HP Photosmart C4780 print cartridge error

[brassmom]

Fairly new unit has been working great. Just installed new black cartridge. It seemed to "hang up" when I tried to insert it but I finally was able to install it as usual. Immediate print cartridge error- reporting a "problem with one or more print cartridge." The black ink had literally run completely out prior to replacement. So I took it out and cleaned the cartridge and internal "ports" with bottled water on a swab as instructed and waited for it to dry. Color ink was fairly low. When cleaning failed, I decided to start over- with two brand new cartridges and cleaned both sets of internal "ports" just in case they had dried out. The cartridges went in normally- no "hanging up." Still getting error and suspect its the black one as that is the one that had actually run completely out and it used most often. Did a reset- off button, unplug, wait 60 secs, plug in, turn on. Same error message. Not sure what to do - or where to take it for repair or if that is even worth it since it was not a particularly expensive unit. It seems that labor would cost more! Thanks in advance for your help. BTW- I have my old HP Deskjet as a back up and its running like a champ! But I do love the scanner on the all-in-one unit and that it is Wifi to my laptop.

[LidNe]

It sounds like you've already done all the steps in the HP support document (http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01675471&tmp_task=solveCategory&lc=en&dlc=en&cc...). If so, and if you've tried new cartridges without success, you may have to call HP for printer service.

[dqmcg]

Below is a link to a HP document that might help with you issue..

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01750911&tmp_task=solveCategory&lc=en&dlc=en&cc...

[colourproblem]

I have a similar problem using compatible cartridges.  Installed a new colour one few weeks ago, yesterday the screen declared 'printer cartridge problem'.  So replaced it with a new one, same alert.  Got first cartridge and wiped the contacts with rainwater, dried it then put it back in.  Still alert.

Also tried taking both cartridges out, turning machine off, wait 1 min, turn back on, wait for ' no cartridges alert' inserted cartridges, then got alert again.  Could it be the cartridges or the actual machine?  Hp won't help as I am using compatibles I have voided the warranty.  Please help

[LidNe]

Hi - by 'compatible cartridges', do you mean refilled or non-HP cartridges? HP can't support those because they are somebody else's product - HP doesn't know what kind of ink is in them, how they were refilled, how they might have been damaged during remanufacturing, etc. Here's a support document on a comparison of reliability of HP vs remanufactured or refilled brands by QualityLogic (an independent quality assurance organization): http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=bpa00113&cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en&jumpid=reg_R1002_USE....  There is a broken link in this doc, which is a bit annoying, but I think it is trying to take you to this page, which has more on the relative reliability of HP vs non-HP: http://www.hp.com/sbso/product/supplies/printer-ink-refill.html

When you cleaned your electrical contacts, did you clean the contacts inside the printer as well? They are hard to get at, but you'll find them in the cradle where the cartridges go - they match up with the contacts on the cartridges. Don't use very much water at all - a barely dampened, lint-free cloth is best. And I would use distilled water, rather than rain or tap water. Rain water especially could have contaminants.

[apple_mac]

Has anyone had any luck yet with fixing this error? I didn't do anything to my printer or computer (MacBook Pro) and all of a sudden I got an "incompatible print cartridge(s)" error. The cartridges have plenty of ink left and I went through all of the troubleshooting steps mentioned to no avail. Previous to this it stopped feeding paper unless I jiggle & push on 1 piece at a time as it feeds-if I do it just right and a lot of luck is involved, it'll actually feed the paper & print the page before I get an out of paper error. This is ridiculous, if you ask me! All of this occurred, of course, right after it went out of warranty. Here is my main question/predicament: do I spend whatever it costs to replace the ink cartridges ($70, at least, I would imagine...I've never had to buy ink) only to find out that that doesn't fix the problem? Then I'm out $70+ and I still don't have a working printer! Is this a common problem (the ink cartridge error) and easy to fix (it doesn't appear so!)? I suspect I'd be better off at this point just paying for a new printer. I saw an HP Photosmart 6515 at Costco for a good price, although I don't exactly have much faith in HP...especially since, from what I've read, their support is even worse than their printers!

[LidNe]

Hi - sorry you're having this problem. If you are using genuine HP cartriges, they have their own warranty, independent of your printer's warranty. Your ink cartridges are under warranty until the date printed on the cartridge (this document shows the location of the date for various HP cartridges (http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?lc=en&dlc=en&cc=us&docname=c00206040) - as long as they aren't empty, haven't been refilled, etc.

If you are in the US, you can call 1-800-HP-INVENT for support. If you are outside of the US, go to hp.com/support and look for the Contact HP link on your countries home page.

[apple_mac]

Thank you for your input, and I will check the date on the cartridges, but given the length of time I've had the printer (original cartridges...never altered in any way and with a lot of ink left as I don't print a lot), I suspect the ink cartridges will also be out of warranty.

[apple_mac]

Any ideas about the paper feeding issue? That happened suddenly as well, prior to the ink cartridge error, with no precipitating event. I have not been able to fix that, but I was able to marginally work around it before the print cartridge error & not being able to print at all. I'm sorry to say that the quality of this printer seems to be terrible.

[LidNe]

Here's a support document on paper feed problems for your printer: http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c02065582&tmp_task=solveCategory&cc=us&dlc=en&la... - there is a video and a number of steps you could try. I think I've had this problem when the paper rollers get dirty - the document shows you how to clean the rollers.