HP Photosmart 7960 printer

Page 2.

Setting up.

I am following the exact instructions as per Setup guide. After attaching the faceplate connect the power supply to the printer. The transformer has a generous 1.5 meter cable with a further .5 meter cable for connection to the mains supply. The next stage is to place some plain paper in the front paper tray. The paper catch tray has to be lifted, this stays in position whilst you are loading the paper. There is a small paper length guide that has to be pulled out and a paper width guide that must be adjusted to the width of the media before loading the paper. Once loaded push the guides back.

HP's unique connector	Front loading paper tray

Moving on to stage 5 on the setup sheet, you must now select the language and your country on the colour LCD screen and click OK to set. Once this stage has been completed you are prompted to install the ink cartridges.

Select your language using the easy to navigate arrow keys and OK to set.

HP uses combination ink tanks, each tank contains three inks (with the exception of the No 56 which only has black for text printing). I suppose I have been spoilt with individual ink tanks but after much thought I can't see the disadvantage in using combination ink tanks. Using individual tanks is arguably more economical as you only need to replace the colour that has depleted, but the reality is that when one ink runs out the others follow within a few prints. The other reality is that my local PC superstore doesn't always have all the inks, they never seem to have the one that I want.

Fitting the ink cartridges.

Unlike other manufacturers' inks each ink cartridge has its own printhead - when you replace a cartridge you are also replacing the printhead. This solves the printhead clogging problems that many readers are experiencing with their current printers. There are three colour coded slots for the cartridges, so there is no mistaking which colour goes where. To access the ink compartment you have to press the large OPEN DOOR button (bottom left button). The whole front opens and the ink compartment is on the right hand side. Lift each print cartridge latch and slide in the correct colour cartridge, then push down the latch to lock. The last slot is for either the No 59 or No 56 cartridge - only one can be fitted. The cartridge not in use should be placed in the print cartridge protector and stored under the top cover in its own compartment.

Three ink cartridges fitted	Spare cartridge in storage compartment

Once the inks are fitted and the cover is closed, the printer starts to automatically print a calibration page. This appears to check itself and places a green tick mark next to each stage.

Display informs you a calibration page is being printed	The calibration page

On close inspection of the calibration page there seems to be a couple of small problems. On the Cyan swatch there is a white line running through. I have just performed a head cleaning cycle and will print the same calibration page again. Incidentally, I have just performed this head cleaning and created a test print without having to refer to the manual, most new gear today is bogged down with over complex menus etc. A breath of fresh air.

First print	After performing a head clean

OK, so now the printer is setup ready to install the drivers. I will create some test prints before the day is out, be patient.

© Vincent Oliver 2003 www.photo-i.co.uk
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