April 26, 2007

Kodak: Expensive Ink No More

If you're tired of buying cheap or low cost printers only to find your wallet and pockets emptied every time you buy printer cartridges, Kodak has come to the rescue.

Do you remember back oh....only a few months ago (it seems) when 1MB or 5MB of storage was all the free email services (such as Yahoo and Hotmail) offered.

Then Google came along and offered like buckets and buckets (1GB and counting) of storage and raised the storage minimum and features of what the "other guys" were doing.

Kodak is the new Google and HP, Lexmark and others are the new Yahoo's and Hotmail's (for now).

WSJ writes So, Kodak decided to reverse that business model. Its three new printers start at $149.99, not sub-$100 bargain prices. But its black ink cartridges cost just $9.99, and the color ones ó which combine five color inks ó just $14.99. And these are standard-capacity cartridges, not small or starter versions. Comparable H-P cartridges vary in price, but can easily cost double that, or more.

I'd rather pay a nominal additional cost for my printer, which will last me years and years and pay a lower cost for the printer cartridge. Than have to pay a low cost up front price for the printer and be robbed every time I buy a printer cartridge.

For now Kodak's targeting its printers at the home market. But if (when) it starts to sell printers to businesses, the printing industry is going to be quite different.

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