Vendor lock-in is a good thing? HP's CFO thinks so
www.theregister.com
Funny how marketing messages change depending on the audience

HP exec says quiet part out loud when it comes to locking in print customers::Funny how marketing messages change depending on the audience

  • StrawberryPigtails@lemmy.sdf.orgEnglish
    171·
    7 months ago

    I mean, idk what the Instant Ink plans are like.

    I’ve used them. Basically it just turns your printer purchase into a printer rental.

    It’s not a bad deal, necessarily, but if your card declines for any reason, HP bricks your printer (including non-printer functionality) until you pay up. And printing more than your chosen plan allows can get pricey real quick. As little as I print, though, a laser printer was a more reliable option and much cheaper long term.

    iRobot does something similar with their Select program. Like HP’s Instant Ink, it’s a great deal for some folks, not so much for others.

    • Sanctus@lemmy.worldEnglish
      71·
      7 months ago

      Yeah fuck that. I am already paperless. I don’t see a reason for any of it. Bricking a printer? Lmao

      • StrawberryPigtails@lemmy.sdf.orgEnglish
        1·
        7 months ago

        Like I said, whether it’s good deal or not depends on how your cost/benefit comparison comes out.

        For me, it went against renting a printer (I print maybe 5 pages a year nowadays), and for renting a Roomba as my family often seems to think they were born in a barn. 😂 Renting that Roomba has, for me, turned out much cheaper than owning it.

    • thisisnotgoingwell@programming.devEnglish
      5·
      7 months ago

      I bought a laser printer years ago(Brother brand) and have printed a few hundred pages, I’ve never had to worry about toner. Ink printers are a total scam and the only reason people buy them is because the initial cost is much cheaper or they don’t know the difference between inkjet and laser.

      • Archer@lemmy.worldEnglish
        4·
        7 months ago

        I literally bought a pallet of printers from state surplus for $45. They were all laser. I’m on three years on the first one now. BTW don’t do this, moving them was a PITA

      • A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.worldEnglish
        2·
        7 months ago

        I got a brother laser printer from goodwill like 5 years ago for 7 bucks.

        Still on the toner cart that came with it.

        So much better than inkjets.

      • froh42@lemmy.worldEnglish
        1·
        7 months ago

        When I urgently needed to print something a few years ago I ran to the store and purchased the cheapest laser printer I could find, which was a Ricoh for Eur 42. Windows GDI printer shit, but I also found Mac drivers and a working linux driver.

        It waa the low end model, had the same printing mechanism as the larger Ricoh Multifunction things and third party toner was dirt cheap. Ah and I can’t remember any paper jam.

        Inkjets, especiallw those from HP are a scam.

        I only threw out the (fully working) Ricoh after years, because someone gave me a network connected full color Oki Multifunction led printer device for free.

        (Ah I checked later, “normal” price for the Ricoh when not on sale was Eur 75 or so)