Some Epson Printers Are Programmed to Stop Working After a Certain Amount of Use | Users are receiving error messages that their fully functional printers are suddenly in need of repairs. (1 year old)
I hate this planned obsolescence bullshit. I wish our governments would actually do something to protect the consumer, but that'll be asking the corporations to police themselves at this point.
"The error message was related to porous pads inside the printer that collect and contain excess ink."
This is the waste ink tank, which is a consumable, just like ink cartridges. Many years ago, you would HAVE TO bring the printer into a service centre to get it replaced, but now it's a $20-$30 part that will last several more years before it needs to be replaced.
Every single inkjet printer has one.
What I will say, because it has happened to me, is that Epson puts chips on these waste tanks, and if it says it needs to be replaced, you can't simply (or temporarily) reset the counter. You used to be able to in the past, when these things were service centre replaced.