HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge is now available at Mascom International for KSh 5,900, brand new and sealed in its original HP carton. Part number 3JA26AE, this Original HP cartridge holds 24.09ml of pigment-based black ink rated for about 1,000 pages. The HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge fits the OfficeJet Pro 9010 and 9020 series, including the 9012, 9015, 9019, 9022 and 9025. Pick up the HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge at Old Mutual Building, First Floor Room 4, Kimathi Street, Nairobi CBD, or order it for delivery. The label shows HP's printed end-of-warranty date, so you can check freshness before paying.
Small offices print more black text than anything else. Quotations, delivery notes, payslips and KRA filing packs all run through the black cartridge first. The HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge suits accountants, law firms, school bursars and shop owners who run an OfficeJet Pro as their only printer. Pigment ink sits on top of plain paper instead of soaking in. Text stays crisp and resists smears from a highlighter or a damp hand, which matters for signed contracts and receipts customers carry home. A five-person office printing 250 pages a month gets about four months from each cartridge.
Unlike other electronics retailers in Kenya that mix refills with genuine stock, Mascom International sells only Original HP cartridges in sealed cartons. At about KSh 5.90 per page, the HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge is the lower upfront cost option for offices printing under 1,000 pages a month. Buyers throughout Kenya tell us they keep one spare on the shelf. Nairobi and its environs get same-day delivery, and every county gets pay-on-arrival service. Our Kimathi Street counter keeps the full 963 range in stock, so matching colours come in one visit.
Common Questions About the HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge
Which printers accept the HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge?
It fits the HP OfficeJet Pro 9010 and 9020 families. That covers the 9010, 9012, 9013, 9014, 9015, 9015e, 9016, 9019, 9020, 9022, 9023, 9025 and 9025e. Check the model name printed on the front panel of your printer, or look for "963" on the old cartridge. If the old cartridge says 953, 957 or 967, this cartridge will not fit. Send us a photo on WhatsApp and our team confirms the match before you pay. This check takes two minutes and saves a wasted trip across town.
How many pages will one cartridge actually print?
HP rates it at about 1,000 pages, tested on an OfficeJet Pro 9020 using a standard office page. That test page resembles a typical mix of typed letters and simple business documents. Dense spreadsheets, bold headers or scanned copies with grey backgrounds use more ink per sheet. Most offices land between 800 and 1,000 pages in real use. Printing in draft mode for internal copies stretches the count further without changing how the final documents look. Printing both sides of a page also halves paper use without costing any extra ink.
Should I buy the standard 963 or the 963XL black?
Choose the standard cartridge if you print fewer than 1,000 pages a month or want the lower upfront spend. At KSh 5,900 for 1,000 pages, you pay about KSh 5.90 per page. The HP 963XL black costs KSh 8,200 for 2,000 pages, or KSh 4.10 per page. Busy offices save money with the XL. A home office printing 200 pages a month gets five months from this cartridge, so the standard size fits well. You also tie up less cash in stock sitting on the shelf.
Will a genuine HP cartridge stop the "non-HP chip" error on my printer?
Yes. OfficeJet Pro 9010 and 9020 printers read the chip on every cartridge and can reject cloned or refilled chips after firmware updates. Original HP cartridges carry the chip the printer expects, so the error does not appear. HP+ models such as the 9015e and 9025e only accept Original HP ink. That rule makes a genuine cartridge the only choice for those machines, and it keeps your printer's HP+ benefits active. Cheaper clones often stop working overnight after an automatic update.
Does pigment ink hold up better than dye ink for documents?
Pigment ink rests on the paper surface as tiny solid particles. Dye ink soaks into the fibres. That difference gives the HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge darker, cleaner text on plain 80gsm paper and better resistance to water drops and highlighter smudges. Files stored in a Mombasa or Kisumu office cabinet keep readable text for years. For contracts, title documents and audit files, pigment black is the safer pick. It also scans cleanly when documents are digitised later.
Why is my new black cartridge printing faint lines?
Faint or streaky text usually points to the printhead, not the cartridge. The OfficeJet Pro 9010 and 9020 keep a separate printhead inside the printer. Run "Clean Printhead" from the printer's Tools menu, then print a quality report. If the report still shows gaps after two cleaning cycles, call our service desk. We test the cartridge in-store and replace it if a manufacturing defect appears under our warranty terms. Most faint-print cases clear after one cleaning cycle, which takes about three minutes.
How should I store a spare cartridge until I need it?
Keep the spare sealed in its carton, lying flat, away from direct sun. HP rates storage between -40°C and 60°C, so a normal office drawer is fine anywhere in Kenya. Avoid leaving it on a car dashboard in Garissa or Lodwar heat. Open the seal only when you are ready to install. Once installed, the cartridge prints normally for months, even in offices that print a few pages each week. Printing one test page weekly keeps the printhead nozzles clear between larger jobs.
Can I pay by M-Pesa and collect the same day?
Yes. Pay through M-Pesa at our Kimathi Street counter or on delivery, and the carton is yours in minutes. Walk-in customers pick up during store hours, Monday to Saturday, 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM. Offices in Upper Hill, Westlands or Industrial Area can order by WhatsApp in the morning and receive the cartridge the same afternoon. We also issue receipts with the part number for company expense claims. Lipa na M-Pesa till payments clear instantly, so there is no waiting at the counter.
Technical Specifications
Ink Formulation and Print Output
- Pigment-based black ink sits on the paper surface, producing dark, crisp text on standard 80gsm office paper.
- HP Thermal Inkjet delivery through the printer's fixed printhead places each droplet accurately for clean small fonts.
- Pigment particles resist water drops and highlighter smears better than dye inks, protecting signed contracts and receipts.
- Black text stays readable in archived files, which suits audit packs and legal records kept for several years.
- Printed pages dry quickly, so double-sided jobs stack without offsetting ink onto the facing sheet.
- Clean black edges on 8-point and 10-point fonts keep footnotes, contract clauses and small table text legible.
- Single black ink handles text, tables and grayscale graphics, so colour cartridges last longer on document-heavy work.
Page Yield and Running Cost
- HP rates the cartridge at about 1,000 pages, measured on an OfficeJet Pro 9020 at standard office coverage.
- Ink volume is 24.09ml
- At KSh 5,900, cost works out near KSh 5.90 per page for typical typed letters and invoices.
- An office printing 250 pages monthly gets roughly four months from one cartridge before needing a replacement.
- •he HP 963XL black doubles the yield to 2,000 pages, suited to offices printing above 1,000 monthly.
- Buying two standard cartridges costs KSh 11,800 for 2,000 pages, against KSh 8,200 for one XL.
- Draft mode for internal copies cuts ink use per page without affecting final documents printed in normal mode.
Printer Compatibility
- Fits the HP OfficeJet Pro 9010, 9012, 9013, 9014, 9015, 9015e and 9016 all-in-one printers directly.
- Also fits the HP OfficeJet Pro 9019, 9020, 9022, 9023, 9025 and 9025e without any adapter or modification.
- HP+ models, including the 9015e and 9025e, accept only Original HP cartridges, which this cartridge is.
- Does not fit printers using HP 953, 957 or 967 cartridges, despite similar shape and colour coding.
- The printer's chip check recognises the cartridge immediately, avoiding the error messages common with cloned chips.
- Standard and XL black cartridges share one slot, so offices can switch sizes as print volumes change.
- Works alongside standard HP 963 or 963XL colour cartridges, so sizes can be mixed within one printer.
Cartridge Build and Storage
- Cartridge body measures about 119 x 36 x 126 mm, the wider black format for the 9010 series.
- Packaged weight is roughly 0.09 kg, light enough to post countrywide at minimal shipping cost.
- Operating range is 5°C to 35°C and 10% to 90% humidity, covering every Kenyan office climate.
- Sealed storage tolerates -40°C to 60°C, so spares survive warehouse shelving and courier transit safely.
- The cartridge carries ink only, with the printhead staying in the printer, keeping replacement cost lower.
- The cartridge clicks firmly into its slot, and the printer confirms installation on screen within seconds.
- Colour-coded black label and keyed shape stop it being inserted into the wrong printer slot.
Authenticity and Stock Details
- Supplied as HP part number 3JA26AE in the original sealed HP carton with intact security labelling.
- Each carton carries HP's printed end-of-warranty date, which our staff show you before purchase on request.
- Mascom International sources through established HP supply channels, never selling refills, clones or remanufactured units.
- Our staff check the carton seal, label and date in front of you before any sale is completed.
- Receipts list the part number, helping company accounts teams match purchases to asset records and claims.
- Empty cartridges can be returned through HP Planet Partners, HP's official recycling programme where available locally.
Package Contents
- One HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge, part number 3JA26AE
- Original sealed HP retail carton with security labelling
- Printed end-of-warranty date on the cartridge label
- Installation guidance printed on the carton
Note:No printhead is included, because the OfficeJet Pro 9010 and 9020 series keep a permanent printhead inside the printer. Our staff can install the cartridge for walk-in customers who bring their printer to the store.
Warranty
Mascom International backs the HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge with a 6-month warranty covering manufacturing defects. HP's own cover runs to the end-of-warranty date printed on the cartridge. Claims are handled at our Nairobi CBD service desk, where we test the cartridge in a compatible printer before replacing it.
Where to Buy the HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge in Kenya
HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge is available now at Mascom International, located at Old Mutual Building, First Floor Room 4, Kimathi Street, Nairobi CBD. Visit us Monday through Saturday, 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM. Matching HP 963 cyan, magenta and yellow cartridges, plus the 963XL range, are also on our shelves.
Order through any of the following:
- Phone/WhatsApp: +254 708 852 521
- Email: info@mascomintl.com
- Website: www.mascomintl.com
Mascom International ships the HP 963 Black Ink Cartridge across all 47 Kenyan counties with pay-on-arrival delivery, so you pay only when the carton reaches you. Nairobi and its environs receive same-day delivery. Nakuru, Eldoret, Kisumu, Mombasa and all other major cities and towns receive next-business-day delivery. Mandera, Wajir, Marsabit, Lamu, Tana River, and Turkana receive delivery within 2-3 business days.
Every cartridge is covered by the 6-month warranty above, with claims handled in person at our store. Offices across Kenya rely on Mascom International for genuine HP supplies, clear part numbers and honest pricing on every printer consumable we stock.
