Low Ink Warning for HP Officejet Pro 8500A printer

[SnailPrinter1]

I print in b&w a lot and rarely use color ink.  However, I get a "low ink cartridge" or "Replace ink cartridge" warning signs on my printer.  I check the color ink cartridge in question and it is not low on ink , but I can't go further with my printing project and must replace a nearly new color ink cartridge just so I can print my b&w document.  How can this be fixed/avoided?  These ink cartridges are not cheap.

[Shirlzz1]

I would try reseating all of the cartridges one by one. Just take them all out and place them back in the printer. I would also try doing a hard reset on the unit. To do a hard reset:

1. With the printer plugged directly into a wall outlet, and turned on, unplug the cord from the rear of the printer.
2. Then unplug the cord from the wall socket.
3. Wait at least 30-60 seconds
4. Plug the power cord back into the wall socket first. If the cord has a module in it, make sure that the light on the module is lit up and then plug cord back into the rear of the printer
5. The printer should power back on by itself, but if not use the power button on front panel to turn machine back on. 

I would also check the ink delivery cords connected to the printheads and make sure that they are not kinked up. To look at those just open the carriage access door.  There is a panel that you can remove to view the print heads. I would turn off the machine first for safety

[bob-wmg]

Having exactly the same problem where I get locked out of printing if there is a low or empty cartridge message.  These messages are showing up in error as my blue cartridge is showing as empty when it is only 3 weeks old and we hardly print in color.  replacing the blue cartridge with a new genuine HP cartridge purchaed from HP Direct still gives the same message and locks me out of printing anything including just black.  What is the work around to print in this situation. 

I also have an HP Pro 7650 which continues to print while displaying cartridge replacement messages.  THe print lockout on the Pro 8500a is not what I would call a feature, rather it is a huge annoyance as it renders the printer useless.