HP forced to ditch popular printer range following user backlash

lemme in@lemm.ee to Technology@lemmy.world – 431 points – HP forced to ditch popular printer range following user backlash
techradar.com

HP has discontinued its e-series LaserJet printers following widespread consumer dissatisfaction with the printers’ mandatory online connection of the HP+ scheme.

The decision, reported by German media outlet §, addresses growing frustration among users who have been forced to maintain a constant internet connection and use HP original ink and toner, with cheaper and more accessible third-party alternatives prohibited.

The LaserJet e-series models, identifiable by an ‘e’ suffix in their models names, now look to have been pulled from sale.

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So rather than just push a super simple firmware update that disables the always online need, they'd rather just stop selling it, and probably brick these printers in a year or so when they discontinue the service.

Has hp ever done anything to suggest they give a shit about users beyond milking them for all they're worth?

Maybe a dumb take, but I think milking customers for all they're worth is much better option than what HP is seemingly doing --- which is milking them for all they're worth this quarter.

Like, there are companies with a cult like following (Valve comes to mind) and while they could probably increase profit for a quarter or two, they seem to be playing the long game fairly well. Which is ultimately better for everyone --- they get more money over your lifetime, and you get a product that you're happy with.

Oh absolutely, I'm happy to shovel money at valve. I've contacted support quite a few times about index controllers (the joystick switch is trash and drifts after a lot of use) and they've always responded within hours and even RMAd one controller way of it warranty. Meta support responded almost instantly, but every single person was useless. After talking to 6 across 3 days, it was finally escalated. They took forever to contact me, I replied within 12 minutes, then the follow up was over 24 hours later. Every single time it took a day for their "specialist team" to respond. It took over a month to actually get them to accept the fact that they never boxed up the quest I ordered, and they still blamed the shipping company even though I received both packages and the quest was not in either, nor was either box even big enough to fit a fucking quest.

Fuck meta and fuck zuck.

They did provide good first party Linux support where other printer required the use of hacky reverse engineered drivers. Other than that...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP_LaserJet_4

The HP LaserJet 4 (abbreviated sometimes to LJ4 or HP4) is a group of monochrome laser printers produced in the early to mid-1990s...

The LaserJet 4, especially the 4/4M/4+/4M+ models, have become known for their durability, mainly due to their reliable construction, as well as the printers built-in PCL (and optional PostScript) printer language support which is still used in computers to this day. Hewlett-Packard dominated the laser printing sector during this time in part due to their reliability, relatively affordable pricing, and the spread of LaserJet 4 models from personal use up to heavy business use.

HP was a good company back when they primarily made test equipment. They made very good equipment that was built to last. They had very detailed documentation and service manuals so you could repair everything yourself.

I set the bar too low. A lot of companies used to be fantastic, but apparently that doesn't rake in the cash as fast as being giant pieces of shit.

Firmware update, means the printers keep working with third party ink (HP loses). Bricking them, means you must buy another printer (HP has a 50:50 chance to win).

I don't think that's how probability works.

It is how it works if you are told to make a PowerPoint for senior leadership on how to squeeze the most possible short term money out of this situation

What else ya’ got under that rock? Cuz’ these things brick themselves if you miss a monthly payment on your ink subscription.

Yes, the laser printer bricks itself if you miss a payment on your ink subscription...

popular

[citation needed]

Yeah, the title kind of contradicts itself.

I was expecting something in the article to back it up, like sales figures, but I couldn't find anything.

I guess having a lot of unhappy customers implies that a lot of people previously purchased the product.

I'm not sure there's another term for "sold well" that doesn't also imply people liked it.

Alternatively they could just be calling them plebeian.

Pretty sure lots of things people are forced to use due to poor competition "sell well" while also being quite un-popular.

Oh, Brother!

They're also starting to offer a subscription only printer service in my country

Good news: their printers never die. You can get a Brother laser printer that's 10 years old off a site like eBay and it will still be printing just fine in 2050. Mine is so old, it's USB 1.0.

Brother laser printers are more consumer friendly and cheaper than HP. Epson's inkejet printers with ecotank are the better deal

PS: Fuck HP

As someone who sells both the ecotanks are good, but you dont quite get the yield they promise upfront.

Because the ink has to travel all the way from the reservoir at the front of the printer to the print head, there is much more distance that the ink has to travel, giving it more opportunity to dry out. To combat this, ecotanks need to purge much more frequently than traditional inkjets that mount the cartridges next to the print head. This requires shooting a lot of the ink through the lines at high speed/pressure in turn wasting ink.

Also, once this cleaning cycle has been run enough times, you need to replace the ink pad that absorbs all the ink used to clean out the printer. (Only costs 10 bucks)

All of this said, I still recommend them to folks who need to print photos at home, as their color accuracy is impressive for a CMYK printer, and while the yield isn't as high as they claim, it is still much cheaper per page than most other inkjets. But more often than not, I try to convince people to just get a monochrome Brother and use a printing service/shop that has a multi-thousand dollar photo printer when they need photos.

I have a monochrome brother laser/fax that is old af. I don't mess with color because like you said if I want photos printed I'm going to get the big-boy printer at the store to do it.

Usually we just want 1-2 pictures, so we have one of those small, portable printers that connects via phone. They're pricey per print, so it's really not a good option for any kind of volume, but we do volume at a print shop instead.

So consider reevaluating what you actually need to print. A laser printer is fantastic for regular text documents, and the toner can sit for months or even years without any issues with going bad. Or if you only need occasional prints, check your local library instead, maybe you don't even need a printer.

I have a monochrome laser printer, and for color, I just go to the library or office supply store (or use my company's printer, if it's work-related), depending on volume. I can't actually remember the time I needed color, B&W has been plenty for everything I've needed (tax documents, official company letterhead, etc).

I ise a brother colour laser, but that's only so I can print nice documents. All my photos have always been printed in professional labs. I only print a few pictures that I really like in large format anyway.

I was beginning to think there was no limit to what consumers would take.
But apparently it's just that there is ALMOST no limit, which is better but we remain in a sad state of lack of consumer awareness.

Efficient free market economics requires something like perfect up-front information or zero switching cost to solve this. Those things are fictitious so, predictably, free market economics has not solved printer bullshit.

I'd like to see regulations addressing the up-front information aspect. If we require neon stickers for "needs account" "needs subscription" and "proprietary replacement parts" on all hardware products, people would be better able to dodge scams and cons like HP.

"Requires subscription. Monthly cost: $XX, total cost over 5y: $XXX" should do it

You mean consumers aren't both rational and omniscient?

"Popular"?

If it were popular they'd keep it...

They are popular since they cost less than non internet version. This is them removing the internet/subscription version that they were tricking people with.

They're just calling it popular so that that one guy - you know, Craig? - that one guy who likes it will blame other people instead of HP themselves.

Always beware of anyone trying to "provide users with a better experience".

If it was popular, they'd fix the issue. It's not popular, so they're just trashing it, like nearly everything else that comes out of HP

Sorry HP. You already sour'd me on everything you make.

When VARs call me if they do HP I tell them no. I won't work with anything HP.

You have have my LaserJet 5 when you can pry it from my cold, dead hands.

it'll happen. had to give up a 4L because the toner got scarce--and rather expensive. pretty much nonexistent now.

and now we're on our seventh printer since.

Who tf needs a printer these days? I print maybe 5 pages a year and the library does it for a quarter.

Hi. It's me. I still burn CDs and print onto them direct as part of a niche art hobby. Unfortunately that means owning an Epson inkjet printer.

The kind of people that can't use an always online connected printer. But seriously, for some professions and shift to work from home during covid kind of made printers in a home more common again.

I scan nearly all the crap that comes in through my (physical) mailbox and throw it away. My trusty Brother multi laser thingy sends it to me per e-mail and I can sort it later, when the PC is on. Once a month or so, I need to print some pages and it does that, too. Awesome thing, wouldn't want to miss it.