Almost 8 years after its release, the HP 8600 is still going strong. If you’ve been using it for that long, we’re willing to bet that the HP Officejet Pro 8600 printhead is about as dirty as it gets. We won’t judge, though. The cloud printing-enabled powerhouse looks as attractive now as it did back then. We’d say even more so, as it used to cost around $250 when it first came out in 2012. Now, you can find it for under $154 over at Amazon in near-mint condition.
With a model this old, though, the parts can encounter some wear and tear. You’ll be longing for the days when you first set the thing up and wondered why’s the HP printer not printing black. After a few years, all the parts start to come a bit loose. That’s not to say that the printer still isn’t good, but you know how it goes. Especially if you’ve been using remanufactured ink, as there’s a chance that the cartridges might have spilled over and polluted the printhead.
Yep, nobody told you that cleaning printheads is a thing once you signed up for the HP Instant Ink program (well, you didn’t in this case, since it’s not available for the 8600). While the HP Officejet Pro 8600 manual might tell you that printer issues come from a dirty printhead and that you can try and clean it, it’s oftentimes better to just replace it if you can find an appropriate vendor.
What is a good HP Officejet Pro 8600 Printhead?
Like ink cartridges, there are several types of replacement printheads that you can choose from. In the case of the 8600, you can choose between the 950, 951, 950xl and 951xl. If you’re wondering what’s the best HP Officejet Pro 8600 printhead for your needs, the Amazon listing has plenty of options available along with user reviews.