A few weeks ago, my HP printer (Color LaserJet Pro M254dw) stopped working. I got an error message like "toner supply problem" or "supply problem".
Luckily, I found a guy (Kevin Deldycke) who had the exact same printer and problem I did. Turns out, my suspicion that my problem had to do with the recent "update" HP pushed to my printer was correct. The update breaks the printer's ability to use third party toner.
The guidance Kevin provided is spot-on and he provides you a link to download previous drivers for a LOT of HP printers in his blog post.
Thank you, Kevin! Before I fixed this problem by restoring the previoud driver to my printer, I had gone to Staples to buy HP-brand toner. It cost me—I shit you not—$350. Using Kevin's fix, I was able to return the toner and save $350 (not including the cost of the 3rd party toner I'm using now (about $70).
HP's decision to break its product in this way is anti-competitive and it pisses me off as a consumer and consumer lawyer. Of course, many printer companies have adopted the buisness model of "give away the printer, charge out the nose for the toner" (Lexmark went all the way to the Supreme Court a few years ago to protect its ability to upcharge on toner by squashing competitors' ability to sell toner replacements.
As I said on Twitter, I understand why companies do this, but it's also a perfect expample of a space in which one bad actor drives others to do the wrong thing and sensible regulations from a third party (government) would prevent this kind of anti-consumer model from proliferating.
Charge a fair price for the printer. Charge a fair price for the toner. Don't restrict people's ability to use third-party toner in your products.
One person on Twitter suggested the Epson Eco-Tank (affiliate link) as an alternative to the "Venus Flytrap" tactics of most printer companies.