HP is famed for a long history of powerful and useful computer stuff, but its inket printers might better be considered infamous for how hostile they are to customers. Locked down by DRM, hooked up with ink subscriptions, and liable to turn into a brick at midnight. Now the company has taken the final step into the light: the latest firmware update rejects even the company's own ink cartridges.
"This isn't the first time that HP broke its customers' printers with an update," reports Scharon Harding for Ars Technica:
The firmware update in question is version 20250209, which HP issued on March 4 for its LaserJet MFP M232-M237 models. Per HP, the update includes "security updates," a "regulatory requirement update," "general improvements and bug fixes," and fixes for IPP Everywhere. Looking back to older updates' fixes and changes, which the new update includes, doesn't reveal anything out of the ordinary. The older updates mention things like "fixed print quality to ensure borders are not cropped for certain document types," and "improved firmware update and cartridge rejection experiences." But there's no mention of changes to how the printers use or read toner.
Sadly, the old recommendation to "just get a Brother" might have had its day: that company has also begun turning the screw on users. The underlying problem is a declining business for printers, dooming those that still partake to whatever shenanigans can be thought up to squeeze a buck from a troubled market.
