Have questions about printers? We have (some) answers.

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The Washington Post’s Help Desk recently published a week of articles about printers. My colleagues and I were stunned by how much passion you have about printers.

Some of you love your printers and were eager to brag. Other readers sent ALL CAPS messages about their printer frustrations.

Many of you are on an endless quest to own the best printer or figure out the right tips to make your printers work as intended.

I’ve summarized below some of what we learned about printers and tackled some common questions or problems we heard from readers.

Do you still have questions? Let me know and we may answer them in the future.

Printers are complicated pieces of machinery. And we have gotten used to paying ultralow prices for them, which sets us up for disappointment.

An alternative explanation: Printer manufacturers have gotten into the habit of mistreating us with confusing software, expensive ink, subpar designs, constant error messages and unhelpful customer support. No one has challenged this status quo.

Partly, it’s because we’re used to paying cheap prices for a printer, and manufacturers make up the difference with pricey replacement ink. The actual ink in each printer cartridge probably costs about $2 to make, industry insiders told our tech columnist Geoffrey A. Fowler.

Ink also costs a lot because printer manufacturers can get away with it. They sometimes stop your printer from working if you use generic ink. (Some people have a great experience with generic ink. Other people don’t.)

Help Desk’s gadget writer Chris Velazco found two that he didn’t hate.

They still have flaws, but Chris liked a Brother laser printer that only prints in black-and-white and a Canon model with a large ink tank that’s relatively simple to refill.

Black-and-white laser toner printers or ink tank models may cost more upfront than the popular printers with ink cartridges. They’re not right for everyone. But they might save you money and aggravation in the long run.

You’ll also be happier if you lower the bar for success. A good printer is one that’s just good enough not to want to chuck it out a window.

I’m happy for you! Keep going with your printer. But one day, your printer might fail you for no reason. That’s what printers do. There is no perfect printer for everyone.

Even if you like your printer, take a look around. Printer hatred is so common that people pay “rage rooms” to smash the machines with sledgehammers. The industry is profiting from making subpar products and treating customers like garbage. Why should we put up with that bad behavior?

Printers are notorious for not working with home internet networks — or connecting for years and then not.

If this happens to you, try a wired connection if you can. Look to see if your printer has what’s called a LAN or Ethernet port — see these images if you’re not sure what that means. Try plugging one end of an Ethernet cable to your printer and the other end into your internet router.

Yes, that’s a pain. But it’s the least-awful workaround for a common printer problem.

We heard from some readers who love paying a monthly price to have the printer manufacturer mail new ink cartridges when they’re needed. Other readers said they were getting fleeced by ink subscriptions.

This is a highly subjective decision. Check out this guide from Consumer Reports for factors you should consider about ink subscriptions such as HP’s Instant Ink and Brother’s Refresh EZ Print.

Honestly, don’t try.

If you only print occasionally, a black-and-white laser printer might be a better option. It will probably cost you more upfront than ink cartridge printers, and a $160 Brother model that Chris liked still had shortcomings. But the type of ink in a laser printer is less prone to drying out.

Another option: Could you consider not owning a printer at all?

I get it. Printers can be great or a necessary evil. Keep going if your printer is working for you.

But also consider whether you might be okay cutting back on printing. A black-and-white laser model might be a good bet if you like to read documents or recipes on paper. Laser models tend to be less error-prone than color ink jet printers.

You can use Staples or another printing service when you need a color document or photo printed. Eventually you might realize you can do fine without a printer at home.

Maybe you’re ready to end the tyranny of printers, but other members of your family or friend group are not. Try one of these scripts from my colleagues:

I asked several investors in tech start-ups why there’s no Dollar Shave Club or Casper of printers — two upstarts that shook up reviled industries (razors and mattresses).

No one responded to my question. The ugly reality might be that while nearly half of Americans own printers, there’s not enough profit to be made from new printer ideas and companies.

One tiny win

Monica Hayden, a reader in Black Mountain, N.C., had a lovely outcome from a misbehaving printer. I asked for permission to share the email with you all. It has been lightly edited:

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