• of course it is… ‘instant ink’ subscription requires you consent to automatic firmware updates. the very first of which will block ‘non genuine hp’ ink cartridges (even more than the factory-loaded firmware does) forever.

    so they either get the high-margin recurring subscription revenue or they get the high-margin oem ink sales revenue every time a tiny oem cartridge empties or clogs-up to the point of not working.

    ‘instant ink’ is only potentially of any value for some users who have a very consistent printer output from month-to-month, every month, that happens to match-up well with their subscription levels, and that output contains a lot of ink coverage like figures, graphics, and pictures.

    if you want to print pictures, an online service or retail store with a printing kiosk is usually the more economical choice–so long as you don’t mind a third-party ‘seeing’ them.