.
Researchers from Tokyo’s Keio University took a Canon inkjet printer and replaced the normal colour ink cartridges with scented solutions, such as cinnamon, grapefruit and lavender. Inkjets produce ink by heating a wire tendril, which forces the colour down a tube and onto the page. And just like the way in which an inkjet rapidly switches between colours to produce multicoloured documents, the same idea applies for aromas, meaning one scent can quickly follow another.
"We are using the inkjet printer‘s ability to eject tiny pulses of material to achieve precise control," Dr Kenichi Okada, from the Keio team, told New Scientist. More primitive smell-o-vision devices have been developed before. The release of the 1960 film Scent of Mystery, later called Holiday in Spain, starring Denholm Elliot, saw cinema auditoriums adopt a system which emitted smells that accompanied the narrative of the film.

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Canon to Open Inkjet Factory in Thailand

Posted on September 26, 2010 by kflack

TOKYO (Dow Jones)–Canon Inc. (7751.TO) said Tuesday it will spend Y14.6 billion to construct an inkjet printer plant in Thailand to meet growing printer demand worldwide.

The Tokyo-based maker of digital cameras and precision electronics said it will start building the factory–its second in Thailand–on a 257,280 square meter site in Nakhonratchasima, about 230 kilometers northeast of Bangkok. It is scheduled to begin producing low-priced inkjet printers from October 2011.

The plant will have around 5,000 employees and an annual capacity of 5.5 million units, helping to eventually boost Canon’s overall production capacity to 27 million units–an increase of 40% when compared with the current level.

Canon said it expects the new factory will offer benefits such as synergy with the existing Thai plant, through the use of its parts supplies and infrastructure.

Canon also makes inkjet printers in Vietnam.

-By Hiroyuki Kachi, Dow Jones Newswires; 813-6269-2789; Hiroyuki.Kachi@dowjones.com

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HP grabs printer market share

Posted on September 1, 2010 by kflack

The overall printer market saw revenue surge 14 percent in the second quarter to $13.3 billion, according to IDC. Hewlett-Packard continued to gain share.

Among the notable points from IDC:

  • IDC expects that the printer market will bounce back through 2010, but competition will heat up.
  • Inkjet printers have 66 percent share of the printer market. Meanwhile, inkjet printers posted 14 percent unit growth in the second quarter with 19 million units. That’s the most growth since 2003.
  • Laser printers posted the strongest growth with units up 25 percent to 9 million in the second quarter. Monochrome laser printers accounted for 83 percent of the market.

Here’s a look at the standings:

Metawatch, has and continues to recommend only Canon and Epson series of printers as they offer headless inkjet cartridges thereby enabling you to purchase lower cost inkjet supplies.

Their increased robustness of the imbedded heads in their printers also ensure a longer lasting reliability.

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Back to School Buyer’s Guide: Saving on Supplies

Posted on August 10, 2010 by kflack

OK, now that it is time to get you children all set up for school and supplies making sure your inkjet printer is working, and that you have a cost effective solution is important.

First and foremost if you are still buying OEM supplies for your inkjet printer you are loosing money, and it is time to rethink how to go about saving money.

Here are three questions that every owner should consider BEFORE purchasing additional supplies:

1.  How much does it cost to purchase an entire set of replacement ink or toner? 

2. What kind of printing will I be doing and what type of paper will I need to accomplish it? 

3. Does the brand offer a low cost alternative if I purchase a certain model?  Does the manufacturer offer high capacity cartridges and what are the potential savings?

Once you’ve answered these three questions, you can start considering your options whether it is choosing a different manufacturer, an alternative form of ink, using off brand paper or perhaps using a rewards program.

We have found the most cost effective suppliers of inkjet (Third Party Products) are the Canon and Epson lines of inkjet printers that HAVE the HEADS built into the printer, and not attached as part of the inkjet cartridge. The reason being is that the replacement cartridges only contain ink and no sophisticated electronics and are therefore cheaper to manufacture and purchase. You can typically purchase their cartridges for under $5.00 e.a.  versus up to $60 for some OEM cartridges.

If your printer has the head as part of the cartridge then chances are there are no third party products available (except refurbished), and they are not nearly as reliable based on their increased complexity, and limited lifespan design.They are a lot more expensive to boot.

Once you have decided if you are going to take the plunge and purchase a new printer (Epson or Canon) then you must make sure that their are 3rd party cartridges available for the printer your are looking at purchasing.(What they are not available for all printers !) Nope, due to the competition in this marketplace the manufacturers many years back started to add electronic chips to their cartridges, to track ink usage, as well as imbed some proprietary identification code, that needs to be re-engineered by the Third parties before products become available on the market. This normally takes about 6-9 months (we have seen up to 2 years) before you’ll see products being available.

So this is one instance where buying the latest and greatest will not only cost you more, but you will not be able to tkae advantage of 3rd party cartridge products for at least 6-9 months after purchase. (There are no guarantees)

SO look for those clearance sales at the big box stores (Future Electronics, Best Buy, Costco) and take the plunge.

 

Don’t be tempted by the low price of the HP, Lexmark, Kodak or Dell inkjet, as you will pay the price for cartridges later. Look for the Canon or Epson… albeit harder to find, you’ll be happy in the end.

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Canon Sues Chinese Companies to Block Copycat Cartridge Refills

Posted on July 1, 2010 by kflack

June 29 (Bloomberg) — Canon Inc., the world’s largest maker of cameras and office equipment, filed patent-infringement claims against China’s Ninestar Image International Ltd. and retailers over technology in printer toner cartridges.

The claims target cartridges made by Ninestar and nine affiliated businesses in China and Hong Kong, as well as 10 U.S. companies that sell the products. Canon lodged a complaint yesterday with the U.S. International Trade Commission in Washington to block imports of the cartridges and filed a companion civil lawsuit in federal court in New York.

Canon, a Tokyo-based company that gets about 28 percent of its revenue from the Americas, contends the Ninestar cartridges infringe two U.S. patents.

The cartridges can be used in Canon and Hewlett-Packard Co. printers, according to the ITC complaint and the lawsuit.

The patents relate to the rotating drums inside the cartridges and how they connect to the printer. Laser beams scan across the drum in a pattern matching the image to be printed and powdery toner sticks to the device before being deposited on the paper, according to the complaint.

Canon said it opened a manufacturing plant last year near Newport News, Virginia, where it plans to produce “millions” of cartridges. The ITC is a quasi-independent agency set up to protect U.S. markets from unfair trade practices, including patent infringement.

Cannon in December settled complaints against companies in Japan, including Ninestar’s Japanese unit, over unauthorized inkjet cartridges. Officials with Ninestar didn’t immediately return an e-mail sent to their U.S. distribution center in City of Industry, California, seeking comment.

The ITC case is In the Matter of Toner Cartridges and Components Thereof, Complaint No. 2743, U.S. International Trade Commission (Washington). The civil suit is Canon Inc. v. Ninestar Image International Ltd., 10cv4999, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (Manhattan).

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Brother, Canon, Dell, Epson, HP Japan, and Lexmark to kick off support for UNEP via collaborative ink cartridge collection effort

Posted on March 26, 2010 by kflack

Brother, Canon, Dell, Epson, HP Japan, and Lexmark to kick off support for UNEP via collaborative ink cartridge collection effort

– TOKYO, Japan, March 23, 2010 –

Brother, Canon, Dell, Epson, HP Japan and Lexmark announced today that, as part of their Ink Cartridge Homecoming Project, a collaborative effort to collect used consumer ink cartridges, the six companies would begin making donations to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP, HQ: Nairobi, Kenya) on April 1, 2010.

The Ink Cartridge Homecoming Project, launched in April 2008, is a cooperative effort by six print device manufacturers and the Japan Post Group to collect used ink cartridges. The project was started with the belief that companies marketing inkjet printers have a social responsibility to recycle used ink cartridges and should work towards the creation of a recycling-based society through conservation efforts.

Representing a new facet of the Ink Cartridge Homecoming Project, the six companies will provide UNEP with donations to support its various activities targeting such global environmental issues as global warming, climate change, threats to biodiversity, and the efficient use of resources. By providing indirect assistance to UNEP activities, including forest protection and biodiversity conservation, the project will attain a higher level of social significance and take an increasingly active approach in global environmental protection.

Every six months, the Ink Cartridge Homecoming Project will make a donation to UNEP of three yen for every ink cartridge returned to any of the ink cartridge collection boxes installed at 3,639* major post offices and select local government offices across Japan. The first donation period will run from October 2009 to March 2010, with subsequent donations to be made every six months thereafter.

The six companies would like to ask its customers to help promote ink cartridge collection and recycling in an effort to contribute to society through donations to support UNEP’s environmental conservation activities.

The Ink Cartridge Homecoming Project’s UNEP donation activities will be featured at the Ink Cartridge Homecoming Project booth during the Interactive Fair for Biodiversity, which will be held concurrently with the 10th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP10) in Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, from October 11 to 29, 2010.

This marks the first time for the private sector in Japan to contribute to environmental conservation activities in the Asia-Pacific region through donations to UNEP, an indication of UNEP’s strong support for the project’s cause and content.

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Finally Low Cost Inkjet Supplies available across Canada

Posted on February 25, 2010 by kflack

Published on Wednesday, May 21, 2008 Pointe-Fortune, May 21, 2008- Metawatch , a supplier specializing in third party (Epson, Canon and HP compatible and Remanufactured cartridges) Inkjet supplies continues to expand its customer base across Canada.

Metawatch, initially founded in response to high inkjet cartridge pricing, has now evolved into a fully independent, self supporting operational infrastructure with distribution capability across Canada.

Metawatch prides itself on supplying high quality, reliable products across Canada at some of the lowest prices available in the inkjet market backed by a 100% SATISFACTION guarantee makes them a safe choice for your investment in inkjet supplies.

To offset the high cost of shipping product across Canada they offer several price points to their customers.

Orders over $50.00 have free shipping while orders under $20.00 will cost you $10.99. Orders of $20-$30 are $8.50 and orders between $30-$50 will cost you $7.50 for delivery.

As products typically have a 2 year expiry date, clients are encouraged to purchase a 1 years supply (or more than $50.00) to maximize their savings.

Operating as an E-Commerce Mail order company, Metawatch has been able to keep operational costs at a minimum, and bring those savings directly back to their internet based clientele.

To protect its clients against industry product quality and supply issues Metawatch maintains strict quality standards and redundant supplier capabilities. This ensures the capability to provide product to its clients without interruption regardless of industry product availability or quality issues.

Marketing Contact Ken Flack – Metawatch
T: 450-612-1212
E: kflack@metawatch.ca
http://www.metwatch.ca

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Epson strikes back as Ink Sales suffer

Posted on February 24, 2010 by kflack

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Epson strikes back at Calidad inks as Ink Sales suffer

“Tests show Calidad inks not suitable for printing photographs” screamed the headline from an Epson press release.Third party ink suppliers are estimated to be at approximately 30% of after market ink cartridge sales, printer manufacturers like Epson are waging a PR war against cut price competitors.

Razor Blade Model

As most consumers of inkjet printers probably know, printing manufacturers like Epson, Lexmark, HP, Canon that most inkjets now sold are more or less disposable products retailing at ridiculously low prices where they recoup their costs woth overpriced inkjet cartridges. Similar things are happening in the emerging color laser printer space.

3rd Part Inks Thrive

There is a healthy and growing market for third party ink suppliers which sell replacement ink cartridges significantly below the prices of OEM cartridges. This has the effect of eating into the after market ink sales of printing manufacturers and it also lengthens the printer replacement cycle as consumers will tend to keep printers longer if they can source reasonably priced ink refills.

Political Wars

Faced with a challenge to their business models by third party after market ink sales, OEM suppliers are becoming more aggressive in their anti-third party rhetoric.Epson warned against the use of third party inks in its printers with the release of “independent test results” which purport to show that one of Australia and New Zealand’s best known third-party ink brands, Calidad, has one of the poorest results for print life ever measured.

Epson Claims

“The Calidad ink cartridges appear to contain low-stability dye-based substitutes for Epson high-stability DURABrite pigment inks. The Calidad inks have poor resistance to atmospheric ozone that may be present in homes and offices, and the Calidad inks also give up waterfastness when printed on plain paper,” Mr Wilhelm said.

“When Epson users see these results they should be in no doubt that using third party inks in their Epson printers will lead to rapid fading and loss of their precious photographs,” Epson’s Marketing Communications Director, Mike Pleasants said.

“I am sure that no parents would want to give or receive as a gift a framed photograph of treasured children, friends or relatives, or that special occasion, that can suffer significant fading in less than a year,” Pleasants said.

3rd Party Manufacturers fight back

Despite the claims from Epson, however, the third party market has hit back with its own report which refutes any suggestions that third party ink products are inferior to the more expensive OEM products.

A new survey by Lyra Research and published in Recharger Magazine revealed that

48% of respondents who had used non-OEM supplies said that they have never had a problem with a non-printer-brand cartridge.
6% have had many problems, defined as more than 10 percent of the time, and
44% have had “just a few problems,” defined as less than 10% of the time.

Overall, 93% of color laser printer users and 92% of color inkjet users said they either have had no problems with aftermarket cartridges or have had “just a few” problems, according to the survey.

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