officeJet Pro 8120e

[Petejan10]

I bought this new printer 5 days ago for my HP Victus Laptop and still can't get it to connect or work on the system. It's become very very frustrating that plugging in a new HP Printer won't connect to an HP Laptop 

On opening Word the first time it's there, on closing word down and opening it again there's no printer installed. On opening Excel it's there all the time as it is on Power Point. On opening window settings the printer shows sometimes and sometimes not. It prints one page of anything but not word then it comes back as a default error. 

I could go on and on about other problems on the printer system but I can understand why you just can't plug an HP printer into an HP Victus Laptop and they struggle to speak with each other.

Apologies about the tone of this but can anyone point me in the direction of where I can get advice on how to install this printer.

Lastly on HP Smart and using Help and Support the blue rings just rotate for ever and it won't open.

Always had HP Printers but never had problems like this before.

[Meghana_10]

Hello @Petejan10, Welcome to the HP Support Community.

I understand the concern, especially with a new HP Officejet Pro 8120e that appears in one application, disappears from Windows, and then prints inconsistently. The fact that Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Windows Settings are not seeing the printer consistently points more toward a Windows printer configuration or connection problem than a problem with the HP Victus laptop and printer being incompatible.
 

1. Remove the inconsistent printer installation

Start with a clean Windows configuration so an incomplete or duplicate printer entry does not interfere with the new setup.

1. Disconnect any USB cable from the printer if you are setting it up over Wi-Fi.
2. Turn the printer off.
3. On the HP Victus, go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners.
4. Select the HP OfficeJet Pro 8120e and choose Remove.
5. Restart the laptop.
6. Restart the Wi-Fi router.
7. Turn the printer back on after the router has restarted.

If you are using Wi-Fi, this removes the existing Windows printer association before setting it up again.
 

2. Reset the printer's network connection

If the printer has previously been connected to another network or has an incomplete Wi-Fi configuration, resetting only its network settings can provide a clean starting point.

1. On the printer control panel, open Settings > Network Settings.
2. Select Restore Network Defaults.
3. Use the printer's Wi-Fi Setup Wizard to connect it to your wireless network again.
4. The OfficeJet Pro 8120e supports 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, so make sure the router provides a compatible 2.4 GHz network during setup. If your router combines 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz under one Wi-Fi name, you do not necessarily need to change the router permanently; the important part is that the printer can complete its Wi-Fi connection successfully.

3. Set up the printer again using the HP app

Once the printer is connected to Wi-Fi, install or open the current HP app and use Add Printer to complete the Windows setup.
 

If the HP app's Help and Support page continues to show spinning blue circles indefinitely, don't rely on that screen to determine whether the printer itself is working. The app's support component can have a separate software or connectivity issue.
 

If necessary:

1. Close the HP app completely.
2. Temporarily disconnect from any VPN, if one is active.
3. Restart Windows.
4. Open the HP app again and select Add Printer.
5. Complete the printer setup and then test printing.

Avoid installing several different HP printer drivers or utilities at the same time, as duplicate installations can leave multiple printer entries or ports in Windows.
 

4. Test printing outside Microsoft Word

After setup, test the printer from Notepad or another simple Windows application before troubleshooting Word specifically.
 

This helps separate two issues:

1. If printing fails from every application: focus on the Windows printer installation, connection, or printer queue.
2. If Excel and PowerPoint print but Word does not: the printer connection is probably working, and Word's printer selection or print configuration needs to be investigated separately.
3. Also check Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners after setup and confirm that the OfficeJet Pro 8120e remains listed there after closing and reopening the application.

5. Set the correct printer as the Windows default

Once the printer is installed successfully:

1. Go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners.
2. Select HP OfficeJet Pro 8120e.
3. Choose Set as default if that option is available.
4. If Windows is managing the default printer automatically, it can sometimes select another available printer or printer entry. Setting the OfficeJet Pro 8120e as the default helps ensure applications such as Word send jobs to the intended printer.

If it still disappears from Windows Settings > Printers & scanners, the next useful step is to determine whether the printer itself is losing its network connection or whether only Windows is losing the printer entry.
 

If the problem continues, please let me know:

1. Are you setting up the 8120e over Wi-Fi or USB?
2. When Word fails to print, does it show a specific error message or error code?
3. Does the printer remain visible under Windows Settings > Printers & scanners while Word is unable to print?
4. Does the HP app detect the printer successfully after the setup is completed?

Have a great day!

[Petejan10]

Thanks for this....jeez a lot to do tomorrow but I'm up for it. Will let you know how it goes 🤞

[Meghana_10]

Thank you so much for your response. @Petejan10 

Please do let us know, so that we can assist you further if required.

Have a great day!