Brother printer dcp 3550 cdw cartridges failure

Brother printer dcp 3550 cdw cartridges failure
Basic Information
Release Year
Product Type
In Production
Official Website

Brother printer DCP-3550-CDW cartridge failures are an issue with the batteries (1.5V) that feed the toner chip. If the printer is turned off for a prolonged period of time those batteries can empty themselves, which results in the printer not recognizing the cartridge despite the fact that it's reading it's capacity.

The error doesn't point out that it's the battery from which the issue comes, it just tells you to replace the cartridge.

The battery is not easy to see and it is not made to be replaced.

Solutions for this i have found online have been :

-Taking out the cartridges of the printer before turning it off for a long period of time

-Replacing the chip of the cartridge with the chip of an older one that still has some battery left because the chip is essentially just screwed on the cartridge.

-Changing the battery yourself if you have the tools.

-Keeping the printer perpetually turned on.

Consumer impact summary

This is a design flaw that is most likely deliberate as the cartridges for this printer are pretty expensive. These issues aren't, to my knowledge, talked about by the seller and as aforementioned, the issue inst pointed at by the printer when it gives an error screen, it just tells you to replace the cartridge, and the 1.5V battery isn't in a compartment designed for casual replacement

Incidents

This is a list of all consumer protection incidents related to this product. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the Brother printer dcp 3550 cdw cartridges failure category.

Incident with another brother printer toner. Not the same model but same principle :

https://blog.ambor.com/2025/02/brother-mfc-l3770cdw-toner-fix.html

Reddit thread talking about this issue specifically :

https://www.reddit.com/r/printers/comments/v8imcc/aftermarket_brother_toner_no_toner_bad_chip/