HP gone too far with drm

I would pay a reasonable fare to go to the fair.

I won't be buying a HP printer in the future then, this kind of thing is a trend that annoys me no end.
 
I can see similarities between this and Apple's iPhone7 dropping headphone socket and now any single cable connecting to an iPhone7 means simply get more $

It's a decision made intended to drive up their own revenues. I've always been wary of using 3rd party carts in my printers, be it HP or otherwise.

All you can do is respond with your next choice of printer.
 
Last edited:
Moses said:
Except they're not retrospectively removing headphone sockets from phones which have already been sold. And for future phones which don't have the socket, the adapter cable is included.
Click to expand...

Then again they've never advertised being able to use 3rd party cartridges as a feature and have always advised against them. Unlike a headphone socket which is a marketed feature.
 
They've all started to do this now anyway, It's getting cheaper to buy a new printer instead of replacing the inks when they run out.
 
For a while, lots of people have been using all manner third party consumables in name company products, then claiming for damages under warranty. Often it cannot be definitively proven (but is flippin' obvious to anyone with half a brain) that they've done so, therefore the name company has to shell out. They're not always big name, but usually one with a good rep, at least.
Most have something in the warranty about not supporting someone else's product used with theirs, as they cannot guarantee compatability, quality, suitability, etc, but it comes down to how hard it is to prove.

Given the difficulty, I don't see a problem with this any more than I see a problem with OCUK refusing to pay out if you buy an 8-Pack Fancy Build from them, and then blow it up by sticking in a crappy PSU that you bought from ** no competitor hinting **

Digital enforcement of this warranty might be dodgy ground, but I see no problem with it in principle.
This one-man witch-hunt and list-of-demands email that guy put together, though, just sounds like he's stirring things up for the sake of it and making himself out to be a complete nutter.

It's not like HP lied about it or snuck it in secretly. They told everyone about it.
Moreover, his comparison to a toaster (and the linked article's microwave) is stupid - Toasters and ovens are designed to work with generic products, whereas HP is designed to work with HP stuff specifically.
I could be wrong, but I don't think a single car manufacturer/dealer would support any of it's warranties or guarantees if you slapped a load of aftermarket mods on and then took it back to claim. HP obviously just got tired of dealing with too many people buying cheap crap and then whining about their broken machines.... kinda like how our customer centre gets tired of people complaining because they can't flush cement powder down the toilet...!!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Moses said:
Again, the comparison with Apple is ridiculous. Apple aren't changing previous phones, so the comparison dies there. Then the profit motive was mentioned... but Apple are bundling phones with a new adapter which they didn't previously provide... it's not an optional extra a consumer has to pay more for.
Click to expand...
I only mention Apple as it's very recent in the news and I made no reference to previous products,etc.

All I was trying to suggest was that it will have been a decision made by the upper management in HP in order to drive up their own revenues and profits.

For my sins along time ago, I spent some time working as a "purple shirt" techie and even though I wasn't involved in sales I do know that at that time the company had it's largest margins on cables/ink and other such consumables.

So simply this will be HP trying to increase their revenues by forcing users to purchase their own branded/supplied consumables. People have a choice and can decide for themselves what they buy and use.
 
Last edited:
ttaskmaster said:
For a while, lots of people have been using all manner third party consumables in name company products, then claiming for damages under warranty. Often it cannot be definitively proven (but is flippin' obvious to anyone with half a brain) that they've done so, therefore the name company has to shell out. They're not always big name, but usually one with a good rep, at least.
Most have something in the warranty about not supporting someone else's product used with theirs, as they cannot guarantee compatability, quality, suitability, etc, but it comes down to how hard it is to prove.

Given the difficulty, I don't see a problem with this any more than I see a problem with OCUK refusing to pay out if you buy an 8-Pack Fancy Build from them, and then blow it up by sticking in a crappy PSU that you bought from Scam™...

Digital enforcement of this warranty might be dodgy ground, but I see no problem with it in principle.
This one-man witch-hunt and list-of-demands email that guy put together, though, just sounds like he's stirring things up for the sake of it and making himself out to be a complete nutter.

It's not like HP lied about it or snuck it in secretly. They told everyone about it.
Moreover, his comparison to a toaster (and the linked article's microwave) is stupid - Toasters and ovens are designed to work with generic products, whereas HP is designed to work with HP stuff specifically.
I could be wrong, but I don't think a single car manufacturer/dealer would support any of it's warranties or guarantees if you slapped a load of aftermarket mods on and then took it back to claim. HP obviously just got tired of dealing with too many people buying cheap crap and then whining about their broken machines.... kinda like how our customer centre gets tired of people complaining because they can't flush cement powder down the toilet...!!
Click to expand...

So let say VW tell people to use Shell not BP would that be right? or Microsoft say you cant use HP/canon etc.. printers because they are not Ms printers. The above argument is rubbish HP can simply ask 3rd party ink if yes no help the end.

They are restricting competition and choice, and will end up costing them consumers, i for one will not buy HP products anymore.
 
Moses said:
Again, how does it drive up Apple's revenues and profits if they now including an accessory they didn't previously include? Previously you got a phone + headphones + USB cable + charger block. Now you get all that plus an adapter for third party headphones. Increasing revenues and profits by giving a way a new accessory = a novel strategy...
Click to expand...
And if you loose or damage the adapter, then you need to purchase another one for £9 from Apple or an approved supplier. Can't simply start using another pair of headphones you may already own.
 
I wouldn't have gone with DRM. I have heard that DRM isn't very good company to take to the far. Silly HP.
 
Moses said:
Again, how does it drive up Apple's revenues and profits if they now including an accessory they didn't previously include? Previously you got a phone + headphones + USB cable + charger block. Now you get all that plus an adapter for third party headphones. Increasing revenues and profits by giving a way a new accessory = a novel strategy...
Click to expand...

It was away around the EU law, you still have to buy the adapter it was better if they just added in into the phone.
 
TBH, they don't really make money on the printers and cheaper models are sold at a loss to them. The money comes from cartridges and they recommend to avoid third party cartridges. I don't agree with their business ethics but they are well within their right to do this.

All it will take is a competitor to offer cheaper ink and guaranteed cheap ink re-sellers to bury this issue.
 
but but its apple and apple and the best and only apple know what is best for us.

Whats sad is no one is willing to stand by and give them the finger.
 
Their printers are crap anyway, bought two last year, both didn't work properly, on one the scanner kept disconnecting and another would not come out of sleep mode. Never again.
 
HP really lost the plot years ago.

I stopped buying HP products when they refused to update their printer drivers for older printer models when the move to Windows 7 happened. Had to give the HP away and replaced it with a Canon, which I still have and which received an updated driver for Windows 10 before I even needed it. I buy the Canon branded toner - saving 20 or 30 quid every 2 years for the risk of something inferior or that could screw my printer isn't worth the bother imo - and the fact they support their legacy products keeps me very loyal.

What's really depressing is the way the printer market has moved. For the cost of replacement toners / inks, its often worthwhile to just buy a whole new printer. I bought a colour laser recently, for £79 !, but the toner is going to cost more than that when it comes to replacement time. Ridiculously wasteful, but the economics make sense to me (given our low volume) to just chuck it and buy a new one once the toners run out.

EDIT: Also makes sense that OC don't carry printers. I don't see where there's any margin for them.
 
Their business, literally.

Undermines their profits and possibly printing quality when 3rd party consumables are being used in their printers.

I'm sure if they could they would try to enforce paper use too. Still their business.

HP does not have a monopoly on printers, if you want to be cheap then do your research.

3rd party consumables were a major point in what printer I bought. Huge capacity 3rd party black toner = win.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom