Which cartridge fits the HP DeskJet Ultra 4927?

Seven times the yield of an ordinary cartridge

The ratio shows better against what is sold alongside it:

• a PG-445 for the PIXMA TS3640: 180 pages;
• a PG-445XL, the high-capacity version: 400 pages;
• an Ultra HP 47 black: 1,300 pages.

That is not a difference of degree, it is another business model. Ultra machines are designed for markets where the cartridge weighs more heavily than the printer in the budget: you pay a little more up front in order to come back to it almost never.

At an ISO speed of 8.5 pages per minute and a recommended volume of 1,000 pages a month, this is no office machine. But for a household, a student or a small business, a black that holds 1,300 pages changes the nature of the expense.

What the box actually contains

The machine ships with two starter cartridges of each colour — two blacks and two tri-colours. That is unusual and deliberate: enough to print for a long time before the first purchase. Those starter cartridges have a lower yield than a replacement HP 47; do not base your consumption estimate on them.

A tri-colour, with what that implies

The three colours share a single cartridge. When one of them runs out, the whole cartridge has to be changed, even if yellow and magenta are left. It is the usual compromise of compact inkjets — the PIXMA TS3440 makes it the subject of its page.

Two habits to waste nothing: print a colour page at least once a week, which keeps the nozzles open, and leave the machine plugged in so it can run its maintenance cycles on its own.