> Open Source: Openprinter will use the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0 license for all of its files, including electronics and mechanical design files, firmware code, and the bill of materials.

I understand the decision to use the NC-SA variant of the license, but this is not open source then. (Using non-commercial license here is also problematic because, say, repair shops won’t be able to use the schematics to fix the printer for a customer. Of course, this will probably not be an issue in practice, similar to how Apple’s proprietary schematics are being used for third-party board repair without an issue.)

Regardless, this is a really cool project and I’d love to see how it works out!

The same cartridge was reverse-engineered in 2018 by Sprite_tm for a handheld drawing tool[0], and there have been a dozen or so other projects using it since then.

As always, the devil is in the details. Making your own open-source print head just isn't going to happen, so you're forced to adopt an already-existing commercial one - which inherently ties you to that brand and its third-party clones. And while getting some output is not too difficult, getting reliable output is a completely different thing - especially when you add paper handling to it.

The main benefit of an open printer would be that you are (for now) not forced into the increasingly DRMed ecosystem. Just don't expect it to solve all your printer problems.

[0]: https://spritesmods.com/?art=magicbrush

I think this is a great idea, but I'm not qualified to comment on how good the design or concept is or anything like that. But a printer not made by the big printer companies where you can buy/refill your own ink, repair it & etc would definitely be a welcome product.

Some previous discussions:

3 months ago https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48797916

2025 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45423404

i need a kit that makes it black only and has a ink tank and i ll buy 5