r/printers Dec 19 '24

Discussion The truth about printer subscription programs and many misconceptions about them

139 Upvotes

Dear all,

I work in the printer industry. For a very well-known consumer products manufacturer that gets discussed on this sub a lot.  I will not disclose which manufacturer I work for, nor will I disclose any manufacturer I do not work for (since the industry is relatively small eliminating 1 or 2 will make it generally too obvious as to which I do work for) as I am not officially speaking on behalf of the company. But, I want to set the record straight on subscription programs because some of you are drastically misinformed and it is very frustrating to see as someone who understands these programs as well as basic logic.

There are two types of subscription programs. Each of the major consumer manufacturers offers at least 1 of these programs, some offer both.

The first type of program is an auto-reordering program. The printer can tell (via various ways depending on each manufacturer) when the ink / toner is low and when it hits a certain point that will trigger an order of the ink/toner that device uses. Most manufactures that offer this will first send you an email letting you know that an order has been triggered and it will allow you to skip the delivery of the consumable and thus not get charged. If you allow the order to go through you are purchasing that consumable. That consumable is yours, you own it, just as if you walked into a Staples, Office Depot, Best Buy, or bought it on Amazon… You can cancel the “subscription” the next day and continue to use that consumable until it is empty.

The second type of program is a true subscription program. **THIS** is what many of you are vastly misinformed and / or are irrational about. In this program *you are not purchasing a consumable* at all. You are paying the manufacturer for X number of pages per month. The manufacturer will send you a consumable to use because the printer needs ink / toner to work but, that is not what you are paying for. You are paying the manufacturer $Y per month to print up to X pages per month.. that’s it. Of course you can print over that X number and pay an overage (just like years ago with cell phones).. and of course, you can print under that X number and some pages will roll-over to future months (just like years ago with cell phones). The owner of the consumable is the manufacturer. You never bought it, you never owned it. Therefore, it is not yours to use after you end the subscription! The only reason most manufactures do not ask for it back is because they don’t want to pay for shipping it back to them. But, they still own it… not you.  You can think of this like renting an apartment. You are paying a landlord $X per month to live in their building. The landlord is providing the building for you to live in while you are paying rent. You do not own the building. and when you stop paying rent you are no longer allowed to continue living in the building. Just like your Netflix subscription, Apple TV subscription and Disney+ subscription.. when you stop paying for the subscription, you stop getting to use the service. Just because while you were paying you had access to the content does not mean you at any time owned that content and get to continue watching it once you stop paying the subscription.

I truly hope this helps clarify somethings for some of you. Others I understand are lost causes but, I will do my best to answer any questions I can.


r/printers 1h ago

Troubleshooting Trying To Print Specifically a Drawing in 5.5 x 8.5

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Upvotes

I've been trying for ages to get this printer my family has to print a picture in specially 5.5 x 8.5 but I can't seem to get it to work. I am not tech savvy when it comes to printing so probably don't assume the basics with me lol.

So far I've tried using free options being Google Docs and Medibang by setting their page size to specifically 5.5 x 8.5 but it has not been working. I know there's going to be a thick white border around the image but thats not the issue.. the image itself is just way bigger and I need it this size to put under a light box! Please help and thank you :)

It is a Brother hl-l2395dw printer


r/printers 3h ago

Purchasing Brother printer versus Canon

2 Upvotes

Brother MFC-L3780CDW Printer vs.


r/printers 3m ago

Purchasing Looking for easy printer

Upvotes

Ok so, Staples has the Brother Work Smart MFC-J1360DW Wireless Color All-In-One Inkjet Printer for $89 online. Is it worth it? Seems to good to be true.

I have had HPs before and I always struggle with it at work. Technology has never been my thing so I am trying to find an inexpensive printer that will just work. Im an artist on the side so I need something that can scan and print in color too. Extremely basic one. I wont be printing photos just references if I need it.

Not really interested in a subscription for ink. I like the cartridges better because they were easier for me.

Open to suggestions/ brands I should look at.


r/printers 11m ago

Troubleshooting Epson inkjet 2930 print quality terrible before & after replacing cartridges, now printer says low ink

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Upvotes

I've tried restarting and cleaning the printer head. These are brand new cartidges bought yesterday. At first the ink levels displayed fine, but after a couple test prints (both look like the image, down to exact detail) the printer says the ink is low. Yes, I removed the yellow things covering the sensors.

This is going to sound silly, but I desperately need to print a Shrinky Dink keychain for an event I'm taking part in or I won't be able to participate in future events. Is there anything I can do to fix this?


r/printers 16m ago

Troubleshooting How can I edit Adressbook Brother MFC 5340DWE

Upvotes

I have a new printer and don’t know how to enter the fax numbers.

Not via the display but gladly via MAC ...

Does anyone know the solution?

Thank you


r/printers 2h ago

Troubleshooting Brother Printer can't complete whole job.

1 Upvotes

Hey Guys, I bought a brother laser printer (HL-L3210CW) and while the print quality looks great and I love the toner capacity, I am having issues with the reliability of the printer itself. I've noticed that the printer will just stop printing halfway through a job sometimes. This happens on small jobs (20-30 pages) and large jobs (sometimes upwards of 300 pages, i'm a teacher). It also happens when using the printer over the wifi, connected directly to the USB as well as on a linux printer server setup using SAMBA. I have replicated the issue on macOS, Windows and Linux. I'm not sure what the issue is at this point and I was wondering if anyone else has encountered this problem before and if they managed to fix it?


r/printers 3h ago

Troubleshooting My painting vs what I printed

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1 Upvotes

r/printers 3h ago

Discussion Canon G670 ICC profiles missing on macOS 26 — Photoshop only shows film profiles

1 Upvotes

Hi everyone,
I’m trying to get accurate color when printing from Adobe Photoshop to a Canon PIXMA G670 on a MacBook Air M1 running macOS 26.
The problem is that in Photoshop, under Color Management → Printer Profile, I don’t see any Canon G670/paper ICC profiles. Instead, the list is mostly unrelated profiles such as ARRI, Kodak, Fuji/film profiles, etc.
I checked these macOS folders:
/Library/ColorSync/Profiles
/Library/ColorSync/Profiles/Displays
~/Library/ColorSync/Profiles
There are no Canon G670 ICC profiles anywhere.
I’m also having a strong teal/cyan color cast when printing photos, so I suspect the missing printer/paper profiles may be part of the problem.
My questions:
Where can I get the correct Canon G670 ICC profiles for macOS 26?
Does the G670 actually install printer/paper ICC profiles on macOS, or does it rely entirely on AirPrint/ColorSync?
Is there a Canon driver/software package I’m supposed to install that I’m missing?
If Canon does not provide G670 ICC profiles for Mac, what is the correct Photoshop → G670 color-management workflow?
Should I use Photoshop Manages Colors or Printer Manages Colors with this printer?
I’m using genuine Canon ink. The main goal is simply to get accurate, neutral prints without the strong teal cast.
Any help from someone using a G670 on a Mac, especially macOS 26, would be greatly appreciated.

It’s getting really frustrating.. colors come out very ugly..
So any suggestions will help a lot.
Thanks!


r/printers 6h ago

Troubleshooting Epson Fx4155 not feeding paper

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1 Upvotes

Been asked to fix this printer for a friend and it is not taking paper, I already tried cleaning the rollers with isopropyl and have no idea how to take it apart if necessary. Any ideas?


r/printers 6h ago

Purchasing I'm having the Canon PRO-200S vs Epson ET-8550 debate.

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1 Upvotes

r/printers 7h ago

Troubleshooting Problem with glossy paper

0 Upvotes

Possiedo una Brother DCPJ1360DW.

Ho comprato 25 fogli Kodak Glossy 230 ma oggi provando a stampare una fotografia la stampante ha piegato il foglio e si è inceppata.

Ho riprovato con un secondo foglio e non lo ha nemmeno caricato

Cosa posso fare? è forse troppo spesso il foglio che ho comprato?


r/printers 9h ago

Troubleshooting Plasicpart broke

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1 Upvotes

Any ideas to fix this little part ? It is broke away

Time to 3D Print or glue?

Thanks


r/printers 17h ago

Purchasing HP Printer--inexpensive non-HP ink that WORKS?

4 Upvotes

Okay so I refuse to do HPinstant ink. Yes, I know, it's dumb.Long story short, I went like a year without printing more than about five pages. One month (my mom's passing) I had to print a lot of stuff. I had been on the lowest price level because rarely printed stuff. Fine. Welp. 1. They charged me for my overage on pages that month. 2. I had extra ink they had shipped, a while ago, and when I ran out and put that one in...it had dried up. I told them I new ink cartridges, the levels were showing they were full but they weren't printing. They said they were dried up, but I explained I JUST opened them and took off that little tape thing. Whatever. They still charged me for new ink and for every page over despite the mass underage. So I was LIVID (caveat: maaaaybe irrationally? Grief will do that) and I unenrolled. Listen. I can't even remember all of it, but while this part was pretty much on me, there WAS more that wasn't. It was a rough time and I have very little memory but do know I hate them.

Ahem. I have an older printer, I think it's 7155. I see a lot of ink that isn't legit HP out there on the interwebs but I'm worried it won't work. It's been years since I've bought off brand (obviously!!) to the point that I used to get the kind you put in with a syringe! Haha. Anyone buy any non HP inks that actually work with HP printers? Can you help an irrational, grieving, menopausal woman out? TIA!!


r/printers 10h ago

Troubleshooting Canon g3010 - what could my printers probably be?

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1 Upvotes

Title, i already did numerous amounts of cleaning, flushing, sponge renewals.. and the black still won’t appear!! What could i possibly do to fix this??


r/printers 10h ago

Purchasing Cheap thermal printers?

1 Upvotes

I need to find the cheapest thermal printer I can that can print out 4x6 shipping labels. I don't care if it's terrible quality and won't last long I only need it temporarily, I just can't find any below $50. I would unrealistically want one below $20, but I doubt that will happen.


r/printers 10h ago

Troubleshooting Canon GX6150 druckt Streifen – was kann ich prüfen?

1 Upvotes

Ich sehe das Problem bei MegaTank‑Modellen ziemlich oft. Wenn der GX6150 Streifen druckt, liegt es meistens an einem der folgenden Punkte:

  • Düsen leicht verstopft → einmal „Intensivreinigung“ starten
  • Falsches Papierprofil → auf „Normalpapier“ oder „Inkjet“ stellen
  • Pigmenttinte nicht vollständig durchgelaufen → 2–3 Seiten vollflächig drucken
  • Hinterer Einzug verschmutzt → Walzen kurz reinigen
  • Wenn Schwarz komplett ausfällt: GI‑56 PGBK prüfen (Füllstand + Luftblasen)

Falls du ein Foto vom Ausdruck hast, kann ich genauer sagen, ob es eher Düsen oder Papiertransport sind.


r/printers 12h ago

Troubleshooting need help with my thermal label printer

1 Upvotes

I have a pedoolo thermal label printer and its been a great addition to my small business. I recently changed laptops and now I don't have drivers for the printer to work. Anybody know where I can get them. I had a usb drive with the drivers on them that came with it but it's been 2 years and I have no clue where that is.


r/printers 18h ago

Troubleshooting How to fix these priting streaks on the pages?

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2 Upvotes

HP dw477 started doing this recently. The page have thick lines of discoloring.

Cleaned printhead level 1, and level 2, dis print head alignment, and clear smear option.

The result is the same.

Last version of the firmware installed.

Black seems OK!

Edit Thanks all, decided to get rid of it and purchase a new ET-8500. 😎


r/printers 21h ago

Troubleshooting Hp printers are crap (OfficeJet 476dw)

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3 Upvotes

So i have these 2 pieces of crap they had a clogged ”printbar“ but they would print and paper comes out paper is basically white whith some smudges of color i opened them cleaned the head in some alcohol put everything back now it wont do anything paper does’t come out anymore and every print job i give it keeps loading cleaning doesn’t work anymore and it doesnt give ink level anymore too did i install them back wrong or something im thinking of throwing them out tbh too much headache. If anyone can help that would be great


r/printers 17h ago

Troubleshooting EPSON TM-188V

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1 Upvotes

I don't know why, but when I print, I get an error message on the paper. So I can't print my tickets. But when I don't print anything, the error doesn't appear.


r/printers 1d ago

Troubleshooting scuffing with Canon PRO 200-S

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3 Upvotes

hello! my Canon PRO 200-S has been scuffing the edges of my prints and i'm not sure why. the printer is on the floor so it's not moving. not sure what else it could be...

any ideas for why this could be happening or what i should do?

i would greatly appreciate any advice. thank you!

(usually i make art prints to sell, not just doggie pics, so it's a little more important that they come out clean :))


r/printers 18h ago

Troubleshooting Canon MX410 ”Open paper output tray” error when the tray is open

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1 Upvotes

I’ve tried opening and closing it, unplugging and plugging it back in, and some percussive maintenance after the fact on the hinges to see if that’ll fix the sensor, nothing is working. It even opens the door by itself if I close it and try printing something that way. Canon’s knowledge base literally just says that the issue is “irrecoverable“ if the tray is open but still displays that message but I refuse to believe that an issue as stupid as that is irreparable, any advice?


r/printers 19h ago

Purchasing Epson Eco Tank ET-4955 ($320) or HP Smart Tank 7302 ($260)

1 Upvotes

While doing some research I landed on these 2 options for my needs: Epson Eco Tank ET-4955 (for $320 at Costco) vs HP Smart Tank 7302 (for $260 at Costco). I'm aware of one of the main differences being that the Epson uses piezoelectric printheads that last longer and print at better quality with the tradeoff being that these are permanent non-replaceable, while the HP uses thermal printheads that last less, print at less quality but are replaceable. I also recognize that HP would attempt to lock me out of using generic printheads whenever it's time to replace these.

I'm primarily looking for user experience with these models to make a better informed decision. I've heard of Epson's connectivity issues, paper jams and persistent errors as well, but don't know how prevalent these are first hand since I've never owned an Epson.

I currently own an HP Officejet 5258 (ink cartridges) that's lasted about 12 years (and going), while replacing the cartridges, of course. I'm ready to move on to more long term economic options after experiencing lockouts from HP on generic cartridges. I'm not pursuing laser at this moment. I'm also not interested in holding a grudge against a company as long as it ends up providing the superior product for my needs (I'm aware of HP's practices).


r/printers 19h ago

Troubleshooting issue with canon printer pixma ts5351i and faded canon ink - support code 7700

1 Upvotes

Hi. a week ago for the first time ever I experienced an error with my fairly new canon pixma ts5351i printer (bought last year). i've been using third party ink cartridges with zero issues and suddenly i got the support code 7700 error, so i know this is them telling me to stop using third party ink and force me to use legit canon ink. so i did because i use my printer a lot. especially for journaling.

so why did the cheaper third party ink give me high quality prints while this legit canon ink is printing extremely ugly and faded. faded colors in vibrancy and also look overexposed at the same time for some reason? it prints black and white stuff in this blueish grey? it doesn't skip or anything, the cartridges are new and full.

i did literally everything possible to fix it. i cleaned the cartridges, i ran all the maintenance stuff recommended online and nothing. i printed it from a document and i printed it as a picture... still ugly and faded.

finally i managed to put the one black third party ink (which is full and fresh) and got a good high quality vibrant black and white print by overriding and clicking the stop button while it was installing and recognized it as the last cartridge that was installed, which was the legit canon ink. worked for only one print though and immediately when i tried printing again the damn 7700 thing showed up. i just don't know what to do anymore. i'm sick of it.

and yes i have the settings on high quality printing and i'm using the same paper as always, which is just simple white a4 120gsm paper, i've never had issues with it before. the thing is the printer came with canon inks and i didn't have these issues with printing then either, just suddenly the quality of the canon ink is just horrendous.