this post was submitted on 24 Jan 2026
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Ethical Consumerism

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[–] TwoBeeSan@lemmy.world 44 points 1 week ago (2 children)

They put a sticker over the USB port to pigeon hole you into using their shit software hp smart. Hp smart then tries to get you on the ink subscription.

Credit card and email harvesting. Hoping you forget.

They're easily the worst but even brother has an ink subscription now. They're just not as fuck you about it. One day I'm sure.

[–] unwillingsomnambulist@midwest.social 18 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Time to block outbound internet access on all Brother printers then, I guess…

[–] Quexotic@sh.itjust.works 8 points 1 week ago

Thanks for the reminder. I just added the firewall rule. Much appreciated!

[–] Reverendender@sh.itjust.works 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Brother. The hero we got, but not the hero we deserve. Let me regale you with stories of my P-Touch Cube’s shortcomings.

Nothing like a good P-Touch story

[–] calliope@retrolemmy.com 24 points 1 week ago (2 children)

I have never heard a better reason to take a bat to a printer.

[–] DickFiasco@sh.itjust.works 36 points 1 week ago

Or to a CEO

[–] BassTurd@lemmy.world 9 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Die motherfuckers, die motherfuckers still fool.

The most iconic and cathartic scene in cinema for anyone that's ever dealt with printer issues.

…so anyone, then.

Would the world even notice if HP just poofed out of existence one day at this point? Absolute leeches.

[–] i_embezzle_money@sh.itjust.works 17 points 1 week ago (2 children)

I was radicalized when I found out you needed a subscription in order to rotate a pdf in Adobe.

[–] Rolive@discuss.tchncs.de 9 points 1 week ago

It's an Adobe product. Looking at it already requires a subscription.

[–] Mailloche@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 week ago

Foxit pdf editor is pretty good! Hate Adobe....

[–] AlreadyDefederated@midwest.social 16 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Brother.

Its printers used to be kinda so-so, but HP and the other brands decided to become so shitty - Brother became number 1 by remaining stagnant.

[–] Mailloche@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Thanks to techies here and on the other site I won't name, after 30 years I moved to dry ink. My laser Brother I bought used for 80$ with 3 full cartridges and an open one, will last me until I die. I can print 3500 pages! Laser is beyond superior vs inkjet. It's not even comparable.

[–] noughtnaut@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Seconded! At least, about the brand loyalty, can't speak to the claim of them being stagnant.

I'm 51. I'm on my 3rd laser printer, ever. I shudder to think about how many inkjets I would've gone through, judging by the struggles I have seen in other households of just my own family.

First one was a giant thing from Oki whose main beauty was that it did proper PostScript and had both ethernet (10-base T) and AppleTalk, which we needed. The other ones were from Brother, first a black and white model and now a colour thing with duplex and a scanner. Not great for photos but everything else it just owns.

[–] Mycatiskai@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 week ago

I've had the same Brother printer since 2009, my ex left it with me in 2015 and I still have it.

I still haven't changed the toner cartridge, it stays unplugged and unhooked except 2-3 times a year when I need a shipping label printed.

I watched a video yesterday about these $195 printers or you rent for $9 a month for two years that end up costing 50 bucks more at the end of the rental period and you still don't own the printer after that. If you print more than 20 pages a month then you get charged more.

[–] homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world 12 points 1 week ago

HP Printer stories. You think, "Ah, I haven't seen one in a long time. I guess everyone finally understands what a huge fucking nightmare they're designed to be."

*click*

Oh. Well. Hahahahaha. Welcome to the party, pal.

[–] Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Don't know what everyone is bitching about. They have an option to enter a bank routing and account number option so this won't happen.

[–] Gullible@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Don’t worry, I understood that you were joking.

[–] Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

User name doesn't check out?

Sometimes you just got to light a match and watch the world burn.

[–] Gullible@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Lemmy’s just too, and forgive me for being blunt, neurodiverse and developmentally stunted to be able to understand the premise of the faux double-down. It’s never not going to burn

[–] ideonek@piefed.social 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

This can't be true, right?

[–] metallic_substance@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Seems fishy to me, even for shitass HP

[–] Whitebrow@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago

They disable the cartridge, not the printer itself iirc. If all you have is the subscription cartridges, then it basically bricks your printer since none of them will print without a valid subscription regardless if they have ink or not.

[–] TargaryenTKE@lemmy.world 4 points 1 week ago

I fucking love Wendigoon

[–] atropa@piefed.social 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

HP = Has Problems ,i dumped my scam ink hp printer  2 years ago .