Inkjet “efficiency”
August 19, 2007 – 6:10 pmThe “efficiency†of an inkjet printer is the proportion of ink that gets onto the paper.
This depends on the detail design of the printer. Printers with separate ink tanks are known to use much more ink than those which have combined ink/print head cartridges, as in the former the head has to last much longer and requires more cleaning to remove stray dust and air bubbles which might get into the system when the ink tanks are taken out. Separate tank designs have efficiencies around 50-60%, while combined cartridge designs have efficiencies up to around 95%.
So which is cheaper to run? There is no clear winner, as the higher cost of integral head/ink tank units balances out the greater efficiency, and the varying costs of manufacturer\’s recommended papers is a further factor..