What is a compatible toner?
Compatible cartridges are manufactured by a third party and sold by reputable wholesalers & retailers. They are brand new alternatives to OEM’s (Original Equipment Manufacturer).

What is the print quality like?
A lot of customers do hold back from using compatibles, and this is down fear, perception, or a negative experience. However, whilst print quality can differ in compatibles, due to poorly made parts, majority are excellent and have the same print quality as an OEM. There are some extremely cheap options on the market, so with compatibles you really do get what you pay for.

The good news is as a Talking Business customer, we have trialled a lot of compatible toners over the years. We have a handful of trusted manufacturers that help us to deliver you cost-effective high-quality inks. As a business we also use compatibles, we do this for cost and sustainability, which you can read about further down.


What is the price difference?
The most common driver to make the switch is the clear price difference between genuine toners and compatibles.

Genuine toners are more expensive because the manufacturer makes their profit by selling consumables. Quite often they sell the device at a competitive price to entice the consumer to choose their product. This can see them making a loss on the printer, but they make up the profit by selling the supplies at a high cost.

In 2021 a study was conducted by watchdog Which?, following the increase of home-workers during the pandemic. It suggests that ‘ink bought from the manufacturer could be up to 286% more expensive than third-party ink’. The full article can be read here.

Are they also called Remanufactured Toners?
No, a remanufactured toner is also a way to save money. Unlike genuine and compatible cartridges, these have been previously used. We offer a used toner collection service, which enables us to collect your empty cartridges and recycle them. They are then cleaned and refilled to produce a ‘new’ cartridge for sale.

Benefits of using compatible ink cartridges:

• Cost Effective - Reliable cheaper alternatives could save your business thousands over a 5-year period.
• Added value with higher yield – Great compatibles contain a higher volume of ink as standard. Meaning they’ll offer you more prints for your money.
• Environmental benefits – To reduce costs a lot of the larger components of a compatible are made using recycled materials. Double this up with our recycling service and you’re on to winner!
• Ideal for your day to day printing – in-house print, logistics printing etc. Any print that you produce in high volume would be suitable.
• It won’t affect your printer warranty – Manufacturers can only advise the preferred brand of ink to use in your printer. They cannot stipulate which cartridges you have to use and can’t hold back warranty claims if compatibles have been used.
  

Benefits of using original ink cartridges?

• Reliability – In comparison to compatibles, genuine toners do have a lower return rate. However, we believe the risk is minimal as Talking Business have trialled a vast range to find the best on offer. We also offer a guarantee and will replace or credit failed toners.
• Quality – Genuine toners produce excellent quality print.
• Lasting Print – Genuine toner ink tends to be more fade-resistant for image printing.

Why are people apprehensive when buying compatibles?
The most common perception is that a compatible cartridge will affect your printer and its warranty. However, as we have explained above in the compatible benefits, this is not the case at all. In the unlikely event of a printer issue, you will have a right to technical assistance and replacements etc under your warranty.

Troubleshooting - Some common issues and solutions:

• Cartridge protection is enabled – Some printers have ‘cartridge protection’ enabled, this means that a compatible cartridge can’t be used. It is a feature that can be switched off however, so easy to resolve.
• Full reports of ink usage – Some devices are programmed to identify a compatible and will restrict usage reports for low toners. You can perform an internal memory reset which then allow full access to ink and toner levels.
• Incorrect fitting – There is a chance you have not inserted the cartridge correctly. Lift the cartridge cover and ensure the unit has been properly ‘clicked’ into place.

Recycling Service
If you are interested in our service to recycle your used toner cartridges, please contact us here. We will deliver a toner recycling box for free and you can then fill it up with your used cartridges. Once full you can email us and request a collection, and we will deliver a new box when we take the full one away.

If you would like a quote for compatibles for your inks, please contact us here and provide a list of either your printers or your cartridges if you know their part numbers. We can supply a quote to you and discuss any questions you may have.

Thank you for your time, we hope to hear from you.