HP All-in-One and HP Digital Copier - Replacing the HP PSC 700, HP PSC 900 Series, and Digital Copier 310 Ink Cartridges

The HP PSC 700, HP PSC 900 series, and HP Digital Copier 310 are based on the same basic printing mechanism and share many common features, including print cartridges. This document details what ink cartridges should be used and how to replace them.

Black - C6615D also known as #15 black:

Tri-Color - C6578A also known as #78 color

Tri-Color - C6578D also known as #78 color

  caution:

Only use the Hewlett-Packard print cartridges designed for this product. The installation of a print cartridge not specifically designed for this product can cause failure of ink cartridge and possibly damage the unit.

Printing with HP print cartridges is fairly economical when compared to going to a commercial printer or compared to other ink jet products. The cost per page varies depending upon the amount of ink coverage on the printout, printing mode, and the price paid for the cartridge. The results shown below are based on five percent coverage for black and white printouts, 15 percent coverage for color and the HP suggested retail price. The results for a color cartridge printout are based solely on 100 percent ink usage from the color cartridge and no assist from the black cartridge.

These products have an estimated ink level screen in the product Toolbox software (not available when using the drivers built into Windows XP). The product tracks ink usage by counting the number of drops of ink sprayed. The low ink warnings will not actually prevent printing. Press the ENTER button to clear the error message and then printing can continue. It is possible in this way to continue printing until the ink cartridge is out of ink. When colors are no longer correct or the print becomes faded, the ink cartridge is empty and needs to be replaced. The warning occurs to allow the user time to obtain a new ink cartridge before the cartridge is empty. If the product is receiving faxes and there is a concern of missing a fax because the cartridge is out of ink, the ink cartridge should be replaced after the warning appears.

While generally accurate, these ink counts can get off if ink cartridges are swapped with another unit. This would result in the actual ink remaining being lower or higher than the amount indicated by the ink level screen. To check the ink level on these products:

1. Click Start and Programs.
2. Locate and open the HP product from the list of programs. This might be found listed under Hewlett-Packard on some products.
3. Click HP Toolbox or just Toolbox.
4. Select the Estimated ink level tab. The estimated ink levels should appear as they do in Figure 1.
   Figure : The Estimated ink level tab

   

It is fairly simple to replace the ink cartridges but the unit must be ON to accomplish this. If the HP product is not on the ink cartridges will not come to the center for replacement.

1. Locate and raise the print cartridge access door on the front of the unit, just above the output tray.
   Figure : Raising the front access door

   
2. The print cartridge carriage will move into the middle of the access area.
3. Lift the latch on top of the cartridge to be replaced.
   Figure : Raising the cartridge latches

   
4. Grasping the handle at the top of the cartridge, pull forward and lift up to remove.
5. Remove the replacement cartridge from its packaging, and being careful to touch only the black plastic.
6. Gently remove the blue plastic protective tape covering the ink nozzles as shown in Figure 4. Do not try to peal off the printed circuit from the back of the cartridge.
   Figure : Removing protective tape

   
7. Push the cartridge firmly down into the slot, with the label facing you.
   Figure : Inserting the cartridge

   
8. Lower the latch down onto the top of the cartridge and push down until the latch locks firmly into place.
   Figure : Latching the ink cartridge in place

   
9. Close the print cartridge access door.
10. Press ENTER on the control panel when prompted in the display to align the print cartridges.

This message indicates that the ink cartridge is not making good electrical contact, is bad or is the wrong cartridge. Do the following to diagnose and correct the condition:

1. Open the front of the unit to access the print cartridges (as shown in Figure 2).
2. Remove the ink cartridge indicated in the message and inspect.
3. Verify that it is the correct part number and then if it is, reinsert the cartridge.
4. Close the lid and see if the problem has gone away.
5. If the message is still displayed after a few seconds, repeat Steps 1 and 2 to remove the cartridge.
6. Unplug the power cord from the back of the unit.
7. Clean the electrical contacts on the ink cartridge with a soft clean cloth, slightly dampened (not wet) with clean water. The contacts are located on the opposite side of the main label. Each contact is very small and shaped like a rounded square.
   Figure : Clean the cartridge contacts

   
8. Inside the HP all-in-one product, clean the contacts in the print carriage (the cartridge holder) with the same soft clean cloth. Allow them to dry for a while (about five minutes) before reinserting the cartridge(s) and reapplying power.
   Figure : Clean the contact points in the cartridge carriage

   
9. If the problem still remains, replace the ink cartridge.
10. If the problem still exists after trying all of the steps above, the unit may need to be serviced. Contact an HP Customer Care Center to arrange to have the unit serviced.

HP does not support the usage of refilled or ink cartridges marketed by other companies. HP Technical Support will not address any print quality issues that may result from the use of refilled or non-HP ink cartridges. Please contact the company that provided the refill or cartridge if there are any print quality issues while using refilled ink cartridges. In addition, these cartridges may damage the printer electrically or by leakage. The use of non-HP or refilled print cartridges alone will not affect either the warranty or any maintenance contract purchased from HP for its Inkjet printers. However, if an HP Inkjet printer failure or damage can be directly attributed to the use of a modified or refilled Inkjet print cartridge, the repair will not be covered under the warranty or by the maintenance contract. Rather, standard time and materials charges will be applied to service the printer for that particular failure or damage.

HP printing products and print cartridges are designed as part of an entire printing system, which is tested extensively to ensure exceptional performance across a wide range of conditions. Considerable time and effort was spent in creating the ink formulas that are used by HP Inkjet products. HP's patented ink formulations are optimized to provide excellent print quality, water and fade resistance, and compatibility with the cartridge and printer components. HP believes that the highest quality print and most reliable operation of the printer will be obtained when genuine HP Inkjet cartridges are used with HP Inkjet printers.

Refilling processes and the use of incompatible inks may disrupt the printing system, resulting in the following problems:

• Ink leakage, potentially resulting in printer damage. In some cases the ink cartridge has been drilled into and then plugged. HP has seen cases were the plug does not hold, and the ink ran into the unit and damaged the printed circuit boards.
• Refilled ink cartridges frequently will exhibit spotty print or fail to print at all even though the ink level is OK due to ink nozzle plugging. This is often a result of opening the cartridge vents and letting air into the cartridge, causing drying out the ink.
• Reduced print quality. The printing algorithms used to create the various colors are based on HP inks. Color matching problems may result. HP has also seen refilled ink cartridges that had damage to the ink nozzle orifices that resulted in poor print quality. There is also time delay between printed pages based on media type and print quality settings to prevent a page from smearing the previous page. This time delay is based on the time required for HP inks to dry.
• Ink cartridge not recognized by the unit. Alterations to the ink cartridge can cause the ink cartridge to not be recognized by the unit. Also, over time, the print cartridge electrical contacts will wear as the cartridge is used. This will result in the same condition.
• Ink cartridge getting stuck in the unit. HP has recorded cases of cartridges from other manufacturers or refills becoming lodged in the unit to the point where they could not be removed without disassembling the unit.
• HP also cannot predict what the long-term effect on the printer's reliability could be from using different ink formulations.