Technology challenged

[pbray]

My ancient inkjet printer has been slowly dying--at first it was misfeeding paper and then it developed a tendency toward spitting out ink. I changed inkjet cartridges (twice), but while there was a brief improvement, the smearing ink came back. As did a new symptom, where random lines appeared much lighter than the text above and below them. I tentatively diagnosed a problem with the track mechanism--as it travels back and forth the cartridge is either too close to the paper (smearing) or too far (light print).

So on Saturday I went over to Staples to see what they had in stock, and found a printer that looked good, with a 30% off rebate. But since I hadn't made up my mind, I decided to check a couple of other places to see what they had on offer.

Somehow I missed the fine print that the rebate offer was only good for one week. When I returned Sunday, the printer was back to its regular price.

Grr. Argh. Now I'm stuck waiting to see if that printer goes back on sale, or trying to find something else at a comparable price. And in the meantime, my HP knows it's about to be replaced and is misprinting with wild enthusiasm.

Comments

[sylvia-rachel.livejournal.com]

Oh dear.

The wiliness of computer hardware is exceeded only by the wiliness of the people who sell it. :P

[pxcampbell.livejournal.com]

If you can get by with a B&W printer, it might be worth looking into a laser pinter. I bought a Brother all-in-one (printer, fax, scanner, copier) and it's blazing fast. I've changed the toner cartridge once (25,000 pages -- yep, I have to print out all my drafts). They seem pricey, but when you calculate the price per page, they are dead cheap.

The inkjet printers are a classic of scam of the type pioneered (I think) by Gillette -- give the razor away free and charge for the blades.

I've never owned an HP that didn't come up with paper feed problems sooner or later.... :)

Good luck!!