Straight Talk on the Cost of Printing: The BBB’s NAD Weighs In
Back in April, I wrote about The
Truth about Print and Proper's Cost of Ink Claims and how I think Kodak misleads
the public about the true cost of printing. To recap, I feel their claims just
don't add up. And I'm not the only one who's reached that conclusion. In recent
head-to-head reviews of comparable models, professional reviewers have found
that in tests of varying printouts (comparing black and white document prints and
color photo prints, for example) the cost per page is very close and in some
cases HP
prints can actually be more affordable than Kodak. Check out the objective reviews and tests
by respected media such as The
Boston Globe and Hardware
Geeks.
To bring you up to date: HP filed a complaint with The
National Advertising Division (NAD) of the Council of Better Business Bureaus.
On August 31, the NAD issued a press release stating that it had referred
advertising by Eastman Kodak to the Federal Trade Commission for further
review. Earlier today, the NAD released another statement to clarify certain
facts about the inquiry into Eastman Kodak's advertising claims: Although the
company asserted its claims are substantiated, Kodak refused to participate in
the review process or provide evidence in support of its advertising.
To be perfectly honest, I'm grateful to see that the NAD set
the record straight (you can see their release here).
I'm proud to work for a company that
welcomes healthy competition with open arms, but which also respects and
upholds truthful and accurate advertising.
As the market leader for more than 25 years, HP embraces
industry standard testing methodologies. When HP conducted apples-to-apples
testing and comparison of specific HP models vs. comparable Kodak models and
used realistic home inkjet print volumes provided by Lyra Research, we came up
with very different results than Kodak's misleading claims. In fact, when you compare the print volumes of typical home
customers, the savings could actually be as little as $1 a month. *
What's a buck worth to you? From the many conversations I've
had with customers, they overwhelmingly agree that the superior print quality,
reliability, performance and peace of mind you get when you buy HP is worth
much more than a dollar. Want to learn more about the printing
costs of HP printers? Go here.
As always, I invite your questions, comments and
suggestions.
* Comparing HP and Kodak products priced at $199 and $299.
Calculated using page yields provided by HP and Kodak based on ISO 24711 test
methodology, 4x6 photo yields provided by HP and Kodak including the cost of HP
Advanced and Kodak Ultra Studio Gloss media and cartridge prices from HP and
Kodak web sites. Annual document volume assumptions provided by Lyra Research,
Inc.: "Types of Documents Printed on Home Ink Jet Printers: 2006 U.S. Ink
Jet and Laser Home User Survey," published 1/26/2007.
