Customer Reviews

HP Deskjet 6980DT Color Printer

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I absolutely love this printer and it's capabilities...
-it is a state of the art machine with duplexing capabilities
-it allows for people, such as me with only a laptop, to print without connecting it directly to the printer and limiting your ability to move around and use a wireless connection if you have one
-it is really good with ink consumption (unless you intend on printing the highest quality every time - of which there is no need because the normal printing is awesome)
-excellent quality printing even on its normal printing mode
-saves you time, not making you wait for printouts
-save you considerably on paper (duplexing also saved me time because I always used to flip the pages for my previous printer which took more time)
-hp customer service is so helpful and responsive
-my only concern is that Amazon's price is a little high due to the fact that techonweb.com gives you free shipping and a mail in rebate with a 1 year warranty. They sell the printer for $170, so a considerable savings.

Simply--a great printer and a worthwhile investment in your sanity, even at Amazon's cost.

I was looking for a replacement for a color printer that was networkable so the kids could print from around the house. As I perused the reviews, the HP6980 came highly recommended by PC Mag, plus it came with an automatic duplexer which suited my paper-conserving self.

SETUP

The the DT model's duplexer and extra paper bin make this printer a tad taller and deeper than the usual model -- too large to sit on a normal sized desk, but perfect for a side table or under-table printer shelf. Assembly was almost idiot-proof - assemble a couple of parts, install the print cartridges, and set the printer where you want it.

My network is a mixed marriage of a Dell PC, iMac, linked together via a Linksys WRT54GS wireless router. I found that if you are going to hardwire the printer via network cable or USB, it is truly plug and play for both PCs. If you need wireless commo (as I do) you have to contend with a bit of fiddling. The not-great documentation (spread out over 3 paper manuals, none of which is very good) notes that you have three ways to set up the wireless functions: via the LinkSys SecureEasySetup mode, or using a flashdrive to convey settings to the printer, or via the (temporary) use of an Ethernet cable. I tried all three methods, and would stick with the Ethernet mode. Set the printer on the floor near your router, install the cable, and then follow the instructions to communicate with the printer via its own IP. Get it working via the cable, then disconnect and test wireless function. NB: In my case, ZoneAlarm foiled my attempts to connect wirelessly the first time. I had to disable Zonealarm, then print, then restart ZoneAlarm. Subsequent printing attempts went fine. Your Mileage May Vary.

USAGE

I found HP's printer software to be much improved over other iterations (though it does seek to install a ream of useless photo management crud when all you want is the driver). Particular strenghts are the ability to control the amount of ink used at each setting (i.e. you can have a "draft" mode with less or more ink, depending on your druthers), and good color and paper controls.

Color quality is pretty good but not outstanding - if you want to print out photos, I'd stick with a dedicated photo printer. Text is well formed, even using minimal ink.

Speed is very good EXCEPT if using the duplexer (which, while a marvel to see in action, slows your output significantly -- If two pages of draft text printed on one side take less than 15 seconds, duplexing them more than doubles the output time.)

The build quality of the printer is mediocre: obviously HP kept costs down by using lots and lots of plastic. Output trays are rather flimsy plastic, lower paper bin has only minimal metal, and certain elements of the overall build feel cheap.)

UPSHOT: I'm very happy with the 6980. For under $200, you get a wireless, duplexing printer that allows you to print in color from around the house, save paper, all with a minimal amount of fuss once you get the thing set up. I'd recommend the printer to anyone with these needs.

HP 6980 and the 6980DT are good printers if you are not running VISTA on your computer. HP has not updated their drivers to accommodate duplexing with VISTA. Quite annoying. I paid for a feature that I can not use until HP gets around to update their drivers, not a good way to treat customers. I also agree with the comment about quality. Too much cheap plastic that does not hold up. After the warranty expired (of course) a little plastic piece that holds the print cartridges broke, when I tried to buy the part and replace it myself (saving ridiculous labor costs) the HP Tech informed me that they do not sell it to customers, you have to take it to an "authorized HP repair" facility to fix it. Overall I think HP makes good printers (not great printers), but their long term durability is certainly questionable at best.

This is the only printer I found that did everything I wanted:
- network connectivity (using wired)
- 2 trays
- duplex printing
- inkjet w/photo quality
- actually a fast printer

I've had a 6840DT for over a year and been thrilled. I just got the 6980 for a client and expect them to be as happy as I have been.

The printer is above average once you get it set up and running. The reason I didn't rate it higher is that the new HP install programs are horrible - absolutely the worst I've seen in years - bloated, buggy, and a general pain in the neck.
One minor problem with the printer operation is that it seems to have trouble automatically recognizing that it has a lower paper tray. The only way I could get it to work was to change the Printer Properties "Source is" from Automatically Select to Upper, then lower. Unfortunatlely doing this in the Printers and Faxes window doesn't seem to work for all apps. Some have to be configured individually.

I also have a DeskJet 6980 and loved it. Very fast, USB, ethernet, bluetooth, and wireless connectivity in a built in print server to boot. I just bought this 6980dt from Amazon because I needed the duplexor and the 250 sheet tray is a bonus. It all installs so easy and the speed is very hard to beat. It is quieter than previous printers I had here and also has a great duty cycle. Everything I need in the best of it's class. I highly recommend it. This is the 2nd one I bought, Mom will get the 6980, and both installed very, very easily.

The order, placed thru Amazon, was filled by Tiger Direct.

When the printer arrived the duplex adapter that lets you print on both sides of the page was broken. No big deal these things happen.

I contacted Tiger Direct and HP. Tiger Direct offered to swap printers -- I should have taken them up on it.

HP tried to convince me that the printer didn't have a duplex adapter, so it couldn't be broken. The rep I was talking to spoke very good English, considering...

Two phone calls to HP later I got to a supervisor who allowed as how the printer *might* have a duplex adapter, but they couldn't replace it because it wasn't a "user replaceable part" Fascinating, I thought, since it was packed separately in the box and I installed it myself. So they shipped me a new printer.

And that's what I received -- a new printer with no duplex adapter.

I shipped the new printer back and went through another round of phone calls that ended up with them shipping me a new duplex adapter (no printer this time!)

I installed it, but don't know if it works because although there are four separate places in the printer driver software where you can specify double sided printing (I'm not making this up!) None of them, and no combination of them result in the printer actually trying to print on both sides of the paper.

I gave up. It's a nice single sided printer. I should have bought the $100 cheaper model that doesn't do double sided printing.

I read some of the reviews about installation issues and they concerned me initially. But, when it came time to get the printer up and running on my wireless network, there really weren't any issues. Just following the directions (and avoiding the EasySecure option) worked fine. I would highly recommend this printer-the quality of the printing is excellent, the feature/function set is quite high for a moderate price, and it's a great home/office printer that has lots to offer.

This is a good printer. It is a WORKHORSE. The only issue I have with it is the platform for the paper when it exits does not allow for either a large build up of letter size paper or for more than one legal page to sit until you can get to it. I print a lot of legal sized documents.

I have used this printer for about 2 months now. It is really easy to setup and get running either direct connect or via wireless. It is very fast when printing single sided. It is quite a bit slower with double-sided printing mostly because it waits for the 1st side to dry before printing the 2nd side. But it is not too bad if you need 2-sided printing.

Although maybe not as good as a high-end photo printer, it has produced 4x6, 5x7 and 8x10 photos (used only HP premium gloss so far) that are as good as I get from Sam's club, etc. I do use Paint Shop Pro and Adobe Photoshop and use the printer calibration files (and of course monitors cal. files) - almost essential for good pictures.

So far, good B&W ink usage for documents the kids print for school reports, etc. 140 pages so far (not counting 15 4x6's, 6 5x7s and 2 8x10s photos) and have 8 out of 10 bars left on the "est. ink" display. So should be good for at least 400-500 pages -- I hope !

After about 1mo, got one for my son at college. He setup easily and has not had any problems either. However, you should download the current driver to avoid a "spooler" error that I had on 1 system, but none of the others (all Win XP).