Before you start
- A4/Letter plain white paper, adequate ink and a working connection to the intended printer in supported HP software.
Separate print quality from a missing job
This guide is for a page that prints with faded areas, streaks, missing black/colour or crooked lines. If nothing reaches the printer, use the separate connection/queue diagnosis first. A missing colour on an internally generated test is not, by itself, evidence of a Wi-Fi problem.
Read the estimated ink levels and check for an actual cartridge error. Low-ink estimates help planning; judge replacement using the warning and unacceptable output, rather than treating the bar as a measured volume. Make sure the correct cartridge is installed and its protective tape has been removed.
Use flat paper suitable for the job and match size, media type, colour selection and quality in the sending application. A grayscale setting will not produce colour. Higher quality can help appropriate jobs but cannot restore a physically missing colour or improve a poor original image.
Step 1:Prepare a diagnostic sheet and select the correct printer
Load A4 or Letter plain white paper in the rear tray, print-side up and short edge down. Fit the width guide without bending the stack and extend the output tray. Turn on the printer and select that same connected DeskJet in the genuine HP app or supported HP software.
HP Smart was genuine HP software; its earlier name is not proof of a fake app or lack of model support. Use HP’s official software route if the maintenance controls are missing.
Step 2:Run the automatic cleaning tool only when needed
In the recorded HP app, open the selected printer and find Print Quality Tools under its tools/diagnostics area, then choose Clean Printhead/Clean. Leave the printer powered and let the cycle and its test page finish.
The applicable Windows desktop alternative is Print & Scan → Maintain Your Printer → Device Services → Clean cartridges. For a diagnostic page without cleaning, the same toolbox’s Device Reports tab offers Print Diagnostic Information. Labels vary by installed software; use the route your genuine HP software provides.
Examine the completed diagnostic sheet for streaks or missing parts of the black and colour blocks. If quality is acceptable, stop. If the app offers a second and third cleaning level for an unacceptable page, follow that flow and inspect the next page. HP’s current 3700 quality guidance says to wait at least 30 minutes before another cleaning cycle for a badly clogged head. The source’s universal 12-hour schedule is not the instruction used here.
Step 3:Use alignment for crooked lines
With plain white paper loaded, open Print Quality Tools → Align Printer/Align Printheads/Align. The printer prints an alignment page. In the applicable Windows toolbox the equivalent is Device Services → Align Cartridges.
Follow the completion instruction presented by your actual software/page. In the recorded Windows pattern-selection flow, inspect each row of your own sheet and choose the box where the small lines best align with the larger lines, then submit Done. Do not copy the presenter’s numbered choices. If your page instead directs scanning, complete its printed scanning instruction.
The recording encounters an unfinished-alignment message and suggests cancelling it. Cancellation is not confirmed alignment: check the genuine software’s completion status and then inspect a fresh print. If the same error persists, use HP support instead of reporting that calibration succeeded.
Evaluate the fresh output
Print the original problem document with matching paper/media and the intended colour/quality setting. Compare it with the earlier sheet. The source demonstrates tools but does not establish a reliably completed alignment or a universal recovery.
If quality stays unacceptable after the applicable checks, cleaning and alignment, use HP’s exact-model support/service route. A defective cartridge or another fault may need attention; neither repeated network resets nor unlimited cleaning is an appropriate substitute. Turn the printer off normally with Power when finished so the cartridges can be parked.
