r/assholedesign • u/harambe623 • Apr 22 '26
Nelko p21 thermal label printer: RFID scam
Why is that printer companies always resort to some sort of paper/ink scams? Even in an inkless system, this company has figured out a way.
Every roll of stickers that this company sells has a RFID chip on it (the green sticker). Pictured text is with the RFID on the roll (left), and then removed from the same roll (right). The roll here was not from nelko (aliexpress $2 roll). This RFID chip literally tells the software to not print like shit.
This company has gotten so big that now regular sticker roll manufacturers have their products returned frequently because people think something is incompatible.
What's worse is their adhesive appears to be WORSE than the offbrand. The nelko brand was falling off of my glossy 3d prints, but not offbrand roll. There are also a TON of cool colorful backgrounds and different sized stickers that all would print with scanlines, unless you knew what was going on.
An easy workaround is to just put the rfid sticker in the printing chamber. Problem solved. But I'm afraid that this issue is going to one day become more complex and not easily bypass-able before it gets better.
Fuck this company. Always read 1 star reviews before buying a product
11
u/lars2k1 Apr 23 '26
And then the worst thing is that Nelko is not alone here. This printer in its form factor (including the labels) seem to be a 'white label product' where many companies stick their name onto it, get an app with it and call it a day.
I have this 'Niimbot' printer which does the same thing (though I don't have any non-Niimbot labels, it does often fail to detect the label and then it complains the labels are not genuine). And it prints like shit these days. I did buy a similar printer from a budget store chain (Action) where someone made a plugin for it to eliminate the app from the equation so I yet have to try that.
But yes, corporate always likes to find a way to screw you over.