| This is a small complaint in the grand scheme of things, but one that might save you some hassle. I recently ordered an HP 57 Inkjet Print Cartridge from 4inkjets.com . The cartridge arrived with an LD Products (the actual company name) sticker on the box. I didn’t think anything of it until a couple of months later when I had a coupon or discount code and ordered another HP 57 and an HP 58. Again the HP 57 had an LD Products sticker. However, the HP 58 did not. |
Curious, I peeled back the sticker and made out an install by date of February 2006 (see pictures below), which means the expiration date was August 2006, over two years ago. I checked the cartridge I received earlier in the year and found the same, ancient install by date.
I contacted 4inkjets and requested either a replacement cartridge that had not exceeded the install by date or a significant discount. You can buy expired inkjet print cartridges on eBay
at half the normal retail cost. They refused my requests and offered a 1-year warranty (their standard policy is no warranty on opened OEM products) or a full refund provided I paid for the return shipping. Apparently, they got a great deal on a stockpile of expired HP 57 cartridges and that is all they have in inventory right now. I would not have a problem with that if they had been upfront about the expired nature of the cartridges and adjusted the price accordingly. Instead, they charge full price, cover the expiration date with a sticker, and hope customers will not notice.
More likely than not, the cartridges should still work fine. Unfortunately, if the print quality is less than optimal or the cartridges fail prematurely or need frequent cleaning, I will have little recourse. I guess I will take my chances. I do not want to pay $5 to ship the cartridges back for a refund. If I order from 4inkjets/LD Products in the future, I will contact them to verify the expiration date first.
(2009-09-12 Update - Aaron Leon, founder of 4inkjets.com, came across my blog a few months ago and contacted me. He offered to pick up the return shipping and issue a full refund. Better late than never. I accepted.)
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