[mauimac]

Hi, I was wondering if anyone out there has had problems with the generic, compatible-type ink cartridges. Right now I am going crazy with my Epson Stylus Photo 890...it's not recognizing the black ink cartridge! It's an ISO-9001 certified compatible, so I don't know what's wrong. I've already wasted one thinking I might have had a bad chip or something, but the second one I put in has the same problem...red light stays on, the printer doesn't recognize it. Usually upon install of a compatible, it gives a dialog about not being a genuine Epson cartridge and lets you decide to use it anyway...not this time! I also tried reinstalling them by lifting the lid all the way (but not taking the cartridge itself out), but that doesn't work either. The only thing I can think of is to shell out and buy a genuine Epson cartridge to see if the problem persists..but it's a shame since I will have wasted two cartidges in the process! Any suggestions or advice on this matter? Has anyone else run into this issue? I searched the forums but didn't come up with anything.
Mahalo & Aloha!

[suprz]

i use them all the time (i have an epson 777i) and they work great for me. i got 4 for the price of 2 regular epson cartridges

[GORDYmac]

Well, the Ink4Art brand destroyed my Epson Stylus 900G. I don't print often, maybe a few pages a week, and after two months I was never able to fully unclog the print heads. Maybe they're good if you print more frequently. It finally bit the dust after I tried putting alcohol in the sponge that the head rests on to clear the clogs. That was a cute printer.

I have used nothing but Epson inks on my Stylus Photo 785EPX, and I still have the same printing frequency. No clogs that one cleaning won't clear. According to Epson, their inks are formulated to minimize clogging and stuff.

So, no, I wouldn't recommend "off brands".

[mauimac]

thanks for the advice, however I've never had a problem with compatibles until now. I can't even clean the heads either because it won't recognize the cartridge!
What a pain.
Could this be caused by some other issue by any chance?
short of reinstalling the cartridge (which doesn't work) is there any other troubleshooting action I can take?
Thanks!

[Sosa]

I also have not had problems with the generic compatible replacements cartrideges I've purchased from 123inkjets.com for my Epson Photo 820 printer. I think Epson is screwing me with their ridiculously high catridge replacement prices and all their silly warnings to not refill them and only use their brand! Not to mention their stupid programming which reads a cartridge empty early and does not allow you to print black ink if the color one is "empty."

I want to tell Epson to go themselves!

This is what I get for choosing a free product!

[mauimac]

No Kidding! I agree all the way! Epson tech support says, "try the genuine Epson cartridge and if that doesn't work call us back and pay the $10 for help since it's out of warranty"...
I don't know what else to do, I just may have to!

[Sosa]

Damn Epson doesn't even let me email them a complaint! You have to snail mail it to them! Bastards! They just want to discourage people from raging at them for their dubious profit making tactics! Well here is the contact info from their website:

Epson America, Inc.
3840 Kilroy Airport Way
Long Beach,_CA_90806-2469

I hate the idea of wasting a stamp on a letter but I think I'm going to have too!

[Josh Reid]

Epson is screwed up for how their printers "monitor" the ink levels and then don't let you print when you are just LOW but not OUT of ink, but I've never been happy with refill kits or generic ink. The refill kits are foolish because the cartridge is punctured the first time when you install it in the printer. When you do a refill, I don't think you get as clear of a seal on the print-head where the plastic gets punctured. I don't know if that makes sense, but I think that may have something to do with why the print heads clog easier or quicker with refill kits.

As far as generic kits, I just wasn't thrilled with the quality of the ink. The colors were fine, but just not as top notch as Epson. Also, the generic inks had a nasty odor to them when you printed. The page literally stunk.

As expensive as it is to use Epson, after I upgraded from a 740 to my C80, I decided to keep it filled with genuine Epson inks. I've only gone through 2 sets of black & color inks in a full year, and I've never had a problem with the ink drying out or clogging.


-Josh

[mauimac]

Wait a minute Sosa, save your stamp...you CAN email them a question...you just have to go through a lot of questions on several forms, and enter your serial number, but it can be done through the support section of the website...that's what i did and they actually got back to me in 24 hours, however, this is what they told me:
"Thank you for taking the time to contact Epson. It is my pleasure to
respond to your inquiry.

The issue you are having will require live technical support in order to
be resolved. Contact our Epson Support Staff listed below for further
assistance in your inquiry. They will assist you in a step by step test
that will identify the issue correctly and find the solution.

Epson Support phone number
(562) 276-1300.
M-F 6a-8p
Sat 7a-4p
PST

Should you require further assistance on the same issue, please use the
"Reply" option in your email program.

Please do not alter the "Subject" line so that we may maintain the
continuity of the issue.

If you have a different technical support issue, please submit another
E-form via our website (http://www.epson.com), and we will respond in a
timely manner.

Thank you again for contacting Epson."

so I'm back where I started. I guess I'll pay them $9 for phone support, then it won't work and I'll have to buy an Epson cartridge for ~$20, and it damn well better work at that point, but then what do I do with my pile of compatibles?!

this has been a nice opportunity to vent some frustration, thanks all!