Read this if you have a printer (Cheaperink)

Member Name: offy

Product:	Cheaperink
Date:	06/10/01 (67 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: extremely cheap ink, no p&P to pay, quick, excellent service

Disadvantages: No search facility

WWW.CHEAPERINK.CO.UK
This on-line shopping site does exactly what it says on the tin (well, website) – it sells you cheaper ink. They sell incredibly cheap ink cartridges for most well known manufacturers (they are not branded goods though) and ink refills for printer cartridges. I found this site by chance through a link from british-shopping.com site. They had a mystery shopping article about cheaperink and they came out really well.

The site is pretty basic (white background with blue and black writing), but quick and easy to use. On the left hand side is a list of links to move you around the site. The makes of printer listed are: Apple, Brother, Canon, Epson, Hewlett Packard, Lexmark, Olivetti and Xerox. The other links on the home page are: Home, Email us, Contact us, How to order, Delivery and Returns. Unfortunately there is no search facility.

The ‘e-mail us’ link opens up your e-mail application (in my case Outlook express) and addresses the e-mail accordingly. The ‘contact us’ link give the following contact details:

Telephone: 0870 7878554
Fax: 0870 7878625
Mobile: 07074 595960
E-mail: sales@cheaperink.co.uk
Post: AC Communications
Ink Department
79 March Street
Cumbria
LA14 2AD

I find this reassuring as you are not always given internet shop addresses. The ‘how to order’ link gives details of the various way of ordering which are (not surprisingly) on-line via a secure server, by telephone, by fax and by post. The ‘delivery’ link takes you to a page that explains that any orders received by 3.30 p.m. Monday to Friday will be dispatched the same day as long as the item is in stock. Packages are sent by first class recorded delivery to home and work addresses of the card holder. The link to ‘returns’ explains their returns policy. The main points are that faulty goods will be replaced free of charge, inco
rrectly ordered goods will be refunded subject to a 25% handling charge and the customer pays the return postage.

When you click on a printer make you get two choices: compatible cartridges and refill kits. When you click on one of these you are presented with a list of the products available for that manufacturer. I have an Epson Stylus Colour 440 printer and I have the choice of a black cartridge for £5.45 or a 3 colour cartridge for £9.45. To give you an idea of the incredible price savings here, an Epson branded black cartridge will set me back £22.00 and a non-branded one from WH Smiths will cost me £10.99. I am currently using these cartridges, and I can see absolutely no difference in the quality of the ink. I have not personally tried the ink refills as I am a mucky pup and I can image the mess I would get in. However, for my printer, I could get enough ink to fill 6 cartridges for £13.95 – what a bargain! Postage and packing is included in the price.

The list of products includes a product code and the usual link of ‘add to shopping basket’. If you click on this you can continue shopping or proceed to checkout, where you give your details in the same way as most on-line shopping sites.

I did my order late one evening. It must have been processed the following day, and the day after I received my package. It was packed well and the cartridges work fine. I have also contacted them by e-mail with a general query and the e-mail was answered within a few hours.

If you are happy with non-branded goods and have an eye for a bargain, this site is a must. I have been extremely impressed and will definitely be ordering here in future. You never know, I might even buy an apron, line the immediate area with newspaper, and give the refill kits a go.

Summary: