Customer Reviews

HP Officejet Pro 8000

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(24)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(23)

 

 

I almost never write reviews on Amazon, because most often I find the reviews perfectly describe the items I've purchased. But in this case, since the mixed reviews I read here before buying almost discouraged me from purchasing this printer,
I feel like I am obligated to write about my experience with this printer.

I've had a HP Photosmart 3180 all-in-one for about two years now, and it still works. However, I was really sick of replacing the ink cartridges every 70 pages or so, and wanted a printer that could handle double-sided printing. I purchase a lot of digital textbooks for school since they're typically half the price, but I still want a physical book in front of me, so I typically print out chapters as needed for my courses. Printing chapters with my all-in-one HP was a HUGE CHORE, not only taking HOURS of time, but SEVERAL cartridges of ink... not to mention the frustration of manually printing two sided documents in book-layout.... agh!

My printer just arrived this morning. I removed it from it's box, followed the included quick setup instructions, and that was that! I have NO idea what is wrong, or happened with some of the other reviewers set-up processes since mine was exactly as described in the instructions. The process couldn't have been any more straight forward! Then again, other reviewers did note their PC operating system .... and well, I guess that's Microsoft's Vista for ya. I'm on a Mac, so I didn't have to deal with solving Vista's various operating hurdles.

In agreement with other reviews, the first-time initialization did take about 20 minutes, but it's a one time deal, so not that big of a nuisance. Actually, the first thing the printer did when I plugged it in was print out a polite little note to let me know that it was going to begin its initialization process, which could take up to 20 minutes, and could I please not interrupt the process by powering off or otherwise disturbing it. The friendly little note even suggested I work on installing the included software in the mean-time, which I did. Installation of the software again could not have been more straight-forward.

When the printer was done initializing, I immediately opened a 96 page document, clicked the box for two-sided printing, and without issue of ANY kind, the printer got on it's way, printing 96 pages of colored, double-sided textbook pages in perfect book-layout... Ahhhh... :-)


I am super impressed with this printer! For the cost, I think it is totally more than worth it!

I replaced an old but very serviceable HP 970 CXI deskjet with this Officejet Pro 8000. I had excellent service out of the 970 but it all of a sudden quit working because the light says it needs a new color cartridge - even though in my many years of owning it, that error never happened - the color just faded until you replaced it. Looking at replacing the color cartridge for $35 with no guarantee of it working, prompted me to add $45 and get a brand new one. The decision wasn't difficult as I've owned HP printers for 20 years problem free, beginning with the Laserjet II.
Just finished installation of the printer on a Vista machine - the second time around, because the first attempt resulted in nothing but a hardware problem with the printer refusing to print even a test page. After conferring with the HP on-line chat technician (excellent service) I was told that my printer had to be replaced and he gave me the option of sending it back to Amazon and having it replaced by them, or - allowing HP to replace it directly with immediate shipping. Because of my trust of HP and the rapid replacement I chose them. On unwrapping the replacement printer I found a large sticker on the back which reads "REMANUFACTURED." Huh? My former printer was brand new out of the box and never printed a page and they replace it with a remanufactured device? Back to on-line tech chat where I was informed by the "floor supervisor" that "we always replace them with a remanufactured printer." Well, that's fine, but I was never informed of that fact so here I sit with a remanufactured printer instead of a new one, for the price of a new one (albeit a very good price - but it was advertised as new). So, that's an automatic knock of at least on star, being kind at that. The second demerit star is for the print cartridges. Using the HP Toolbox I checked the ink level of the cartridges. The black one was fine - it showed 100% but each of the three color cartridges are only about 75 - maybe 80% full. That's after printing 6 pages total, 2 black and white and 4 color. The color pages were black and white stock market charts (very little print/ink of any kind) with just a few scattered small colored arrows.
I think the reduced price by HP is like the free printers that come with a new computer - they're getting them into customers hands to sell replacement ink cartridges. Like someone else wrote in their review, I think they are selling disposable printers. Suspect that I'll get a lot of service out of the printer, but if it ever needs print heads it's obvious that it will be printer replacement time.
The print quality is outstanding and every bit as good as any laser printer I've ever had. It prints very fast for an inkjet and I've had no problem at all with download time, it prints within 3 to 5 seconds of hitting the print button, with no delay between multiple pages . Am just disappointed with HP and their replacement policy along with less than full ink cartridges.

I was searching for a simple, reliable printer and did not need multiple functions (fax,scan,etc.) commonly included in many printer feature packages. Whether it will stand the test of time for reliability is a question yet to be answered. However, when I purchased this model a few weeks ago, the availability of significant discounts coupled with a $50.00 trade-in offer from HP made this a real value for me. Set up was simple, and using the custom set up allowed me to avoid adding superfluous software.
Printing is quick and quality is fine. I really like the four color ink cartridges so I will only need to purchase the color that I need. Automatic two-sided printing is a nice extra that I didn't seek but happily accept.
Yes, it is a little noisy when printing, and initializing seems to take forever (but probably about a minute or so). I did have to go to the HP website to take a peek at the user manual to answer a couple of my operating questions, but I guess not including user manuals in the box saves a lot of paper in the long run.
In summary, so far, so good.

Editing review after a year of use to complain that this is one of those printers where if one color of ink is depleted, you can't print anything, even if you don't want color. Other than that, the printer is working great. I really appreciate the speed. It's actually faster than the printer I use at work.

I had some issues but they were all due to my own incompetence. The following are some things that slowed down my installation and first print:

1. This printer does not come with a USB cable. You'll need one, even if you're going wireless. The standard printer-to-PC cable should work.

2. For a wired setup, the USB connection on the printer is the one on the bottom. If you're working in low light or can't decipher the little symbols, you might put it in the wrong one. It will fit, but you won't be connected.

3. Install the duplexing tray even if you won't be duplexing (printing on both sides of the paper). The paper feeds through that tray. You should hear a snap. The printer won't print unless this tray is firmly in place.

4. Push the paper load as far back as it will go. It goes back farther than you might be accustomed to loading. You'll have about four inches of empty space at the front of the tray.

5. After installing the print heads (a first for me and kinda scary), gently but firmly push down on the light blue plastic piece (it looks like a wishbone) over the print heads. This piece looks a bit delicate so I was hesitant to push on it. The printer cover closes fine with that piece left up, but the printer won't work unless that blue piece is pushed down firmly over the print heads.

6. If you get a paper jam, even if you see the jammed paper from the front of the machine, don't pull it out -- REMOVE IT FROM THE BACK. You'll need to take off the duplexing unit, but it snaps in and out easily.

I purchased this printer for my boss as replacement for a laser printer we had been having problems with for a year and a half now. I had owned HPs in the past and found them to be reliable. I figured this would be more reliable than my work's current printer which printed with lopsided margins, wouldn't print at all, expensive cartridges, paper jams, odd lines, etc. Plugged it into our router, installed the software on all our computers, and fired away. Sure, it isn't as quick as a laser jet, but if you set it to draft it's pretty damn close. Otherwise, it's a decent speed, but the quality is damn good for the 80 we spent. the ink is cheap, it lasts about 900-1000 pages, everything prints just right. no jams. much quieter. It has a modern sleek look which is nice. The biggest thing is using it with our router and letting the office print from it. It works very quickly. I haven't had an issue yet with it. It's been a smooth month and some now. The photo quality isn't amazing. It's good for what it is, but I wouldn't print out a fine art print out of it. Good for quick headshots to go out, or something that needs color but it isn't anything to write home about. But, again, for the price and the purpose, it's close enough. So if you're on the fence, just take a chance. It's worth the cost and the reliability. I mean, I own an HP at home that's 5-7 years old that keeps ticking away like a champ. I finally had to replace the ink after a year or two of infrequent use. That's what I love about HP.

I've read some of the other reviews concerning this printer discussing noise, print time and paper handling. Well, here's me take. I have had the printer for over a month now. The printer is far quieter than the Photosmart 7550 I had before (it sounded like two monkies with hammers were working inside). The 8000 is very quiet to me. I use a PC with the XP op system and it takes a total of 30 seconds to print anything I've printed so far. It usually takes 12 to 14 seconds to initiallize and around 15 to 18 seconds to print the page - whether all text or partial graphics. I've not had any paper handling issues either - though I do just use HP All Purpose paper. I haven't tried unusual paper types. Bottom line: if you just want a printer you can count on for everyday stuff then this is the one.

I've had this printer for two months. It is a solid, reliable product. Print quality is very good. Ink usage is outstandingly economical. If you print a lot of documents or pictures, this is a good choice.

If you buy this printer, you will have to buy cartridges often, even if you don't print. This printer has fraudulent cartridge policies that even entered a court litigation against HP. The printer has four cartridges, but if one of them is empty, the other will not print. So, to print only in black, you have to have the color cartridges installed. If you don't use the color cartridges, after some time it "expires", and you will have to buy it again, even if didn't print even one color page.

It is not just with this printer. Almost all the HP printers nowadays has this fraudulent behaviour. For the court case against HP, go to hpinkjetprintersettlement dot com.

In short, STAY AWAY FROM HP.

This printer is fast once the print downloads, that is about all I have to say good about this printer. If you want to use different size, or weight of paper forget about it. It doesn't handle it. Lots of jaming or printing at an angle. As other reviews said it is also noisy.

The print quality and speed are fine. The paper handling is poor and it takes too long to initialize. It is noisy, but I don't mind that too much. One of the reasons I bought this printer was to be able to print both sides. What the add doesn't say is that it only works with letter size paper and at that it requires a large bottom margin. I do must of my work using legal size paper. Also I have been unable to figure out how to print both sides manually as you can with most printers. I don't recommend it. HP used to make good long lasting printers, I am still using a model 4L, but not anymore.