Third party versus Original print cartridges

Has anyone any experience of using third party ink cartridges with a Canon i9950 printer? I am currently using genuine Canon cartridges, but I am finding that they are getting very expensive. Third party compatible cartridges are about a third of the price, so are there any distinct disadvantages in using third party?

Not for that printer, but I did buy some for an old Epson a few years ago and they managed to clog up the print head(s)
Since then I get genuine ones for my Canon IP6600D from 7dayshop.co.uk, about the cheapest place around that I know of.

Thanks for the quick reply 98. I too clogged up the print heads on the Epson I used to have, but I wondered if it was any different with the Canon.

icc profiles likely won't be accurate... Unless the "third party" supplies their own profiles for the paper you use.

Roy Mathers wrote in post #7038812
Thanks for the quick reply 98. I too clogged up the print heads on the Epson I used to have, but I wondered if it was any different with the Canon.

I haven't been brave enough to try them on the Canon!

With a cheap and cheerful general use home or office printer I'd have no hesitation in using third party inks, but having only recently upgraded to a archival pigment ink R2880, which is still in warranty I am not prepared to entertain it.

Ask me again in two years time and maybe you will get a different answer, but I doubt it.

Epsons of R2880 quality and below use an absorbent pad to soak up ink wasted during cartridge changes, borderless printing etc, and once its full, the printer stops working. I have no idea how Canon deal with the issue, but it's a big reason I don't want too many blockages and unclogging episodes.

i used to fix inkjets, tbh i don't think the savings justify the possibility of damaging the printheads. Also the print IQ is lower in my dealings with such cartridges

It seems to be, then, that the consensus is to use the maker's own cartidges.

I think the Canon i9950 printer has a range of third-party cartridges available and definitely cheaper than the original Canon cartridge. Although I don't shop for my Epson cartridges here, there is a particularly impressive list here.

Yes, I realise that there are lots of third-party cartridges on the market, but why question related to the advisability of using such cartridges. It seems that most of the replies are of the opinion that it is better to stick to the OEM cartridges.

I have tried some Lyson Fontic (spelling??) bulk ink in re-fillable cartiridges for my i9950. Was supposed to fully compatable and although the colours were very close, I had problems with the ink bleeding through the cartridges.

I now have a CIS and have found it to be very good colour wise, although, with no specific instructions for installing it into the i9950, it was a bit of a learning process but overall, I'm pretty happy.

I print loads of A3 & A3+ and it has saved me a considerable amount in ink costs & without a blockage of the print head. Since installing the CIS, I have probably printed 90 A3's and very happy with the results.

The CIS I purchased is here:
http://www.echostore.c​om …nk-system-canon-i9900.htm

If anyone wants so assistance in how to install one, let me know.

I tried some 3rd party inks on my Epson 1290 and not only was it very difficult to get the colours good (lots of manual tweaking in the driver) but the colour was less stable afterwards over time, so no it wasn't worth it. Same with using non Epson paper... less stable and colours were "off". Something specific about the way the dye chemically bonds to the paper coating on real Epson paper. I guess the same might be true of Canon and others.

there's a reason why cheap inks are cheap and the manufacturers spend a lot of money on R+D

few years ago i was 'sold' some ink with the promise that the manufacturer had worked closely with Epson to produce the ink i was buying, the price was great, but 1/2 way through my first set of ink with them, the jets clogged... that was the last time i will ever buy anything but the manufacturers inks..

For my HP D7360 printer I have switched to this UK-based inks seller:

http://stores.ebay.co.​uk …bZ831105018QQft​idZ2QQtZkm

Using top quality HP paper, I can't spot any difference in color rendition or fade resistance, compared to OEM inks. I have never experienced clogging with either ink brand and I don't print regularily, although I do switch the printer on to let the head-cleaning routine run when scheduled.

On the other hand, I have been quite disappointed with the so much praised Ilford Galerie Classic and Galerie Smooth papers (Gloss), using either ink brand. The shadows are simply misty compared to the deep and clean dark tones that HP Premium Plus Photo Paper delivers. Could be just an Ilford/HP incompatibility, but I'm more inclined to believe that it's the Ilford coating.

Bobster wrote in post #7118459
there's a reason why cheap inks are cheap and the manufacturers spend a lot of money on R+D

Perhaps more then one reason, but one is certainly the fact that photo printers are sold below their normal price and the loss has to be compensated through OEM ink sales.

It's a marketing model that Epson is going to abandon (so I read) on the Chinese market. We shall see what follows when that happens.