HP issues firmware update that bans third-party ink cartridges... again

[Greg S]

A year ago, Hewlett Packard issued a firmware update for OfficeJet series printers that prevented third-party ink cartridges from being used. Now, it appears as though the exact same update has been reissued to stop owners from buying discounted third-party ink.

The firmware update was first spotted earlier this week and affects a number of OfficeJet models including the OfficeJet 6800, OfficeJet Pro 6200, 6800, 8600, and OfficeJet Pro X 400/500 series. According to German supplier Super Patronen, over 50 customers have reported problems using third-party ink.

If an unapproved ink cartridge is detected, the printer will return an error message, "One or more cartridges appear to be damaged. Remove them and replace with new cartridges." Some users are reporting that having at least one HP-branded cartridge installed suppresses the error message.

Fortunately, there is a relatively simple fix to allow continued use of cheaper cartridges. The error originates from HP's Dynamic Security feature which can be removed by applying a second firmware update.

Whether the firmware update was intentionally made to disable third-party ink cartridges is unclear but if past behavior is any indicator, HP was likely well aware of the effects of its own security features. At least this time, a fix is readily available.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/70984-hp-issues-firmware-update-bans-third-party-ink.html

 

[namesrejected]

Yep, I will never buy an HP product again. We had so much trouble with our last HP, went with Epson and havent had an issue since.

 

[stewi0001]

If I ever have to get a new ink jet printer, I am going with one that has an ink tank and skip the cartridge drama.

 

[Kenrick]

One of my printer is in the list x451dw. The original inks are expensive. At least 100dollar each x 4 cartridges. I never updated the firmware ever since I bought it and turned off the eprint services. Last important step is to block the printer in router in accessing the cloud in case it will autoupdate.

 

[Uncle Al]

I quit using HP after buying countless large plotters for my clients over the years for this exact reason. Their prices on ink are outrageous and they know it. Thankfully there are a few newer inkjet plotter companies out there today that rival and one surpasses HP so I could easily move on. As these former clients have called, concerned about the next generation of plotters for their CAD groups, I have happily passed on to them my recommendations at no charge .....

 

[yRaz]

I hate to say it, but It's usually cheaper to just buy a new printer than refill the ink. I end up just buying another printer and throwing the old one out or giving it away. I had a really night cannon photo printer that could print 11X17 AND refillable tanks but it had 25pin serial connector so once the computer I printed from died it had to go. Thought it would be easy to replace it but then I deal with all the printer shenanigans and just throw them out. I especially hate the cartridges that have chips in them that once the run out of ink they 1) are killed and can't be refilled and 2) stop you from printing in black and white because one color is out. Why is it so hard to find a good printer with refillable cartridges at an affordable price?

 

[KIPtheLIP]

Well...looks like it's time to switch out all our HP's for Brothers

 

[Evernessince]

Yep, I will never buy an HP product again. We had so much trouble with our last HP, went with Epson and havent had an issue since.

Ironically, I also switched from HP to Epson. I have had zero issues since.

 

[Evernessince]

I hate to say it, but It's usually cheaper to just buy a new printer than refill the ink. I end up just buying another printer and throwing the old one out or giving it away. I had a really night cannon photo printer that could print 11X17 AND refillable tanks but it had 25pin serial connector so once the computer I printed from died it had to go. Thought it would be easy to replace it but then I deal with all the printer shenanigans and just throw them out. I especially hate the cartridges that have chips in them that once the run out of ink they 1) are killed and can't be refilled and 2) stop you from printing in black and white because one color is out. Why is it so hard to find a good printer with refillable cartridges at an affordable price?

You are buying the wrong ink then. You can purchase 3rd party ink packs for $20 that includes 5 sets of each color, a small fraction of the price the printer companies charge. Zero degradation in print quality as well.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

And this is why I only recommend brother laserjets these days. Screw HP. Rediculous toner and ink prices, poorly made drivers, outdated interfaces, cheap plastics, yet cost more then brother printers do.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

I'm surprised this lot is still in business. It sounds to me they trade more on their name and ex-reputation than on anything else these days Back in the day they were de facto in printers and I bought, supplied, sold, installed and maintained tons of them but I haven't done so in years and highly unlikely to ever do so again.

 

[Cycloid Torus]

HP scanjet - trashed though working fine (no drivers)
HP inkjet - trashed though working fine (carts too expensive)
HP laserjet - trashed as print quality declined (drum too expensive)
HP laserjet - yes, bought replacement; working fine (so far)
HP laptop - feeble support - likely to be trashed
HP monitors - still functioning.

HP has been pretty good over the years, but I think the business model for the company is coming apart. Sad to see a company (with such a fine history) decline.

 

[m4a4]

Heh, the crappy printers is just one of the reasons why I tell people not to get HP products. I've known too many things of theirs breaking way too early in their lifecycle. My parents have an HP waiting to be eventually thrown out, replaced by an Epson too lol @namesrejected @Evernessince

One of my buddies had a laptop from them, and not even a year later the cooling started failing and he HAD to keep it cool (usually by cooling fan and not using it for too long) or else it would reach max temperature and shutdown on him. He was a poor mans gamer, so that didn't go over well with him...

 

[namesrejected]

You are buying the wrong ink then. You can purchase 3rd party ink packs for $20 that includes 5 sets of each color, a small fraction of the price the printer companies charge. Zero degradation in print quality as well.

Yea, our epson has hoses ran to the heads, and containers on the side you fill with ink. It rocks, ink is cheap, and the thing runs forever without being refilled. Got it at Best Buy.

 

[thelatestmodel]

ALL HP home / office equipment is flaming hot garbage (their Enterprise division is essentially a different company). I'm not super picky about recommending one company over another for printers, laptops etc - there's usually a few that you'll be happy with - but the ONE company I always recommend avoiding is HP.

 

[Evernessince]

Yea, our epson has hoses ran to the heads, and containers on the side you fill with ink. It rocks, ink is cheap, and the thing runs forever without being refilled. Got it at Best Buy.

Those systems are awesome. I would buy one if I used my printer more often.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

I'm surprised this lot is still in business. It sounds to me they trade more on their name and ex-reputation than on anything else these days Back in the day they were de facto in printers and I bought, supplied, sold, installed and maintained tons of them but I haven't done so in years and highly unlikely to ever do so again.

They are kept in business by the same pleb users who will buy HP because "My 1980 Hewlett was amazing!!!" and use their $1000 computer and printer with ink made of unicorn blood to print out pages of facebook pictures and maps for their relatives, because facebook is only on their machine and using a GPS is HAARRD.

When it breaks, they will blame hackers/viruses and just buy another one

SOURCE: multiple family members who still buy their junk. Meanwhile, my old lenovo keeps on chugging.

 

[Squid Surprise]

The key is to have friends/relatives who own a scrap yard... I get all my toner from them for free

I LOVE my HP CP 2025.... but if I had to pay over $100 for each toner refill (and there are 4 of them!!), I'd never use it...

 

[Vulcanproject]

I don't do a lot of personal printing at home, use a 13 year old HP inkjet with 'out of date' inks bought cheap off ebay. Before HP started their infamous out of date ink blocking 'feature'.

Works perfectly on Windows 10. It even seems better built than modern cheap inkjets that get blocked nozzles if you don't use them for a week. This one doesn't. Old tech works just great for me...

 

[yRaz]

You are buying the wrong ink then. You can purchase 3rd party ink packs for $20 that includes 5 sets of each color, a small fraction of the price the printer companies charge. Zero degradation in print quality as well.

If you read my whole post(or the title of the article for that matter) then you'd know you can't always buy third party cartridges...

 

[Veness]

I was VERY frustrated yesterday, when I tied to print on my 8610, only to experience the cartridge error message with my COSTCO refilled cartridges I had been successfully using since June. Thinking my cartridge chip had failed, I took the cartridge back to COSTCO, which kindly replaced the chip. All to no avail, since I still got the same error message, after installing the cartridge. Then, by happenstance, I came across this article. After reading it, and the posts, regarding HP ink business practices, I decided to follow the second firmware update LINK (noted above). In doing so, I was able to navigate to a "rollback" firmware update, which I downloaded. I was happy to find that it restored my printer to working order. Give it a try. Thank you, TECHSPOT!

 

[Luurch]

I spent money on HP for years...Finally ran out of ink, found a cmyk ink cartridge brother printer at a thrift shop, for $4, spent 7 dollars on 2 complete ink sets for the printer. Print perfect every time (every time the settings are right) and I have had zero connectivity or other issues. I cleaned the sponge that the printer uses to clean itself on one time in 5 years. If it has the HP logo on it, I want nothing to do with it.

 

[noel24]

It's 2017.Who's buying HP printers? They are joke of the industry these days!

 

[ArdvarkMaster]

I've had root canals that I enjoyed more than HP products.

 

[Evernessince]

If you read my whole post(or the title of the article for that matter) then you'd know you can't always buy third party cartridges...

If you read through my comments you would know I was referring to Epson printers. See what I did there. Any printer you can't buy 3rd part cartridges on is trash anyways. You'll end up spending more on ink for 1 refill than you did the entire printer were 3rd part ink is usually less than 1/10th the price. No excuse this day and age not to make sure your printer can use 3rd party products.