# Canon sued for disabling scanner when printers run out of ink



## SgtPepper (Nov 22, 2016)

Canon sued for disabling scanner when printers run out of ink


Canon USA is being sued for not allowing owners of certain printers to use the scanner or faxing functions if they run out of ink.




www.bleepingcomputer.com


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## SgtPepper (Nov 22, 2016)




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## Bella2016 (Mar 5, 2013)

This is why I stopped printing before I got to the end of the cartridge.


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## Red Panda (Aug 18, 2010)

Epson does the same so I've stopped buying genuine inks from them.


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## General Lee Awesome (Sep 28, 2014)

The ink cost more than my printer xD


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## Queen of Cups (Feb 26, 2010)

General Lee Awesome said:


> The ink cost more than my printer xD


Right?


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## SgtPepper (Nov 22, 2016)

General Lee Awesome said:


> The ink cost more than my printer xD





Queen of Cups said:


> Right?


Not all of them, but a lot of them. At my old tech job what my department would do, for those printers who had expensive ink, is simply throw away the entire printer and buy a new one when the ink ran out.


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## SgtPepper (Nov 22, 2016)

Tech Tip:

If your printer has both black and color cartridges, physically remove the color cartridge when printing black and white documents - many printers are designed to use up the color cartridge even when unneeded, to keep customers buying new expensive color ink.


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## Queen of Cups (Feb 26, 2010)

SgtPepper said:


> Not all of them, but a lot of them. At my old tech job what my department would do, for those printers who had expensive ink, is simply throw away the entire printer and buy a new one when the ink ran out.


The one we have now is pretty reasonable but the one before it…..
Took like 4 different cartridges.


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## SgtPepper (Nov 22, 2016)

Queen of Cups said:


> The one we have now is pretty reasonable but the one before it…..
> Took like 4 different cartridges.


For the one I purchased recently, I made sure to look at the ink replacement pricing before buying the actual printer to see if it was worth it.


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## UpClosePersonal (Apr 18, 2014)

The lawsuit is about a $100.00 printer that you can get at Walmart.

I don't know about you guys but I wouldn't be surprised if an economy model printer wasn't able to scan unless it had ink to satisfy the software within.

Walmart would not be my go to printer store.


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## CountZero (Sep 28, 2012)

General Lee Awesome said:


> The ink cost more than my printer xD


Yeah, this is why I got a low end laser printer. More expensive up front than an inkjet, but much cheaper over the long run.


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## HAL (May 10, 2014)

UpClosePersonal said:


> The lawsuit is about a $100.00 printer that you can get at Walmart.
> 
> I don't know about you guys but I wouldn't be surprised if an economy model printer wasn't able to scan unless it had ink to satisfy the software within.
> 
> Walmart would not be my go to printer store.


No that's ridiculous logic.

Walmart is a seller of printers, which in this case are made by Canon. Is Canon Walmart? No it is not. And full functionality shutting down on low ink is definitely a design decision, nothing to do with being cheap.

I don't know how one can sue for it though.


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## SgtPepper (Nov 22, 2016)

HAL said:


> No that's ridiculous logic.
> 
> Walmart is a seller of printers, which in this case are made by Canon. Is Canon Walmart? No it is not. And full functionality shutting down on low ink is definitely a design decision, nothing to do with being cheap.
> 
> I don't know how one can sue for it though.


It's easy. Scanning/sending a fax has nothing to do with your ink. That'd be the equivalent of a local text file on your computer not opening if you weren't subscribed to certain podcast service.


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## OrchidSugar (5 mo ago)

I’m on a monthly ink payment plan with them. Thought it would be cheaper in the long run. Just found out the fine print stipulates that if you cancel the plan you will lose access to the cartridges that are already in your printer. Now how does that work?


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## Scoobyscoob (Sep 4, 2016)

OrchidSugar said:


> I’m on a monthly ink payment plan with them. Thought it would be cheaper in the long run. Just found out the fine print stipulates that if you cancel the plan you will lose access to the cartridges that are already in your printer. Now how does that work?


Well, you'll probably have to ship the cartridges in your printer back if you cancel the subscription plan, since upon cancelation the ink in your printer still belongs to the ink subscription company. Otherwise you might receive a bill for them and you'll likely be charged full MSRP, so it'd probably be best to send them back if they ask for them back.


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## CountZero (Sep 28, 2012)

OrchidSugar said:


> I’m on a monthly ink payment plan with them. Thought it would be cheaper in the long run. Just found out the fine print stipulates that if you cancel the plan you will lose access to the cartridges that are already in your printer. Now how does that work?


You wouldn't happen to live in New Jersey, would you?









New Jersey Legislators Aim To Ban Most In-Car Subscriptions


New Jersey officials aren't amused by automakers' attempts to charge for the use of pre-installed hardware in cars, such as heated seats.




www.thedrive.com


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## UpClosePersonal (Apr 18, 2014)

HAL said:


> No that's ridiculous logic.
> 
> Walmart is a seller of printers, which in this case are made by Canon. Is Canon Walmart? No it is not. And full functionality shutting down on low ink is definitely a design decision, nothing to do with being cheap.
> 
> I don't know how one can sue for it though.


Is it ridiculous to think two things:

That what Walmart sells cost you less because the products don't meet a higher standard.

You get what you pay for... so if what you bought costs less there's a good chance it will be disappointing in some regard.

If I'm manufacturing and selling printers there is a profit level I need to maintain. There's 2 ways get it from the consumer. 

One is the up front price and so maybe the printer at that (presumably higher than a Walmart) price allows scanning even if the ink cartridges need replacement.

The other is to sell one cheaper but the catch is that you'll need to purchase their proprietary ink cartridges in order to use the various other features of the device.

My approach is first to buy from a retailer that specializes in computers and electronics because their selection includes products which Walmart wouldn't feature because they can't sell it at a price that's alluring to their clientele. 

Second, buy a printer in the median price range for printers on the market at the time of purchase so as to avoid the short comings of a cheaper printer.


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## HAL (May 10, 2014)

UpClosePersonal said:


> Is it ridiculous to think two things:
> 
> That what Walmart sells cost you less because the products don't meet a higher standard.
> 
> ...


You're really missing the point.

You could buy those Canon printers in a Canon shop.


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