Need a New Printer

I have been pleased with my HP 3210 All In One printer. However, I cannot scan as it evidently lacks a driver, which I cannot find. I guess the years and technology have passed it by, and I need a new printer. I do want wireless, and good color prints as I do greeting cards, etc.

I have no idea what are some good ones that won't break the bank. I think I am partial to HP and Canon.
What have you folks found to be good at a reasonable price?

Thanks,
Jerry

 

FWIW:

https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Print...t-3210-all-in-one-printer-driver/td-p/5395232

 

Hope this works. Good on you hawki. I like it when M$ & others in this buy new hardware causing we're forcing you to are defeated. Even if it's a one off.

 

Just be careful not to buy a device that's too new. Because third-party cartridges won't be available

 

My guess is that cartridges will be expensive. It's the safety razor model: cheap handle, and expensive blades.

 

Thanks, Guys.
Hawki, that link download worked until the last step when the problem I have been having arose;HP PhotoSmart Essential is on a resource hat is not available.
I have not found anything that would let "Windows configure the Essential.

 

We just purchased a HP Envy and it's been a great printer. I'm not sure what your price point is, I believe we gave around 170 or so at bestbuy.

 

You don't need a driver. Just enter the printer's IP address into your browser and you should be able to access the devices internal webserver. From there, you should be able scan, fax, check ink levels, and more.

 

Where do I find the IP address? I am dumb about these things.
Thanks Jerry

 

That printer has a front panel LCD panel so I assume you can work your way through the menu system and print out the Printer Status Report (at least that is the report for my HP). This will show the IP address under Connectivity Settings. On mine it is shown as URL: http//192.168.1.27.

You can also find it by accessing your router's admin menu and looking for "connected devices" (or something similar).

Once you find the IP address, just enter it in your browser's address bar - just the number part, your browser will add the http//.

 

Thanks, Bill.

 

I'm looking at HP Envy 7155 printer. Any experience here? Thanks, Jerry

 

I had HP envy 5530. And just ditched it in disgust. It was only wireless, a huge pain. Because it kept dropping its IP. There was nothing in the settings regarding sleep timeout that I could set. So every time, almost, that I wanted to print something I had to turn wifi off on their LCD screen, and turn it back on to get an IP. And if I attempted to print 4 times, now I'd get 4 copies. Just my miserable experience.
The expensive ink cartridges are dated, and ran out in no time.
The only redeeming features of that printer was that I could print with just one cartridge (the empty one has to stay in), and that it got installed in seconds in Linux Mint.

 

I don't like that HP for a couple reasons. First, it uses a "tri-color" cartridge. That means magenta, cyan and yellow are in one cartridge. That means if you run out of yellow for example, you will need to replace the entire cartridge even if cyan and magenta reservoirs are still full. I go for separates.

Also note on the data page, that printer is a Dynamic Security Enabled Printer. That feature (and similar features on competing brands) is designed to force users into using genuine HP replacement inks. And worse, in some cases, if a 3rd party cartridge is install, the printer will refuse to print.

Now I do understand why HP and other makers do this. It is NOT just about greed (though many will argue it is only about greed, it really is not). The problem is, inkjet printer ink is really some pretty high tech stuff. But some 3rd party inks (and cartridges) really are junk and can gum up the jets and print heads. But even with quality 3rd party inks, the ink formulas (which are trade secrets - just as protected as the secret formula for Coke), the colors are not precisely the same, the viscosities and consistency of the inks are not precisely the same as genuine inks. So HP cannot guarantee the print quality (especially with color photos), or that the printer will work as expected with after market inks. So to avoid customer dissatisfaction, and warranty repair requests caused by flawed inks, they try to enforce the use of genuine ink - and in that respect, I really don't blame them.

I personally have mixed feelings about this. Genuine ink can be very expensive - too expensive, IMO. So I understand the desire to use less expensive 3rd party inks. But there is a quality and formula inconsistency problem between different brands, and even between the production runs or "lots" within the same brand. You don't see this with the genuine inks as they have much better quality control over the entire process (part of the reason for genuine ink costing more).

I have also seen printer problems instantly clear up after replacing a 3rd party cartridge with a genuine cartridge.

So, for consistently top quality printouts and minimum risks of ink, cartridge, and/or printing problems, I recommend the use of genuine ink. If the desire is to use 3rd party inks, you are taking a risk.

I recommend sticking with the same brand for better [hopefully] consistency. I have used LDProducts.com inks with "pretty good" success on my HP Photosmart 7525. I say "pretty good" because I have had two cartridges fail to be recognized at all by my printer. Not good. However, LDProducts quickly sent me free replacements that did work. Also, photos of people "seem" to have a slightly more orange tint to the flesh-tones. I quickly must add they still looked perfectly natural. Only when held the printout against my Samsung monitor along with a printout of the same photo with genuine HP ink could I see the slight difference. No big deal for me, but it could be a huge deal to a more discerning user, professional photographer or graphics designer.

If you watch the HP direct sales, they occasionally have some deep discounts (often with free shipping) that price their inks much closer to the 3rd party inks.

All ink, AFAIK, including 3rd party inks have a shelf life and are dated because of that. Some printers will stop printing with an expired cartridge installed to prevent old ink from gumming/plugging up the jets and print heads. So don't stock up on too much ink unless you can use it before it expires. Also, most printers (at least with HP) support XL (extra large) cartridges. They obviously cost more up front than the standard, non-XL sizes, but last much longer so are cheaper in the long run.