My HP Deskjet 3745 is great for dashing off quick text pages and, if I've got the time, surprisingly good looking photos. Indeed, with proper glossy paper and the right settings in the driver details, the output easily rivals a drugstore photos.
But the printer is approaching its first year, and so I got an email today from HP, advising me that an extended three year warranty could be had for $34.99.
The problem here is very simple: a brand-new printer only costs, from HP, $39.99.
Take it from me, a former printer technician. We have reached the era of the throw-away printer, and it is glorious. There is no reason, once it falls out of warranty, to ever have this printer repaired. Just buy a new one. Period. Don't even think twice about it. At worst, give it to a curious 10-year-old to take apart, but forget about repairing it.
HP knows which printer I bought, so I find it even weirder that they would try to sell me a warranty that costs only a few dollars less than a new machine. Indeed, the cost of paying a troubleshooter to sit down in front of the printer would easily exceed the replacement cost--undoubtedly they'll just plug in a usb cable, run a diagnostic, and if the result comes back as anything other than "jam in paper feed area" ship out a replacement "refurbished" unit.
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