Customer Reviews

HP LaserJet 3050 All-in-One Printer

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

I was a bit nervous about buying this printer because there were no reviews yet on Amazon and my wife has had all kinds of software problems with an HP Photosmart printer that she bought last year (against the advice of dozens of Amazon reviewers). But after looking around a bit, I decided that the HP LJ3050 looked like the best all-in-one laser machine for the money. And I really loved my previous all-in-one, the HP LJ3100, which had served me well for 8 years.

I just received the product and installed it today, and the installation went smoothly (although it did take a while). The print quality is fine and the speed is an improvement over my old 3100. My only complaint about the print function so far is that the machine is kind of loud. The scan software doesn't seem quite as straightforward as the software for my 3100, but it does work just fine. I probably just need to get used to it. Copying is nice and quick. I haven't plugged the machine into a phone jack yet, so I won't comment on the fax features.

The machine is not quite as solidly built as my old 3100, but it is actually a little better than I expected. I would have to say that, overall, I am pleased with this product so far. My only complaint is that the box does not include the USB cable needed to connect the machine to your PC. I had to make a special trip out to the store to buy one, and it cost over $20. I went back and checked the outside of the box and could not find anything that clearly said "USB cable not included", so I feel like I have a right to be angry about it.

Faxes are received as bar codes. HP knows a problem exist with the formatter board but it took 4 calls to customer support for the problem to be acknowledged. To fix this under warranty HP wants to charge $50 for a refurbished copier sent overnight. I want the copier repaired at no cost at the local repair center but HP will not send the part. The part is backordered with "no estimate ship date". I can buy the part as an end user for $193. HP does not stand behind it's products.

I bought this with the half off rebate - as a result it was very reasonable in price. I wouldn't pay full price for it though.

Prior to owning this unit, I owned an Officejet V40 which I was quite satisfied with. The reason that I replaced it is that there are no decent drivers for current operating systems. I also had noticed that is was larger than current all-in-ones with similar functionality. However, it was easy to use and worked realiably for 5 years.

In comes the HP 3050. While it does its job fine - I do have three negative comments. It is a monster in size! I have no idea why it is so large! It's color scanning errors on the side of being too red. Finally, its menus and functions are not as intutiive as they could be.

Added this machine to my new Vista-powered notebook. Although the printer drivers will automatically install and let me print, none of the included software on HP's installation CD will work. So beware that you will get none of the supporting software for scanning, faxing, etc. Chat session with HP was no help -- they're "working on it" with Microsoft.

After quite a few phone calls, I was finally told that there are many problems with the "Fax Receiving Function" for this product... Yet there were no mentioning of this situation on HP's website. HP rated it 4 or more stars. Now their staff finally told me the truth!!! I wish I had known it earlier.

The installation of this printer went very well. However, after installing the printer my computer began running EXTREMELY slow. I checked and it was using 100% of the CPU. I stopped all the processes associated with this printer and my speed returned to normal. I contacted HP and they said it is a known problem and they are working on it (that was six months ago). They still are working on it. HP's solution is to install the print driver only (so you cannot use the scan or fax feature) until they write new software for this printer.

They should have recalled the printer since it doesn't work properly. DO NOT PURCHASE THIS PRINTER!!!!

If you just want this for a printer, its a dandy little machine. If you want to use this for business, be prepared to fax your pages twice... because you will have to get a call from the receiving end saying "your pages are all garbled, could you please fax again?!". Then you either must run the "scan hotfix" off of the hp website or turn the machine off. This happens about 1 out of every 4 faxes or scans. You'll know when you scan something and see the horrible results. Stay away from this machine if you need it for faxing or scanning. Printing... sure. Unless, of course, HP does some sort of new software patch or driver update or something, otherwise this would be one of the quickest, best multi-function machines on the market.

I like it! Prints fast with really great quality. Also, prints double sides (manually), which prevents wasting on paper. The default dpi is 1200 x 1200, but I use 600 x 600 to save on the life on the toner. It is perfect for running my small business and everyday needs.

The only problem I had was installing the software on my XP operating system. I called the HP support and they walked me through everything. They even had me test the scanner and fax to ensure it worked fine. And they also even provided me with a few tips.

Furthermore, HP tech support had mentioned to me that it maintains better quality when using a 6 ft UBS cable (or less). They don't recommend anything longer than 10 ft. The reason for this is that it will reduce in the quality and speed with the scanning and printing.

I discovered that it has a "Cleaning Mode" incase the toner ever gets specks or smearing.

I recommend if you get this, print out the "Menu Structure" which is located on the printer it self. It makes navigating through the printer options a lot easier.

I bought this based on the reviews and wanted to put in my 2 cents. I think this machine is wonderful - the fax features (what I use it for) are easy to set up, even manually when used as a stand alone (mine is NOT hooked up to my computer). The ADF works great - pages don't fall to the ground. Print quality is good and fast! I like the large holding paper tray - it holds about 200 pages or so. I had an older HP laser fax that finally bit the dust and bought a Brother - hated it - and finally got this one. Am very pleased. I have no idea why this is sooooo big - that would be my only drawback. Sure wish they'd bring back the laser fax without the "all in one" features - that might make it smaller.

I got this printer on sale for $150 on Feb. 2007 because I was tired of dealing with replacing the expensive inkjet heads on my Lexmark X75. I don't have the fax hooked up, but the printer itself does a great job. I have printed 850 documents so far, and it's still using the orginal toner. I guess the toner lasts for an estimated 2,000 pages. It has NEVER jammed on me, and I've printed lots of envelopes and 8.5x11 sheets. It's a nice compact unit, and It's good enough to serve my small business, so I would recommend it to anyone.