Mike Branch's Blog About QuickBooks and Everything

This is just too bizarre not to share. It’s always amazed me how companies that make decent computer hardware produce abysmal software. But this one takes the cake.

I’m the proud owner of an HP LaserJet P1006, which is a great laser printer for the price (about $100). Lately I’ve noticed that the print is getting a little light, so I wanted to check the toner level. After going through all the menus and settings pages, I couldn’t find any indication of the toner level. So as a last resort I decided to read the manual.

It turns out that to check the toner level, you have to print a report. On paper. Using toner. It’s on a dialog buried deep within the printer settings:

OK, if they already know the toner level, why can’t they display it on this dialog, instead of forcing you to print it? To add insult to injury, you don’t get to choose which printer to print the report on, thus using up even more of the toner that you’re trying to check! (Technical note: I suspect this information is only available inside the printer, and is not shared with the computer to which it’s attached.)

The printed report is about 75% white space (after all, how much space does it take to show the toner level?). At least they include recycling instructions…