Much has been said about how easy it is to refill cartridges. How cheap it is to manufacture something compatible. The reality is, as ever, that you get what you pay for.

The mechanisms and technology that make up toner cartridges are not built for repeated use. They do and will wear out, and so refilling them can and lead to faults, failures and occasionally a lot of mess. By constantly re-using equipment with a limited lifespan you are taking the gamble that it won't be this time that that vital little component stops working. And that when whichever part does give way it doesn't harm the printer in the process, or do so just as you need that hugely vital handout for a presentation in front of the boss.

New compatible cartridges are not all created equal either. Costs are cut by companies in their research, in their manufacture, materials used and in their design.

By 2007, over four years ago, Cannon had over 25,000 patents to their name. 25,000 individual patents over a 70 year history. Every year they continue to invest 10% of their net sales back into research and development. Many of the patents and much of that money was spent on making sure that the consumables for their printers worked as effectively, reliably and as efficiently as possible.

Different toner and ink formulas are used for different styles of machines; each providing the best possible fit to the printer's end users. Cannon use 7 different toner types in their cartridges. Such as a Quick Fixing Toner (QF Toner) to enhance the speed of prints in business mono-tone laser printers, and a Vivid Toner (V Toner) which provide the most professional colour image printing. Their choice of inkjet inks is also numerous, ensuring that they work to the highest standards and meet the customer's needs.

The patents Cannon holds for their cartridges, toner, toner bottles, drums, and other parts are vital to produce high-quality output and functionality. The research and development program used by Cannon tests various designs rigorously to achieve the maximum lifecycle, reliability and quality. All tests are carried out using the correct inks, toners and consumables.

Using Cannon on brand probably is the best way to provide consistent, reliable prints in a cost effective way. Arguably, it is the only cost effective way to run an expensive piece of precision engineering. You can spend less money and refill something that is not intended, nor designed, for repeated use. You can spend less money and use a cartridge that has toner that can work with the printer, and has been produced to with parts found to be compatible with a Canon printer. But you can't save that money and know that the parts were rigorously tested to see what long term effects the design has on a printer, or how the parts of machine and cartridge interact overtime. The difference is buying something made to work with and the printer, designed specifically for use with that printer or buying something that can do the job.