Give me your ideas

ice_breaker

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Can someone tell me about the possible future of the inkjet printer( its function, performance, and demand).
Ice.
 

roytje

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Laser printers are becoming cheaper each year. We think that more and more people will decide to buy a laser printer, especially when they need it for text printing. It's price is higher but the costs of printing are less. Because laser printer prices are decreasing every year the number of pages you have to print before the breakeven point is decreasing. The prices of ink cartridges are not, so the laser printers will be more competitive every year.

Roy
 

ice_breaker

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Thank you for your views Roytje. I really appreciate it.
Can anyone tell me more ideas like Roytje ?
Ice.
 

Scrubking

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Well with third party ink getting better and better I see a major ink war in the future. I see the printer companies pulling out all the stops and creating some crazy ways to keep people buying oem ink.
 

BlasterQ

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I'm afraid that if they can't prevent third party ink suppliers from selling compatible inks, they will be forced to sell cheap printers that won't last long. If they can't force us to use disposable carts, then they'll make disposable printers!!!
 

roytje

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I am not sure that prices will decrease. At this moment there are only four big printer manufacturers: HP, Epson, Canon and Lexmark. They do everything to prevent competition: they don't compare themselves with the competitors and they make it more difficult then necessary to find data to compare. I think they will use more difficult technology in the future, to make it more difficult for refillers and companies selling copies of cartridges. With only few printer manufacturers there probably will not be a ink war.
 

Scrubking

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The ink war I mention won't be between printer manufacterers, but between them and the 3rd party ink companies. Some printer companies already put chips in their carts - with 3rd party inks getting better and better I see them going to extreme measures to keep us from buying 3rd party ink.

I don't see printers being marketed as "disposable". I don't think too many people will buy into that idea. Who knows, maybe we will see future printers where the ink can't be refilled and that only come with X months worth of ink before you have to buy a new printer, but I don't think consumers will accept that - I'm sure business won't.
 

roytje

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I still think there will not be a real ink war between original cartridge manufacturers and third party ink sellers. There is a lot of competition, but it's not as axtreme as when there would be a 'war'. It's simple: original manufacturers produce the printers so if they have competition they will just develop chips to make it difficult for the competitors.

I do think there will be a ink war between third party ink sellers. There are too many small third party ink sellers. There 's extreme competition in this market. This has the following consequences

Short term: Ink from third party manufacturers will be cheaper than ever. Third party ink sellers try to grow as much as possible. Therefore they have to promote their stuff very much and they sell it with very small profits. Only few will make profit and survive. I think in 2010 there will be only 5 big third party ink sellers.

Long term: After 2010 there will not be more than 5 big third party ink refillers in the United States. HP, Epson and other printer manufacturers will secure all their cartridges with chips. It's too expensive for small third party ink sellers to make these chips so they have to leave the ink market.

About 'printers as disposable': This will never happen. Printer manufacturers are using the 'Gilette strategy': they sell razors almost for nothing, making losses on the razor selling. They make the profit when people need to buy new blades. People will buy these blades, otherwise they can't use the razors. The same strategy is used by printer producers: Sell the printers for some dollars and make the big profit when people have to buy ink.

So they often sell a printer for just as much as a cartridge. Are they stupid? No, they are not. They sell it with a cartridge that is only 50% filled. So buying a new printer will never be cheaper then buying a new cartridge. Therefore, printers will never be 'disposables'. They will be thrown away instead of being repaired, but they will not be thrown away instead of buying new ink.
 
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