W2112X yellow · XL

W2112X is the yellow in HP's 206X set, fitting the same two printers as the rest of the range: the Color LaserJet Pro M255dw and the MFP M283fdw. Rated at 2450 pages against 1250 on the standard W2112A, it prints at 5.10c a page rather than 6.00c.

Of the four X cartridges in this family, yellow is the one to think hardest about. Most offices use less of it than of any other colour, so the larger size can outlast the printer. It earns its place on a machine producing marketing material, maps or anything with wide pale backgrounds, where yellow goes down heavily and the smaller cartridge runs out too quickly.

If you do run compatibles, the chip is where the differences show. Third party toner reports levels through a chip the printer reads, and on high yield cartridges those readings are the least reliable of the range: some read full until they abruptly read empty. Judge by the page rather than the gauge, and keep a spare once colour starts looking thin at the edges of solid blocks.

HP's data sheet for the M255dw carries the dynamic security notice, so an update can refuse a compatible that had been working. Remanufactured cartridges built on reused original HP chips are the safer third party route by the wording of that notice. Check the regional number as well, since this cartridge is sold as 206X in some markets and 207X in others.