HP Inkjet printer owners...Where do you get your ink?


MisterEd

MisterEd

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After I bought the HP OfficeJet Pro 6975 AIO printer in 2018 I bought HP ink. When it got too expensive I started using third party ink. Unfortunately, in 2022 HP pushed a firmware update that blocked the use of third party ink. I managed to find a way to downgrade the firmware that allowed the use of third party ink again. A few months ago the third party ink was blocked again. A little research let me to check the settings in the printer front panel. I found a setting whose default was to automatically upgrade the firmware. I disabled that and downgraded the firmware again. I am back to using third party ink again.

For comparison
Ink from HP: HP 902XL Black $62.89, HP 902XL Cyan/Magenta/Yellow each $36.89, Total $173.56
Ink from third party: HP 902XL Black/Cyan/Magenta/Yellow, Total $34.67

BTW, a friend tried to get me to subscribe to an HP Instant Ink plan.

Instant Ink plans
10 pages per month $1.79/mo
50 pages per month $5.49/mo
100 pages per month $7.99/mo
300 pages per month $15.99/mo
700 pages per month $31.99/mo

Note: Printers require direct connection to the Internet for program participation.
Also, for plans it says Cancel anytime, No contracts, Hassle-free shipping. The only other option is to buy your own ink.

I probably print about 50 pages per month. For me I think it is cheaper to use third party ink.

I found it important to try to print at least once every 2-3 weeks. Otherwise, the ink will dry up on the printheads causing faulty printing. Sometime the printer diagnostic tools will clean the printheads and fix the print problems but not always. I have had this problem with both HP and third party ink.

I saw somewhere that claims that having the printer turned on all the time and allowed to sleep during the idle time will make the printer waste less ink. They claim that the printer wastes a lot of ink when you first turn it on where it runs extensive diagnostics.

I don't know the details but I have read that certain new HP printers require you to use genuine HP ink whiles others do not. I am not concerned about that right now but will if and when I have to replace my current printer.
 

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    Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (26200.6901)AMD Ryzen 7 6800H with Radeon 680M GPU (486MB...Crucial DDR5-4800 (2400MHz) 32GB (2 x 16GB)NVIDIA RTX 3060 Laptop (6GB RAM)
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    Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (26200.8246)AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3DG.SKILL Flare X 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4ASUS ROG-STRIX-RTX3060TI-08G-V2-GAMING (RTX 3...
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    Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (26200.8246)
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    Custom build
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    AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Strix B550-F Gaming WiFi II
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    G.SKILL Flare X 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4
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    Samsung G50D IPS 27"
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    1440p/180Hz
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    ASUS Blu-ray Burner BW-16D1HT (SATA) || Western Digital Easystore 20TB USB 3.0 external hard drive used with Acronis True Image 2025 backup software || HP OfficeJet Pro 6975 Printer/Scanner
MisterEd said:
I don't know the details but I have read that certain new HP printers require you to use genuine HP ink whiles others do not. I am not concerned about that right now but will if and when I have to replace my current printer.
Click to expand...
Ink cartridges are expensive! I gave up using them long ago and bought an ink tank printer, an Epson Ecotank ET4750. Bottles of ink are cheap ;)


Epson was one of the first to make tank printers, but even HP have finally joined the club.

 
Last edited:

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  • At a glance

    Windows 11 HomeAMD Athlon Silver 3050U8GBRadeon Graphics
    OS
    Windows 11 Home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Acer Aspire 3 A315-23-R9VY
    CPU
    AMD Athlon Silver 3050U
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon Graphics
    Monitor(s) Displays
    laptop screen
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768 native resolution, up to 2560x1440 with Radeon Virtual Super Resolution
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    1TB Samsung EVO 870 SSD (from April 2026: 250GB EVO 850)
    Internet Speed
    150 Mbps
    Browser
    Edge, Firefox
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    Defender
    Other Info
    fully 'Windows 11 ready' laptop. Windows 10 C: partition migrated from my old unsupported 'main machine' then upgraded to 11. A test migration ran Insider builds for 2 months. When 11 was released on 5th October 2021 it was re-imaged back to 10 and was offered the upgrade in Windows Update on 20th October. Windows Update offered the 22H2 Feature Update on 20th September 2022. It got the 23H2 Feature Update on 4th November 2023 through Windows Update, 24H2 on 3rd October 2024 through Windows Update by setting the Target Release Version for 24H2, and 25H2 on 30th September 2025 through Windows Update by setting the Target Release Version for 25H2.

    UPDATE - 11 April 2026: due to mechanical deterioration this PC has been retired from active duty. The OS with all software and files has been migrated to my System Seven in 'Other systems' to carry on as my general purpose 'main machine'.

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 ProIntel® Core™ i5-520M8GB(integrated graphics) Intel HD Graphics
    Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Latitude E4310
    CPU
    Intel® Core™ i5-520M
    Motherboard
    0T6M8G
    Memory
    8GB
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    (integrated graphics) Intel HD Graphics
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
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    500GB Crucial MX500 SSD
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge
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    Defender
    Other Info
    unsupported machine: Legacy bios, MBR, TPM 1.2, upgraded from W10 to W11 using W10/W11 hybrid install media workaround.

    In-place upgrade to 22H2 using ISO and a workaround.
    Feature Update to 23H2 by manually installing the Enablement Package.
    In-place upgrade to 24H2 using hybrid 23H2/24H2 install media.
    Upgraded to 25H2 by Enablement Package.

    Also running Insider Dev, and Canary builds and Windows 10 as native boot .vhdx.
  • My SYSTEM THREE is a Dell Latitude 5410, i7-10610U, 32GB RAM, 512GB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro.

    My SYSTEM FOUR is a 2-in-1 convertible Lenovo Yoga 11e 20DA, Celeron N2930, 8GB RAM, 256GB ssd. Unsupported device: currently running Win10 Pro, plus Win11 Pro RTM and Insider Dev, Beta, and RP 24H2 as native boot vhdx.

    My SYSTEM FIVE is a Dell Latitude 3190 2-in-1, Pentium Silver N5030, 8GB RAM, 1TB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro, plus Insider Beta, Dev, and Canary builds (and a few others) as a native boot .vhdx.

    My SYSTEM SIX is a Dell Latitude 5550, Core Ultra 7 165H, 64GB RAM, 1TB NVMe SSD, supported device, Windows 11 Pro 24H2, Hyper-V host machine. Updated to 25H2 on 30th September 2025.

    My SYSTEM SEVEN is a Lenovo Thinkpad T580, Intel Core i7-8650U, 16GB RAM, 512GB NVMe SSD + 2nd 512GB NVMe SSD, a supported device for Windows 11. This is my current general purpose 'main machine'. The installed Windows 11 Home from my System One has been migrated to this machine.
Bree said:
Ink cartridges are expensive! I gave up using them long ago and bought an ink tank printer, an Epson Ecotank ET4750. Bottles of ink are cheap ;)


Epson was one of the first to make tank printers, but even HP have finally joined the club.

Click to expand...
Does not make sense to spend $$$ replace a perfectly usable printer (or AIO in my case) to save some money on a once-a-year ink purchase (in my case).
 

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At a glance

Windows 11 2H25AMD 9900X64 GBAMD 9070 XT
OS
Windows 11 2H25
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
DIY
CPU
AMD 9900X
Motherboard
MSI X870E Carbon
Memory
64 GB
Graphics Card(s)
AMD 9070 XT
Sound Card
built-in
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Dell 24"
Hard Drives
Sabrent 1 TB NVMe, 4 x SSD (need to check models), 4 x 3.5" HDD, 8-16 TB, all WD
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Seasonic 850
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Fractal Design North XL (which I likw)
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Corsair AIO for CPU, fans for case
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Das Keyboard 4
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Corsair M65 (white)
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1 TB download
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Firefox
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Bitdefender
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Also have Lenovo T14S laptop (me) and Lenovo Slim 71 (wife)
PhilB said:
Does not make sense to spend $$$ replace a perfectly usable printer (or AIO in my case) to save some money on a once-a-year ink purchase (in my case).
Click to expand...
Depends on how much you print, or in my case what you print. Glossy photo prints use a lot of ink (I counted myself lucky if I got more that 3 or 4 A4 photos out of a set of cartridges).

MisterEd said:
I probably print about 50 pages per month.
Click to expand...

Monthly print volumeEst monthly Envy ink costEst. monthly Smart Tank ink costApprox Break-even point
50 pages/month$14.56$0.406–7 months
Click to expand...
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two Other systems

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 HomeAMD Athlon Silver 3050U8GBRadeon Graphics
    OS
    Windows 11 Home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Acer Aspire 3 A315-23-R9VY
    CPU
    AMD Athlon Silver 3050U
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon Graphics
    Monitor(s) Displays
    laptop screen
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768 native resolution, up to 2560x1440 with Radeon Virtual Super Resolution
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung EVO 870 SSD (from April 2026: 250GB EVO 850)
    Internet Speed
    150 Mbps
    Browser
    Edge, Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    fully 'Windows 11 ready' laptop. Windows 10 C: partition migrated from my old unsupported 'main machine' then upgraded to 11. A test migration ran Insider builds for 2 months. When 11 was released on 5th October 2021 it was re-imaged back to 10 and was offered the upgrade in Windows Update on 20th October. Windows Update offered the 22H2 Feature Update on 20th September 2022. It got the 23H2 Feature Update on 4th November 2023 through Windows Update, 24H2 on 3rd October 2024 through Windows Update by setting the Target Release Version for 24H2, and 25H2 on 30th September 2025 through Windows Update by setting the Target Release Version for 25H2.

    UPDATE - 11 April 2026: due to mechanical deterioration this PC has been retired from active duty. The OS with all software and files has been migrated to my System Seven in 'Other systems' to carry on as my general purpose 'main machine'.

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 ProIntel® Core™ i5-520M8GB(integrated graphics) Intel HD Graphics
    Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Latitude E4310
    CPU
    Intel® Core™ i5-520M
    Motherboard
    0T6M8G
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics card(s)
    (integrated graphics) Intel HD Graphics
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
    Hard Drives
    500GB Crucial MX500 SSD
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    unsupported machine: Legacy bios, MBR, TPM 1.2, upgraded from W10 to W11 using W10/W11 hybrid install media workaround.

    In-place upgrade to 22H2 using ISO and a workaround.
    Feature Update to 23H2 by manually installing the Enablement Package.
    In-place upgrade to 24H2 using hybrid 23H2/24H2 install media.
    Upgraded to 25H2 by Enablement Package.

    Also running Insider Dev, and Canary builds and Windows 10 as native boot .vhdx.
  • My SYSTEM THREE is a Dell Latitude 5410, i7-10610U, 32GB RAM, 512GB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro.

    My SYSTEM FOUR is a 2-in-1 convertible Lenovo Yoga 11e 20DA, Celeron N2930, 8GB RAM, 256GB ssd. Unsupported device: currently running Win10 Pro, plus Win11 Pro RTM and Insider Dev, Beta, and RP 24H2 as native boot vhdx.

    My SYSTEM FIVE is a Dell Latitude 3190 2-in-1, Pentium Silver N5030, 8GB RAM, 1TB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro, plus Insider Beta, Dev, and Canary builds (and a few others) as a native boot .vhdx.

    My SYSTEM SIX is a Dell Latitude 5550, Core Ultra 7 165H, 64GB RAM, 1TB NVMe SSD, supported device, Windows 11 Pro 24H2, Hyper-V host machine. Updated to 25H2 on 30th September 2025.

    My SYSTEM SEVEN is a Lenovo Thinkpad T580, Intel Core i7-8650U, 16GB RAM, 512GB NVMe SSD + 2nd 512GB NVMe SSD, a supported device for Windows 11. This is my current general purpose 'main machine'. The installed Windows 11 Home from my System One has been migrated to this machine.
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