5 ms·

Why anyone bought HP printers in the last decade is beyond me. They aren't even good printers.

bognition 2y ago
Most people are not technically informed. Most people are the parents of students going to school, teachers, trades people opening a store… they walk into BestBuy and they recognize the brand HP. HP has massive marketing budgets and gets to package and discount their printers. Most people think they’re getting an amazing printer at a great deal.
- mrweasel 2y ago
  But why would you ever buy a second one? I can see people buying an HP printer because it's a good deal, on the surface, but when it's clearly not, then why replace it with a new HP?
  - op00to 2y ago
    My HP LaserJet MFP was a very good deal. It just works. Toner is expensive, but for residential use it lasts seemingly forever.
    - ryao 2y ago
      This site might be helpful to you: https://www.aaatoner.com/ https://www.aaatoner.com/ I plan to use them when my printers run out of toner, although I use them so infrequently these days that I suspect I might never need to replace the toner cartridges.
      - op00to 2y ago
        I have had bad experience with cheap toner replacements. I will never get covered with toner again because the cheap toner cartridge blew up.
  - ryao 2y ago
    When my first HP printer died after a few years, I had assumed it was bad luck since a relative with an identical model had no problems with his and he thought mine dying was somehow my fault. It continued to be used by him for something like 15 years. Seeing his printer continue to work, I brought another HP printer thinking it was just bad luck. Then that one died a few years later. My relative’s printer kept going, so I assumed it was bad luck and I brought a third HP printer that was an AIO model. During this time, I noticed that the ink costs were ridiculous, so I brought a Samsung laser printer and stopped printing with the HP printer, only using it for scanning. 19 years later, it is still around. The ink cartridges no longer work, but it is used as an occasional scanner. Since having to use xsane to make copies for my father was annoying, I brought an AIO canon color laser printer a year or two ago. Now I have three printers, and they all work, except for the HP, which is not given the new ink cartridges that it needs. That said, I now realize that the secret to HP printer longevity is to not use it as a printer. That is how my relative’s printer lasted so long, as he likely printed infrequently. His was a print only model, so he did not even use it as a scanner like I do with mine.
  - mrguyorama 2y ago
    My HP deskjet 2400 was $30 brand new in the mid 2000s, the ink cost $20, is still sold, and the printer still works perfectly, including being able to install the old drivers on modern computers, without all the bullshit add-on software that they usually want you to install. The main problem is that I have to buy a new ink cartridge basically every time I want to print, because I print so rarely.
- layer8 2y ago
  > HP has massive marketing budgets and gets to package and discount their printers. No wonder they need to get the money back from ink.
Nextgrid 2y ago
Because the average consumer has zero way to judge the quality of a printer or the likelihood of them doing something like this, either now or in the future (considering how well this turned out for HP, there's no reason why their competitors wouldn't try doing the same thing).
loloquwowndueo 2y ago
My printer has worked really well and for whichever reason I haven’t been hit by any of those HP shenanigans. Maybe it’s because I haven't installed any HP drivers or software? Not needed on Linux or ios which is what I have. Works great, network-enabled and supports AirPrint so we can print from our phones (95% of our printing needs). Toner is expensive and I’ve only ever used HP toner; third-party toner requires cannibalizing the chip from original cartridges which I’m too lazy to do. Color Laserjet pro m255dw. I still probably wouldn’t buy another HP given all the user hostility :)
- hundchenkatze 2y ago
  > third-party toner requires cannibalizing the chip from original cartridges which I’m too lazy to do Isn't this exactly the shenanigans being discussed? You should be free to use third-party toner without having to do this.
- dpb001 2y ago
  m255dw owner also. You only have to swap the chips if you want the level reporting functions to work. I’ve used a couple of different third-party cartridges out of the box and just replaced them when empty. But, I have found that the reliability of the lowest cost cartridges is poor.
  - loloquwowndueo 2y ago
    Oh! Would you mind sharing which third-party brands worked well for you? Thanks!
    - dpb001 2y ago
      Well, my replacement cycle is > 1 year and I have found that the suppliers on Amazon have a shorter life than that. I've ordered a full set of replacements twice and the last was from a seller named CMYBabee. After about a year the magenta started transferring toner to whatever I was printing. I was in the middle of printing tax returns and just went to the nearest Best Buy and bought an HP replacement. I should add that I sent a note to the vendor about the problem and they were eager to send a replacement. I didn't bother since I was already set.
RockRobotRock 2y ago
Are their laserjet MFPs bad?
- op00to 2y ago
  No. I have one and it’s great.
op00to 2y ago
My Color Laserjet M478f-9f purchased two years ago is amazing. It required no configuration for phones or computers, scans and faxes prints, and is generally a high quality piece of kit. It is the best printer I’ve owned, and I have owned a few Brother laser printers and old school Laserjets. Hell, I owned one of the first NEC postscript laser printers back in the 90s. It’s not cheap, but it just works. I can’t defend the bullshit business practices, but the “medium” business class Laserjets are high quality. I wouldn’t touch anything SMB or residential with a 50 foot pole.
josefx 2y ago
Cheap up front cost and an unwillingness to estimate long term costs.
unyttigfjelltol 2y ago
The problem is when competitors follow HP in this product-enshittification.
bayindirh 2y ago
I don't understand this broad take. HP makes two classes of printers for home and SOHO market. Low end and High End. There's no middle (aka the Sony model). Lower end printers are really low quality. They have low monthly output thresholds, have lower quality ink, and have low end hardware which needs firmware on every boot, etc. They wear out and die. I worn one down, I know. Their higher end printers are good. They use better inks. They cartridges are more reasonable (Ink Advantage Series), they work really well with anything from mac OS to Linux to your kitchen sink, because they talk PDF over well defined protocols, and they're reliable. They last more than a decade, and they don't wear down. My 4510 still goes strong, for example, and it works like the way I bought it the first day. If you go even higher end, these models use full pigment ink sets for even more durable and color correct prints. Higher end home printers use pigment black and dye color sets. Aren't there other good brands? Oh yes. Lexmark's lasers are good. Samsung used to make terrific laser printers with Xerox. People say Brother is also good. I didn't use them, I can't comment. Lastly, I always say and will always say so. Not all ink is created equal, ink is not simple science. There's a specific reason why HP and Xerox have their own labs and patents on ink/toner formulation and delivery.

Most people are not technically informed. Most people are the parents of students going to school, teachers, trades people opening a store… they walk into BestBuy and they recognize the brand HP. HP has massive marketing budgets and gets to package and discount their printers. Most people think they’re getting an amazing printer at a great deal.

mrweasel 2y ago
But why would you ever buy a second one? I can see people buying an HP printer because it's a good deal, on the surface, but when it's clearly not, then why replace it with a new HP?
- op00to 2y ago
  My HP LaserJet MFP was a very good deal. It just works. Toner is expensive, but for residential use it lasts seemingly forever.
  - ryao 2y ago
    This site might be helpful to you: https://www.aaatoner.com/ https://www.aaatoner.com/ I plan to use them when my printers run out of toner, although I use them so infrequently these days that I suspect I might never need to replace the toner cartridges.
    - op00to 2y ago
      I have had bad experience with cheap toner replacements. I will never get covered with toner again because the cheap toner cartridge blew up.
- ryao 2y ago
  When my first HP printer died after a few years, I had assumed it was bad luck since a relative with an identical model had no problems with his and he thought mine dying was somehow my fault. It continued to be used by him for something like 15 years. Seeing his printer continue to work, I brought another HP printer thinking it was just bad luck. Then that one died a few years later. My relative’s printer kept going, so I assumed it was bad luck and I brought a third HP printer that was an AIO model. During this time, I noticed that the ink costs were ridiculous, so I brought a Samsung laser printer and stopped printing with the HP printer, only using it for scanning. 19 years later, it is still around. The ink cartridges no longer work, but it is used as an occasional scanner. Since having to use xsane to make copies for my father was annoying, I brought an AIO canon color laser printer a year or two ago. Now I have three printers, and they all work, except for the HP, which is not given the new ink cartridges that it needs. That said, I now realize that the secret to HP printer longevity is to not use it as a printer. That is how my relative’s printer lasted so long, as he likely printed infrequently. His was a print only model, so he did not even use it as a scanner like I do with mine.
- mrguyorama 2y ago
  My HP deskjet 2400 was $30 brand new in the mid 2000s, the ink cost $20, is still sold, and the printer still works perfectly, including being able to install the old drivers on modern computers, without all the bullshit add-on software that they usually want you to install. The main problem is that I have to buy a new ink cartridge basically every time I want to print, because I print so rarely.
layer8 2y ago
> HP has massive marketing budgets and gets to package and discount their printers. No wonder they need to get the money back from ink.

Nextgrid 2y ago

Because the average consumer has zero way to judge the quality of a printer or the likelihood of them doing something like this, either now or in the future (considering how well this turned out for HP, there's no reason why their competitors wouldn't try doing the same thing).

loloquwowndueo 2y ago

My printer has worked really well and for whichever reason I haven’t been hit by any of those HP shenanigans. Maybe it’s because I haven't installed any HP drivers or software? Not needed on Linux or ios which is what I have. Works great, network-enabled and supports AirPrint so we can print from our phones (95% of our printing needs). Toner is expensive and I’ve only ever used HP toner; third-party toner requires cannibalizing the chip from original cartridges which I’m too lazy to do. Color Laserjet pro m255dw. I still probably wouldn’t buy another HP given all the user hostility :)

hundchenkatze 2y ago
> third-party toner requires cannibalizing the chip from original cartridges which I’m too lazy to do Isn't this exactly the shenanigans being discussed? You should be free to use third-party toner without having to do this.
dpb001 2y ago
m255dw owner also. You only have to swap the chips if you want the level reporting functions to work. I’ve used a couple of different third-party cartridges out of the box and just replaced them when empty. But, I have found that the reliability of the lowest cost cartridges is poor.
- loloquwowndueo 2y ago
  Oh! Would you mind sharing which third-party brands worked well for you? Thanks!
  - dpb001 2y ago
    Well, my replacement cycle is > 1 year and I have found that the suppliers on Amazon have a shorter life than that. I've ordered a full set of replacements twice and the last was from a seller named CMYBabee. After about a year the magenta started transferring toner to whatever I was printing. I was in the middle of printing tax returns and just went to the nearest Best Buy and bought an HP replacement. I should add that I sent a note to the vendor about the problem and they were eager to send a replacement. I didn't bother since I was already set.

RockRobotRock 2y ago

Are their laserjet MFPs bad?

op00to 2y ago
No. I have one and it’s great.

op00to 2y ago

My Color Laserjet M478f-9f purchased two years ago is amazing. It required no configuration for phones or computers, scans and faxes prints, and is generally a high quality piece of kit. It is the best printer I’ve owned, and I have owned a few Brother laser printers and old school Laserjets. Hell, I owned one of the first NEC postscript laser printers back in the 90s. It’s not cheap, but it just works. I can’t defend the bullshit business practices, but the “medium” business class Laserjets are high quality. I wouldn’t touch anything SMB or residential with a 50 foot pole.

josefx 2y ago

Cheap up front cost and an unwillingness to estimate long term costs.

unyttigfjelltol 2y ago

The problem is when competitors follow HP in this product-enshittification.

bayindirh 2y ago

I don't understand this broad take. HP makes two classes of printers for home and SOHO market. Low end and High End. There's no middle (aka the Sony model). Lower end printers are really low quality. They have low monthly output thresholds, have lower quality ink, and have low end hardware which needs firmware on every boot, etc. They wear out and die. I worn one down, I know. Their higher end printers are good. They use better inks. They cartridges are more reasonable (Ink Advantage Series), they work really well with anything from mac OS to Linux to your kitchen sink, because they talk PDF over well defined protocols, and they're reliable. They last more than a decade, and they don't wear down. My 4510 still goes strong, for example, and it works like the way I bought it the first day. If you go even higher end, these models use full pigment ink sets for even more durable and color correct prints. Higher end home printers use pigment black and dye color sets. Aren't there other good brands? Oh yes. Lexmark's lasers are good. Samsung used to make terrific laser printers with Xerox. People say Brother is also good. I didn't use them, I can't comment. Lastly, I always say and will always say so. Not all ink is created equal, ink is not simple science. There's a specific reason why HP and Xerox have their own labs and patents on ink/toner formulation and delivery.