HP Envy with Instant Ink and the #HPFreeYourPics challenge

I recently attended an event in London hosted by Hewlett Packard (HP), where I learnt all about HP’s Instant Ink. Since the event, I have been sent an HP Envy 5530 printer, two instant ink cartridges, lots of photo paper and a little goody bag with instructions. The instructions are for a challenge that HP have set a bunch of bloggers, called #HPFreeYourPics

The theory behind #FreeYourPics is that many of us leave our photographs on our computers, tablets or phones and don’t actually do anything with them. HP asked the question, “How up to date are your fridge photos?”. Apparently the majority of us have photos on our fridges, which are really out of date, like baby photos, when our children are way beyond babyhood. The challenge was to FREE those pictures stuck on devices and use them to refresh the fridge, with recent family photos, then decorate them with fridge magnets.

Now I have a confession to make. Before the HP Free Your Pics challenge, this is what my fridge looked like…

No photos at all! I know… how bad is that? A photo-obsessed mother, who takes on average 200 photos a day every time we go anywhere, whom has no photos of her children up ANYWHERE in the house!

Time to change that.

So my HP Envy 5530 printer arrived and I had it out of the packaging and switched on in seconds. I was going to do one of those unboxing videos for YouTube, but I just couldn’t wait. The printer was ridiculously easy to set up and the little computer screen on the printer even shows you little videos of how to set the printer up, change ink cartridges, load paper, etc.

I then went online to set up my Instant Ink subscription. For just £3.49 per month I will get enough ink to print 100 pages. This ink will be delivered directly to my door, before I run out, because the printer will order it for me when the ink levels get low! Smart hey?!

On with the challenge to brighten up my fridge…

I did stumble across a few teething problems when I was trying to print out some photos. For two of the photos, I accidentally put the paper in the wrong way up… which really wasn’t pretty. I also had trouble with the colour on some photos as the contrast on screen varies dramatically to the contrast in the printed photos, however this is something that happens with all printers and I’m sure I will soon figure out how best to edit my photos prior to printing.

It was great to be able to print straight from my mobile phone. What a time saver! On my old printer, I used to have to connect the phone to the laptop, transfer and save the photos, then connect the laptop to the printer, before I could even start printing. And more recently, since my old printer died, I’ve been having to go to the library to print things (at a cost of 50p per sheet)! With the HP Envy, it’s all wireless. I can print direct from my mobile or laptop, without having to plug anything in.

Once I’d chosen a few random recent photos, I printed them out. Each photo took approximately 60 seconds to print, from hitting the print button on my phone, to holding the photo in my hand. This is a LOT faster than any printer I’ve had before. I love the instant ink concept too, because as well as not having to worry about running out of ink, the instant ink programme also saves up to 70% off the cost of buying normal ink cartridges.  These are cheaper than my library costs too.

I decided to use ALL of the quirky fridge magnets that HP gave me and I created an eclectic mess of crazy, busy, fun on my fridge. The photos and magnets now make me smile every time I walk into my kitchen. I used the letters to write words like “love”, “fun” and “kiss”, because they reflect our affectionate little family life. This fridge is not just a few photos stuck on with magnets, it’s an expression of our lives and our home. Crazy and loving, like us. And I love it!