Color StyleWriter 4100 - Experiences?

[Scott Baret]

After years of wanting one, I finally snagged a Color StyleWriter 4100 (the HP rebadge) on eBay in excellent condition. I have some experience with late 90s HP printers on Windows, all of which has been positive, so I'm curious, what have people generally thought of the 4100/4500 on the Mac? How does it compare, say, with the Canon-based 2400/2500?

 

[dan.dem]

We had 2 HP DeskWriter (Mac-compatible DeskJets) a 500 and a 520, if I remember correctly. They had been built like tanks and lasted longer than the useful lifespan of the Macs. I had mixed success with Canon-derived StyleWriters, some broke early. The 4100 looks like a rebadged DeskJet 620C or so. Considering the fact that my 2000 DeskJet 930c still works flawlessly, I would say you took the right choice.

Apple even keeps the service man for it: https://tim.id.au/laptops/apple/misc/color_stylewriter_4500.4100.pdf

However, reasonably priced ink may not be an easy find, even clones.

I just would avoid most HP models introduced after 2000. Cheap models often lasted only 1-2 ink cartridges.

 

[Byrd]

The ravages of time are not good for Inkjet printers, regardless of finding ink things like print heads seize and rollers lose their grip.  I couldn't restore two StyleWriter 2400/2500 (and portable StyelWriter) recently.  Great for aesthetics but not for regular use.

 

[dan.dem]

Yes, these are issues.

Not sure about HPs 600-series or HP-derived StyleWriters, but at least the 900-series integrate printheads into ink cartridges. So with new ink you get new heads (and pay for it). I remember various treatments people tried on the rollers. Some used brake fluid, if I remember it correctly and sand paper. Cannot say if this really does help.

I use PDFs as a work around. Decades ago I purchased a license of "PrintToPDF". It is a printer extension, a fat binary - I think - and likely I used it also with my 68k (color) Macs. Definitely nothing to run on any original 68000. For these I remember a tool called Print2Pict - but had not been happy with it.