Are you a small business owner, an office manager, or someone else who is in charge of keeping a company stocked up with office supplies? If so, there is a wide range of office supplies that you’ll need to invest in.
From pens and pencils to file folders and binders to paperclips and Post-it notes, you’ll spend your fair share of time ordering office supplies. You’ll also have to take the time to learn about certain office supplies like toner cartridges.
The best toner cartridges will allow all of the employees at your company to print things out. The right toner cartridges will also ensure that your company’s printouts look the way you want them to.
Today, we’re going to provide you with all the information you’ll need on toner cartridges so that you know which ones you should buy. Check out our in-depth toner cartridge guide below.
What are Toner Cartridges?
If you’ve worked in an office setting for more than a few weeks at any point in your life, you’ve probably heard about toner cartridges. But you might not be familiar with what they actually are. So let’s begin by providing you with a basic definition of them.
Toner cartridges, which are also sometimes called laser toner, are the cartridges found inside laser printers. A toner cartridge contains toner powder, which is a combination of
- Carbon
- Plastic particles
- Coloring agents
In order for laser printers to print things out, they need to have enough toner powder in their toner cartridges. Otherwise, they won’t be able to print out documents, images, and whatever else you might need to use these printers for.
What is the Difference Between Toner Cartridges and Ink Cartridges?
Oftentimes, those who work in offices are under the impression that toner cartridges and ink cartridges are one and the same. They’ll actually interchange toner cartridges and ink cartridges for this reason without realizing that they aren’t the same thing at all.
As we just alluded to, toner cartridges have toner powder in them that is used to produce printouts. Ink cartridges, meanwhile, have ink in them that is used to do the same thing.
Another key difference between toner cartridges and ink cartridges is that toner cartridges are found in laser printers, while ink cartridges are found in inkjet printers. You can’t use one in the other and expect to get the same results.
And one more big difference between toner cartridges and ink cartridges is that toner cartridges use just one cartridge to print out all colors. Ink cartridges, meanwhile, have several cartridges that are used to print out different colors on sheets of printer paper.
With all of this in mind, you shouldn’t ever order ink cartridges and attempt to use them in printers that call for toner cartridges or vice versa. You’ll be asking for trouble if you do.
What are the Benefits of Using Toner Cartridges?
Now that you know about the differences between toner cartridges and ink cartridges, you might be wondering why it’s so beneficial to use toner cartridges. You’ll be happy to hear that there are tons of benefits that come along with utilizing toner cartridges.
Here are several of the biggest benefits of using toner cartridges:
- They’re usually a lot larger than ink cartridges and can therefore provide more printouts over time
- They’re typically the more cost-effective options when compared to ink cartridges
- They’re easier to replace than ink cartridges since you’ll only have to replace one toner cartridge at a time as compared to replacing several ink cartridges
Another advantage of using toner cartridges is that they’re great for those companies that need to print things out in large quantities. You won’t have to worry about running out of toner in the middle of a big printing job.
How Does a Toner Cartridge Work?
Some people get a little bit confused after hearing that toner cartridges don’t have any ink in them. They wonder how in the world toner cartridges are able to produce printouts without relying on ink to do it.
It’s not as complicated as it might seem. Here is a basic breakdown of how a printer toner cartridge works:
- A laser printer supplies a toner cartridge with electricity
- The electricity that is sent to a toner cartridge results in the formation of static electricity
- The static electricity in a toner cartridge pulls the toner powder in a toner cartridge to the inside of the toner drum
- The toner drum transfers toner from a toner cartridge to a sheet of printer paper
- The toner cartridge utilizes a component called a fuser to melt the toner powder on the sheet of printer paper so that it forms the desired character, image, etc.
All of this takes place within a matter of just seconds and creates a printout that dries faster than printouts created by ink cartridges. This process also delivers printouts that are a lot more precise than the ones produced by ink cartridges.
How Long Will a Toner Cartridge Last?
Since toner cartridges tend to be on the bigger side when compared to ink cartridges, they’ll last you a relatively long time. Every individual toner cartridge is slightly different, but you should be able to print out between 2,500 and 4,000 pages before having to replace a toner cartridge.
The exact time that a toner cartridge will last will depend on everything from what you’re printing out to which type of toner cartridge you buy in the first place. But you shouldn’t have to worry too much about toner cartridges running out of toner quickly.
What are the Best Toner Cartridges?
When you’re in the market for toner cartridges, you shouldn’t ever just buy the first ones that you can find. You should instead shop around for the best cartridges that money can buy.
Generally speaking, you’ll want to look for toner cartridges that are made for the specific type of printer that you’re buying them for. Some of the most popular types of laser printers are made by companies like:
- Brother
- Canon
- Dell
- HP
- IBM
- Lexmark
- Ricoh
- Samsung
- Xerox
- And more!
As you shop for toner cartridges, you should look for the ones that are designed to be used in your particular printers. They’ll be the ones that will produce the best results when you’re printing things out.
Where Can You Buy Toner Cartridges?
The global printer toner market is expected to be worth more than $7 billion soon. As a result, you’re going to find that there won’t be any shortage of options when you’re trying to buy toner cartridges.
You can find toner cartridges in most office supply stores. You can also find them in most big-box stores.
But if you want to order toner cartridges online and have them shipped directly to your front door for the best possible price, you should try to buy them from a place like PremiumToners. They have a large selection of toner cartridges available and can provide them to you for a price that your company can afford.
How Much Do Toner Cartridges Cost?
One of the only drawbacks of buying toner cartridges versus ink cartridges is that they’re going to cost you more money in the short term. It’s not uncommon at all to find some toner cartridges that cost well over $100.
But you’ll be thrilled to know that you won’t have to be concerned about replacing toner cartridges anywhere near as often as you’ll have to replace ink cartridges. This should save you money over the long run and make it more convenient to use toner cartridges.
You’ll also be thrilled to hear that you should be able to find plenty of high-quality toner cartridges out there that will cost under $100. In fact, there are quite a few that you can buy from places like PremiumToners for under $50.
When you invest in toner cartridges like this, you’ll save yourself both time and money. You won’t have to order toner cartridges very often, and you also won’t have to pay a small fortune to get your hands on them when you need them.
How Many Toner Cartridges Should You Buy at a Time?
If you work at a very small company that doesn’t do a whole lot of printing, you might be able to get away with only ordering one toner cartridge at a time. A single cartridge should last you for months on end before you have to order another one.
But if you work at a slightly larger company or a very big company, you’ll definitely want to look into buying toner cartridges in bulk. You’ll get to enjoy a whole host of benefits when you purchase toner cartridges in bulk.
Take a look at some of the benefits of buying toner cartridges in bulk:
- You’ll always have at least a few extra toner cartridges on hand when you buy several at once
- You’ll save money on toner cartridges when you buy more than one at a time
- You’ll make your employees more productive when they aren’t constantly running out of toner cartridges
- You’ll guarantee that your company is able to produce high-quality printouts when you have fresh toner cartridges on deck all the time
It’s also worth noting that most toner cartridges can be stored for at least 2 years, if not longer before they’ll go bad on you. It’s just one more reason why you should consider stocking up on toner cartridges by buying them in bulk whenever possible.
How Do You Dispose of Old Toner Cartridges?
When you’re done using a toner cartridge, you might be tempted to toss it right into the trash. But you should not do this if you can avoid it.
You should be able to recycle toner cartridges once they’re all out of toner. You should do your best to do this so that you’re able to cut down on the amount of waste that your company is producing.
Most of the companies that specialize in manufacturing toner cartridges are more than happy to take empty toner cartridges back from their clients. They’re able to take empty toner cartridges and bring them back to life so that they can be used again.
So before you throw an empty toner cartridge away with the rest of the trash your company creates, you should reach out to the company that manufactured it to see what they would recommend. They might be willing to take your old toner cartridges back so that they can be remanufactured.
You might also want to look into buying remanufactured toner cartridges for your company. These toner cartridges are usually cheaper than new toner cartridges and will produce the same great results for your business.
Buying these types of toner cartridges is a good way to make your company more eco-friendly without having to put in too much effort on your part.
Add Toner Cartridges to the List of Office Supplies That You Need
Is your company using laser toner cartridges to print things out at the moment? If you aren’t, you should strongly consider changing that ASAP.
As you’ve seen here today, there are so many benefits that will come along with using toner cartridges. These cartridges will save you time and money over the years while also giving your company’s printouts a big boost.
Are you interested in finding out about some of the other business products that your company should think about investing in? Browse through more of our blog articles to get the inside scoop on them.