Yet another reason I really don’t want anything to do with Inkjet Printers (regardless if it is an HP or another brand). Back in 2017 I bought what I believe was a Brother wireless color inkjet printer. Thought it would be good for everyone in the household to have easy access to a printer. Turns out, we never used the printer that much and the ink would dry out (especially in our super dry Arizona climate). I think I took it with me when I left and then ended up donating it a couple months later since I had no use for it. Prior to that I had an HP all-in-one (Printer/Scanner/Fax) inkjet black printer which was used quite a bit for receiving and sending faxes. It also scanned, but it was not a flatbed so I was limited as to what I could scan with that device.
Back in the early 2010’s my father bought an HP M1212nf Multi-Function (Laser) Printer. Soon thereafter I bought one for my home office. Fast-forward over 10-years later and I believe both of our printers are still on the original starter toner cartridge. Every time I power mine on, I get a warning light on the control panel that the toner is low. This has been going on for almost four years now. One of these days, I’ll open up the unit remove the toner cartridge give a good shake or two to redistribute the toner evenly.
Turns out, while I do a lot of scanning, I don’t do a heck of a lot printing. There is an occasional form someone emails me that I need to sign then scan and email back. If I had certain HP Inkjet Printers and was in the same with low ink, HP would not allow me to use the scanner (or FAX) functions. Yes, HP requires you to have a minimum amount of ink left in order to scan or send a FAX. HP, try as they may has been trying to get a class action lawsuit pertaining to this cause thrown-out:
On Aug. 10, a federal judge ruled that HP Inc. must face a class-action lawsuit claiming that the company designs its “all-in-one” inkjet printers to disable scanning and faxing functions whenever a single printer ink cartridge runs low. The company had sought — for the second time — to dismiss the lawsuit on technical legal grounds.
“It is well-documented that ink is not required in order to scan or to fax a document, and it is certainly possible to manufacture an all-in-one printer that scans or faxes when the device is out of ink,” the plaintiffs wrote in their complaint. “Indeed, HP designs its all-in-one printer products so they will not work without ink. Yet HP does not disclose this fact to consumers.”
It has been so long, I don’t recall how much I paid for this printer. What I do know is it has more than paid for itself time and time again not having to constantly replenished the dried out ink. It also prints faster and cleaner than an Inkjet would. Let us not forget how, HP has made news for bricking their Inkjet printers if you don’t use HP Genuine (overpriced) ink cartridges. In Fall 2022, HP Settle with EU Printer Customers over Dynamic Security Issues (one of the few times I actually agree with a lawsuit brought by the EU).
TL;DR If you are in the market for an all-in-one printer, buy a laser not an Inkjet. The higher upfront cost will be more than made up with the increased performance as well as not having to replace dried out ink constantly. Plus, even if you run low/out of toner you retain the ability to send Faxes and scan.
via AP News
