The HP LaserJet Enterprise 500 Color M551dn is one of the easiest printers to use and can upgrade your printing experience whether for school or small business use. This printer offers speed, duplex printing, and quality colored prints. Though it has long been discontinued, many people continue to enjoy using it. The M551dn is ideal for bulk and frequent printing and consequently, you’re bound to use up toner cartridges in no time.
The M551dn printer uses HP 507A/507X toner cartridges available in black, cyan, magenta, and yellow. Depending on your usage, it can get very expensive to purchase replacement OEM HP toner cartridges. Original HP 507A/507X toner cartridges could cost up to $230 each! If you think you can save by buying the $600 5-pack combo of CMY and black cartridges then think again, especially if you print often and in large volumes. Why not go for something more affordable, but can do what OEM toner cartridges can?
Compatible toner cartridges are made to help printer users save on their printing costs while still producing the same quality prints and page yield that you would get from OEM cartridges. They are significantly more affordable and enable a more sustainable printing experience. But despite the attractive benefits of using compatible toner cartridges, you may have heard of some issues that come with using them. However, before you throw a perfectly fine cartridge away, perhaps you can try some of these solutions to fix your issues.
The cartridge is not recognized by the printer nor approved by HP.
This is a common issue with compatible toner cartridges. HP especially has a protection feature that prevents users from using counterfeits or aftermarket remanufactured cartridges. This is observed in more recent printers and can come included in software updates. Using compatible cartridges is by no means illegal. Of course, you must do your research before proceeding to protect your printer from potential harm. Always look at reviews when browsing online before you buy to ensure your and your printer’s safety.
More often than not, many users don’t know how to correctly install printer cartridges in their printers. Sometimes, they have the wrong cartridge model. You can always verify which cartridge your printer is using by looking at the part number on the cartridge itself or ensuring that your printer’s model is included in the list of compatible printers for a particular replacement cartridge.
To replace the toner cartridge on your HP M551dn, power on your printer and follow the steps below:
- Open the front door of the printer.
- Locate the printer cartridges and grasp them by the handle.
- Take out the cartridges and put them away somewhere safe. It is best to place sheets of paper in your workplace to avoid mess just in case.
- Take out the new printer cartridge. Hold it at the sides.
- Gently shake or rock the cartridge side-to-side to redistribute the toner.
- Remove the protective cover and/or plastic seals. Avoid touching the roller as doing so can damage the cartridge.
- Align the cartridge to its respective slot and insert it until it clicks into place.
- Close the front door. If the cartridges were not installed correctly, the door may not completely close.
- Start printing.
You may also try waiting a few minutes before inserting another cartridge one at a time. This can take a while so make sure you’re not in a rush. Put in your cartridge, power off your printer, and insert another cartridge until everything is in place.
Ensure that your cartridge is properly installed in place as incorrect installation may potentially damage your printer as well as the cartridge.
If a toner low message still pops up, your printer may not recognize it. You may try to reset the printer to factory settings or bypass this error.
To restore factory settings, do the following steps:
- Press the ‘Home’ button on the control panel.
- Open the following menus: Administration > General Settings > Restore Factory Settings
- Choose the appropriate option and press ‘OK’.
You may opt to enable the ‘Very Low’ settings to continue printing even when the printer thinks that the cartridge is almost empty.
- Press the ‘Home’ button on the control panel.
- Open the following menus: Administration > Manage Supplies > Supply Settings > Black Cartridge or Color Cartridges > Very Low Settings
- Use the arrow buttons to select ‘Continue’ to set the printer so it alerts you that the cartridge is low but will continue printing.
* Selecting ‘Prompt to Continue’ will set the printer to stop printing and will prompt you to replace the cartridge. You will have to acknowledge the prompt when you print.
Poor print quality.
Some who have tried using compatible toner cartridges may not be completely satisfied with the quality of the prints. However, some of these printing issues can be fixed by altering printer settings or by simply updating your printer driver.
Paper is an important component of printing. Using the wrong type and size can affect your printing experience. You also have to ensure that the printer is better equipped to print on papers of different quality. To check these settings, follow the steps below:
- On your document software, open the ‘File’ menu and click ‘Print’.
- Select ‘Properties’ or ‘‘Preferences’.
- Select the ‘Paper/Quality' tab.
- A drop-down list will appear. Select the correct paper type.
You may also want to check your print resolution.
- On your document software, open the ‘File’ menu and click ‘Print’.
- Select ‘Properties’ or ‘‘Preferences’.
- Select the ‘Paper/Quality’ tab.
- Select the correct solution in the Print Quality area.
Print marks and ghosting.
Dust or excess toner in the printer may affect how your prints look and cause smudging or print marks. Printing a ‘cleaning page’ could help alleviate this problem.
- Press the ‘Home’ button on the control panel.
- Open the following menus: Device Maintenance > Calibrate/Cleaning
- Select ‘Print Cleaning Page’ and press ‘OK’.
- The printer will now print the cleaning page.
This process may take a few minutes or you might have to repeat it, so do it when you’re not in a rush or whenever you switch out cartridges.
