Printing Red Dots down every page on Color Laserjet M281fdw

[litlfish]

My printer is 5 months old and still has the cartridges that came with it. They are all about half full still. I'm getting red dots down the right side of every print. I've followed every troubleshooting instruction I can find on the HP site and nothing is fixing it. I see that many comments state it could be a damaged toner cartridge. Will HP or the store I bought the printer from (Office Depot) replace the cartridge? That seems like a scam to charge so many people to replace a practically new cartridge. 

Please help me fix this. 

[KrazyToad]

@litlfish

Welcome to HP Forums. This is a great place to get support, find answers and tips.
 

I understand that you are getting Red dots on every print and you have already attempted several troubleshooting steps.

I'd like to help.

I suggest you start with a printer Reset

(1) Turn the printer on, if it is not already on.
(2) Wait until the printer is idle and silent before you continue.
(3) With the printer turned on, disconnect the power cord from the rear of the printer.
(4) Unplug the power cord from the wall outlet.
(5) Wait at least 60 seconds.
(6) Plug the power cord back into the wall outlet.
 NOTE: HP recommends connecting the printer power cord directly to the wall outlet.
(7) Reconnect the power cord to the rear of the printer.
(8) Turn on the printer, if it does not automatically turn on.

The printer might go through a warm-up period. The printer lights might flash, and the carriage might move.
Wait until the warm-up period finishes and your printer is idle and silent before you proceed.

Then clean the cartridges

1. From the Home screen on the printer control panel, swipe left, and then touch Setup.

2. Touch Service, and then touch Cleaning Page.

3. Load plain, white paper when you are prompted.

4. Touch OK to begin the cleaning process.

5. Try to print again to see if the issue is resolved,

Also examine the toner cartridge imaging drums and memory chips for damage.

Please follow the instructions in Step 8 from this Link: https://hp.care/2pHsGkq;

If the issue persists, please contact our Phone Support for Service Options.

Step 1. Open link: https://hp.care/2moMFSc
Step 2. Enter Product number or select to auto detect 
Step 3. Scroll down to "Still need help? Complete the form to select your contact options"
Step 4. Scroll down and click: HP contact options - click on Get phone number and phone number appear.

Keep me posted how it goes and if you need further assistance

Thank you 🙂

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