HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge is now in stock at Mascom International for KSh 8,000, rated by HP at about 1,500 A4 colour pages of pigment-based cyan ink. Each unit is brand new and sealed, but the pack carries a December 2025 date that has already passed, so please read our date answer below before you buy.Collect the HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge at Old Mutual Building, First Floor Room 4, Kimathi Street, Nairobi CBD, or order delivery.
Cyber cafés, printing bureaus near Moi Avenue, SACCO offices and county government departments still depend on HP OfficeJet Pro 8600 and 8610 printers. These machines have printed reliably for a decade, yet finding original cyan for them keeps getting harder as newer printers take shelf space. The HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge keeps those older printers working without buying a new machine. As the high-capacity version, the HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridgeprints roughly twice the pages of the standard 951, and the HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge works out near KSh 5.33 per colour page.
Unlike other electronics retailers in Kenya that stay silent about cartridge dates, Mascom International prints the exact date on every ink listing, even when it has passed. At Mascom International, we're seeing government offices along Harambee Avenue and SACCO branches in Kiambu keep 8600-series printers running rather than replace them. Buyers throughout Kenya tell us an honest date beats a surprise error message after installation. Walk in to inspect the pack yourself, or order by phone with pay-on-arrival delivery to all 47 counties.
Common Questions About the HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge
Is a cartridge dated December 2025 still usable?
In most cases, a sealed cartridge prints after its printed date, because the ink stays protected until the seal is opened. However, HP's own warranty ends once that date passes, and some printers show an expired-cartridge message that you acknowledge before printing continues. Colour quality can also drift the longer a cartridge sits past its date. Please ask our team for the current position on this stock before ordering, and test-print as soon as you install it.
Which printers take the 951XL cyan cartridge?
It fits the HP OfficeJet Pro 8100 ePrinter, every 8600 e-All-in-One variant including the 8600 Plus, and the 8610, 8615, 8620, 8625, 8630, 8640 and 8660. It also fits the compact OfficeJet Pro 251dw and 276dw. These printers pair the 951 colour cartridges with the 950 black. If your printer's ink door shows the numbers 950 and 951 beside the slots, this cartridge is the correct cyan.
What is the difference between the 951 and the 951XL?
Both fit the same printers and use the same pigment-based cyan ink. The standard 951 cyan is rated at about 700 pages, while the 951XL is rated at about 1,500 pages. That makes the XL the better buy for bureaus and offices printing colour daily, because you change cartridges half as often. You also spend less time halfway through a job waiting for a replacement to arrive. For light home use, the standard size may be enough.
Why does pigment-based cyan matter for office printing?
Pigment ink sits on top of the paper fibres instead of soaking in like dye ink. That gives sharper edges on charts and text, and the printed colour resists water and highlighter smudging better. It suits documents that get handled, filed or carried around, such as tender forms, school reports and field survey sheets. Pigment output also fades more slowly under office lighting, so filed colour pages stay readable for years.
How many pages will a busy cyber café get from one cartridge?
HP rates the cartridge at about 1,500 A4 pages at roughly 5% coverage per colour. A cyber café printing 50 colour pages a day, mostly CVs, forms and small logos, can expect around a month. Colour photos, passport-style prints and full-page posters use far more cyan, sometimes cutting yield in half. Tracking the level on the printer panel helps you reorder before a queue of customers is left waiting.
Do the OfficeJet Pro 8600 and 8610 have a separate printhead?
Yes. These printers use a replaceable printhead that sits in the carriage, with the four ink cartridges clipped on top. The printhead is not included with this cartridge and usually lasts for years. If colours still streak after you install fresh ink, run the printhead cleaning tool from the printer's menu two or three times. Persistent streaks after cleaning usually point to a worn printhead rather than a cartridge fault.
Can I print black documents if the cyan cartridge is empty?
Not usually. The 8100, 8600 and 8610 series expect all four cartridges installed and will stop or show a cartridge alert when one is missing or depleted. That is why a single empty colour can hold up invoices and letters in a busy office. Keep one spare 951XL cyan beside the printer if colour work is part of your daily routine, especially during school admission and tender seasons.
Is it worth keeping an old 8600 series printer running?
For many offices, yes. The OfficeJet Pro 8600 and 8610 have fast duplex printing, network support and sturdy paper handling, and replacing them costs far more than a set of cartridges. The main question is ink supply and printhead health. If the printhead is healthy and you print colour regularly, original 951XL cartridges keep the machine productive. If the printhead fails, compare the repair cost with a newer OfficeJet Pro before spending.
How quickly can I get the 951XL cyan in Kisumu or Eldoret?
Kisumu, Eldoret, Nakuru, Mombasa and every other major town receive the cartridge within 1 business day of order confirmation. Nairobi and its environs receive it the same day. You inspect the sealed pack, including the printed date, before paying the rider. For urgent needs in Nairobi CBD, collect it directly from our Kimathi Street store between 9:00 AM and 7:00 PM, Monday to Saturday, and check the seal and date at the counter before you pay for it.
Technical Specifications
Cartridge Identity
- Model name is HP 951XL High Yield Cyan Original Ink Cartridge, the high-capacity version of the standard 951.
- EMEA part number is CN046AE and the American part number is CN046AN.
- Original HP thermal inkjet cartridge whose chip reports ink level and status to the printer.
- Uses pigment-based cyan ink, which gives sharp edges and better water resistance than dye ink.
- Pairs with the 950 or 950XL black and the matching 951 magenta and yellow cartridges.
Yield and Ink Volume
- HP rates average yield at about 1,500 A4 colour pages under standard ISO testing conditions.
- Ink volume is 18.5 ml per HP's datasheet.
- Cost per page sits near KSh 5.33 at the Mascom International price of KSh 8,000.
- Roughly double the pages of the standard 951 cyan, which HP rates at about 700 pages.
- Heavy colour jobs like posters, photos and passport prints reduce real yield below the rated figure.
Printer Compatibility
- Fits the HP OfficeJet Pro 8100 ePrinter, a single-function colour printer common in small Kenyan offices.
- Fits the OfficeJet Pro 8600 e-All-in-One series, including the 8600 Plus, with scanning and fax.
- Fits the OfficeJet Pro 8610, 8615, 8620, 8625, 8630, 8640 and 8660 all-in-one models.
- Fits the compact OfficeJet Pro 251dw printer and the 276dw multifunction printer for small workspaces.
- Does not fit the newer OfficeJet Pro 9100 or 9700 series, which use the 938 cartridge range.
Physical Build
- Packed dimensions are 114 x 126 x 25 mm, small enough to keep several spares in a drawer.
- Cartridge weighs about 0.08 kg, making courier delivery to upcountry branches cheap and quick.
- Clips onto a separate printhead in the carriage, so the cartridge carries no nozzles itself.
- Keyed shape and colour label stop it from going into the magenta, yellow or black slot.
- Copper contact strip carries chip data that the printer reads each time the cartridge is seated.
Storage and Operating Conditions
- HP lists an operating temperature of 5 to 35°C, covering most Kenyan offices across the year.
- Sealed storage range runs from -40 to 60°C, a wide tolerance for transport across hot counties.
- Humidity tolerance of 10 to 90% RH suits humid coastal towns like Mombasa, Kilifi and Malindi.
- The printed December 2025 date has passed, so HP no longer covers this cartridge under its warranty.
- Install the cartridge promptly after purchase and run a test page to confirm colour quality immediately.
Colour Output and Office Use
- Cyan produces the blues in logos, charts and maps, and blends with yellow for every green shade.
- Pigment ink resists smudging under highlighters, useful on tender forms, invoices and marked school reports.
- Printed colour resists water splashes better than dye ink, which helps documents carried through Nairobi rains.
- Sharp colour edges keep small table text and coloured fonts readable on dense spreadsheets and statements.
- Duplex printing on 8600-series machines lets bureaus print double-sided colour documents without manual flipping.
Running Cost and Planning
- A single 951XL cyan costs KSh 8,000 and prints about 1,500 pages at standard coverage.
- A cyber café printing 50 colour pages daily can expect about a month from one cartridge.
- Keeping one spare cyan beside the printer prevents full stops during admission and tender seasons.
- A healthy printhead is essential, so budget for printhead cleaning cycles on older 8600-series printers.
- Original cartridges avoid the chip errors and streaking that refilled 951 cartridges commonly cause in bureaus.
Package Contents
The HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge comes in its original, sealed HP retail pack:
- One HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge
- Sealed HP packaging showing the December 2025 date
- Mascom International receipt for after-sales support
Note:No printhead is included, since it stays installed in your OfficeJet Pro. Inspect the seal and printed date before paying the rider.
Warranty
HP warrants the HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge against defects in materials and workmanship until the ink is depleted or the end-of-warranty date printed on the cartridge is reached, whichever comes first, so HP cover on this December 2025 stock has lapsed. Mascom International supports the cartridge at our Kimathi Street desk.
Buying the HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge from Mascom International
Mascom International stocks the HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge at Old Mutual Building, First Floor Room 4, Kimathi Street, Nairobi CBD. Walk in Monday through Saturday between 9:00 AM and 7:00 PM to inspect the sealed pack and its printed date before committing. The matching 951XL magenta is also in stock.
Three ways to order:
- Call/WhatsApp +254 708 852 521
- Email info@mascomintl.com
- Order through www.mascomintl.com
Pay-on-arrival delivery reaches every Kenyan county. Nairobi and its environs receive the HP 951XL Cyan Ink Cartridge the same day. Kisumu, Eldoret, Nakuru, Mombasa and all other major towns receive it within 1 business day. Mandera, Wajir, Marsabit, Lamu, Tana River, and Turkana receive delivery within 2-3 business days. You inspect the cartridge and pay only when it arrives.
After-sales questions on this cartridge follow the terms stated above.
Mascom International keeps older HP printers working for bureaus, SACCOs and county offices nationwide, with clearly dated original ink, honest pricing and direct support from our Nairobi CBD store.
