Don’t get angry at  your printer if it is not doing what you want it to. Here’s a few tips that will make a tech support rep out of you.

Problem: Printer is printing too slow

Solution: Speed up your printer and save some ink! Simply reduce print quality for those non-important print jobs. To do this, select PRINT AND PROPERTIES, then look for a setting that allows you to adjust print quality. Look for an option that says DRAFT. This mode will use the least printer ink thereby speeding up your print job.

Problem: Printer cartridges (or toner cartridges) cost too much.

Solution: You’ve got a few options here. One, try a third party vendor’s remanufactured or compatible cartridge. We can’t vouch for the quality from all vendors, so make sure you are buying from a reputable vendor that you can find some positive feedback on. Two, make the switch to higher capacity ink/toner cartridges. You’ll pay a little more up front, but those extra dollars will translate in to quite a few extra pages. That means a lower cost per page.

Problem: Windows is sending print jobs to the wrong printer.

Solution: This does not mean you should scrap your PC and go out and buy a Mac. It just means that your default printer has been changed (Windows has assigned a new default printer). This happens with Windows, for reasons unknown. To fix this, click START, then select PRINTERS AND FAXES (some of you might have to select DEVICES first). Now right click on the printer you want to make the default printer and select SET AS DEFAULT PRINTER.

Problem: Prints are too light, too spotty, or have horizontal

Solution: This often signals a cartridge problem. Most likely your cartridge’s print head is clogged. This will happen if you inkjet printer is not getting enough use. The printer’s head cleaning utility can clear this jam. Instructions on how to run this utility vary, so you are going to need to check your printer user manual to find out how to do it. If after running the utility you still have the same problem you are going to need to replace the cartridge. The ink in the print head has dried way to much for the utility to remedy.

Problem: I don’t believe my printer when it says my cartridge it out of ink.

Solution: Well, you might be right. Rumors have been circulating that ink level monitors aren’t as accurate as we would like them to be. Best bet is to keep printing until you notice deterioration in print quality. If your printer won’t let you print until you fix the low ink problem . . . Well, let’s say there are some tricks the manufacturer doesn’t want you to know about. We’ll save those for another post.

Problem: My wireless printer is too slow.

Solution: Wireless printers are becoming all the rage because of convenience, but the fastest print jobs are always going to come from a networked (wired) printer. It’s hard to beat a direct point to point connection. Think of it like driving on the freeway versus off-roading. Sure, off-roading sounds more adventurous, it sounds cool, and just might be more fun. But you never know what type of road blocks you will encounter along the way. It’s definitely slower. Same can be said for a wireless printer. But, if you are going to choose this path make sure your wireless printer as close as possible to your router (Wi-Fi speeds decrease with distance). Also, make sure your Wi-Fi printer or any wireless print server it connects to supports the 802.11n spec, which can rival the performance of 100-mbps Ethernet.

Problem: I use remanufactured or refilled ink cartridges, and my prints look awful.

Solution: Yeah, this can happen. Not all remanufacturers are good remanufacturers. Not all refillers are good refillers. This goes for those machines you see at Walgreens and CostCo too! The best solution is to use the manufacturer’s ink. If you are going to go with a remanufactured cartridge, make sure you are buying from someone you can find some positive feedback on. There are high quality remanufactured cartridges out there.

Problem: I need to fit more text on a page. How do I do it?

Solution: Shrink your text! If you can condense two pages on to one sheet of paper you are going to save a few dollars (using less paper). You will also increase your print speed (less pages to print). Just make sure your work is still legible once it has been shrunk. To do this in Windows, select PRINT AND PROPERTIES, then look for a setting that allows you to increase the number of pages per sheet.

Problem: My Grandma (or Aunt, Uncle, Parent) called and wants me to fix her “broken” printer.

Solution: My Grandma lives hours away, and yes she has called and asked this same question. Fortunately, Grandma problems are usually easy to fix. The hard part is trying to understand what she is explaining to you, and getting past the wonderment of how you became the family tech support. Any one of the following usually solves her problem. 1) Have her make sure her printer is plugged in to a power source; 2) Have her make sure there is paper in the printer’s paper tray; 3) Have her check the Ethernet or USB cable that connects the printer to her PC or router. Most important, if you cannot solve Grandma’s problem with one of these three steps don’t be afraid to tell her you can’t help. She’ll understand . . . Mine did!

Problem: My paper tray is flimsy.

Solution: Flimsy paper trays are becoming more and more common on inkjet printers. To cut costs manufacturers are skimping on quality in certain areas. The paper tray is an easy one to get away with. We all appreciate paying less for our printer, so what can we do about it? Do some research? Before buying your printer check out the quality of its parts. Examine the paper tray. If it looks flimsy you might want to consider buying different printer. Laser printers often have the option of allowing you to purchase and install a larger, and better made, paper tray. If you already own a printer with a flimsy paper tray . . . Handle with care!

If you have some handy printer problem solutions, please share them. Better yet, if you have a grandma story share that.

[Source: PCWorld Dec 18, 2009]

________________________________________________________
Ads by Pacific Ink

Save on Quality Printer Ink Cartridges
Order online delivered to your door
www.pacificink.com

If your school has empty printer cartridges lying around, or if you have access to empty printer cartridges through the parents of the students at your school, you need to start a empty ink cartridge recycling program.

A small scale program could net a school $30 – $40 a month (small meaning 10-20 cartridges) in supplies. That’s $300 – $400 a year in supplies! Larger scale programs could end up providing cash to be used for whatever the school would like to use it for.

If you think your school could benefit from cartridge recycling, but have not idea how to go about starting a program, contact us. We’d be happy to lend some advice and assist.

If you already have an empty cartridge collection program, please comment and let us know how it is working for you.

________________________________________________________
Ads by Pacific Ink

Buy Printer Cartridges Online
Save time and money – FREE Shipping
www.pacificink.com

Here’s a great deal for you!

HP is selling a Deskjet D1660 inkjet printer on its web site for $29.99. You even get free shipping if you are willing to wait two business days.

And, here’s a little something that ties in with our previous post.

That’s already a great deal, but way down at the bottom of the product page, the deal gets even better. Under the “what’s in the box” heading, it says this printer comes with one HP60 black cartridge and one HP60 tricolor cartridge. The black cartridge promises about 200 pages of output, and the tricolor one will give you about 150, according to HP’s site.

For replacement cartridges, HP offers a combo pack of HP60 ink that includes one black and one tricolor cartridge for $31.99. That’s two dollars more than the cost of the actual printer. HP’s ink and toner section of its Web site says new tricolor cartrages delivers more color ink printouts than the starter tricolor cartridge, but it’s a minimal increase; the replacement offers 165 pages versus the 150 in the starter cartridge. The black replacements promise the same 200 page yield as the starter.

There you go: you save $2 by buying a second printer instead of buying replacement cartridges. Too bad old printers aren’t an alternative fuel. [PCWord]

We don’t know how long HP will be offering the Deskjet D1660 at this price, so if you are interested you better hop on it right away.

If you take advantage of this deal, let us know how it worked out for you. Better yet, let us know how many of the printers you purchased!

________________________________________________________
Ads by Pacific Ink

HP 60 CC640WN Black Ink Cartridge
Black ink cartridge for HP Deskjet D1660 – $14.99
www.pacificink.com

HP 60XL Black Ink Cartridge
High capacity 100 more pages – $34.99
www.pacificink.com

This is a question we hear quite a bit . . . Wouldn’t I save some money on printer ink if I just bought a new printer? Truthfully we have to answer yes, there are cases where you would save some money by just buying a new printer. That said, we’d prefer you buy the ink! Additionally, the idea of buying a printer every time you need ink is kind of impractical. It is also wasteful.

The new cartridges or new printer debate was rekindled on Digg’s tech page when a user posted a photo of the cost of brand name replacement cartridges and a photo of the cost of a new printer (see photo here). Based on the photo, it is cheaper to just buy a new printer and use the free cartridges that come with it.

Seeing this, the folks at PCWorld did their best Mythbusters impersonation and tested out some common printer myths. Here are two quick ones.

Inkjet printers require one black and one color cartridge to work, and buying brand name replacements for both can cost $40 to $60. But it’s relatively easy to find an adequate printer — one that comes with free ink in the box with the purchase — for less than that price. So, when faced with spending $50 on ink, it seems economical (NOT environmental) to just pick up a second, third, or fourth backup printer instead. When one printer’s ink dries up, throw it away and break out the new printer. I’m going to unofficially call this practice the Earth Killer Method of replacing your inkjet cartridges. [PCWorld]

What about the myth of the Starter Cartridge?

It may be true that the cartridges in your new printer are ‘Starter Cartridges’. These cartridges are only half full. They are designed to run out of ink quickly and get you back to store to buy some new ink. The only evidence we could find to support this myth was from the claims of our customers. The majority agree that the cartridges that came with their printer ran out much sooner than those they purchased after. Take it for what it is worth.

Kodak made a big splash on the printer cartridge scene two years ago with their inexpensive printer cartridges ($9.99 for black, $14.99 for color). As their printers and ink cartridges gained popularity they also gained the attention of the Federal Trade Commission . . . Because of Hewlett Packard (HP).

HP complained to the National Advertising Division trade group that Kodak’s advertisements were unfair. The FTC must have agreed, in some way, because they go involved. Kodak’s advertising had claimed consumers could save $110 a year on ink costs by using Kodak’s All-in-One inkjet printers.

Pressure from the FTC has caused Kodak to agree to add that the $110 in savings depends on a consumer limiting their printing to 1,500 pages a year, or four pages per day. From now on, Kodak said it would advertise that consumers can, “Save on average $110 per year on ink based on just four pages per day.”

Kodak considers the case closed. We are not sure how HP feels about this, but you can let us know how you feel about it. Also, if you’ve got a Kodak printer, let us know how you like it.

________________________________________________________
Ads by Pacific Ink

Kodak Printer Ink
Get ink cartridges for your Kodak printer
www.pacificink.com

Kodak #10 1215581 Ink Cartridge
Kodak #10 Cartridge $9.99 – FREE Shipping
www.pacificink.com

We’ve been hearing some things about the HP OfficeJet J5780 Printer.  Unfortunately it has not been good things. One customer threw out the word, ‘hate’, as in ‘I Hate This Printer’ . Yes, they were referring to the HP OfficeJet J5780.

That shared, here is what our customers are saying:

This is a bad printer. It prints bad, the paper feeder is bad and it is prone to paper jams.

You get what you pay for. The printer was inexpensive, but is full of problems.

The worst printer I have ever owned. It eats up all your ink by constantly running the page alignment process.

The paper feeder constantly feeds double pages.

Sections of my document are frequently omitted.

The paper jams easily.

Do not buy this (expletive) printer.

We had one customer share the fact that they had to have their J5780 replaced by HP within one month of purchase.  HP sent them another J5780 which they say works, but jams contstantly.

Another customer had a hard time installing the printer and then could not get the scanner to work. She ended up throwing it in the trash.

All the product review web sites have given this printer a ‘average’ rating. Most say that the low price helps with the average machine quality.

So, now that you have read what our customers say about the HP J5780 Printer, let us know what you think.

________________________________________________________
Ads by Pacific Ink

HP OfficeJet J5780 Printer
Get ink cartridges for your HP OfficeJet J5780
www.pacificink.com

HP 74XL Black Ink Cartridge
HP 74XL Ink $34.99 – FREE Shipping
www.pacificink.com

The Epson Artisan 810 Printer was featured on the December 15 Ellen DeGeners show. Ellen gave the printer away as part of her “12 Days of Giveaways”.

The Artisan 810 allows you to fax, copy, or scan at the touch of a button. The printer also features a 7.8 inch touch panel screen and built in Wi-Fi/Ethernet networking. This Epson printer is Energy Star qualified.

Here is what Epson says about their printer:

Imagination meets innovation. Unleash your creativity with the Artisan 810, a sleek, high performance all-in-one that powers through Ultra Hi-Definition 4″ x 6″photos in as fast as 10 seconds. With convenient Wi-Fi and Ethernet networking, you can print, scan, and access memory card slots1 from any room in the house. Use the smart, 7.8″ touch panel to view, edit and restore faded color photos, print CDs/DVDs, and so much more. The Artisan 810 even offers automatic, two-sided printing so you can save on your paper supply. And, when you’re in a hurry, you can use the Automatic Document Feeder to quickly copy, fax and scan stacks of documents. This versatile all-in-one includes other innovative features for creating one of a kind projects like coloring book pages and notepaper using your own photos. And, it’s fast. With maximum print speeds of 38 ppm and laser quality speeds of 9.5 ppm black and 9.1 ppm color, the Artisan 810 keeps up with your busy life. It’s so convenient you can even use it to charge a cell phone, MP3 player or other portable device without tying up an additional power outlet.2 Packed full of features, this amazing all-in-one is all you need for all your everyday projects.

The 810 uses the following Epson printer cartridges:

Epson 98 T098120 Black Ink Cartridge

Epson 99 T099220 Cyan Ink Cartridge

Epson 99 T099320 Magenta Ink Cartridge

Epson 99 T099420 Yellow Ink Cartridge

Epson 99 T099520 Light Cyan Ink Cartridge

Epson 99 T099620 Light Magenta Ink Cartridge

________________________________________________________
Ads by Pacific Ink

Epson Artisan 810 Printer
Get black and color cartridges for your Epson 810 printer
www.pacificink.com

Epson 98 T098120 Ink Cartridge
Black Epson ink cartridge $19.29
www.pacificink.com

What is a printer ink expiration date? Why does it exist? Is there something built into ink cartridges that make them stop working on a certain date? These are very good questions.

Printer cartridge manufacturers have taken to putting expiration dates on some of their cartridges. Why?

According to manufacturers (i.e., HP, Lexmark, Dell) only a small percentage of cartridges have an expiration date. And, yes, some will stop working on the expiration date printed on the cartridge. Others have an override so you can continue to use the cartridge after it expires.

But why an expiration date? Well, HP says that air ingestion and water evaporation cause the ink in the cartridge to change over time. In printers where the printhead and ink supply are seperate, the older ink can adversely affect the printhead. Basically, the ink could damage the printhead and your printer will cease to print or your printouts won’t look so good. With an expiration date, HP is helping prevent this problem.

Click here to read more about HP’s ink expiration dates and find out which cartridges have expiration dates.

Click here to buy cartridges (with and without expiration dates) at Pacific Ink.

________________________________________________________
Ads by Pacific Ink

HP Ink Cartridges and Supplies
Pacific Ink has HP ink cartridges at low prices
www.pacificink.com

Dell Printer Cartridges
Dell ink cartridges for all printers
www.pacificink.com

If you have an paper jam in your HP LaserJet printer, you should do the following:

1. Remove jammed print media from the specified location (some printers will tell you the location of the jam) then check the entire paper path for other pieces of media in the path.

2. Open and close the top cover to clear the message.

3. Check sensors and flags in the paper path for proper operation.

4. Attempt to print again.

Looking for a bargain. Check out these ten printers . . . all priced under $100. We can’t offer you the printers, but we can take care of any printer cartridge needs you have.

Brother MFC-3360C – The Brother MFC-3360C does decent quality text and graphics, but anyone printing a large volume of photos won’t be happy with the extremely slow output speed. If you’re set on buying a multifunction printer, put your $90 toward a more capable device, like the Canon Pixma MX330.

Brother DCP 165C – The counterintuitive setup, bland design, deplorable print quality, and crawling output speeds earns this printer a double thumbs down. Spend $30 more and you can get the Canon Pixma MX330, an all-in-one printer that adds a fax machine on top of the copy, scan, and print features.

Epson Stylus NX515 – The Epson Stylus NX515 is a capable machine that will improve the efficiency of any office or work-at-home setup. Not only is it a lightning-fast all-in-one, but it also has a broader range of features than most other $150 AIOs. As long as you don’t need a full creative software suite, the Epson Stylus NX515 will make a dependable sidekick to your computer.

HP Deskjet D2660 Printer – HP’s basic Deskjet D2660 inkjet has a fold-up paper tray and a unique paper corral that make it easy to store away. We noticed several flaws in the output quality, but if you don’t expect too much in terms of photo output, this $50 inkjet will make an excellent at-home printer for intermittent use.

HP Officejet 6000 – We like the simplicity of the HP Officejet 6000 single-function inkjet printer. The print quality meets HP’s high standards, and it outputs full color photos at an impressive rate, but its lack of an LCD screen takes some getting used to. Nevertheless, the HP Officjet 6000 performed well and earns our recommendation as a great single-function printer.

Canon Pixma MX330 – The HP Photosmart C6380 is a good fit for beginning photographers who want more than just a simple printer. Its six-ink cartridge bay, and scanning and copying capabilities extend its versatility, and while the output quality suffers a few missteps, the C6380 remains a worthwhile deal for the money.

HP Officejet J4680 – The HP Officejet J4680 offers more features at a cheaper price than most of its competitors, and small offices and home professionals will appreciate its print quality as well. Unfortunately, its negatives far outweigh the positives: your office productivity will take a major hit because of sluggish output speeds and faulty paper handling. For a better rounded all-in-one printer, we recommend picking up the Lexmark x7675 Pro or investing an extra $90 in the HP Officejet J6480.

Dell All-in-One Wireless Printer V305w – The Dell V305w is cosmetically appealing and inexpensive, but the output quality needs significant improvement, and the cost to maintain the printer is much higher than the industry standard. We recommend checking out the competition for a printer that will give you longer-lasting inks, cheaper replacement cartridges, and more acceptable photo-quality prints.

Canon Selphy CP770 – The Canon Selphy CP770 is a neat, little dye-sublimation printer that includes a bucket for easy travel, but the wireless accessories aren’t included. If you’re shopping for a convenient travel-friendly printer, check out the Canon Selphy CP760 that offers the exact same technology with a similar style for a better price.

Canon Selphy CP760 – The Canon Selphy CP760 takes the pain out of printing photos with its plug-and-play design and straightforward usability, and the $100 price tag makes it an excellent companion printer for quick prints in the home.

*Review summary compliments of CNET.com