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HP discontinues online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

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Re: HP discontinues online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

#131

Post by kristopolous »

vel0city wrote: post #130
kristopolous wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm arguing it's a game and one I don't play anymore. Consumers aren't infinitely rational homo-economicus logicians and discussing products as if they are is irrelevant. People might buy into the UV and IR just because they could. It doesn't have to be practical and they don't have to ever use it. The modern iPhone: No removable battery, too big for pockets, cash cow of a multi trillion dollar company, lacks a headp…

> They're all frustrating plastic things sitting in the corner. > There's plenty of innovation left. > Lists a bunch of features that either already exist or have no practical application You're telling me there's lots of meat on the bone for innovation but then I'm not actually seeing anything that hasn't already existed that would make them not the same frustrating plastic things in the corner they are today. Maybe…

It's a product thing. You're a technical user that doesn't see the value in a non-technical well packaged, properly balanced, autodidactic product.

There's countless successful things you've probably looked at and scratched your head thinking "that's been around a long time".

I don't know if I can explain this distinction anymore. Think about something you don't really care about. Let's take socks. There's these technical features, weave pattern, stitch strength, balance of the polymers of the materials, etc I've never thought about. Instead, I find some I think I'll like and I wear them. There's zero intellectualization that goes into the process. I was probably swayed by more colorful packaging.

You gotta meet people at that level for mass appeal because most people don't care about what you care about. They're not stupid, they just don't share your passions.

Anyways I've got other things to do.

Re: HP discontinues online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

#132

Post by vel0city »

kristopolous wrote: post #131
vel0city wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They're all frustrating plastic things sitting in the corner. > There's plenty of innovation left. > Lists a bunch of features that either already exist or have no practical application You're telling me there's lots of meat on the bone for innovation but then I'm not actually seeing anything that hasn't already existed that would make them not the same frustrating plastic things in the corner they are today. Maybe…

It's a product thing. You're a technical user that doesn't see the value in a non-technical well packaged, properly balanced, autodidactic product. There's countless successful things you've probably looked at and scratched your head thinking "that's been around a long time". I don't know if I can explain this distinction anymore. Think about something you don't really care about. Let's take socks. There's these tech…

> Let's take socks.

Lets do talk socks then. What's up with socks? There's plenty of innovation left. Why am I limited to the same kind of things people have been wearing for hundreds of years? We could have socks that never need to be washed. We could have socks that change colors dynamically. Why not have socks that put themselves on my feet? Socks without toes, socks without heels. Socks as an industry could be blown open to innovation but I guess we can't have nice things. Why isn't there an iPhone of socks instead of all this generic nonsense?

Making innovative, actually great socks people are excited about is a product opportunity. Hanes is close, but they're the Zune. Nobody's iPhoned it.

This is what I'm hearing with your printer comments.

Re: HP discontinues online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

#133

Post by hippich »

nehal3m wrote: post #20
hippich wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Does your office mail anything? That's what is 99% printing we have to do - shipping labels. And some obscure not available to file online government forms.

Hmm for most forms we use things like DocuSign, but I suppose there must be some that have to be mailed in. For mail we mostly do parcels and those get either a dedicated label printer, or if they're large products, a dedicated transport. Things I hadn't immediately thought of as an engineer. Good point!

I could not justify labels printer for number of packages we ship (we do sell online, but most stuff is handled by Amazon's fba service). But also had to send federal paper tax forms, because in order to file online you have to confirm address which is done with pin code sent via snail mail to our address and that's wouldn't happen before due date... Also filling property appraisal protests evidence can be done on USB stick or CD disk, but the most reliable way is just to print 5 copies and bring it to the protest hearing... These just recent odd things I had to print. All in all printers are still useful sometimes. The only thing is that with my usage ink printers are no go. So cheapish laser printer, with cheap aftermarket cartridges available in eBay is the way to go for me

Re: HP discontinues online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

#134

Post by plg94 »

cubefox wrote: post #84
denvrede wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No it's not. https://www.dm.de/services/services-im-markt/fotoservice/cop...

That's a supermarket though where they hope you buy other stuff. Though already colored pages cost 55 cents. In dedicated print shops it usually will be significantly more expensive.

Maybe. That drugstore chain mainly sells hygiene products. Their "main" side-business is printing photos, both digital and on film. (Yes, even in 2024 in Germany it's still possible to hand in your film in a small drugstore and have the photos developed and ready for pick-up a week later.) So I guess printing on normal paper is just a side-side business that developed naturally.

Anyway, the 10c/page (A4 b/w) is still a good estimate, at least when I looked pre-pandemic (it might've increased slightly to 12 or 15c by now). A lot of cities, especially those with a University, have dedicated small "Copyshops" where you can walk in and get your 100+ pages thesis printed and bound within 20min. So the prices and service are aimed mostly at Students. It's true colored pages are significantly more expensive than b/w, but overall that's still cheaper.

Re: HP discontinues online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

#135

Post by benhurmarcel »

immibis wrote: post #31
ogou wrote: post #9

I found one these all-in-one units out on sidewalk and thought I had scored a cool freebie. It was nearly new. Now I know why they threw it away. Total garbage and bricked without that HP+ subscription. Can't use the scanner because the ink is too low. The worst part is that I couldn't even reset the printer to use a new subscription! It was tied to the previous owner at a hardware level and support said I had to con…

In Germany, walk down the street to the print shop with a USB drive and give them about 10 cents per page.

More realistically, email it to your work email and print it there tomorrow.

Re: HP discontinues online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

#136

Post by cubefox »

account42 wrote: post #101
cubefox wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a supermarket though where they hope you buy other stuff. Though already colored pages cost 55 cents. In dedicated print shops it usually will be significantly more expensive.

Looked at one local print shop. It's 5 cents per page plus 1€ per order. Of course this is in an area with multiple competing print shops but your assertion is at least not true everywhere. While dm might hope you buy other stuff from them you definitely don't have to. If you are suggesting that their print service is a loss leader then please show some evidence backing that up.

My evidence is that I never see prices of 10 cents (let alone 5 cents) per b/w page in actual copy shops.

Re: HP discontinues online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

#137

Post by stephenitis »

simondanerd wrote: post #30
Freak_NL wrote: post #2

With no apparent way of unlocking these devices promised or foreshown in the article, I wonder how long those e-types already sold with the on-line requirement will keep working. Pretty soon the 'e' at the end of the model number will be short for 'e-waste'.

I have an HP Deskjet 2750e, tied to my HP+ account that I started to setup and canceled after getting the printer to a working state. It's now attached via USB to a RPI running CUPS. Now I have a printer that automatically pops up on my network (across OS's!) and works every time. I bought the refurbished Walmart branded ink for it too. Works great

Can you write out acronyms RPI and CUPS

Re: HP discontinues online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

#139

Post by denvrede »

cubefox wrote: post #84
denvrede wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No it's not. https://www.dm.de/services/services-im-markt/fotoservice/cop...

That's a supermarket though where they hope you buy other stuff. Though already colored pages cost 55 cents. In dedicated print shops it usually will be significantly more expensive.

> That's a supermarket though where they hope you buy other stuff.

And why does that matter? If there is a shop (idc how it's called) that lets me print for 10c then I chose that.

> Though already colored pages cost 55 cents.

The GP was about documents that you may have to send in / bring physically. I've never seen such institutions demanding the forms being printed on premium paper in color.

Re: HP discontinues online-only LaserJet printers in response to backlash

#140

Post by simondanerd »

stephenitis wrote: post #137
simondanerd wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have an HP Deskjet 2750e, tied to my HP+ account that I started to setup and canceled after getting the printer to a working state. It's now attached via USB to a RPI running CUPS. Now I have a printer that automatically pops up on my network (across OS's!) and works every time. I bought the refurbished Walmart branded ink for it too. Works great

Can you write out acronyms RPI and CUPS

RPI - Raspberry Pi (https://www.raspberrypi.com)

CUPS - no longer an acronym, but used to be Common Unix Printing System. (https://www.cups.org/)

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