Epson 057 bottled inks vs third party

[abubin]

I am new to this forum. Wanted to know whether I should get OEM or thirdparty ink for my Epson L8050 ecotank that I bought recently. It uses 6 bottles of 057 ink refills BK, C, LC, LM, M and Y. The price difference between thirdparty and OEM is a lot. 1/3 the price of OEM.

I will be printing mostly on Quaff branded photo paper glossy and direct DVD printable discs.

I would like to know about how bad are the fading of thirdparty compared to OEM. I have read some tests done by @Ink stained Fingers but I do not understand the results. In layman term, is it worth saving 1/3 the cost of OEM inks for long term printed media storage?

For others who have used thirdparty inks (even for other printers), what are your results? Do they fade easily?

 

[The Hat]

For others who have used thirdparty inks (even for other printers), what are your results? Do they fade easily?

I never use OEM ink in my printers, except what comes with them new, that said..

3rd party ink fade as fast as the seasons regardless of which paper you choose to use, there is no such thing as a free lunch when it comes to inkjets dye inks, but you can extend the shelf life of your prints using 3rd party pigment inks..

Unless your prepared to use OEM ink with OEM paper, then the deal is off, even then fading will come. Just all that bit slower, and the answer is an expensive one, switch to digital copiers, their prints last somewhat longer.. Is this what you wanted to hear..

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

It's just impossible to make general statements ; you have to consider a particular ink type on a particular paper in a particular environment which let the inks fade faster or slower than other inks.
I did various tests which always was a kind of comparison with an Epson 106 ink type, and this on some popular papers which forum members are using. Epson Claria and Canon Chromalife(+) inks were performing quite well overall which these tests were showing. But it is difficult beyond that to make valid statements without a test.
If you are at the point to still decide for a new printer you may have a look as well to a unit running with pigment ink instead. A switch between pigment or dye inks in a running printer is not recommended or even possible with the risk or serious clogging.
When it comes to 3rd party inks I only can refer to @The Hat 's statement:

3rd party ink fade as fast as the seasons regardless of which paper you choose to use, there is no such thing as a free lunch when it comes to inkjets dye inks

And you decide which pricing difference you accept for a given performance difference.