HP Officejet K550

[Stan]

Hi,

Following my well documented problem with an Epson C84 printer i have
admitted defeat and looking for a replacement. To that end i have been
looking at various printers, my main prorities are Build Quality,
Reliability, Running Costs, Print Quality, Print Speed in roughly that
order.
Note the high priority of build quality and reliability. I'm sick of
printers which have great specs on paper and cost the same as a bag of
chips and then go on to give problems in a year so.

I'm not really interested in printing photo's, its more just general
office documents. I have avoided Epson printers due to the clogging
issues i've discovered with Durabright inks. I have looked at HP's
Officejet K550, Deskjet 6980, and Business inkjet 1000. I haven't
looked at any canon's as i have no prior experience with them,
recommendations welcome) I'm less keen on the 6980 as its heading back
toward budget printers with its non-replaceable print head. As for the
BIJ1000 i would have one but having seen one in the flesh i didn't
really like at the various noises it makes periodically (Even when not
printing it can be heard to perform some kind of operation every few
minutes)

So, does anyone have any opinions regarding the Officejet K550. I have
spent quite a bit of time looking into this and would have placed the
order by now expect for the fact i have read a few cases of paper feed
issues. Can anyone offer any experiences good or bad, do you find the
printer noisy, is it silent when not printing?

TIA
Stan

 

[Fenrir Enterprises]

Hi,

Following my well documented problem with an Epson C84 printer i have
admitted defeat and looking for a replacement. To that end i have been
looking at various printers, my main prorities are Build Quality,
Reliability, Running Costs, Print Quality, Print Speed in roughly that
order.
Note the high priority of build quality and reliability. I'm sick of
printers which have great specs on paper and cost the same as a bag of
chips and then go on to give problems in a year so.

I'm not really interested in printing photo's, its more just general
office documents. I have avoided Epson printers due to the clogging
issues i've discovered with Durabright inks. I have looked at HP's
Officejet K550, Deskjet 6980, and Business inkjet 1000. I haven't
looked at any canon's as i have no prior experience with them,
recommendations welcome) I'm less keen on the 6980 as its heading back
toward budget printers with its non-replaceable print head. As for the
BIJ1000 i would have one but having seen one in the flesh i didn't
really like at the various noises it makes periodically (Even when not
printing it can be heard to perform some kind of operation every few
minutes)

Do you mean the Business Inkjet 1100d (for duplex)? I have one of
those, and while not the greatest printer out there (the .55" bottom
margin is very annoying), it shouldn't be making noises when it's not
in use. I leave mine on all the time since it gets used about 4-6x a
day, and it makes no noises except when printing. During printing,
however, it makes a lot of noises both before and after the print
starts, but it's not slow.

There is a higher model, the 1200d, that uses the same ink and
printheads, that you would probably be better off looking into.

So, does anyone have any opinions regarding the Officejet K550. I have
spent quite a bit of time looking into this and would have placed the
order by now expect for the fact i have read a few cases of paper feed
issues. Can anyone offer any experiences good or bad, do you find the
printer noisy, is it silent when not printing?

TIA
Stan

I've seen the demo model double-feed in the stores when I tried it
out, but I suspect you just have to have the paper properly feathered
out before you use it in the printer. I like the print quality, and
it's the only HP printer left that uses large cartridges. The
printheads are dual colors in one, so if one color burns out, you have
to replace the whole head, but it's rated for somewhere around 45,000
prints while the individual heads for the 1100/1200 are only rated for
about 16,500, so the K550 should last longer. The large ink carts for
the K550 are harder to find retail and usually have to be mail ordered
(they're also smaller than the carts for the 1100 series). The only
reason I keep thinking about getting one is for the 'minimize margins'
feature that lets you print to .12" all around, while the 1200d still
has a .5" bottom margin

---

http://www.FenrirOnline.com

Computer services, custom metal etching,
arts, crafts, and much more.

 

[Stan]

From further reading it appears i was wrong about the 6980's
printheads. I now think i'm correct in saying they are built into the
cartridge's. This is deduced from the fact the HP data sheet lists the
number of printhead nozzles for black, colour and optional photo. For
the photo nozzles to be optional i assume they must be part of the also
optional photo cartridge. Can anyone confirm if this is correct?

I wish manufacturers would make this info more obvious!

regards Stan

 

[Fenrir Enterprises]

printheads. I now think i'm correct in saying they are built into the
cartridge's. This is deduced from the fact the HP data sheet lists the
number of printhead nozzles for black, colour and optional photo. For
the photo nozzles to be optional i assume they must be part of the also
optional photo cartridge. Can anyone confirm if this is correct?

I wish manufacturers would make this info more obvious!

regards Stan

Nearly all HP printers except the Business Inkjets and the new
OfficeJet K550 take printers with the print heads on the cartridges.
It is very rare to find a HP that has separate printheads, and the
good thing about the 1100 and K550 is that the printheads are also
user-replacable. I don't know what the printhead situation is for the
new Photosmarts that take the 02 Vivera cartridges, but you said you
weren't looking for that anyway.

The 6980 looks like it's a good printer, it takes the 96/97/99/100
print cartridges for both document, photo, and greyscale photo
printing, all of which are large cartridges, unlike many of the new
HPs that take the microscopic 5 ml cartridges. If you're going to be
doing a reasonable, but not huge amount of printing, the 6980 looks
like a good deal. If you're planning on massive runs of things like
brochures or newsletters, you will save money with the K550 or 1100d,
especially if you get refillable chipped cartridges (unavailable for
the 88s so far)

---

http://www.FenrirOnline.com

Computer services, custom metal etching,
arts, crafts, and much more.

 

[Stan]

No not the 1100d or 1200d. If you go to hp.com and search for "business
inkjet 1000" you will find the printer. I would provide a link but the
URL was pretty long.

I too like the k550 for running costs and the replacable print heads.
But i'm really concerned about he paper feed issue. I have read in 5 or
6 user reviews mentioning this and considering this is a new printer
with very few reviews its quite a high percentage. My experience with
HP is that they develop paper feed issues with age so for new and
relatively unused k550's to show this is worrying.

Stan

 

[Stan]

Thanks for confirming the printhead situation.

The 6980 has risen further up my list now that i know the printhead is
within the cartridge.
I certainly won't be doing large print runs, as mentioned in my OP i'm
only really looking at more expensive printers to try and get better
build quality and reliability.

I'd welcome anyone with a 6980 (or 6940) to offer their opinions of the
printer.

Thanks

 

[Bob Headrick]

printheads. I now think i'm correct in saying they are built into the
cartridge's.

That is correct, the nozzles are included in the ink supply for all
DeskJet printers. The Business inkjet printers typically have
replaceable printheads separate from the ink supplies. The new
Photosmart and All-in-one devices that use the '02 cartridge have
permanent printheads.

Regards,
Bob Headrick, MS MVP Printing/Imaging

 

[Bob Headrick]

Thanks for confirming the printhead situation.

The 6980 has risen further up my list now that i know the printhead is
within the cartridge.
I certainly won't be doing large print runs, as mentioned in my OP i'm
only really looking at more expensive printers to try and get better
build quality and reliability.

I'd welcome anyone with a 6980 (or 6940) to offer their opinions of
the
printer.

I do not have a DeskJet 6980 or 6940 but used a 6840 and 6540
extensively at work. They are well designed and sturdy. I have no
direct experience with the K550, but the K550 will be faster as it has a
larger printhead. The DeskJet 69xx series is based on improvements from
the 6840/6540 platform so it has a bit more history and improvements
included in its design. Personally I would go for the DeskJet 6980, but
I am biased having worked on the system design of the previous
generation .

Regards,
Bob Headrick, MS MVP Printing/Imaging

 

[Stan]

You have convinced me. I've ordered the 6940 (didn't need wireless and
not too fussed about duplex printing), the K550 just seemed too much of
a risk being a new design and possibly showing issues already.

Thanks everyone

Stan

 

[Massplanck]

Guys i have had the "pleasure" of installing about 50 K550's over the
last few months.


Easily the most clumsy, error prone printer i have ever come across in
my life. Jamming all the time, printhead issues, i have had about 4
which have been dead out of the box. It shakes the whole table its on
an rattles constantly. Never mind its er supposed lightning "speed"...

I worked for HP for 6 years. I still rate their printers but this
printer is a disaster.

 

[Massplanck]

NB: I have returned about 10 back to my suppliers out of the 50 I have
installed.
Unfortunately the company i work for are continuing to supply these to
our biggest customer as their standard printer.

plenty of work for me!

 

[me]

NB: I have returned about 10 back to my suppliers out of the 50 I have
installed.
Unfortunately the company i work for are continuing to supply these to
our biggest customer as their standard printer.

Have you come across the similar Ricoh machine, (a gel-jet, I suppose
you could call it) a heavy duty inkjet

 

[Stan]

Thanks for providing this information Massplanck. I'm pleased i avoided
the k550 now!
It seems also most impossible these days to choose an inkjet thats
reliable and cheap to run, even if your prepared to pay extra. On the
spec sheets the K550 looked great, but as usual thats only half the
story.

I'm gradually turning towards laser printers as i feel they are better
made and more reliable.
Colour lasers are still more expensive than most people want to pay but
i have few customers who have a B&W laser and a fairly cheap colour
inkjet for when they really need colour.