smtp blocked, new-email accounts not permitted, no way to send email from cox network now?!

I purchased a new Canon printer/scanner, and am trying to setup e-mail.

- smtp.cox.net apparently requires authentication with a valid cox email.
- As of August 15, 2019, Cox no longer offers Internet customers the ability to create new Cox Email accounts or reactivate accounts that have been deleted. 
- use of third-party SMTP servers fails because it appears Cox is blocking port 25 outbound.

What tf gives?  I cannot believe I'm even having this conversation, and tech support was like "yes, correct".

Something has to give, either let us use unauthenticated SMTP or allow e-mail account creation again.  Who came up with this brilliant idea without doing some basic analysis of impact to users?   So I guess my older security camera won't work either.