Is hp worse than brother as far as locking you in to using their ink?
Yes. Currently HP is getting sued bec of this.
I have Brother, HP Envy, and HP Jet Ink tank printers. Im waiting for a good deal on a HP Smart Tank printer for color (as I mentioned above I do get HP ink for cheap - so ink cost isnt a issue for me).
Brother is great for cheap ink, but now these ink tank printers are taking over the market. (I know that people are swapping liquid ink between brother, epson and hp without issues.