Still Using HP 895Cse to avoid ink ripoff...need advice

[danii]

Hi Folks,

I have a Dell studio Core 2 quad computer that will not drive my HP 895Cse. I have this HP printer hooked up to an old Compaq (under my desk) that will drive it. I burn anything that needs to be printed from the Dell on CD-R and put it into the Compaq to print.


The 895 is a fantastic printer that takes HP color-23 and black-45 cartridges, and has spectacular print quality. The 23 and 45 have a lot of ink in them compared to the new models.

The problem is that I am an amateur photographer that prints a great many photos. I can get 120-8" x 10" prints out one HP 23/45 ink combo pack, which is approx 64 cents an 8 x 10 print.

The newer models are nowhere close to this as far as I know.

Can anyone recommend a printer that can give me the quality of the HP 895 that will give me a comparative number of prints per cartridge pack. without getting seriously ripped off

HP is discontinuing the 45 cartridge perpetuating the great ink ripoff. I know a lot of people that have bought 712's and 895's from Ebay in order to get value per print. HP is obviously aware that many people still use these great workhorses and are now making sure we can no longer get ink for them.

I do not want an all in one, just a printer

Please help


Responses greatly appreciated

Danii

 

[PeterBJ]

Hi danii,

Which Operating Systems do you use on the Dell and Compaq computers ? And do you use USB or Parallel cable to connect the printer to the Compaq ?

I have a Deskjet 880 C, which I think is very similar to the 895 Cse. I have a laptop with a Core 2 duo CPU running Windows 7. Installation of the printer is as simple as it can be : Just connect the printer to the computer and Windows finds the driver on the web and installs the printer in less than a minute. This is how it should look, when installation is finished, but of course in your language instead of Danish: http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/uploads/6881_hp880c.jpg

A wild guess: The printer is connected to the Compaq with a parallel cable, and the Dell computer has no parallel port, so you will have to use the USB port on the printer. If the Dell computer doesn't see the printer when it is connected to the USB port on the printer, it could mean that the USB port on the printer is defective or maybe the printer has no USB port ? In that case a USB to parallel converter cable could be the solution. like this: http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/uploads/6881_usb_to_parallel.jpg . The converter cable is also installed automatically under Windows 7. I installed the DJ 880C twice using first a USB cable and second using the converter cable. Both installations work perfectly : http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/uploads/6881_hp880c-test.jpg

Wouldn't it be easier to use a USB stick to transfer files to the Compaq instead of burning a lot of CD's ?

Good luck in troubleshooting
Peter.

 

[jimbo123]

have a similar printer, HP870Cxi been used for 15+ years, now just for printing envelopes.

i upgraded to a new dell that only offers USB. as was suggested by Peter, you need a USB to parallel cable to get it to work.

i just plugged it in and it found/installed the correct driver. was printing in under 5 min

J

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Printers: Canon MP830, IP4500, MX700, MX860, MP980
Method: German Durchstich Method
Ink: Hobbicolors ink, PMT-BK, UW8
Misc: Squeeze bottles - so much easier than syringes

 

[danii]

I greatly appreciate your responses, but the main question is......seeing that HP is discontinuing the ink cartridges I need for the 895.............Does anyone have a recommendation for a new printer that has the print quality of the 895 and more importantly with ink cartridges that hold much more ink for someone that prints a large number of photos.

All of the HP under $150 printers have ridiculously small amounts of ink in the cartridges. Literally 1/2 or less ink than in my 895 cartridges.

This has to be a topic that was covered somewhere. "The Great HP ink rip-off"

My set up now is irrelevant to my getting a new printer (NOT AN ALL IN ONE)..........That can perform approximately close to my HP 895.

If someone ran a small photography business what would they get?

Thanks

 

[The Hat]

danii If someone ran a small photography business what would they get?

I dont think you could go wrong getting yourself a Canon 9000 Mk ll.
It has everything that youd want in a printer and will leave the HP for dead.

Good quality A3 photos, large cartridges easy to maintain and
you could even try refilling with good quality inexpensive inks..

 

[pharmacist]

A good alternative to the Canon Pro 9000 is the Epson 1400, similar in printing quality and one can install a reliable CISS system and best of all: you can use fade and water resistant pigment inks, which is impossible on a Canon Pro 9000. You might have a look at my youtube video showing my setup with pigment ink:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKgp3lQ2Rcc

 

[danii]

Pharmacist I see that the Epson is affordable and it takes large ink cartridges (what do they mean by large?). I did watch your video. Great stuff.

The Epson 6-ink pack from B&H is $92 dollars.

1. Do you know how much ink in ml is in each of those Epson cartridges ???

2. I would like to compare to the number of 8 x 10 prints I now get from my soon to be obsolete HP 895. If it is close to about 65 cents an 8 x 10 print I can handle it.

3. Also note I do not print bigger than 8 x 10 prints so if the 1400 is overkill please tell me.

I think the cis may be overkill for me depending on the number of prints I could get from the Epson 6 pack

Thanks for taking the time to respond I greatly appreciate it.

 

[jimbo123]

if your HP 895Cse is still working you could:

1. stock up on the ink carts before they are discontinued
2. learn how to refill them

my HP 870Cxi is over 15 years old, still prints fine and is using ink carts that had a 2004 expiration date

J

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Printers: Canon MP830, IP4500, MX700, MX860, MP980
Method: German Durchstich Method
Ink: Hobbicolors ink, PMT-BK, UW8
Misc: Squeeze bottles - so much easier than syringes