HP slates ink-refill device

Singapore-based ink refill device maker Inke has replied to HP's claim that refilled ink cartridges suffer failure rates as high as 30 percent.

Inke marketing vice-president Christina Tay said that the source of the 30 percent claim, Recharger Magazine, did not include an Inke machine in its failure rate test.

If users follow instructions for use on Inke's Web site, the main causes of cartridge failure such as rough handling and too many refilling cycles can be avoided, she said.

The company stood by the figures it gave for savings users can enjoy using its refilling system, she added.

Hewlett-Packard had said users risk failure rates of up to 30 percent if they use an ink refill device praised in local media reports.

"Third-party remanufactured and refilled cartridges test lower than original cartridges on performance, quality, reliability and brand consistency," Vincent Vanderpoel, a vice president with HP's imaging and printing group, said in a statement in response to CNET Asia queries.

He said that according to a survey by the office supplies recycling title Recharger Magazine, the failure rate of refilled cartridges can go as high as 30 percent.

Earlier this month, Inke was hailed in the Singaporean press for selling more 5,000 units of its $49 (about £29) ink refill machine in Singapore after being on the market for only two weeks.

Local press reports had said the device was "set to take on the giants", that buyers were "salivating" for it and that "the sky was the limit" for the success of the gadget.

Unlike refillers which involve syringes, Inke's machine offers "hands-free" refilling of used HP cartridges, which cost about $30 each. To use it, empties are placed inside and a button is pressed for the refill to occur. The company claims savings of $329 per average user over the three-year lifespan of an inkjet printer. Inke ink tanks cost just $6 each.

"Over time, Inke is even less expensive than normal refill kits, let alone original cartridges," an Inke spokesman told CNET Asia.

"Patents for Inke have been filed worldwide," she said. "We have not constructed a new cartridge or modified the original cartridge." Patent infringements are therefore not possible, she added.

For now, the machine only refills two models of HP cartridges but other models and brands are in the works. There are plans to sell the machine overseas.

HP has understandably given a cool reception to the product, with Vanderpoel calling it "just another variation" on refilling devices.

Up to 70 percent of HP's profits come from printing and imaging, with about 30 to 35 percent coming from supplies, according to a study last year by analyst firm Technology Business Research.

Vanderpoel cited a study by analysts Gartner, in which "refilled cartridges have been rated worse than original cartridges in cartridge reliability, increased paper usage, spillage, clean-up time after installation and increased help desk calls."

Gartner has also shown that 70 percent of customers who tried using remanufactured or refilled cartridges go back to using original HP supplies, Vanderpoel's statement added.