Rating: 
Summary: Great printer
Review: I purchased the 612C over a year ago. It installed like a dream and has worked reliably and consistently ever since. Buy this printer its great.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't buy this printer
Review: I purchased this printer in August 1999 (7 months ago) and I am disapointed. I have had problems with the software. It conflicted with my other installed printer drivers so I had to remove them. I also found the direct cable connection software which is part of Windows 98 would not work while the software was installed. Additionally, I have been disapointed with the cost and frequency of replacing cartriges. I would not recommend this printer. I have had other HP printers and in each case was satisfied.
Rating:
Summary: Go away - It is not as cheap as you think
Review: I started to hate HP because of this product. The black cartdriges for this printer only hold half the ink (20 ml) held by cartdriges for any other HP printer, but their cost is the same. Whatreally annoys me is that this was done on purpose by HP - there is a tiny plastic protuberance in the cartdrige slot of the 612 that just won't you let the plain 40 ml cartdrige in.
Rating:
Summary: Cheapest, but not necessarily the least expensive
Review: If you are considering buying HP 612C because of its low price, you might want to consider the cost of ownership. Most HP printers use 40 ml black ink cartridges, but 610 and 612 use 20 ml cartridges. These smaller cartridges are actually a little bit more expensive than the 40 ml cartridges. So your ownership cost, even if your usage is light to moderate, is likely to be higher than that of some of the more expensive models.About a month or so after purchasing, my HP 612C stopped working. The yellow light would flash and it will print nothing. The only support number that you can call (even under warranty period) are 900 numbers ($2.50 per minute) or one where you have to pay by credit card. You can get e-mail support from HP website, but most of the time you get canned answers. One of the common problems with HP 612 is that the printer cartridge that ships with the printer develops problems. There is no documentation or other indication to say that this is the problem. This was what happened to my printer. By the number of questions that are asked at the e-mail support discussion site, this appears to be a one of the most common problem with this printer. I have an older Deskjet 540 (5 years old) that works like a charm. So I was a little disappointed at the 612C reliability problems and the cartridge fiasco. Denise.
Rating:
Summary: No Help, even if under warrenty
Review: My husband and I bought this printer, we thought it was a goodeconomical choice for an at home printer, we were wrong. Two daysbefore it went off warrenty it would no longer print. My yellow resetbutton flashed, and no tech support was provided with this 612c model. However if we wanted to pay 2.50 a minute they could help us. I looked up the printer on Amazon customer reports and found someone else with the same problem, a faulty ink cartridge that came with the printer. I went and bought a new one for 30.00, popped it in and bingo the printer worked again. If this happens often I'm getting rid of it. Don't get me wrong It prints great, only if you can afford it, and I rarely use mine. That's why we bought A less expensive one. If it wasn't for Amazon reports we would have been out even more money. If you do a lot of printing, this printer is not for you!
Rating:
Summary: Nothing but probs
Review: Ok for regular black and white printing on paper. However, anything more than that and the printer frequently failed. Colors were not that good, photos - forget it and card stock, envelopes, etc., frequently jammed. Ink runs out without warning.
Rating:
Summary: no software warranty in spite of warranty promise on page 16
Review: On page 16 of the owners manual for the deskjet 610C series, a 90 day software warranty is listed. Hewlett Packard states that this is a misprint and HP will not honor the software warranty. Any software help is fee based. The printer developed a software problem after 60 days and would not print.
Rating: 
Summary: Extremely noisy and ink cartridges too small
Review: Others have mentioned that the ink cartridges are smaller (20 ml.) than other printers that use 42 ml. cartridges. Since the small cartridges cost the same as the large ones, you will lose the savings you made by buying this cheeper printer after you've bought only a few cartridges. I'm a student, and have bought maybe 12 cartridges in the last 2 years. At almost [$] a cartridge, the difference adds up fast. Also, if you are a person that likes to use a highlighter, the ink from these cartridges will smear when you use a highlighter over it...very messy looking. The ink from the HP 45 cartridges doesn't seem to smear like that, but you can't use that size with this printer. Your only choice for black ink is the HP 20 cartridge.
I don't think it is possible to emphasize enough the noise this thing makes. It's probably four times louder than other printers I've used. It has awakened family members sleeping in adjacent rooms, so if you were planning to use the printer at night, be aware that you'll have to save printing for the morning in order for others to sleep. If you live alone (and not in an apartment), only plan to print a few pages every now and then, and are not a student, writer, or in business, this might be an ok printer for you. It is very easy to set up.
Rating:
Summary: Extremely noisy and ink cartridges too small
Review: The lack of paper jams is important to me in a printer. This one keeps it to a minimum. I won't say it hasn't happened, but not for ages. The print quality is excellent too. The two cartridges you need, though not cheap, last a good long while too (they run around $30 each, give or take a couple of bucks here and there). In summary, the lack of paper jams, the quality of printing and the availability of the cartridges (moreso now than two years ago) makes this a good buy.
Rating:
Summary: What's important to me in a printer?
Review: The lack of paper jams is important to me in a printer. This one keeps it to a minimum. I won't say it hasn't happened, but not for ages. The print quality is excellent too. The two cartridges you need, though not cheap, last a good long while too (they run around $30 each, give or take a couple of bucks here and there). In summary, the lack of paper jams, the quality of printing and the availability of the cartridges (moreso now than two years ago) makes this a good buy.
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