I spent a ton of time looking for a new printer and gave up multiple times due to bad reviews for ALL printers. I have had good luck with HP in the past. Finally bought the 8710 with hesitation. I couldn't be happier with it. It came with standard cartridges that were actually full and lasted a long time. I also bought XL replacement cartridges. I weighed the color cartridges before and after (haven't run out the larger black yet). The standard color cartridges had about 10.5 grams of ink, the XL had about 28 grams. That is ink weight, not cartridge weight. The empty color cartridges were about 25.5 grams. So far after 9 months all is good.
This printer works beautifully and the scanner is outstanding. However, the ink is a killer. The subscription for the so-called "instant ink" costs 3.3 cents, 4 cents or 6 cents a page depending on whether you sign up for a charge of $9.99, $3.99 or $2.99 per month, respectively. Moreover, the instant ink subscription counts the merest number of characters as a full page of printing. For example, printing just the words "Instant Ink" in black ink counts as a full page of printing and would cost a minimum of 3.3 cents and could cost about a nickel depending on your plan. My solution was to buy (from Amazon) a refurbished Brother Compact Laser Printer for $69.50 and a set of INK4WORK® 2 Pack toner cartridges (from Amazon) costing $14.95 and yielding an estimated printed 5,200 pages. I am printing like crazy all black and white documents on the Brother printer which is a limited purpose machine but which has worked flawlessly. The ink cost for these black and white pages on the Brother is roughly .003 cents per page (that's 3 one thousandths of one cent or a thousand pages for $2.88). I have quit the instant ink program and purchased (from Amazon) a set of "high yield" cartridges for the HP Printer at a cost of $103.95. I will use these sparingly and only for documents which need color. By the way these HP "high yield" cartridges hold less ink than those supplied with the instant ink program. I will report on how many printed pages these "high yield" cartridges yield. In any case it seems to me that HP is charging a high price for ink -- too high for me.
(I promised I would update as I find more to report on this printer and I am back again at the end of August 2016 to let you know I found another reason to up my original low rating another star. This one is important. SEE UPDATE AT THE END)
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I have been using HP printers for a VERY long time. I have also had the opportunity to use a lot of different brands of printers over the years, and have always come back to HP. HP has had issues at times, but for me, it has been an excellent quality printer for the most part. However, once I tested out this printer, I can see that something has changed.
I have really tried to like this printer. I will do my best to make this review as brief as I can, but I will also try to outline the basic observations I have made with this printer. I plan to update more in the future as I continue to try to work with this, as it is something I am going to have to find a way to cope with. My current printer (HP Officejet K550 dtn) is on its way out and HP no longer supports it or sells printer heads for it.
WHAT IS THIS PRINTER LIKE?
First of all, you need to be sure you have the space to put this printer. It is rather large. If you have one of those compact computer desks with a retracting printer shelf, get ready to move the shelf way down almost to the bottom, keeping the bottom shelf for paper only. The top needs plenty of swing space to lift as well if you need to scan something.
The screen on the front of the printer is very clear and easy to use. It is self explanatory when you set it up, guiding you through all of the steps. The printer comes with ink, basic instructions and a CDROM to set up the software. You can also get it online. This printer uses either wi-fi from your in house router that you have with internet or you can use the cloud online. You can also connect via USB port to a desktop or laptop if desired.
PROBLEMS I HAVE ENCOUNTERED
I have not tried to print photos from cameras or anything like that due to regular printer quality being so low, I am just trying to make it look decent for regular printing needs. I will update should I try to use it for photos.
INK
First of all putting the ink into the unit was frustrating. I have never seen such rickety sockets for ink cartridges in all of my years using printers- even the really cheap ones that I didn't like too much. This was ridiculous. There is a spring in the socket and the ink cartridge (which is also cheaply made) is supposed to press in and lock. The problem is that they don't always want to stay locked in. I had a problem several times of ink cartridges popping back out and the printer would not run. I have NEVER had that kind of problem with any printer.
SOFTWARE
The driver is really annoying. I am frustrated most of the time trying to use it. This printer is designed to be used by smartphones, tablets, laptops and a desktop. I have tried it with all four of these and the results are frustrating at best. Using android, it is very difficult to control the print and how it will turn out. Many times the pages are cut off and are not fit to page, and are really lousy looking. The laptop and desktop are also frustrating when used for online printing. I know there has to be more control somewhere, but it is not anywhere as intuitive and easy to use as it has been in the past. I do not have this hard wired into USB at this point, so perhaps things would be different at that point, but I am being hopeful here.
PRINT QUALITY
Besides being goofy looking, half cut off and adjustments not being easy to use, I have also had trouble with the ink printed on the page. When it does print, the quality of the print is horrible. I mean HORRIBLE. This looks like some of the lousy quality bubble jet printers I have used in the distant past (not all were lousy, just the lousy ones). The ink looks faded, very blurry and not strong colors at all like the other HP printers I have in my house.
PAPER FEEDING
I have been spoiled. In the past HP printers have had a tendency to be fussy with paper feeding. Usually a year or two of feeding paper and then they really mess up. The current printer I have had for 8 years has had NO problems feeding paper. If something gets jammed on the rare occasion (Bent paper or something) it is a snap to fix and it still goes strong. This printer, however, is a different story. It feeds paper okay, but then it feeds through multiple papers, or halfway paper, etc. I am not impressed. I am using the exact same paper in my very old printer and it feeds through fine- it is not the paper.
THE BOTTOM LINE
I can no longer buy printer heads for my beloved K550 Officejet printer, the best HP printer I have ever had. I would rather use that in a moment. The ink is vivid, colorful, crisp, and fast. The HP Officejet Pro 8710 is such a disappointment in comparison that I have a hard time liking it. The software is not as easy to use as HP software in the past and I am not very happy with it. The printer itself is easy to set up although the ink cartridges seem cheap as well as the sockets they are supposed to be pressed into. I have had problems with printing being fit onto the pages, ink quality, as well as paper feeding.
I will continue to work with this printer, since I am stuck with it, but I am so far unimpressed. Perhaps I will find some more positive things about it to report and I will update should that happen. At this point, I don't like to have to work so hard just to make a printer do what it is supposed to and has done without much effort in the past.
I am giving this two stars at this point, but it is open to change in the future should I have better experiences with this printer over time.
UPDATE May 31, 2016
As I said I would, I have continued to try to work with this printer to see if I might be able to get more satisfactory results. I have printed out a photo which I had at the exact same time on two different printers so you can see the comparison. The HP Officejet Pro K550 has such amazing definition, contrast, etc, that I could print the photo on draft print and it would look perfect. This was done with regular ink printing on that printer. Again, I could have reduced it down to draft level and it still would look good.
The HP Officejet Pro 8710 has almost no contrast, very grayish black, and a red tone to the photo which is awful. The K550 photo is much more true to life. The HP 8710 is not at all the level of performance that I am used to with HP printers.
I will continue to work with the printer, but so far, I am disappointed. Should I have the need to attach it directly to my desktop instead of Wi-Fi, perhaps it would be different. For now, it is not great. If I can find solutions to my frustrations with this printer, I will update to let you know. For now, I am used to MUCH higher quality printing from HP printers.
JULY 11,2016 UPDATE
I wanted to amend my original rating to bump up my review one star. I have had the opportunity to use and interact with this printer a lot more and have found that there are some things that I have come to like about it that I didn't get to use much before.
COPYING
The copying feature is really nice. The paper sits in the feed slot and makes the printer kick in to prepare to copy the page. All I do is pick what I want to copy (Document, Photo, ID) and then the machine pulls in the paper, scans, and copies it and returns it out of the other slot. The result is a lot better than the photo results were when printed and sent from the same computer desktop that I previously posted. That leads me to wonder if the problem is in the drivers for the printer or if it just seems to do better when scanning in itself as a unit. The results for simple lined diagrams, illustrations and print are nice and accurate, unlike my photo experiences so far.
INK
This ink is pigment based ink which is important if you are doing any kind of industrial labeling which needs to have permanency to it with those special labels.
FURTHER UPDATES COMING
I will continue to update as I have a chance to get to know this printer more as I interact with it over time. If I can find out how to adjust the problems I have been having with it, I will surely let you all know and change my rating accordingly. I am not one to give up so easily so if I can improve the way that it has performed so far, I will let you know and pass it on. It has potential to be a great all in one printer, and I hope perhaps I can find ways to get it to work better.
UPDATE JULY 24,2016 (THIS LOVE HATE RELATIONSHIP TAKES YET ANOTHER TURN)
I promised I would update as I found more out about this printer and I am about to explain why I updated and added yet another star to my originally low rated review.
Although I am still not thrilled with photo printing which is important to me that this printer does, it does do something else which is fantastic and has me thrilled to no end. I have had a need to print some high quality oil resistant labels. I could not afford to have them printed and wanted the creativity options to do my own. I came upon the Avery UltraDuty GHS Chemical Labels for Pigment Inkjet Printers, Waterproof, UV Resistant, 2"x4",500Pk (60525) which sounded perfect for what I needed to do.
I designed labels which got me two out of each label on the sheet, but my stress was wondering how many labels would be wasted trying to make them line up as so many other printers have caused for me. Boy was I shocked when this printer printed them PERFECTLY like a CHAMP!
I LOVE this printer for these labels. It is a pigment based ink and causes the labels to be permanent and resistant to oils, water, etc. I could not be more happy.
SO, although this printer has frustrated me on a few things, it really is a champ on something I can not do with any other printer- print PERFECT labels that withstand water, oil, and corrosive materials without wasting labels with misprints. I could not be happier.
So, I have raised my rating to four stars as of July 24,2016. I still wished that it would print higher quality photos, but the labels make up for it and have earned it a higher rating.
Will add more should I find other things to report to you all!
UPDATE IN AUGUST 2016
I am still loving this printer for labels. Pretty soon I will be able to comment for you all on the instant ink aspect as I will be testing that part out as well coming soon. Since I have a need to print out all kinds of labels for my essential oils, creams, body products, and other soaps, I will be needing to replenish the ink more quickly. Will be updating once I have tested that facet of this printer.
Stay tuned for my love hate relationship with this printer. A REAL soap opera. (sorry, could not resist the pun there)
UPDATE February 2017 - AUTOSHIP INK COMMENTS
My autoship HP ink program started today. Yes, I have used this printer since I got it with the ORIGINAL print cartridges. The auto program gave me quite a few free months due to promotional pricing.
I was alerted today after installing my cartridges that they sent to me (within a few days of signing up) and true to their promise, they did not start counting my days until the cartridges were in fact installed.
I wanted to comment on that for anyone who wondered about it. I have the $9.99 program which allows for quite a few pages a month. I can go down if I like in the future.
Awesome Printer! As an IT guy for the last 25+ years I have configured and repaired printers of all makes. I have always been a fan of HP due to their reputation and the vast amount of company support. With a wife in college and a daughter in high school we killed our last All-In-One printer that we have had for the last 5 years. What I was looking for was a printer that would print on both sides of the paper, wireless and network wired connection, one that could take the punishment of a lot of printing, and a some what manageable ink replacement price. Color printing was not a real must have nor was printing speed but that doesn't mean this printer lacks that. Set up was a snap for those that hate all the technical stuff but the printer is very configurable for those of us that like gadgets. What I really like is the ability to print from my smart-phone or tablet from any where in the world directly to the printer using an HP email account. All I need is network connection. I also like the service HP has that can monitor the ink usage and send you more ink when it is getting low. I can't count the number of late nights I had to run all over looking for a 24 hour grocery store because daughter waited until the last minute to do a report and needed color and the old printer ink was out.
I have had this printer for a few weeks now and so far I am impressed. I have printed from my computer, my laptop, my iPad, and my iPhone and wirelessly; It was EXTREMELY easy to set up. I literally plugged it into the wall and hooked it into the phone line (Just in case I want to fax) and I believe that was it. After that, I went and found my network on the printer and entered the name and password of the network.
Then it was ready to print. I printed a class set (32) of full color transfers that came out AMAZING; I have printed double sided and I have printed fast text. Everything so far works great!
For the price, it DOES come with the ink cartridges (1 of each color & black). I thought this was a GREAT deal!
Feature Product
- Main functions of this HP color photo printer: copy, scan, fax, wireless printing, AirPrint, two-sided duplex printing, color touchscreen, Instant Ink ready so you'll never run out of ink, and more
- Mobile printing: print from anywhere using your smartphone or tablet with the free HP ePrint app, easily print from your iPhone with AirPrint
- This full-featured all in one wireless color printer delivers professional-quality color for up to 50% lower cost per page than lasers
- Help protect information and access to confidential print jobs with HP JetAdvantage Private Print
- Choose an ink replenishment service - Save up to 50% with HP Instant Ink or Save 10% on all reorders with Amazon Dash Replenishment. With Dash Replenishment, your printer detects when you are low and places a smart reorder. No subscription fees.
- Easily manage all your tasks and access shortcuts-just tap and swipe the 2.65-inch touchscreen. Fast print speeds: Up to 22 pages per min black, up to 18 pages per min color
- Paper sizes supported: Letter; Legal; Government Legal; Executive; Statement; 3x5 in; 4x6 in; 5x7 in; 13x18 cm; 8x10 in; 10x15 cm; L; Photo 2L; Envelope (#10, Monarch, 5.5bar); Card (3x5 in, 4x6 in, 5x8 in)
- One-year limited hardware warranty; 24-hour, 7 days a week Web support
Description
This full-featured wireless all-in-one delivers professional-quality color for up to 50% lower cost per page than lasers. Stay productive and tackle high-volume print jobs with print, fax, scan, and copy versatility. Finish jobs in a snap with an all-in-one printer designed for fast, high-volume performance for the office.
Quick two-sided prints and swift fax, scan, and copy speeds keep workgroups productive. Manage tasks easily with touchscreen digital shortcuts. Scan digital files directly to email, network folders, and the cloud with preloaded business apps. Easily print documents, photos, and more from a variety of smartphones and tablets. Help protect information and access to confidential print jobs with HP JetAdvantage Private Print.
I've been purchasing only HP printers for the past few decades. This time I reviewed the literature on-line and learned that (in the tech review) HP is a second-tier vendor. I ran through the Amazon reviews and leaned that nobody really likes home printers, and I can hardly fault that. However; the HP models reviewed on Amazon all came up as the least worst.
My experience with this newly purchased printer has been excellent. I selected it because it has an oversized black cartridge (HP simply quit making the big cartridge for my older unit). I is quite large, so be prepared. It takes up a third of my utility table (excellent deal, I got is from Amazon). Installation was straightforward and tool about 30-45 minutes. I ran the installation from the printer panel and my cell phone. When the install was done, the web interface for the printer came up on my desktop system (this was all via WiFi). I also got the latest setup software from the HP website and ran a full install on my desktop (another 20 minutes) with no hitches. I then printed some text, no problem and thereafter an 8x11 full-color image. It printed in less than 20 seconds and did a creditable job. I've no comment about the photo printing, because I've not done that. If I do get some photo paper and try it, I'll amend the review.
Just about my favorite printer of all time. I own three versions:8710 and two 8720 printers. Bought one for my bookkeeper and my son. Easy to setup and good color prints. Jammed once but it was my fault for loading two different kinds of paper. I used it to print my restaurant menus. Wireless is pretty easy to setup. Scanner works well for converting invoices to pdf documents.
Okay, am writing this after this printer crashed. I used it for over a year, maybe longer. I loved the ease with which it printed, the ease of changing the cartridges, and ease of scanning things into my computer for records and documentation. Print quality was very good. The print head went out. The cost to replace the print head is at least 2/3 of the way to a new printer so purchased another HP printer. I have been happy with my HP printers over the past 6-8 years.
I bought this HP 8710 which was advertised as an upgrade of the HP 8610 I had purchased locally. The old HP 8610 died and was out of warranty. So I purchased the HP 8710 as a replacement not really expecting it to do anything more than the HP 8610 but was pleasantly surprised at the option of easy sided copy, and ability to print photos from you iPhone, and printing of envelopes is a lot easier on this model. I also switched to the HP Paper because for all the printing I do, I found in the long run it is easier on the printer. The HP paper is truly a better quality and wrinkles less easily. That is a big deal to a balanced printer when you really start printing. As you can see by the picture, it is a nice addition to the desk set. The step by step 181 page on line User Guide made installing the unit myself a breeze.
With a few minor exceptions and one major one, this printer is as competent and functional as my other HP printers have been. I like the Officejet size because I sometimes do fairly large (up to 500 page) jobs, and it is adequate for that. Not superfast, but fast enough. My print costs per page are far below Staples or Kinkos, especially for color. Ink jet is fine with me, I don't feel any real need for a laser printer. I've used the Costco ink refill service for years with few problems. My last printer failed because of a print head issue, which may or may not have been due to non-HP ink, but it worked for 10 years so I came out way ahead on ink costs.
Setup was easy. I've had a few problems with the wireless function but they were mostly my fault for either not reading the directions properly or not completing a necessary step.
Printing and print quality are good. Making two sided copies is the easier than with any other printer I've ever owned.
I'm not totally thrilled with the paper handling; the drawer is awkward to remove and requires more force than I am comfortable with for a plastic part to pull out and replace. Printing is also very noisy.
My biggest gripe is with the display screen. It's teeny-tiny and the print and icons are even tinier. I'm blind as a bat and fumble-fingered with it - if I need to do anything other than very basic printing and copying, anything that requires changing settings, there's a lot of restarting the process and bad words involved. At least the back and help icons are brightly lit and separated far enough from each other I don't constantly hit the wrong one.
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