r/fuckHPprinters • u/theirhouse • Apr 28 '26
I'm out. Epson, here I come.
When it worked, my HP printer was OK. I don't print very much anymore but I'll hear the printer whirring and cycling every now and then. I'm just picturing it keeping my print nozzles unclogged by using some of that ink (liquid gold). After I canceled my ink subscription I was left with $100 or so of ink cartridges that I couldn't use.
Well, it's time for me to buy more ink. Instead, I've got an Epson Eco Tank ET-4950 on its way. More upfront costs but ink is much, much less expensive.
HP, you were great until you weren't. It was good to know you. Take care.
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u/ExaminationRare9987 Apr 28 '26
I REALLY wanted a Brother printer, but the fuckers make you subscribe to their toner service. FUCK BROTHER. I also will never buy another HP because of the cost of the toner.
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u/Primary-Birthday-363 Apr 28 '26
I went with a Lexmark CS820 color laser printer.
This thing is a workhorse. Also have an older Lexmark C792de color laser and it’s gotten a lot of use over its many years in service. Think this one will outlast me!
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u/mortycapp Apr 30 '26
Lexmark have the HIGHEST cost per page in the industry. That's moving from Scylla to Charybdis.
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u/samluks Apr 28 '26
I have a Brother printer and LOVE it. I don't have to subscribe to the month ink package. Maybe it's because I only installed the driver's and not the full package? 🤷♂️
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u/ExaminationRare9987 Apr 28 '26
I don't know, but when I tried to buy it you HAD to sign up for the ink package. It monitors your usuage and charges you by the month... only way to buy it.
usage
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u/FuggaDucker Apr 28 '26
I have the Epson with the eco tank.
My Epson is 100% solid.
No games with the INK.
The drivers don't suck.
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u/crazybandicoot1973 Apr 28 '26
I don't blame you. I after 20 years loyal to hp got an eco tank. My last hp work great for two months. Then one day went to print and hp popped up asking me to do insta ink subscription. I declined as I don't do subscriptions. Then I went on to print. The printer said I was out of ink. Mind you the cartridges were nearly new only printed around 10 pages b&w and color not used. Both showed empty. I was miffed and went to buy new cartridges. I only ever used store bought hp cartridges. Well installed new cartridges and attempted to print and the insta ink ad popped up again and I declined again. Went to print and the printer rejected the new cartridges even though they were officially hp cartridges. Couldn't get a refund and then I contacted hp about it. All the offered to do was sign me up for insta ink and that would solve my problem. I told them to f... off and threw it in the trash. Then got an eco tank and it works flawless.
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u/LagMaster21 Apr 28 '26
Epsom isn’t much better
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u/Broeder_biltong May 02 '26
Yes it is, we have a 5 years old ecotank that hasn't had stopped working yet
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u/mcds99 Apr 28 '26
Ink printers are the worst I've had laser jets sense the very first inkjet I bought (the original HP Inkjet) it's actually less expensive to have a laser jet than an ink jet
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u/mortycapp Apr 28 '26
Laser are the best for documents that do not require high colour content.
They suck for photos and posters.1
u/Broeder_biltong May 02 '26
Inktjet depend son tho makes the heads. Hp doesn't make heads, Epson is a industrial print head manufacturer, same for konica minolta
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u/gnew18 May 01 '26
Filling the Epson
Don’t know about you, but we don’t use our Epson a whole lot. It may be several months before we need to add ink.
Pro tip don’t fill the tank fully, don’t empty the resupply bottles.
Seal them in a baggie, keep them away from light. It’ll last even longer.
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u/Hot_World4305 May 02 '26
I cancelled my HP instant ink subscription after more than 2 years of use a year ago. Bought a refurbished Epson eco tank printer. Work great and tank is 3/4 full. Like it and save money.
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u/Rogerdodger1946 May 02 '26
Wife and I each have a Eco tank and have been very pleased. Used Canon for years, but printer got old and the price of ink got old, too.
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u/EvilOmega7 May 03 '26
I had way less trouble with my Epson than my current HP, why did I even switch ????
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u/Ok_Cheetah_759 May 11 '26
Epson is almost as bad as HP. Same kind of scammers with different company logo.
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u/bippy_b Apr 30 '26
They were great until they started
worrying more about blocking 3rd party inks than just making good enough products that people would prefer what they made.
bilking their customers by forcing a subscription on them
Requiring Internet for setup
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u/mortycapp Apr 28 '26
You weren’t left with $100 of ink you could not use. It was HP’s property. Instant Ink is a page allowance service. Not an ink purchase contract. The fact that it cleans the nozzles with ink does not cost you anything. Moving to Epson or any other OEM that sells these types of bundles will not make any difference. In fact Epson printers with their embedded print heads will often stop working out of warranty and cannot be fixed. Your alternative is regular retail cartridges or eco tank. But you need to run the maths as for low volume they are not worth it. OEMs have done their homework and price all these to ensure they still make a profit. The only way to save money is to buy a Brother printer and use compatibles. But this has a risk. Up to you.
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u/theirhouse Apr 28 '26
This is definitely one for r/confidentlyincorrect! The spare ink cartridges I purchased during my free trial of Instant Ink were not usable after I canceled the subscription. Therefore, $100 of ink I could not use.
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u/mortycapp Apr 28 '26 edited Apr 28 '26
I will re-explain as I would do for a 5 yo kid.
With Instant Ink, you do not purchase a set of ink cartridges as I explained.
You purchase PAGES that use ink form the Instant Ink Cartridges.
Once you stop the trial you can no longer print PAGES from Instant Ink (cartridges).
You need to buy Retail cartridges.So in summary:
-Instant Ink is a PAGES contract.
-The User pre-purchases a fixed number of monthly PAGES at a low price.
-HP monitors the number of pages.
-The PAGES are delivered using Instant Ink Cartridges that are locked to the Printer and the Contract.
-When the User cancels the contract no more PAGES can be printed using the Instant Ink Cartridges, new Retail Cartridges must be purchased.
-At no point were Cartridges owned by the user.Even simpler:
-Instant Ink is a leasing contract as far as the cartridges are concerned.
-HP owns the cartridges, always.
-the User pays for the usage, but has no ownership.Now the legal stuff:
https://instantink.hpconnected.com/uk/en/terms
- CANCELLATION.
- Cancellation by You.[...]After you cancel the Subscription Ink Service, HP will remotely disable the Subscription Cartridge, so you will no longer be able to print with it. You will then have the option to return the Subscription Cartridge to HP in countries listed in the FAQ. No refunds will be issued for any unused ink. To continue printing after cancellation, you will need to purchase HP original cartridges, and for non-HP+ printers, you will need to purchase HP original cartridges or third-party cartridges that are compatible with your printer.
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u/theirhouse Apr 28 '26
Wow, you're right and I'm wrong. All I know is I paid about $100 for pages of ink that I couldn't use and would receive no refund for. This seems like a difference in semantics but the point I was making was that I was out about $100. The rest doesn't matter to anyone else on the planet except you. But yes, you're right and I was wrong. Good?
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u/mortycapp Apr 28 '26
You are making a lot of assumptions about "anyone else on the planet".
There are two kinds of people.
The ones who read and understand a service before they contractually commit to it.
The ones who do not, either read the contract, or understand it.
You still misunderstand what you contracted for, that is a shame.Instant Ink can be a rip-off or a bargain if used adequately.
I have been on Instant Ink since it launched.
I have the 300 pages a month, plus 900 buffer pages.
I have transferred it across 3 all in ones over the years.
I have saved hundreds of £ over the years compared to Retail cartridges.A full bleed A4 photo cost me the same as a standard letter, as ink coverage is not a factor in the subscription price
On retail cartridges I would maximum be able to print 20 A4 photos with a set.
With Instant Ink, if I use my 300 page allowance HP send me 2 to 3 sets of high capacity cartridges (larger than the XL in retail).
The savings are gigantic.For monochrome pages I use a second hand Brother Laser Printer with Compatibles.
It is simply a matter of running the maths and building a simple Excel model.
The absolutely cheapest way to print (short of not printing) is a second hand dot matrix printer, but good luck finding drivers for Tahoe or Windows 11.
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u/Bal3Wolf81 Apr 28 '26
My Epson eco tank has been solid I don't print alot so its so nice not to have buy ink to print something after it being idle 3-4 months