Does Staples Repair Hp Printers

This 2022 file photo shows an HP printer on display at a store, in North Andover, Mass.

I just chucked a two-year-old printer out a third story window. Watching it smash on the bricks below — a spray of glass, pop of plastic, and hasty bounciness of mangled metal — was the most satisfying part of always owning that stupid matter.

In the time since I offset bought it and at present:

The wireless networking rarely connected without a fuss
It ran out of ink all the time — usually when something super important was due
The ink was crazy-expensive
Speaking of ink, those auto ink refills were hit or miss — rarely hither when we really needed them — though the monthly charges to our credit card were like clockwork
No local stores sell "the right" ink cartridges anymore
Ambiguous messages on the tiny printer touchscreen fabricated information technology nearly incommunicable to troubleshoot
Trying to get client back up help was an do in frustration besides
I was nigh scammed by an online service that looked like legit tech support

Audio familiar? According to a Consumer Reports survey published in March of this year, people ditch 75% of home printers inside a few years of purchasing them, "because they had stopped working well or stopped working altogether."

Why are dwelling house printers so awful?

In a time when nosotros have tech to aid bullheaded people see, computers so small you can swallow them and speakers that answer our questions, why can't we get a freaking printer to piece of work? According to the experts, All-In-One (AIO) home office printers that print, copy, and browse — are often built cheap, sold fifty-fifty cheaper, and not actually meant to concluding that long. Why? Money and market need.

Printers are actually fairly circuitous devices, just manufacturers fix the prices low with the intention of recouping the costs through proprietary ink and toner — and the fact you'll need a new one in a few years anyway.

And you know what? They're right. I'm most to pick up the quaternary new 100-ish dollar printer for my family in but six years. That means they've basically get disposable appurtenances, often wearing out faster than most of my shoes, car tires, and fifty-fifty light bulbs.

Mutual printer issues

Rather than wallow in our collective printer issues, here are top bug with modern AIO's and the easiest means to fix them.

Wireless connectivity problems

Most of the time connectedness woes come up down to your computer and your printer non existence on the same page (pun intended). Become the nuts out of the mode get-go: restart both your printer and computer, and update your drivers. (If you want step-by-step assist for doing that, I added a short guide hither.)

What's worked all-time for me in general is to delete the printer from my laptop (past pressing the minus push in my printer settings) and then add information technology back on again. That reintroduces my printer and computer to each other, and often gets them on the correct track.

If that doesn't piece of work, your router might be the problem. Routers sometimes mistakenly stand up in the way because they're trying to keep yous condom from rogue wireless connections. If you have a "WPS", which stands for "Wi-Fi Protected Setup," button on your router (or in the router app on your estimator or smartphone) pressing it tin can help the two gadgets articulate things up by telling your router to arctic out for a moment and let your computer and printer communicate.

Ink Bug

There are three main issues with ink: information technology dries up, it runs out too fast, and it's incredibly expensive. Nearly all modern inkjet printers have built-in routines to keep the ink cartridges in tip-peak shape, which means you have to leave your printer "on" all the time. Some models use more ink than others during routine maintenance, which could exist wiping you out too.

To salve all the way around, only impress the quality you lot need for a specific chore. If y'all're just printing plain blackness text, bump the quality level downwardly to "Draft" in the printer popular-up window. And if you're not printing a photograph or color image, select "Grayscale" or "Black & White" instead of color.

When it comes to price, well, that's a tricky one. Consumer Reports recommends using aftermarket ink whenever possible. Also, make sure yous're buying the right printer for the job, and using the right refill or ink subscription services for your needs, which I explain more below.

Paper Jams

Jams are ridiculously frustrating, and the blazon of paper you lot use might exist the issue. Bank check with what the manufacturer recommends, don't assume that one deal-priced stack of white sheets is the same every bit the rest, and never mix two brands or types of paper in the aforementioned tray. Ever fan the sheets out before sticking them in the printer tray then they can break free of their neighbors too.

Scam Support

Googling for printer help might land you on a "support" folio that looks real, with a fancy logo and conversation window, but it could very well be a scam. These cons often include 888 telephone numbers, and almost e'er lead y'all right to someone who asks for remote access into your computer to "fix your problem" for yous. Don't be fooled. If that happens, hang up. If they remember, block them.

If you're searching for alive help, all the major printer brands including HP, Blood brother, Catechism, and Panasonic have free live support. Ever bank check the URL of the page to make sure it's actually something like "support.hp" and non "bobsprinterfixes.com." Never mitt out a credit card number for simple printer troubleshooting, considering none of the reputable manufacturers will ask for that.

Does a good printer exist?

According to a recent Consumer Reports survey, "With input from more than 36,000 subscribers—who together purchased more than 42,000 printers between 2022 and 2022," Brother printers lasted longer than many other brands, fifty-fifty though many other brands are more popular amongst shoppers. Also:

If you print a lot of text and need clean, sharp images, get with a laser printer.
If you print photos and documents with a lot of images, inkjet might be a better, more toll-effective choice.
For ink issues, y'all tin can relieve coin with Epson'due south refillable tanks, only you might pay more than upfront for the printer. HP has depression-cost subscription service plans, if yous print roughly the same amount of pages each calendar month. Blood brother simply launched a new service that lets people in the U.S. automatically replenish both ink and toner without requiring a contract or subscription fee.
Extra features like scanning and copying can lead to more headaches.
If you merely print occasionally, inkjet printers have a lower initial price both for the device and the ink cartridges.

Don't forget to recycle

Any you decide, don't just chuck your old printer out the window. Even though I did it, I cleaned it all upwardly and recycled it responsibly. Many part supply and electronics stores like Staples and Best Buy will take your old printer and recycle it the right way for gratis. All you take to exercise is drop it off.

Jennifer Jolly is an Emmy Award-winning consumer tech contributor and host of USA TODAY's digital video bear witness TECH NOW. Due east-mail her at techcomments@usatoday.com. Follow her on Twitter @JenniferJolly.