Brother Denies Bricking Printers Using Third-Party Ink

Brother has rejected claims that its firmware updates intentionally disable printer functionality when third-party cartridges are installed. The controversy emerged after a YouTube video by Louis Rossman, which has garnered over 160,000 views, alleged the company had joined competitors in anti-consumer practices. The allegations stem from online reports, including a 2022 Reddit post claiming firmware update W1.56 disabled automatic color registration on a Brother MFC-3750 using non-Brother toner, rendering it 'effectively non-functional.'

In a statement to Ars Technica, Brother explicitly denied these accusations: 'Please be assured that Brother firmware updates do not block the use of third-party ink in our machines.' The company said it recommends genuine supplies for 'optimal performance' and performs a 'Brother Genuine check' during troubleshooting, which may have caused 'misunderstanding.'

Read more of this story at Slashdot.