Question about my HP Envy printer?

crimsoneagle50 said:I've got this HP DeskJet, right? But it won't print if the color is out. I only need black, and my black cartridge is totally full—just put a new one in—but it keeps throwing an error saying the color is empty. 😠 I tried changing the settings to print in black only under the ink cartridge settings, and I switched the main setting to grayscale, but it still refuses to work. 😲 Even if I take the color cartridge out, it still won't budge. 😕🤷😕

Honestly, just grab an Eco refill kit and top off the color. The whole set is only about $33 and it covers 4 cartridges.

You’ll have to disable the ink level alerts in the settings, but heads up: if you don't actually refill that color cartridge, the printer will fry the printhead pretty quickly because there's no ink left to cool the heaters. Then you're back to square one, dropping maybe $60 on a new color cartridge. Basically, getting a refill kit is $33 your cheapest bet.

The downside is that once you kill those ink indicators, you won't know how much juice is left in the tank. If you aren't proactive about topping it off—since these cartridges hold almost nothing—you'll be heading back to Canon to drop another $60 before you know it.

It's pretty obvious Canon isn't playing games here. They designed this whole setup so the user always loses. The entry cost is low, but the maintenance costs you big time.

Your only real long-term fix is installing an Inkjet system on your printer. That'll run you about $100 plus tax and your own time. With that setup, since you've got a steady supply of ink, your printhead should last 4 to 10 times longer. Just keep in mind, depending on how much you print, you'll still need to clean the head occasionally. Swapping them out is easy, but even then, Canon makes sure you pay at least $100 - $60 for it. There's no such thing as a free lunch.

Bottom line: An Eco refill kit for 4 fills at $33 is your best move until you start printing way more than you used to.

Everything sounds lovely and all, but I’m in a total bind here because I need color ink right now. I’ve got a massive exam coming up and I have to print out all my study guides... I don't live near Washington, D.C., so driving all the way there just to pick up some cartridges isn't exactly worth the gas, especially since this is my very last final. If I had known about this setup three years ago, I wouldn't even be stressing... it honestly looks like a killer deal.
But seriously, can someone please explain something to me? Whoever owns this printer, why on earth does it refuse to print anything in black if I'm out of color toner??? 🙂

crimsoneagle50 said:That all sounds great and all, but I’m in a massive rush for color right now. I’ve got an exam coming up and I desperately need to print out my study guides! I don't live in Washington, D.C., so driving all the way there just to grab new cartridges isn't really worth it for me—especially since this is my very last exam. If I’d known about this three years ago, I wouldn't even be asking because it sounds like a lifesaver.
But seriously, can someone explain why if I run out of color ink, I can't just print things in black and white??? 🙂

It's because Canon designed the printer to work without black, but it won't budge without a color cartridge installed.

That's just how it works in the Canon world.

Try holding down the Resume button for 5 seconds. That might help you bypass the ink level detection. Of course, that only works if the color head isn't totally trashed. But honestly, you won't get very far if you're trying to fix this with three pieces of chewed-up gum.

Just wanted to give a heads-up to anyone who didn't realize you actually need both toner cartridges to be full if you want to print anything... doesn't matter if you're just trying to run a black and white job or color. I had to figure it out the hard way at the HG store 🙂

crimsoneagle50 said:Just a heads-up for anyone who didn't know—you actually need both cartridges to be full if you want to print anything, even if you're just trying to print in black! I double-checked this at the local GE store.🙂

Great info from a great source. Except it's totally wrong. The printer works fine with just the color cartridge because it can mix black from the colors, but it definitely can't make color out of the black one.

rustysurfer79 said:Great info from a great source. Except it's wrong. The printer works fine with just color because it can mix black from the colors, but it can't make color out of black...

Actually, let me put it better 😁 sorry, black won't work without color, but color *can* work without black. Still, that wasn't my situation, so I ended up getting the short end of the stick...😢

Hey, can someone point me in the right direction? I'm looking for the absolute cheapest place to grab some third-party ink for an HP DeskJet—specifically the black 40 and color 37 cartridges. Any leads on where to score a good deal? Thanks in advance!

Brandon King3 said:Can someone help me out? Looking for the cheapest place to grab some refill ink for an HP Envy series—specifically black 40 and color 37. Thanks in advance!

http://www.nabava.net/tinte-za-inkje...-black__962591

Get it?

Basically, does it make sense now why:

Generally speaking, hit up Walmart.

Or rather
The PG 40 + CLi 41 combo gives you about 40 ml total.
But
that little multi-pack gives you 4 * 60 ml.

So basically

it's about $300- $133 vs $200

Do people realize this? Is this HP Envy series printer actually a decent little machine? And honestly, do you even need anything better than this? Just remember, Canon isn't stupid—they're gonna make sure they squeeze every cent out of you for those refills.