Before you start
- A powered-on printer.
- For the report: plain A4 or Letter paper. For the app method: the printer already added to the HP app.
Treat the readings as estimates
The display, report and app provide estimated ink levels. They do not measure print quality or prove a cartridge’s nozzles are working. HP advises having a replacement ready when ink is low; a low warning alone does not mean you must replace a cartridge while output remains acceptable.
Step 1:Read the printer display
With the printer on, look at the ink-level symbols on its display. An Ink Alert light can also indicate a cartridge problem, so read any accompanying error rather than interpreting every alert as an empty cartridge.
Step 2:Print a status report if you need a paper record
Load plain A4 or Letter paper. With the printer idle, hold Cancel—the X button—for three seconds, then release it. Let the Printer Status Report finish. Look for its estimated ink-level section; the source example is in German, with colour and black listed separately.
Step 3:Check the connected printer in the HP app
Open the HP app and select this DeskJet. Its device view includes Estimated ink levels. The recording shows a different estimate from the display’s full bars, so do not treat either view as a precise remaining page count.
If print quality is poor despite a healthy estimate, use a diagnostic page and HP’s cleaning checks. Buying ink based solely on an apparently full bar will not diagnose missing black or colour.
Questions & troubleshooting
The display looks full but the page is blank.
An estimate does not confirm ink flow. Check the printed diagnostic result and the cartridge’s condition rather than assuming the display rules out a cartridge issue.
