Make sure you purchase the right ink cartridges for your specific printer and printer region or have your old ones refilled. Cartridges are not compatible between different brands, and often not within the same brand. HP often designs its inkjet hardware to use country-specific consumables. When you unbox a new HP inkjet printer and set it up, you install a set of ink tanks that ship with the printer. As you turn on the device and get ready to use it, an initialization sequence localizes it to the country associated with the ink cartridges you installed.
HP recommends that you use original HP ink cartridges. XL (Extra Large) cartridges cost more but do provide better value in the long run. They will be able to print at least double the pages of a regular cartridge. Our advice is that if you print often, go with XL. However, ink can dry up. So if you are not a frequent printer, go with the regular cartridges.
You can easily check the ink supply level to determine how soon you might need to replace a cartridge. The ink supply level shows an estimate of the amount of ink remaining in the cartridges.
To check the ink levels from the control panel:
– From the Control Panel home screen, which displays Copy, Scan, and Quick Forms, press the Setup button.
– Select Ink Status.
To check the ink levels from the Printer Software.
– Click the HP All-in-One desktop icon to open the printer software, or open the software from the Start Menu.
– In the Printer Software, click Estimated Ink Levels.
Ink level warnings and indicators provide estimates for planning purposes only. When you receive a low-ink warning message, consider having a replacement cartridge available to avoid possible printing delays. You do not have to replace the cartridges until the print quality is unacceptable.
You’ll usually install both the black and tri-color cartridges in the HP Deskjet, however, you can use the single-cartridge mode to operate the HP All-in-One with only one print cartridge. The single-cartridge mode is initiated when a print cartridge is removed from the print cartridge carriage. During single-cartridge mode, the printer can only print jobs from the computer.
Which ink cartridges do I need for my HP Deskjet 3056A Printer?
For your US HP Deskjet 3056A Printer you need
HP 61 OR HP 61XL cartridges. Check the price of HP 61 cartridges at Amazon.com .
For your European or UK HP Deskjet 3056A Printer you need HP 301 or HP 301XL cartridges.
Try Amazon's ink selector tool to find compatible ink cartridges for your printer.
Replace the ink cartridges
1. Press the Power button to turn on the printer, if it is not already turned on. Wait until the product is idle and silent before continuing.
2. Load unused plain white Letter or A4-sized paper into the input tray, if you have not already done so.
Remove the empty cartridge
3. Open the cartridge access door. The carriage moves to the center of the product. Wait until the carriage is idle and silent before continuing.
4. Lightly press down on the cartridge to release it, and then pull the cartridge out to remove it from its slot.
Insert the new cartridge
5. Remove the new cartridge from its packaging. Be careful to touch only the black plastic.
6. Gently remove the plastic tape on the cartridge by pulling the colored pull tab.
Do NOT:
– Remove the copper electrical strip.
– Touch the copper-colored contacts or the ink nozzles.
– Replace the protective tape on the contacts.
7. Hold the cartridge by its sides with the nozzles toward the printer, and then insert the cartridge into its slot. Make sure that the icon on the cartridge matches the icon on the slot.
– Remove the cartridge from the slot on the left to replace the tri-color cartridge.
– Remove the cartridge from the slot on the right to replace the black cartridge
8. Repeat step 4 to 7 to replace the other cartridge, if necessary.
9. Close the cartridge access door.
10. Press the button next to OK on the control panel display. The printer prints an alignment page.
Align the cartridges
Aligning the cartridges ensures high-quality output. The HP All-in-One prompts you to align the cartridges every time you install a new cartridge. If you remove and reinstall the same print cartridge, the HP All-in-One will not prompt you to align the print cartridges. The HP All-in-One remembers the alignment values for that print cartridge, so you do not need to realign the print cartridges.
– Lift the scanner lid.
– Place the alignment page with the printed-side down on the right-front corner of the scanner glass. See the engraved guide next to the scanner glass for help loading the alignment page.
– Close the scanner lid.
– Press the button next to OK on the control panel display. The product automatically aligns the cartridges.
– When the Alignment successful message displays on the control panel screen, press the button next to OK on the control panel display to complete the alignment.
– Discard or recycle the alignment page.
The alignment page did not print?
If the printer did not print an alignment page, follow these steps to manually align the printer:
– In the HP Printer Software, click Printer Actions and then click Maintenence Tasks to access the Printer Toolbox. The Printer Toolbox appears.
– Click Align Ink Cartridges on the Device Services tab. The product prints an alignment sheet.
– Now go back to steps above.
