MacRaven - Dave Haxton's Weblog

Mon, 14 Aug 2006

but instead I'm chasing printers: our Canon i950 printer died this morning, with a "bad printhead". The replacement printhead costs $130. The HP 6890 I bought today to replace the whole printer cost me $134. But wait ...

I have over $60 worth of Canon ink carts installed in the now dead printer, all but one of them nearly brand new. Of course, HP uses their own ink cart, and the ones that came with the printer were "samples". So add $58 to the tally for the new printer (buying real ink carts), and add $60 to my loss on the old one.

Companies go to great pains to deny planning obsolescence into their products. Then they pull shit like this. Same thing happened to me three years ago with an Epson printer which is why I bought the Canon then. Now I've got the HP. I'm sure I'll run out of printer manufacturers someday, but in the meantime, I'm not going to do business with any company that treats me like this. If the same consumables aren't available when this new HP dies, then lookout Lexmark, here I come!

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On 8/14/2006 22:51:02
SB wrote

I'd caution against Lexmark, I've had nothing but trouble with them. The printer would prompt me to replace half full cartriges, the scanner would give out after a few scans, and the thing just guzzled ink for some reason. Most computer packages include a "free printer" in the deal, which ends up making it easier to take the printer you didn't need than fight them about it. Consequently, people who had perfectly good printers when they bought a new system have printers they don't need. I'm willing to bet there are people out there who want to sell off the extra printer for a good price. I've got one now I can't give away which never made it out of the box.

On 8/14/2006 23:20:39
Dave H wrote

Ha!

Lexmark was the first name that came to mind, actually! I don't expect any technology company to live up to their own hype, much less my expectations... Thanks for the comment and Be well, Dave H.

On 8/15/2006 01:00:14
Rubicon wrote

I would caution against LexMark as well. Plus I used to work for HP so don't sit on your laurels with that new printer. If you need tech support you're going to India ;)

On 8/15/2006 05:49:50
Thud wrote

I've seen a number of articles alledging that the cartridges are chipped or programmed to expire on certain dates (HP) or to prevent third-pary companies from manufacturing or refilling cartridges (Epson). The initial outlay is greater, but I bet the overall cost-per-page is much more reasonable on a color laser printer. We just bought a cheap B&W laser printer; color rarely adds anything to what we print out.

On 8/15/2006 10:50:01
Arwin wrote

Go laser

I've been using a cheap Brother mono laser printer <$100. Like Thud the color doesn't add much to what I print. I also agree laser is the way to go. The color laser printers are getting cheaper every day. I have had mixed results with HP.

On 8/15/2006 12:20:35
Dave H wrote

Lasers, Color and HP

Well, I really can't afford a laser printer right now: you see, I do have to have color, and I use the color nearly every day. I print my own labels for meat and eggs, and they look so much nicer in color. It's a relatively cheap way for me to get a little extra marketing bang for the buck. As for HP - well, my only bad experience with an HP inkjet printer to date has been when one got struck by lightening... and I'm not sure that counts! Laser printers, on the other hand, caused me no end of grief. And the brand didn't seem to matter much. I was enthralled with inkjet technology when it came around because I have had no end of bad luck with laser printers. Constant paper jams, toner spills, font issues, you name it, I've seen it. With any luck I'll never have to own another one as long as I live! Thanks for all the conversation, folks - I really wasn't expecting it! Be well, Dave H.

On 8/15/2006 16:13:59
Thorolf wrote

Oh, swell - I've got a Canon i950 myself... it's been great so far, but after 5 years of doing desktop support (including networked and local printers), I'd likewise caution against Lexmark (which, by the way, manufactures the printers that Dell rebrands, so caveats extend to Dell as well). HP lasers have been, on the whole, remarkably reliable (including the color lasers - which are gradually coming down to "overpriced" from "highway robbery"). Inkjets seem to be fussy no matter who makes them.

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MacRaven
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