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I have been on a search for years to find this, I can't wait to share with you the awesome little gem I came across (I am not getting paid by anyone for this post, this is just my own true desire to share what I love!)
As a homeschool family we print...A LOT! I print weekly schedules for the kids, we make posters and graphics for learning, I print out busy bag games for my little ones. And let's not even mention all the printing I do with recipes, chore charts, etc. You get the picture here. I have always been on the hunt for a printer whose ink didn't kill me in cost. For many of our printing needs we like color, but I have been strict to limit that as, let's face it, it can be quite costly! In the last 8 or so years I have gone through 3 printers. The first one went kaput (that is the technical term, I assure you), the second was a garage sale $10 purchase to get by, and now, I think I am in love.
In times past my black ink would cost between $12-$25 and my color was between $15-$30 depending on sales, the printer, etc. We were replacing black ink at least every other month and I tried to stretch the colored ink to only 4 times a year. I finally found a solution, it was at the hands of another blogger...let me explain.
I was trying to get more organized with a "mom" binder to house daily schedules, meal plans, shopping info, etc. I came across a website that had some of the cutest printables for doing that, but, when I realized that the printables were just download files that you print at home, I was turned off. Let's face it, that would kill me in ink! But wait, then I saw a little tip from another blogger at I heart planners, in the tip she mentions a service offered by hp ink. In the service you don't go to the store to get your ink...nope. No more hoping that Walmart has your brand, no more trying to save money by buying re-purposed cartridges that never seem to work properly, none of that. No more running out of ink in the middle of printing a report!!!
It sounded too good to be true, but I was curious. So here is how it works...newer HP printers, are eligible for this service. The service goes like this: You have a wireless HP printer that communicates online with HP instant ink services to monitor your ink levels. When you are running low, they simply send you more! I LOVE whoever thought of this! There is a monthly plan you choose from starting at $4.99 a month for the printing of 100 pages (black or color) and going up to $9.99 a month for 300 pages a month. That is still less than what I was spending since my black ink alone at $12 bimonthly also included a trip to the store. There is also a 3 month free trial period to see if you like the service.
The only problem was I didn't have an HP printer because my garage sale printer was a Lexmark, but as luck would have it, my Lexmark was on its last legs and I found a killer deal on Amazon so I purchased an all-in-one copy/scan wireless printer from HP for a whopping $69- free shipping too. (it was a scratch and dent box model). So, I set up the service, agreed to the $4.99 a month fee after my 3 month free trial and I was set. Here is where it got interesting, I started printing and about 3 weeks in I received an email from HP instant ink stating that my ink was running low...more was on the way! (there is no shipping fee involved). The ink arrived within 2 days, my original cartridges aren't even out of ink yet, but here are fresh ones waiting to be used at the slightest provocation of ink run-out. I think I'm in love.
Now, for the printer itself. Love it. It is a scanner, printer, copier. It prints in brilliant color (which I am no longer afraid to use because the ink just keeps showing up!) It is all digital and very easy to use and set up, which was a huge plus for me. I love that it isn't connected to anything but my desktop and laptop computers can both print to it, no problems. Yup, this is hands down the best printer I have had and with the added instant ink service from HP, it is highly recommended for all you homeschool families out there.
Now, here is where the disclosure comes in, if you go to the Amazon link and you end up making a purchase, I may get a small promotion from that, however, you can get this printer anywhere, not just there. But, know that when I researched it, Amazon was the cheapest place that beat all the others by $50 or more! LOVE THIS!
As a homeschool family we print...A LOT! I print weekly schedules for the kids, we make posters and graphics for learning, I print out busy bag games for my little ones. And let's not even mention all the printing I do with recipes, chore charts, etc. You get the picture here. I have always been on the hunt for a printer whose ink didn't kill me in cost. For many of our printing needs we like color, but I have been strict to limit that as, let's face it, it can be quite costly! In the last 8 or so years I have gone through 3 printers. The first one went kaput (that is the technical term, I assure you), the second was a garage sale $10 purchase to get by, and now, I think I am in love.
In times past my black ink would cost between $12-$25 and my color was between $15-$30 depending on sales, the printer, etc. We were replacing black ink at least every other month and I tried to stretch the colored ink to only 4 times a year. I finally found a solution, it was at the hands of another blogger...let me explain.
I was trying to get more organized with a "mom" binder to house daily schedules, meal plans, shopping info, etc. I came across a website that had some of the cutest printables for doing that, but, when I realized that the printables were just download files that you print at home, I was turned off. Let's face it, that would kill me in ink! But wait, then I saw a little tip from another blogger at I heart planners, in the tip she mentions a service offered by hp ink. In the service you don't go to the store to get your ink...nope. No more hoping that Walmart has your brand, no more trying to save money by buying re-purposed cartridges that never seem to work properly, none of that. No more running out of ink in the middle of printing a report!!!
It sounded too good to be true, but I was curious. So here is how it works...newer HP printers, are eligible for this service. The service goes like this: You have a wireless HP printer that communicates online with HP instant ink services to monitor your ink levels. When you are running low, they simply send you more! I LOVE whoever thought of this! There is a monthly plan you choose from starting at $4.99 a month for the printing of 100 pages (black or color) and going up to $9.99 a month for 300 pages a month. That is still less than what I was spending since my black ink alone at $12 bimonthly also included a trip to the store. There is also a 3 month free trial period to see if you like the service.
The only problem was I didn't have an HP printer because my garage sale printer was a Lexmark, but as luck would have it, my Lexmark was on its last legs and I found a killer deal on Amazon so I purchased an all-in-one copy/scan wireless printer from HP for a whopping $69- free shipping too. (it was a scratch and dent box model). So, I set up the service, agreed to the $4.99 a month fee after my 3 month free trial and I was set. Here is where it got interesting, I started printing and about 3 weeks in I received an email from HP instant ink stating that my ink was running low...more was on the way! (there is no shipping fee involved). The ink arrived within 2 days, my original cartridges aren't even out of ink yet, but here are fresh ones waiting to be used at the slightest provocation of ink run-out. I think I'm in love.
Now, for the printer itself. Love it. It is a scanner, printer, copier. It prints in brilliant color (which I am no longer afraid to use because the ink just keeps showing up!) It is all digital and very easy to use and set up, which was a huge plus for me. I love that it isn't connected to anything but my desktop and laptop computers can both print to it, no problems. Yup, this is hands down the best printer I have had and with the added instant ink service from HP, it is highly recommended for all you homeschool families out there.
Now, here is where the disclosure comes in, if you go to the Amazon link and you end up making a purchase, I may get a small promotion from that, however, you can get this printer anywhere, not just there. But, know that when I researched it, Amazon was the cheapest place that beat all the others by $50 or more! LOVE THIS!
As for the instant ink services, you simply go to www.hpconnected.com to sign up.
