The printer market has undergone a significant shift over the past few years, with refillable ink tank systems becoming the preferred choice for home users, students, small businesses, and home offices looking to reduce long-term printing costs. HP’s Smart Tank series is designed to address one of the biggest frustrations of traditional inkjet printers: expensive replacement cartridges.
The HP Smart Tank 795 Wireless All-in-One sits towards the premium end of HP’s refillable ink tank lineup, offering print, scan, copy and automatic document feeder (ADF) capabilities, along with dual-band Wi-Fi, self-healing wireless connectivity, mobile printing, automatic duplex printing and smart app integration.
Rather than focusing solely on low-cost printing, the Smart Tank 795 attempts to combine productivity features with modern wireless convenience. After evaluating its design, features and everyday usability, here’s how it performs in real-world use.
Design and Build Quality
The Smart Tank 795 adopts a clean, compact design that looks professional enough for a home office while remaining unobtrusive in a family workspace. Finished in a combination of white and light grey, it avoids the bulky appearance often associated with multifunction printers.
Unlike traditional cartridge printers where ink remains hidden inside the machine, the transparent front-mounted ink tanks provide an immediate visual indication of remaining ink levels. This eliminates guesswork and makes monitoring ink consumption remarkably easy.
The spill-free refill bottles deserve particular praise. HP has designed them with keyed nozzles that only fit the correct colour tank, significantly reducing the possibility of accidental colour mixing. Refilling is clean and surprisingly straightforward, making maintenance far less intimidating than first-time users might expect.
The front control panel incorporates a colour touchscreen that is bright, responsive and easy to navigate. Combined with physical buttons for common functions, everyday operation feels intuitive.
Build quality is solid throughout. The paper trays, scanner lid and automatic document feeder all operate smoothly without feeling flimsy.
Filling the Ink Tanks
One of the Smart Tank 795’s most impressive engineering features is its spill-free refill system. HP supplies the printer with individual bottles for Black, Cyan, Magenta and Yellow ink. The bottles feature uniquely keyed nozzles, meaning each bottle only fits its matching colour tank. This eliminates the possibility of accidentally pouring the wrong colour into the wrong reservoir.
Filling the printer is remarkably clean. After opening the ink tank cover, the bottle is simply inverted and inserted into the corresponding refill port. There is no squeezing required—the printer automatically draws ink into the tank through gravity and an air-release mechanism. Once the tank reaches its maximum level, the flow stops automatically, preventing overfilling.
For first-time users accustomed to cartridge replacements, the experience feels surprisingly simple and mess-free. Even after refilling four tanks, there is virtually no ink residue on hands or around the printer. The transparent front-mounted reservoirs also make monitoring ink levels effortless. Instead of relying on software estimates, users can instantly see how much ink remains.
Initial Setup: Installing the Printheads
Unlike many traditional inkjet printers where the printheads are factory-installed, the HP Smart Tank 795 requires users to install both the black and tri-colour printheads during the initial setup. While this may seem daunting to first-time users, the process is surprisingly straightforward and takes less than five minutes.
Once you fill all the tanks with ink, remove all the packaging materials and transport locks. Now, lifting the scanner assembly reveals the printhead carriage, which automatically moves to the installation position when the printer is powered on for the first time. HP colour-codes and labels each printhead, making installation virtually foolproof. The larger black printhead slides into its corresponding slot, while the tri-colour printhead fits into the adjacent compartment. Each simply clicks into place and is secured using the blue locking latch.
After installation, the printer automatically performs an alignment routine, followed by a calibration print. This ensures optimum print quality before the first document is produced. Although user-installed printheads may initially appear unusual compared to cartridge-based printers, they offer the advantage of being individually replaceable should they eventually wear out after years of heavy use.
Everyday Printing Performance
The Smart Tank 795 is clearly designed for consistent daily use rather than occasional printing. Text documents appear crisp and well-defined, with excellent readability even at smaller font sizes. Business reports, contracts, school assignments and spreadsheets all print with sharp black text.
Colour printing is equally impressive for an ink tank printer in this class. Presentation slides, marketing brochures, charts and educational materials exhibit vibrant colours without appearing oversaturated.
Printing speeds are respectable for a refillable ink tank printer. A 20-page Word document completed in approximately one minute and thirty seconds using standard quality settings. A mixed business presentation containing charts, graphics and photographs printed in just under three minutes, while maintaining excellent colour consistency from the first page to the last.
Borderless 4×6-inch photographs typically required between 70 and 90 seconds depending on quality settings. These figures position the Smart Tank 795 as an efficient everyday printer, perfect for homes and small businesses.
Productivity Specifications
The Smart Tank 795 includes several features typically found on more expensive office printers. The automatic document feeder accommodates up to 35 sheets, allowing contracts, invoices and reports to be scanned without manually placing each page. Automatic two-sided (duplex) printing is also included as standard, helping reduce paper consumption by up to 50% during everyday document printing.
The printer supports monthly duty cycles of up to 6,000 pages, although HP recommends a more sustainable monthly workload of 400–1,200 pages for optimum longevity. These figures place it comfortably within the requirements of busy households, home offices and small businesses.
Ink Efficiency and Running Costs
Perhaps the biggest reason to choose the Smart Tank 795 is its exceptional running cost. The supplied ink set is capable of producing up to 6,000 black pages or 8,000 colour pages under ISO testing conditions. Depending on print volume, HP estimates that the included ink can last up to three years for many households before requiring replacement.
In day-to-day testing, the printer excelled with office documents. Six-point text remained legible under magnification, while 10- and 12-point fonts appeared razor sharp with no noticeable feathering on standard 80 gsm office paper.
Colour accuracy proved particularly impressive when printing presentation slides and marketing materials. Corporate logos retained consistent colours, gradient transitions appeared smooth, and photographic images exhibited good shadow detail without excessive saturation.
For educational materials, newsletters and brochures, the output quality comfortably exceeds expectations for an ink tank printer in this price category.
Photo Printing and Scanning
Although primarily marketed as a home and office printer, the Smart Tank 795 also performs well when producing photographs. Family photos display accurate colours, smooth gradients and good detail, especially when printed on dedicated photo paper. While professional photographers may still prefer specialised photo printers, the output quality is more than sufficient for albums, framed prints and creative projects. Borderless photo printing adds additional flexibility for home users.
Scanning performance is dependable and versatile. The flatbed scanner handles books, certificates and delicate documents with ease, while the automatic document feeder streamlines multi-page scanning jobs. Scanned documents retain excellent detail, making the printer suitable for digitising receipts, contracts, invoices and educational materials. Copy quality closely matches original documents, maintaining text sharpness and colour accuracy.
Mobile Printing and Smart Features
The HP Smart app significantly enhances the overall user experience. Users can print directly from smartphones or tablets, initiate scans remotely, monitor ink levels and manage printer settings without needing a computer.
Cloud integration supports printing from various online storage services, while compatibility with Apple AirPrint and Mopria allows quick printing without installing additional drivers. The app also includes useful scanning enhancements that automatically crop, straighten and improve captured documents. For households with multiple users, these mobile capabilities quickly become indispensable.
Verdict
The HP Smart Tank 795 Wireless All-in-One successfully delivers on its primary promise: economical, high-volume printing without sacrificing convenience or print quality. Its refillable ink system dramatically reduces long-term printing expenses while eliminating much of the inconvenience associated with traditional cartridges. Combined with automatic duplex printing, a capable automatic document feeder, reliable wireless connectivity, and an excellent mobile app, it provides a well-rounded experience for modern homes and small offices.
The printer balances productivity, ease of use and operating efficiency remarkably well. For users seeking a versatile all-in-one printer with low running costs, dependable wireless performance and consistently good output quality, the HP Smart Tank 795 Wireless All-in-One is an excellent long-term investment that should comfortably meet the needs of most households and small businesses. It earns a strong recommendation for anyone looking to print more while spending less on ink.
Price: AED 1,129
HP Smart Tank 795 Wireless All-in-One AED 1129
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Final Rating
Summary
The HP Smart Tank 795 Wireless All-in-One successfully delivers on its primary promise: economical, high-volume printing without sacrificing convenience or print quality. Its refillable ink system dramatically reduces long-term printing expenses while eliminating much of the inconvenience associated with traditional cartridges.
