Big mistake - updating HP printer software

[aferris2]

Decided to update my printer software yesterday because, as we all know, it's good to keep everything up to date...
Wrong! The update will only work with genuine HP toner cartridges.
I did eventually manage to downgrade (see this link) back to a version that does work. Of course, having done this you then have to change the settings to make sure it doesn't try to upgrade itself automatically.
The printer, a colour laserjet, cost around £100 a few years ago. 3rd party high capacity toner set (black, magenta, yellow, cyan) was around £99 last November. Genuine HP toner (from the HP store) is an eye-watering £455.96.
One good thing I did find out was how to make the printer work if any of the cartridges ran out. The default setting is to refuse to print until new cartridges are inserted. Strange that!

 

[swee'pea99]

Genuine HP toner (from the HP store) is an eye-watering £455.96.

 

[fossyant]

I've used third party ink for years. No adverse effects, only the occasional duff cartridge, but at £2 a pop and not £15, I can live with that. The printer just grumbles you haven't put original ink in.

 

[swee'pea99]

Wrong! The update will only work with genuine HP toner cartridges.

It's hard to see that as anything other than a company nobbling your property, for which you've paid, to serve their commercial interests. The law is way behind the game on this sort of thing. In a similar vein, I bought an app to rid my samsung phone of their rotten bloatware. Over the next couple of updates, it all came back again, effectively degrading my property.

 

[Mr Celine]

Epson are just as bad. The scanner I had in my last printer/scanner was really good but it won't even scan if it thinks any of the ink cartridges are empty. (They aren't empty, but printer says they are). So yet more junk to landfill as it was cheaper to get a new printer/scanner than refill the old one.

 

[MartinQ]

Tbh, it's hardly a secret they (just about everyone) sells subsidised printers and then expensive toner.
https://www.crn.com/news/components-peripherals/hp-shaking-up-its-print-business-model

Having said that, they could be trying to recoup the costs of the Autonomy takeover from us

 

[swee'pea99]

Tbh, it's hardly a secret they (just about everyone) sells subsidised printers and then expensive toner.
https://www.crn.com/news/components-peripherals/hp-shaking-up-its-print-business-model

It's one thing to sell obscenely overpriced ink, it's another to force its purchase.

 

[aferris2]

Tbh, it's hardly a secret they (just about everyone) sells subsidised printers and then expensive toner.
https://www.crn.com/news/components-peripherals/hp-shaking-up-its-print-business-model

Having said that, they could be trying to recoup the costs of the Autonomy takeover from us

I don't think I will buy another HP (if I ever have to) purely because of the tactic of forcing me to use their supplies. I use android devices for the same reason. I'm not tied into a single source.

 

[MartinQ]

It's one thing to sell obscenely overpriced ink, it's another to force its purchase.

Largely agree, I always just use the basic driver, don't install the other bloatware and use 3rd party cartridges. Also check before buying that the 3rd party cartridges work.

 

[CanucksTraveller]

Me: Printer, could you please print this single B&W page of text? Thanks.

HP: Not possible. Your cyan is low. You need to buy and install another cyan cartridge. Oh and do it through me. None of that Amazon or Tesco sh1t, or you and I will fall out, BIG time.

Me: But I only need to print one page of black text, and I only replaced the black cartridge yesterday. It's full. I promise I'll get you a cyan soon, when I need to print colour. For now, just use black please.

HP: Look knucklehead, these Porsches don't buy themselves. Cyan, now. What, when you bought this, you actually thought we'd be done at a measly hundred quid?
Click on the link I've given you and do as you're told.

 

[HMS_Dave]

My canon printer has been telling me by black ink has been running out since Christmas. Im still printing invoices and delivery notes on it in March...

 

[Rezillo]

As the OP found, the HP updates that nobble third party cartridges are firmware updates, not driver ones. You can't over-ride them but the OP's link shows how to revert to an earlier firmware version.

This has been going on for a while. I assigned my HP printer a fixed IP address and then blocked all internet traffic to and from it in my router's firewall. Apart from stopping notification messages, that also helps stop it being hacked if a firmware update you don't want to install is essential to fix a security issue. I can still update the drivers manually.

 

[aferris2]

I would love to know how you can be sure that a printer will accept 3rd party cartridges BEFORE you have actually bought the thing. Given that the supplied (fairly empty) cartridges will likely last long enough to be outside the normal return to vendor timeframe, I would imagine returning on the basis of "not fit for..." is going to be difficult.

HP have lots of settings that you have to get right:
1. Autoupdate: Default is ON...
1. Allow updates [to the firmware]: Needs to be ON to install the downgrade, but OFF to prevent further upgrades
2. Cartridge policy: Turn to ON to allow only genuine HP cartridges. Setting this to OFF doesn't allow 3rd party cartridges either.
3. Cartridge protection: ON prevents cartridges being used in another printer
4. Very low setting (ink level): STOP is the default. Other (more useful) options are PROMPT, or CONTINUE
5. Low ink level: 1 - 100%. Default seems to be 10%
There may be more.........

 

[MartinQ]

I would love to know how you can be sure that a printer will accept 3rd party cartridges BEFORE you have actually bought the thing. Given that the supplied (fairly empty) cartridges will likely last long enough to be outside the normal return to vendor timeframe, I would imagine returning on the basis of "not fit for..." is going to be difficult.

HP have lots of settings that you have to get right:
1. Autoupdate: Default is ON...
1. Allow updates [to the firmware]: Needs to be ON to install the downgrade, but OFF to prevent further upgrades
2. Cartridge policy: Turn to ON to allow only genuine HP cartridges. Setting this to OFF doesn't allow 3rd party cartridges either.
3. Cartridge protection: ON prevents cartridges being used in another printer
4. Very low setting (ink level): STOP is the default. Other (more useful) options are PROMPT, or CONTINUE
5. Low ink level: 1 - 100%. Default seems to be 10%
There may be more.........

I generally just look for reviews and not necessarily buy the absolutely latest model and wouldn't get HP for the reasons above. My Ricoh b&w laser printer was £25 and replacement toners are ~£25 ish. Deliberately got it in addition to the colour laser printer for the kids to print volumes cheaply.

 

[Drago]

All my gear is HP (not sauce), pooter, printer, external storage, etc, and I don't find HP refills all that bad. Certainly they last better than the generic stuff, which offsets things a little. Im guessing perhaps your printer is a little more upmarket than my injkjet job?