Kodak Offers Inkjet Printers With Cheap Ink

A big complaint with computer users is the fact that ink for inkjet printers is so expensive. At $20 to $30 and sometimes higher for a cartridge of ink, some find ways to make their ink last longer. Printing on 'Draft' quality is one way, but the print quality is low and is not acceptable for presentation. Removing the cartridge and shaking it to redistribute the ink within the cartridge is another trick to get a few more printed pages before buying more ink. Some printers hitting the store shelves recently are nearly disposable as the ink costs as much as the printers themselves. Now Kodak is coming to the rescue.

Kodak is introducing for the first time in their company's history a line of inkjet printers. Consumers will soon be able to choose between three all-in-one inkjet printers from Kodak. These printers allow users to print, copy and scan. They will use the Kodak EASYSHARE brand and range in price from $149 to $299. Consumers will have to visit Best Buy in order to purchase one of these printers at a brick and mortar as they have exclusive rights for distribution. Kodak will also offer this line of printers on their website.

The excitement regarding this product release is that Kodak is offering ink for these printers at low prices. Kodak's premium ink will be priced at $9.99 for a black cartridge and $14.99 for a color cartridge. Kodak claims that this will reduce printing costs for consumers by as much as 50%. They are also claiming that by using these printers with their premium ink and Kodak's photo paper, consumers can print lab-quality photos at home for roughly 10 cents for a 4 X 6 photo. Kodak's CEO Antonio Perez, when referring to the high cost of ink on the market today stated, "For far too long, people have felt restrained from printing due to the high cost of ink."

It will be interesting to see how other printer manufacturers react to this move by Kodak. After years of complaining, will consumers finally see a decrease in the price of ink cartridges industry-wide as other brands try to remain competitive? They will probably hold their ground and see how the market reacts. If Kodak begins to take significant market share with this strategy, other brands will be forced to take action. Otherwise, Kodak will soon be the major player in the printer business.