With the rise of Amazon and ebay has come a spike in aftermarket components and supplies for particularly expensive or commonly replaced items like batteries, screens, and printer ink/toner.

It is our opinion that this has largely been a race to the bottom in terms of quality, and that established brand names mean something more than ever before, since larger companies won't put their name on something that hasn't been rigorously tested.  We've experienced numerous problems with these aftermarket components and supplies, and while we don't necessarily want to discourage you from trying aftermarket parts from reputable suppliers, we want you to consider the significant downsides.

• At the very least, you should always purchase from a place that has free returns, because at the very least, the seller has a financial incentive not to put complete garbage on the market that they'll have to pay to take back.
• You should consider the labor costs involved in returning and replacing the unit a second time if it does not work
• Poor quality components have the potential to ruin devices altogether, costing you more than the replacement piece was worth in the first place.

We recommend that for things you replace infrequently, you stick to OEM (or well-established aftermarket suppliers).  If you have something like toner that you change frequently, experiment a little, find an aftermarket brand you like, and don't be tempted to switch, just because some other brand has a slightly lower price.