I thought cheap toner was fine until I lost a whole weekend

For years I used generic toner in my HP LaserJet because it's half the price. Figured it all comes from the same factory anyway. Last month I printed 200 service orders for a job in Austin and half of them came out streaky. Had to redo every single page, wasted a whole Saturday. The client was ticked off because the labels looked unprofessional. I finally caved and bought genuine HP toner and the difference is night and day. No streaks, no jams, just clean prints every time. Anyone else have a bad experience with off-brand printer supplies?

3 comments

3 Comments

emeryn837d ago

Toner isn't in a bottle, it's a powder.

the_joseph7d ago

Oh man, that stinks. I learned that lesson the hard way too with a Brother laser printer. For me the cheap stuff never jams in the beginning but after a few dozen pages the fuser starts acting up and you get that wavy melting look on the paper. I always check the bottle or box for the "new" or "genuine" label now because even the good knockoffs can have a bad batch that kills your whole afternoon. A weekend lost is a rough one though, that client talk is the worst part.

ellis.diana7d ago

Have you ever ended up with a fuser that just LOVES cheap toner though? @emeryn83's right about it not being in a bottle but that powder gets EVERYWHERE when a knockoff cartridge leaks, and then it's a whole different nightmare.