HP OfficeJet 4650 All-in-One Wireless Color Printer with Mobile Printing, Instant Ink ready (F1J03A)

Because of all the negative review regarding the InstantInk program, I almost didn't buy this printer. I'm not one to leave a lot of product review (only left one before and that was for a candle lol) but I feel I need to inject some sane analysis of this program for those who are on the fence like I was.Purchasing this printer only made sense to me if I was going to join the InstantInk program. I'm not proud to admit it, but I've habitually purchased printers in the $30-40 range and then simply thrown them away once the ink ran out - as the actual printer was cheaper than the refills. This is obviously extremely wasteful and, again, I'm ashamed to admit this was my MO.For a $70 investment, I needed to know that I could refill the ink at a reasonable price and InstantInk seemed to answer this need. But all the negativity regarding InstantInk gave me pause.After a lot of research and testing the program myself, I'm convinced the negative reviews of this program are from people who can't comprehend the subscription program, or were simply expecting to receive one shipment from InstantInk, then cancel their subscription, and continue to use the "free" ink...which is not what happens...because that would be scamming HP and I don't blame HP for putting controls in place to avoid blatant theft of their ink.You can EITHER use InstantInk cartridges, provided to you on a subscription basis (which means if you cancel your plan, they cancel THEIR ink cartridges) OR you can purchase your own cartridges and use those as freely as you like - after paying the $40+ for them.First the printer. It's amazing and we love it! No wireless glitches, fast 'n quiet, great printing jobs for full color photos and BW docs, many options for pre-formatted pages and a Stamps.com app. Not too shabby!Secondly, InstantInk. I signed up for the $2.99/month plan as we really don't do much printing here. It came with three free months during which time I can print up to 300 pages (full color photos if I'd like) and they provide ink refills for free during these three months.Setup was super easy and within two weeks, well before my initial ink has run out, I've already received replacement cartridges...and I haven't paid them a dime yet.So what's the scam? How are they trying to "own" you? I just don't get it.I love the printer, love the service (and it will save us money!) and highly recommend this to anyone who's willing to read the plan's terms and has the capacity to understand a subscription-based service.

Edit: It randomly died 5 years later. Not bad for a printer under $100 I guess. It started flashing all kinds of weird error codes. I couldn't find anything helpful online. One of the error codes might have meant something about a power issue. I could get it to work for a little while by unplugging and powering on and off. Eventually it just died and wouldn't turn back on. I even tried ordering a replacement power cord but that didn't do anything. I did really like this printer.So far so good! I've only had this printer about a week but I don't really have any complaints. I bought this to replace my old one after I dropped a rice cooker on it and shattered the glass panel. I've printed from my laptop and phone without problem. It was really easy to set up, took me maybe 10 or 15 minutes. Having to take out the paper if a different size is needed is not that much of annoyance. I had to do it with my old one and isn't needed often. I haven't had an issue with the speed at which it prints. Didn't seem particularly slow, definitely faster than my old one. The black + color replacement ink bundle is around the same price as my old one so it wasn't a deterrent.My one complaint is about the 'arm' that catches printouts. It's a piece of plastic about 2.5-3 inches wide. I wonder how sturdy this is, how much paper can it really hold? The nice thing is that you can push into the printer so it's not sticking out and it will pop out when printing.Issue solutions/advice:1. 'Instant Ink'. Make sure you are purchasing the printer bundle you want. Apparently the Instant Ink choice isn't for everyone and cancelling it means your ink cartridges won't work. I followed another reviewer's advice and didn't put the CD into my computer. I connected the printer to the Wifi on the printer itself, very easy to do on the touchscreen. My computer was able to find the printer on the network and 'add' it. I was able to print from my laptop and phone without a problem. No installation of software or signing up at the HP site as it asks you to do in the instructions. Which saves me from being harassed by the instant ink thing apparently.2. You can still connect directly from the printer to computer with a USB cable cord for this model printer (as found by another reviewer). Just search for HP 4650 and it should pop up in search results. I tried to do a product link but it comes up as a book (weird). It was $10 last I looked. One could argue that it should be included at this price but sadly that's no longer standard with wireless printers.3. Watch the price. A week later and the price has dropped $10 (for my bundle). I also saw this model on sale in store ads ($55-$60) for less/same as it's priced on here. It might even go cheaper with school starting up. I purchased the printer + standard ink bundle. The ink was the same price as it would be if I purchased it separately so I just went ahead to have it on hand.Overall, it's a nice printer with good capabilities for a competitive price. The print quality seems good, at least for my general household purposes. It was a little more than I wanted to spend but hopefully it'll prove it's worth.Update: It's been nearly a year and I still like this printer. I've printed photos and they've come out great. Copying works fine. I've scanned documents and they've automatically popped up on my computer. It's a big improvement on my old one so I don't have much to complain about. Still would recommend.