Wherever there is money to be made, a bogus product can be found since there are certain “companies” that take advantage of people’s good intentions, especially if they are looking to save money. Indeed, printer consumables are one of the most counterfeit markets, and sometimes they are so well made that it is almost indistinguishable from one product from another.
Do not confuse a fake consumable with a compatible consumable for your printer
First of all, one thing should be taken into account is that a compatible cartridge or toner is not the same as a fake. Compatible consumables don’t try to fool anyone and tell you directly that they are compatible with certain printers, while the fake ones even mimic the packaging of the original products, including the manufacturers’ logos, in an open attempt to fool the printers. users (and obviously many times they are considerably more expensive than the compatible ones).
A compatible toner or cartridge will usually work smoothly in your printer because it has been specifically designed for it. The difference is that the color tone may not be the same as what you can find in the original consumables, and its durability is usually lower as well. However, you normally won’t have any issues with the quality or in the printer itself using these types of consumables, so you can be relatively calm when using them knowing what you are buying.
So, do not confuse a compatible consumable, which is sold as such and does not fool anyone (yes, you should be aware of what you are buying as it will hardly be the same as the original) as a fake product is trying to imitate everything possible to the original consumable … until you install it in your printer and find the nasty surprises that it carries inside.
How to distinguish an original consumable from a fake
Currently, the market for counterfeit printer supplies is estimated to be around $ 3.5 billion in the market each year. Counterfeit printer cartridges are big business these days, and it’s not a good thing for consumers, or even bargain hunters for two main reasons:
- The quality of the toner or ink is potentially so bad that it’s like buying a half-empty cartridge in terms of value.
- The poor quality of these counterfeit cartridges or toners can damage or wear out your printer (for example, the volatile organic compounds in the ink gradually erode the built-in printhead).
To detect counterfeit printer cartridges or toner, you need to take some precautions before you buy, but it’s really not as difficult as we are going to tell you below.
Dubious stores
Through an internet search or paid advertisement on any website, you may see online sellers promising you the sun and the moon when it comes to printer supplies. Just because it’s on the Internet, like fake news, doesn’t mean it’s legitimate.
Beware of online stores of dubious provenance, with websites that look quite outdated, and with prices that, as we’ll see below, sound too good to be true.
However, that doesn’t mean that you should be wary of all online stores; well-known and reputable stores will not take the risk of selling you counterfeit products, so you can generally trust what you are buying. Of course, beware of giants like Amazon, eBay or others as they often sell third party products that are not dependent on them, and these illegitimate sellers take advantage of the trust that users have in Amazon for example to sell their fakes. .
Suspicious prices
Original printer cartridges and toner are expensive. Very expensive indeed, to the point that they can sometimes cost almost as much as the printer itself. Surely you can identify the fake consumables for your printer because, as we said before, the prices are too good to be true, and they certainly are not, obviously.
Beware, that doesn’t mean you can’t find good discounts and buy original consumables that are much cheaper than usual, but if you see prices like this … beware.
For example, a real black toner for an HP LaserJet printer typically costs around $ 70; the equivalent “compatible” toner for this printer costs around $ 15, but the fake product can be found priced between $ 30 and $ 40 normally; If you look at it, it is a much more expensive product than the compatible one, but since it claims to be the original and costs less than this, it can fool many users.
Suspicious packaging
Counterfeiters tend to take the same care with the packaging of the product as with the ink itself: not much. We understand that most people don’t pay much attention to the brand of printer cartridges (they certainly don’t take a photo of their box to share on Instagram) but all you have to do is drop by. a moment to inspect the packaging to understand it. find out if the product is fake.
Here are some of the signs to look for:
- Faded brand logo.
- There are no tape seals on the ink heads.
- Visible damage to the cartridge.
- The security seal does not behave as the manufacturer says (major printer vendors help on their web pages to identify the appearance of security seals, as well as genuine packaging in general).
- Once you remove the cartridge or toner from its box, you’ll notice that it weighs quite a bit, as if it already looks like shoddy plastic (and that’s because it is).
- It does not contain instructions for use.
- The product comes in a neutral or white box without anything printed on it.
The following video explains quite well how to distinguish fake supplies from HP printers:
What problems can the printer cause you if you use the wrong consumable?
The first symptom that you may notice is that the printer itself is telling you that you have inserted a cartridge or toner that is not original, but this obviously also occurs with compatible products which, like us, ‘explained, do not present any danger as a rule.
The fake consumables will start giving you symptoms of malfunction quite quickly:
- Ink stains on the print.
- Ink or dust is escaping from the cartridge or from the toner itself.
- Distorted colors.
- Text with horizontal stripes.
As we have explained before, it is possible that the chemicals in the inks, if they are of poor quality, react with the print head and wear out more than necessary, deteriorating it and, in short, rendering the printer unusable.
In any case, the recommendation is that if you have any doubts, don’t be ashamed to contact the manufacturer directly to request technical assistance. If you bought a fake consumable, it is not your fault and of course you do not commit any crime, since in fact you were the crook who believed that you were buying an original product when it was not. not the case.
Table of Contents
