HP Smart Tank 5103 Buying Guide in 2026: Is It Right for You? Refillable tanks, very low running costs, and straightforward app setup make the HP Smart Tank 5103 a budget?friendly home document workhorse. Final verdict for Smart Tank 5103 The HP Smart Tank 5103 suits households and students that print a steady mix of forms, homework, and occasional photos. It offers excellent running costs, sharp black text, and simple wireless setup. Slower color speeds and manual duplex limit throughput, and there is no document feeder. If you value cost control over speed, it delivers strong value. Pros Extremely low running costs for everyday documents Borderless photo printing up to letter size Simple Wi?Fi setup with HP Smart app Sharp black text for school and home Energy efficient, compact footprint for desks Cons Slow color printing compared with office inkjets No auto duplex or document feeder Action Check current price. Compare alternatives. Smart Tank 5103 deals Best Buy lists around $229.99, Walmart ranges from about $199.99 to $269.99, and HP shows a $269.99 list price. Smart Tank 5103 specs Printer type: Thermal inkjet all?in?one with refillable tanks Functions: Print, copy, scan Display: 1.2?inch icon LCD, non?touch Cartridges or tank: Four bottles, black 135 ml, tri?color set Resolution: Up to 1200 × 1200 black and up to 4800 × 1200 color Connectivity: Wi?Fi 2.4 GHz, Wi?Fi Direct, USB 2.0 Compatibility: Windows 10–11, macOS 10.15–15, Android, iOS Rated speed: 12 ppm black, 5 ppm color Dimensions: 17.1 × 14.2 × 6.2 inches Weight: 11.1 lb Pricing and availability The HP Smart Tank 5103 carries a list price of $269.99 in the United States, with frequent street prices between roughly $179.99 and $269.99 depending on retailer promotions. That puts it among the more affordable tank printers while keeping total ownership costs low thanks to high?yield bottles included in the box. Warranty coverage is a limited one year or 30,000 pages, whichever comes first. Support is handled through HP, and extended protection may be offered by retailers. The printer has been widely available across 2024 and 2026, with Portobello?tone housing and close sibling variants sharing the same core hardware. In?box ink is a major value point. The supplied 135 ml black bottle and three color bottles are rated for thousands of pages, which lets most home users print for many months before refilling. The economics are strongest for text?heavy use where the low cost per page is most evident. Setting up Out of the box, setup involves unboxing, removing transport tape, placing the unit on a flat surface, and filling the four tanks with the included bottles. The bottle spouts align with keyed tank inlets to minimize spills, then the printer performs an initial charge sequence to prime the print system before first use. Wireless pairing is guided through the HP Smart app on a phone or computer. The app walks you through joining 2.4 GHz Wi?Fi, aligning the printhead, and running a test page. USB 2.0 is available for a direct connection, though most households will prefer wireless for sharing across devices. There is no enrollment in Instant Ink for Smart Tank models, and HP Plus is not required. Once networked, the app provides status, maintenance tools, and access to mobile printing from iOS and Android. Expect the first run to take longer as the device initializes, after which everyday wake and print is straightforward. Design and ease of use The Smart Tank 5103 keeps a low profile with a front input tray and a top flatbed scanner. Connectivity is simple: Wi?Fi 2.4 GHz with Wi?Fi Direct for quick device pairing, plus a rear USB 2.0 port. There is no Ethernet, fax port, memory card slot, or front USB host for thumb drives. Refill windows let you see remaining ink at a glance, and the tank caps hinge for clean top?up. The main paper tray handles plain paper and photo media, and the output slot includes a small extender. Access panels open for clearing jams and replacing user?serviceable consumables when needed. Everyday ergonomics focus on basic home tasks. Buttons flank a compact status display, and the chassis is light enough to move if you need to store it off?desk. Borderless printing up to letter size is supported for craft projects and simple photo prints, though serious photo users should temper expectations about color accuracy. Screen and controls A small 1.2?inch icon LCD sits at the control panel’s center. It is a segmented, non?touch display that shows connection status, ink levels, and basic job prompts. Physical buttons handle navigation, copies, and cancel, which keeps operation reliable even for kids or guests who are not familiar with touch interfaces. Menu depth is intentionally shallow, favoring the HP Smart app for most configuration. You can start copies, toggle wireless modes, and run maintenance tasks from the panel, but naming the printer, firmware updates, and advanced preferences are faster through the app. Viewing angles are modest, so reading the icons is easiest straight on. Workflow basics are covered without frills. There is no numeric keypad for faxing, and no contextual touch prompts, since this is not a touch model. Quick copy scaling and borderless toggles are available through software. The combination of hard keys and the app keeps learning time short for a family setting. Paper handling The input tray holds up to 100 sheets of plain paper, which is sufficient for light office and school use. Output capacity is 30 sheets, so longer documents may require occasional clearing of the finished stack. Supported sizes include letter, legal, A4, and common photo formats including borderless up to 8.5 × 11 inches. There is no automatic duplexer, so two?sided printing is a manual process managed by the driver. The flatbed scanner handles single sheets up to letter or A4, and there is no automatic document feeder. For multi?page copy or scan jobs, you will place pages on the glass one at a time. In practice, this configuration favors short jobs and everyday paperwork rather than bulk packets. Plain and photo media feed reliably when stacked correctly, and the app provides media type selection to reduce smears. If you regularly scan or copy stacks, consider a step?up model with an ADF and auto duplex. Print speeds Rated speeds are up to 12 pages per minute for black text and up to 5 pages per minute for color. Independent testing on a close sibling measured around 10 ppm for black text and roughly 3 ppm for color documents. Warm?up and initialization add a few seconds to the first sheet, especially after long idle periods. Without automatic duplex, two?sided jobs take longer because the driver prompts a manual reinsertion step. Simple text on plain paper is the fastest scenario. Color projects with graphics or photos slow throughput, which is typical for entry?level tank models. For most homes, the cadence is acceptable if you avoid last?minute bulk runs. Results Text simplex: 10 ppm (rated 12 ppm) Text duplex: Manual two?pass, time varies by user Mixed text and graphics: About 3 ppm Copy and scan speeds Flatbed scan at 200 ppi: Color 19 seconds, black and white 10 seconds ADF throughput: Not supported on this model Print quality Black text is a strong point, with crisp letterforms and good fine?line stability on everyday paper. Mixed graphics print cleanly, though the heaviest fills can show slight grain and occasional roller marks on some stocks. For school reports and invoices, output looks tidy and professional enough. Color fidelity is less impressive. The printer’s gamut is narrower than photo?centric devices, leading to flatter reds and less saturated blues. Gradients can appear coarse, and subtle textures sometimes merge into blocks. On glossy photo paper, fine detail remains respectable, but bright tones and skin shades skew muted compared with premium photo printers. If your priority is charts, forms, and text?forward documents, results are satisfying. For craft prints and snapshots, expect pleasant but not lab?grade color. Careful media choice and driver settings can help, yet dedicated photo printers will still produce richer tones and smoother gradations. Ink costs and plans Smart Tank economics are the key draw. The included bottles are rated for thousands of pages, and refills are sold individually, so you replace only the color you use. This eliminates the waste of tri?color cartridges and keeps per?page costs far below cartridge?based inkjets, especially for black?text workloads. The model is not part of HP’s Instant Ink subscription, which is targeted at cartridge families. Instead, you buy bottles as needed and monitor levels through the app and tank windows. Over a typical school year, most families will refill black first and top up colors far less often unless photo printing is frequent. Maintenance deserves a note. Thermal inkjet systems can require periodic cleaning cycles that use ink, and replacement printheads are available if one becomes compromised. Keep the printer powered on for periodic self?maintenance, print a page every week, and cap bottles promptly after refilling to reduce evaporation and clogs. Comparisons Smart Tank 5103 versus Smart Tank 6001 Speed: Loses on mixed color throughput CPP: Tie for everyday black documents Features: 6001 adds automatic duplex printing Smart Tank 5103 versus OfficeJet Pro 8125e Speed: Loses on both text and color CPP: Wins for sustained monthly volumes Features: OfficeJet adds ADF, auto duplex, office extras FAQs Does Smart Tank 5103 require HP Plus? It does not require HP Plus, and Instant Ink is not offered for Smart Tank models. What operating systems are supported? Windows 10 and 11, macOS 10.15 through 15, plus Android and iOS through the HP Smart app. What is the real world duplex speed? There is no automatic duplexer; manual two?pass printing time depends on job length and user handling. Is Instant Ink worth it for home documents? Instant Ink does not apply to Smart Tank printers; bottle refills govern costs and suit steady home use.