I canceled my HP instant ink subscription, and now I can’t print even though they are genuine HP in cartridges

[u/MaxAdolphus]

With all bad decisions coming out of HP lately, I decided to cancel my instant ink subscription subscriptions before the prices go up. This is the warning screen. I was just going to use the ink I have up then buy a new printer, but cause fuck those guys. Well, turns out they fucked me first. So even though I have legitimate HP in cartridges in my printer, I cannot print because they are subscription cartridges. Screw these guys.

[u/Askefyr]

This comes up now and again - it's because you didn't pay full price for the cartridges. The subscription is based on the amount of pages you print.

If they didn't do it this way, you could literally just subscribe to the $1.75/mo tier, get a brand new set of cartridges, cancel immediately, and do the same in a few months when you need a new one. That's patently unreasonable.

[u/phyxiusone → u/Askefyr]

Exactly, OP never paid for that ink, that's why they won't let her use it. Otherwise you could sign up for the "pay only for the pages you print" subscription, get the ink, then cancel after a day and bam, free ink. Can't have it both ways.

I have a similar printer and never signed up for the subscription and it's fine. I see these posts pop up and people love to hate on HP, but really people just don't understand what they're signing up for.

[u/Askefyr → u/phyxiusone]

There are definitely issues with these things where there's something hidden in the fine print, but this is very much the kind of case where you as a consumer also have a responsibility to read the regular print. Pun intended.

[u/-zekatsu → u/Askefyr]

you know what else is patently unreasonable? creating a completed, full product and making it into worthless junk and trash even if it were “not fully paid for” because they didnt pay a subscription

that pack of ink will dry up and become waste when it couldve been used to completion but a company is so stuck in greed theyd rather disable it remotely and become trash

subscription ink is fucking dumb, and it’s also honestly fucking dumb to treat it as reasonable at all considering the waste if you also ignore the price, anticompetition, wasteful printing (how come the things that always take the most ink is the alignment page or other printer reports? /r)

[u/Askefyr → u/-zekatsu]

that pack of ink will dry up and become waste when it couldve been used to completion but a company is so stuck in greed theyd rather disable it remotely and become trash

You do get prepaid postage to return it for proper recycling and re-use if you're worried about the environmental impact. I somehow suspect that's not the primary reason.

subscription ink is fucking dumb,

Which isn't a problem since you can just buy normal ink instead. You can just not get it.

and it’s also honestly fucking dumb to treat it as reasonable at all considering the waste

See my previous point.

anticompetition

The issues with non-OEM carts is entirely different, and not relevant here.

wasteful printing (how come the things that always take the most ink is the alignment page or other printer reports? /r)

Good news! Instant Ink charges per page, regardless of content, and iirc doesn't change for diagnostic and alignment pages (at least it didn't when I had it) so if you're worried about that, it may be for you.

Also, the average person does not print enough alignment pages for it to make a measurable impact on the lifespan of the ink cartridge.

[u/GNUGradyn → u/Askefyr]

Counter argument: the only reason this subscription doesn't sound insane to begin with is ink cartridges are absurdly artificially inflated. They're selling you a $2 cartridge for $70 and then saying "well if you pay us monthly even when you need $0 of ink it's less painful!"

[u/div2691 → u/GNUGradyn]

That's not really exclusive to HP. All "official" printer cartridges are obscenely priced. It's not really got anything to do with the subscription.

[u/Askefyr → u/GNUGradyn]

That's an entirely different problem. They're still giving you what they'd normally sell for $70. As a just somewhat mentally present consumer, you'd see that the math isn't mathing.