$200 / litre
Ink by the litre
Pigment at $200, dye at $180 per litre, formulated for the FI-1000 and confirmed against your machine before the first order ships.
Print engine · HP FI-1000
HP FI-1000: print engine, cartridges, ink and printhead service
The HP FI-1000 is a print engine HP sells to machine builders: one fixed 297 mm thermal inkjet printhead, up to 1200 × 1200 dpi and 27 m/min, running four CMYK pigment cartridges, 3UB06A to 3UB09A. It sits inside packaging, envelope and label presses from TICAB, Printware, TrojanLabel, Trimatt, Postmark, SMARTJET and others. InkBags supplies ink for it at $200 per litre, converts it to bulk ink, rebuilds its printhead and buys back used cartridges.
At a glance
- Print width
- 297 mm
- Resolution
- 1200 × 1200 dpi
- Speed
- up to 27 m/min
- Head sectors
- 14
- Cartridges
- 3UB06A–09A
- Our ink
- $200 / litre
- Head rebuild
- $1,500
- Printers listed
- 13
What the HP FI-1000 is
An OEM print engine HP supplies to machine builders: one fixed page-wide printhead covering the full 297 mm, so there is no carriage motion to average out a nozzle fault.
- Print width
- 297 mm / 11.7 in
- Resolution
- up to 1200 × 1200 dpi
- Max speed
- 457 mm/s ≈ 27 m/min
- Ink
- HP pigment, CMYK
HP calls it the OEM Fixed Imager 1000. You will not find an “HP FI-1000 printer” in a shop: the engine is built into other companies’ presses, which is why the same cartridges, ink and printhead turn up under many different names on the front of the machine. The technology is HP PageWide thermal inkjet, scaled up for industrial substrates — boxes, bags, envelopes and labels.
FI-1000 cartridges: part numbers and fills
Four HP part numbers, and black holds about twice as much as each colour.
| HP part number | Colour | Fill, approx. |
|---|---|---|
| 3UB09A | Black (K) | 505 ml |
| 3UB06A | Cyan (C) | 237 ml |
| 3UB07A | Magenta (M) | 233 ml |
| 3UB08A | Yellow (Y) | 225 ml |
What this means Your cost per litre is the cartridge price divided by its fill. A black cartridge at any given price works out per litre at about half the rate of a colour one at the same price. Compare that against $200 per litre in the ink cost calculator — it also measures how much ink a real job uses.
Have used or spare cartridges? We buy used HP FI-1000 cartridges and pay the courier from any country.
Printers built on the FI-1000
Same engine, same cartridges, same printhead — whatever the badge says.
| Manufacturer | Machine | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| TICAB PRINT (Poland) | TPS | Named by HP |
| Printware / iJetColor (USA) | iJetColor Pro 1175P, iJetColor Pro PXG, iJetColor 1175, 1175C | Named by HP |
| TrojanLabel / AstroNova (USA) | T3-OPX | Named by HP |
| Trimatt Systems (Australia) | ColourStar AQ V, AQ LT | Named by HP |
| Postmark (USA) | RapidColor series, EnveJet, Coverbind envPrinter | Stated by the manufacturer |
| SMARTJET (Italy) | FLEX 297 | Stated by the manufacturer |
| Boxmaking Machinery GmbH (Germany) | BM300 | Stated by the manufacturer |
| HSA (USA) | SPD-1175 | Stated by the manufacturer |
| Rollenco (Netherlands) | T3 | Our service records |
What this means Check the model, not the brand. TrojanLabel’s T3-OPX is an FI-1000 machine, its T2-C and T4 are not. The quotes and links behind every row are on FI-1000 printers by brand. Machine not listed? Send us the model, or simply the part number on its cartridges.
Three ways to lower FI-1000 running cost
The machine is not the expensive part — the cartridges are, on every copy, for as long as it runs.
$6,000 once
Bulk ink supply — InkBags Solution
Our own controller and bulk containers in place of the OEM cartridge slots, so the press runs on ink by the litre. Payback is calculated from your volume first.
offer per batch
Sell your used cartridges
Used, empty or new original 3UB06A–09A. We pay the courier from any country and pay you after inspection.
What this means Start with the numbers for your own jobs. Upload a PDF to the ink cost calculator, enter what you pay per cartridge, and it returns cost per copy on both inks and the payback of the $6,000 conversion.
When the printhead fails
A dead sector prints a white band in the same place on every copy — and it is often rebuildable.
The FI-1000 head is one 297 mm array made of 14 sectors. It does not move, so it cannot print around a fault: a sector that stops firing leaves a continuous stripe of missing ink along the direction of travel.
A nozzle test print tells a blockage (flushing recovers it) from a dead sector (it needs replacing). Our printhead rebuild replaces only the dead sectors, refills with new original HP ink and comes back with a test print — $1,500 per head. Physical damage to the nozzle plate is the one case nothing recovers.
HP FI-1000 FAQ
What is the HP FI-1000?
An OEM print engine — the HP Fixed Imager 1000 — that HP supplies to machine builders rather than selling as a printer. It is one fixed page-wide thermal inkjet printhead covering 297 mm (11.7 in), printing CMYK pigment ink at up to 1200 × 1200 dpi and up to 457 mm/s (about 27 m/min).
Which printers use the HP FI-1000?
Among others: TICAB PRINT TPS, Printware iJetColor 1175 / 1175 Pro / Pro PXG, TrojanLabel T3-OPX, Trimatt ColourStar AQ V and AQ LT, Postmark RapidColor and EnveJet, SMARTJET FLEX 297, Boxmaking Machinery BM300 and HSA SPD-1175. Other TrojanLabel models (T2-C, T4) and Afinia L901 are Memjet machines, not FI-1000.
Which cartridges does the HP FI-1000 use?
Four HP cartridges: 3UB09A black (≈505 ml), 3UB06A cyan (≈237 ml), 3UB07A magenta (≈233 ml) and 3UB08A yellow (≈225 ml), per HP's FI-1000 datasheet. Some printer makers resell the same cartridges under their own codes.
Can I refill HP FI-1000 cartridges myself?
Not reliably. Refilling an original cartridge leaves ink quality, filtration and air ingress uncontrolled, which is how printheads get damaged. The dependable route is a controlled bulk ink supply.
How can I lower the ink cost of an FI-1000 printer?
InkBags ink costs $200 per litre for pigment and $180 for dye. Running it in bulk takes the InkBags Solution ink supply modification at $6,000. Whether that pays back depends on your volume and on what you pay for cartridges — the ink cost calculator works it out from a real job.
Can an HP FI-1000 printhead be repaired?
Often, yes. The head is made of 14 sectors; a rebuild replaces only the dead ones, refills with new original HP ink and comes back with a test print, for $1,500. A nozzle plate with physical damage cannot be rebuilt — that head has to be replaced.
Is InkBags affiliated with HP?
No. InkBags is an independent supplier and service company. HP and FI-1000 are trademarks of HP Inc., used here only to identify the machines our ink, parts and service fit.
HP, FI-1000 and the printer names above are trademarks of their owners and are used only to identify the machines InkBags supplies and services. InkBags is an independent company, not affiliated with, authorised or endorsed by HP Inc. or any printer manufacturer.
- Sources
- 297 mm print width, up to 1200 × 1200 dpi, up to 457 mm/s, CMYK pigment — HP Fixed Imager 1000 specification sheet.
- OEM cartridge part numbers 3UB06A (C), 3UB07A (M), 3UB08A (Y), 3UB09A (K).
- Cartridge fills ≈505 ml K, 237 C, 233 M, 225 Y — HP OEM Fixed Imager 1000 datasheet 4AA7-3509ENW.
- Printers and their sources — see the table on the FI-1000 printers by brand page.
- Ink $200 / $180 per litre, InkBags Solution $6,000, printhead rebuild $1,500, 14 sectors per head — InkBags (2026-09-03).
Running an FI-1000 machine?
Tell us the make and model and what you spend on cartridges. We come back with the ink, service or conversion that fits — and the numbers behind it.