3 Ways on How to Bypass HP Instant Ink!!

Subscribing to the HP Instant Ink program allows you to save money on ink cartridges. However, this subscription sometimes causes you to suffer some inconveniences. If you already subscribed to this program and face some problems, you must know how to bypass HP Instant Ink.

What is HP Instant Ink

HP Instant Ink is an ink subscription service. Those who join this program will get cartridge replacements automatically when their cartridges run out of ink. At a glance, this program looks excellent, but it has some drawbacks.

Advantages of Joining the HP Instant Ink Program

HP Instant Ink program offers several great advantages. Therefore, many printer users immediately subscribe to this program after purchasing an HP printer. These advantages are:

• No More Running Out of Ink: Running out of ink in the middle of printing is no longer a problem when you subscribe to HP Instant Ink. 

Your HP cartridges will automatically order replacements when their ink levels are low. Therefore, you’ll have replacements ready when the old ones are empty. 

• You Pay for the Pages you Print: HP offers printing plans based on the pages you print per month. Therefore, this program is different from the traditional ink cartridge purchase.
• You Don’t Need to be Concerned about Recycling Used Cartridges: Empty cartridge waste is an environmental issue every printer user must aware of. However, you don’t need to worry about it if you enroll in the HP Instant Ink program because HP will recycle your cartridges.
• No Difference in Color and Black and White Print Cost: Subscribing to this program is the best strategy to cut your printing cost. HP charges you the same print cost for color prints and black and white prints. Moreover, the print cost is affordable.
• Unused Prints Rollover: You can rollover your previous month’s unused prints to the next month. Therefore, you can get double amounts of prints. However, the rollover is limited to 3 months of unused prints.

Disadvantages of Subscribing to the HP Instant Ink Program

Unfortunately, enrolling in the HP Instant Ink Program has some disadvantages.

• The Cartridge Replacement May Take Days to Arrive: The shipping time depends on your location. Since HP uses standard shipping services, your replacement ink may need up to 10 days to arrive. 
• No Chance with Third-Party Cartridge: HP inkjet printers that are compatible with the Instant Ink program generally won’t print if you install third-party cartridges into them. Therefore, you can only use expensive genuine cartridges on them aside from the Instant Ink cartridges.
• Overage Fees: Sometimes, you have unexpected printing tasks that cause you to print more than your rollover pages. This will charge you overage fees. If you print many pages of documents, you will surely pay more than you expected.
• Page Definition Trap: HP set the printing plans based on print pages. However, many HP printer users are not aware that the cartridge will count a page with only a line of text as one page. Consequently, printer users must be careful with this trap.

Printing Plans and Costs

HP offers five printing plans in its Instant Ink program. 

• The first tier costs $0.99 per month. It allows you to print 15 pages per month.
• The price of the second tier is $2.99 per month. Subscribing to this plan allows you to print 50 pages in a month.
• The third tier costs $4.99 per month. You can print up to 100 pages per month if you enroll in this plan.
• The price of the fourth tier is $11.99 per month. It allows you to print 300 pages per month.
• The fifth tier costs $24.99 per month. This plan lets you print 700 pages in a month.

Does it Work for All HP Printers?

HP Instant Ink program is only compatible with particular HP inkjet printers. Most HP inkjet printers with Wireless features or Ethernet connections are compatible with this program. 

Older HP inkjet printers usually are not compatible with the Instant Ink program. You can check eligible printers for this program on the HP official website.

Is it Worth Subscribing to?

HP Instant Ink program is excellent and full of benefits. However, it is not suitable for all printer users. It is best for you who do lots of full-page and full-color photo prints. 

Moreover, it is also great for you who have a definite number of pages of prints per month. Some HP printer users may already subscribe to the program and feel that it is not suitable for them. Can you bypass HP Instant Ink anytime? Yes, of course. You can do it without getting any penalties.

Get a Free Trial and Find Out How the HP Instant Ink Work

When you purchase certain wireless inkjet printers from HP, you will have a chance to get an Instant Ink bonus trial. With this bonus, you can enjoy a free Instant Ink service for four to six months. Don’t waste this great chance and enroll immediately in the free trial.

From this free trial, you can find out how the monthly printing plan works and decide whether it is suitable for you or not. After the free trial, you can choose to stay on the tiered plan you choose, upgrade it to a higher tier plan, or cancel it.

How to Bypass HP Instant Ink Cartridge from Your Windows PC

Those who don’t want to use HP Instant Ink cartridges anymore can cancel their subscription via their computers. Below are the steps of how to bypass HP Instant Ink via Windows PC.

• Open the tab of Devices and Printers on your Windows PC.
• Click Account Settings
• Select ‘Cancel My Instant Ink Subscription.’
• Enter the email and password you use for enrolling in this program.
• Your cancelation will be effective immediately after the billing cycle ends.

How to Cancel HP Instant Ink Service from Your Instant Ink Account

You can also bypass the HP Instant Ink service via your HP Instant Ink Account. The steps for this cancelation are as follows.

• Use your account credential to log in to the Instant Ink sign-in page of the HP website.
• Go to Status after you can successfully access the page.
• Click the drop-down menu on Status.
• Choose the HP printer you want to disconnect from the program. You can check the printing history to make sure that you choose the right printer.
• Click My Account.
• Choose the option of Account Settings.
• Select Cancel MY HP Instant Ink Subscription.
• Wait for the e-mail confirmation.

How to Bypass HP Instant Ink Cartridge Using Printer Factory Reset

Restoring your HP printer to its factory setting may cancel your Instant Ink subscription because it will cause an interruption to your subscription. However, some HP printer users consider this method is less effective than the other two methods.

You can restore your HP printer back to its factory settings by following these steps.

• Open your HP printer software on your PC.
• Go to the General tab.
• Click Reset Factory Settings.
• Click Reset located under the Reset Firmware menu.
• Click the Yes button.
• Wait for the printer to reset to its factory settings.

How to Override Incompatible Ink Cartridge

Most HP printer users understand that their HP printers are sensitive to third-party ink cartridges, refilled ink cartridges, and used ink cartridges. The devices will flash an error message when users install one of these cartridges. However, you can try to override this problem by following the steps below.

Method 1

• Go to Control Panel. You can use the search box of your Mac to find it quickly, by typing the keyword on the box.
• Click Devices and Printers.
• Next, on the HP Printer menu, right-click the menu.
• Click Printer Properties.
• Click the Port tab.
• Uncheck the Ports box.
• Find Enable Bidirectional Support box, check it.

Method 2

• Take out all cartridges from your HP printer.
• Install an incompatible cartridge on the printer.
• Turn off your HP printer.
• Disconnect the printer cord from the outlet.
• Wait for 30 minutes.
• Reconnect the printer cord to the outlet
• Turn on the printer.
• Take out the first cartridge and install the other incompatible cartridge. Repeat the steps.
• Turn on the printer after 30 minutes and your printer will detect your cartridges as compatible cartridges.

How to Override HP Instant Ink Cartridges that Cannot Print?

Sometimes, an error will occur on your HP Instant Ink cartridges. Consequently, the printer stops working and the cartridges cannot print.

This problem is usually due to an internet connection problem, which is crucial for Instant Ink cartridges. Check the steps below for solving this cartridge problem.

• Restart your printer by turning it off and on. It usually will reconnect your HP printer to the internet.
• Locate the Info button on the printer’s panel. Press it. Your printer will print the instruction to reconnect it to the internet. Follow these instructions.
• Once there are no internet connection problems, go to the Instant Ink website.
• Sign in to the website.
• Go to the Status Section on your account’s homepage.
• Click on the circular arrow and your HP printer will show online status.

What Happens When You Cancel HP Instant Ink Subscription Service

What will happen after you cancel your HP Instant Ink subscription service?

1. You will still be able to print your documents using the Instant Ink cartridges until the end of your billing cycle.
2. Therefore, these cartridges will not work after the billing cycle ends. You will need to replace them with genuine and compatible HP cartridges for your printer if you need to print documents.
3. You must return the Instant Ink cartridges to HP. In sending back the cartridges, you need HP postage-paid envelope. You can order it from the HP Instant Ink website if you don’t have this envelope.

Can you Re-Enroll in HP Instant Ink Program after Canceling?

Some HP printer users may not need to print any documents at a certain period of time due to holidays or other reasons. If it happens to you, you can cancel your HP Instant Ink subscription for a while. 

After getting back to your normal printing activity, you can re-enroll in the HP Instant Ink program. The steps for re-enrolling in this program are similar to those of your first enrollment.

You only need to visit the HP Instant Ink website and choose the tire plan you need. While you wait for the Instant Ink cartridges to arrive, you can use your old cartridges to print your documents.

Affordable Printing Alternative 

Many HP printer users agree that the HP Instant Ink subscription is affordable. It allows them to minimize their printing budget. However, the subscription plan is not as flexible as users want. If you think that this program is not the best for you, you can get other affordable printing alternatives.

However, since most HP inkjet printers cannot work with third-party cartridges, you may need printers from other brands.

1. Epson EcoTank Printers

Epson is one of the most reliable printer brands. Its EcoTank printers are the major rival for HP inkjet printers. The EcoTank series printers allow you to print lots of documents and images at affordable costs.

They have refillable ink bottles that are easy to refill. One of EcoTank printer can print 4500 pages per black ink bottle and 7500 pages per color ink bottle.

2. Canon MegaTank Printers

Canon MegaTank printers are another great alternative to HP Insta Ink printers. The design of these printers is almost similar to Epson EcoTank. Canon MegaTank printers also have refillable ink bottles. Each of these bottles yields up to 6000 pages.

3. Brother Inkvestment Printers

The design of Brother Inkvestment printers is unique. Their cartridges will refill the ink bottles for you. Therefore, you don’t need to refill them. Similar to Epson EcoTank and Canon MegaTank, Brother Inkvestment printers are cost-effective.

Notes: The three alternatives above offer lower-cost print per page. However, they are slightly more expensive than regular inkjet printers. Therefore, it takes a big initial cost to have these printers. 

Subscribing to the HP Instant Ink program can help you cut printing costs and minimize cartridge waste. However, it is not suitable for everyone. If, after the free trial, you find out that this program cannot meet your printing needs. You can perform the steps of how to bypass HP Instant Ink.