sixpack
N/A
Many of us print out chartlets etc and laminate them for use on board and doubtless many use inkjet printers, well beware, printing charts used lots of ink and hence lots of waste ink which is pumped to a waste ink tank inside the printer. The catch is, one manufacter in particular in their wisdom (greed) build in a "protection" counter that counts the waste ink pumped to the waste tank and when the count reaches a certain level the printer stops working and advises you to take the printer to a service center for service (£20 ish).
Now the real coup de grace is the counter cannot be reset by pressing buttons, it needs a software reset to get the printer going again so even if you pop the cover and clean the felt pads of waste ink the printer still sends the service required message.
How quickly one comes to this point depends on level of usage and type of cartridge used ("compatible" cartridges runs up the counter around 4X faster than using genuine EOM cartridges or so I was told by the service center.
I was also informed by the service center that if the printer is under warranty they will reset the counter ONCE only as if it needs reset again within the year you are "using it too much".
All is not lost though as some kind person has produced software for resetting the Epson printers, stopping the counters, hot swapping cartridges etc etc. so you CAN use you printer for the purpose you bought it, PRINTING and do not need to have it "serviced" every xxx pages or so, (just clean the waste ink pads). see here.
I have downloaded and used the software on my printers without any problems so now I can print until my heart is content without being forced to pay the manufacturer every few months for the privilege.
I have no real experience with other manufacturers products except Xerox and Canon whose printers do not seem to suffer from the same problem (pre programmed lifespan).
A google on "printer resetting" will bring up many interesting web sites dealing with the problem and other related issues - well worth a read. If one sticks the name of a popular manufacturer in front of the "printer resetting" even more detailed information is available. (see the link above).
Now the real coup de grace is the counter cannot be reset by pressing buttons, it needs a software reset to get the printer going again so even if you pop the cover and clean the felt pads of waste ink the printer still sends the service required message.
How quickly one comes to this point depends on level of usage and type of cartridge used ("compatible" cartridges runs up the counter around 4X faster than using genuine EOM cartridges or so I was told by the service center.
I was also informed by the service center that if the printer is under warranty they will reset the counter ONCE only as if it needs reset again within the year you are "using it too much".
All is not lost though as some kind person has produced software for resetting the Epson printers, stopping the counters, hot swapping cartridges etc etc. so you CAN use you printer for the purpose you bought it, PRINTING and do not need to have it "serviced" every xxx pages or so, (just clean the waste ink pads). see here.
I have downloaded and used the software on my printers without any problems so now I can print until my heart is content without being forced to pay the manufacturer every few months for the privilege.
I have no real experience with other manufacturers products except Xerox and Canon whose printers do not seem to suffer from the same problem (pre programmed lifespan).
A google on "printer resetting" will bring up many interesting web sites dealing with the problem and other related issues - well worth a read. If one sticks the name of a popular manufacturer in front of the "printer resetting" even more detailed information is available. (see the link above).