Thanks HP (in sarcastic tone)

[Thumper]

A few months ago, I started having printer problems and called a HP Tech. After just a matter of minutes he determined my printer was fubar. I have no clue how he knew as he did almost zero "testing", but the determination was made immediately after I gave him the serial number (which determined it's age). Personally, I think it was a defective ink cartridge as there was ZERO problem until I ran out of ink and replaced the cartridge. Long story short, he sold me a new printer. The rub is, it took over a week to get here and I could have bought the same exact printer at Best Buy 10-mins from my house, for the EXACT same price (to the penny).

After less than a month, it started giving me problems. I called Tech Support and after 3-4 different techs worked with me and a wasted day fiddling with it, we finally got it up and running. Another month goes by and it's fubar again! I screwed around with it for 2+ hours Thursday night (Tech was closed), to no avail. I called the minute HP Tech Support opened on Friday morning. After SEVEN frigging hours and being passed around between "somewhere in the states" to India, it still wasn't fixed. I was talking with someone that sounded as if English was their first language and was told the case was being escalated to their Engineering Department (not sure of the dep't actually, but you get the idea) and I'd be receiving a call within 15-minutes. I'd talked to so many "techs", I felt like they were "kicking the can down the road". After waiting 2 frigging hours for that 15-min. call-back that never came, I called again .... and was back to India! He had me go through the same procedure I'd already been through a half dozen times and finally said, "You have a bad printer!" Well duh Sherlock, I suggested the same to the first tech earlier in the morning, but they continued "diagnosing".

NOW ... they're sending me a replacement and I'm to put my old printer in the box and send it back to them or I'll be charged for the replacement. Estimated time to receive the replacement? I was told 3-10 days! Ha! That's a pretty big window, but what'cha gonna do? So, I "may" receive it tomorrow ... or it could be THE FOLLOWING Monday ... who knows? The crappy thing is, with no printer, I have to shut down my eBay store as I can't print enclosures or shipping labels, etc.

I should'a just gone to Best Buy and been done with it. :angry1

[BarryBobPosthole]

As cheap as printers are these days they’re almost dispoable. And cheaply made it seems too. We have an old HP Envy that we’ve had for several years and it keeps on cranking. it wouldn’t stay connected to the ATT wifi router though and I damn near blamed the printer. Once we got rid of everythingDeath Star related its been working fine. The price of ink cartridges are a travesty though.

BKB

[Thumper]

Yep, that's the exact thing I had (HP ENVY 4520) and it was a real workhorse for many years. I STILL think it was an ink cartridge issue and not a printer issue, but what's done is done. The replacement they sold me is an HP ENVY 6455e and it will NOT stay connected to wifi. I'm running a laptop, two cell phones, my P/C and printer off the wifi, but the printer is the only thing that f's up. HP tried to blame it on my carrier and had me call them. They ran a test on my p/c (which is located 15" from my printer) and I had a strong signal (I also have NO problem watching videos, etc. on that p/c). They couldn't test the printer because it wasn't connected. Oddly, the HP rep who told me the printer was fubar and needed to be replaced, said it was a cartridge carrier problem! HUH? It won't hook up to wifi ... but a replacement is on the way, so I won't argue. I've read on-line that they have crap wifi cards in them, which makes sense. We'll see.

Note: Coincidentally, the first problem I had with it (after I'd had it about a month), is it wouldn't stay connected to wifi. The tech monkeyed with a bunch of settings and got it up and running again, but that only lasted about a month until this time around.

[Thumper]

The price of ink cartridges are a travesty though. BKB

I'm with you on that one. I remember, back in the day, whenever Gillette would come out with a new razor, I'd receive a new one, free, in the mail. BUT ... the price of replacement blades (cartridges) was a real kick in the nuts! I see NO difference with printers/ink cartridges and razors/blade cartridges. It that after-the-sale income they're aiming for.

[BarryBobPosthole]

You probably already have it, but if you don’t there is an app called HP Smart that helps manage and troubleshoot print stuff on HP printers. Its a pretty good one.

BKB

[Thumper]

You probably already have it, but if you don’t there is an app called HP Smart that helps manage and troubleshoot print stuff on HP printers. Its a pretty good one. BKB

Yep, that's what I was screwing around with the night the printer crapped out, but I didn't get anywhere with it. The next day, that's what the tech support people were tapping into also. I think it was simply a hardware problem. I will say, if the replacement they send me gives me so much as a hint of trouble, I'm gonna be one p/o'd m-f'er! :pissed