Poor inks won't sink despite Epson's criticism

The warning comes after Epson spoke out against the use of third party inks with the release of independent test results showing that Calidad inks have a poor life span.



"When Epson users see these results they should be in no doubt that using third party inks in their Epson printers will lead to rapid fading and loss of their precious photographs," said Mike Pleasants Epson's marketing communications director (pictured).


"I am sure that no parents would want to give or receive as a gift a framed photograph of treasured children, friends or relatives, or that special occasion, that can suffer significant fading in less than a year," Pleasants said.


Wilhelm Imaging Research (WIR), an independent laboratory and research institute for image permanence evaluation, tested samples of Calidad inks that are marketed as being suitable for use with Epson's home and office printers that use Epson's DURABrite pigment-based ink.


The Calidad package for the cyan, magenta, and yellow inks include the claim that the inks are "Waterproof," "Fadeproof," and "Pigment Ink." When tested with Calidad Photo Paper Glossy the inks had a WIR Display Permanence Rating of less than one year. Epson DURABrite inks used with Epson Premium Glossy Photo Paper used in the same Epson Stylus C87 printer achieved a WIR Display Permanence Rating of 40 years.


The conclusion of the tests, according to Henry Wilhelm, president of Wilhelm Imaging Research, Inc., is that displayed prints made with genuine Epson DURABrite pigment inks on Epson paper will last more than 40 times longer than prints made with the Calidad inks on Calidad paper.

"The Calidad ink cartridges appear to contain low-stability dye-based substitutes for Epson high-stability DURABrite pigment inks. The Calidad inks have poor resistance to atmospheric ozone that may be present in homes and offices, and the Calidad inks also give up waterfastness when printed on plain paper," Wilhelm said.


"If the Calidad Magenta ink is indeed a pigment ink as Calidad has claimed, it is by orders of magnitude the lowest stability pigment ink that we have ever tested. Calidad's claim that the inks are "Fadeproof" has no basis in fact and the company is misleading consumers in making such a claim. Wilhelm Imaging Research considers the permanence of the Calidad inks to be so poor that they are simply not suitable for printing photographs," Wilhelm continued.

But Robin Kenyon, managing director of Calidad dismisses these claims as trivial and admitted a reluctance to enter into an argy-bargy with Epson. "We're a small Australian company and are flattered for the attention," he said. "But they've only tested one group of inks and the claims are a bit misleading."

No Calidad customer has expressed their dissatisfaction with the company's inks, Kenyon says. "We do not claim the same performance," he admitted. "We acknowledge that Epson are the longest lasting in the business and have no problems telling people that."

One study of inks is not the be-all and end-all either, Kenyon adds. "There's different studies on how exposed photos get damaged; that's a fact of life in this industry," he said. Kenyon pointed to the wider-reaching issue that many people were not informed when it came to printing their photos, and would do well to receive further education on this. "The whole industry is geared to being too over-the-top instead of just showing people how to print their snaps," he said.

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