Epson
February 4th, 2010 by D-Photo
Epson’s slender TX550W all-in-one inkjet manages to pack considerable functionality into its sleek black chassis. Along with USB and Ethernet connectivity, the TX550W is also able to be used wirelessly — ideal for remote locations in the home/office that do not have access to cabled USB or Ethernet connections.
Epson’s entry-level CMYK Durabrite inks are used; these pigment-based inks have a fairly wide colour gamut, but for photo printing I’d have liked a dedicated photo black on board as well. The only printer in this roundup to use a piezoelectric print head (the other two are bubble jets), Epson’s variable dot technology offers droplet sizes as miniscule as two picolitres. That suggested no visible dot structure, and so it was — I was unable to detect any form of dot using my keen eyesight, while viewing under a glass produced almost the same result. A decent scanner and good paper handling make up the feature set.
During my time with the TX550W I was unable to get the printer up and running wirelessly; luckily, my trusty old USB cable came to the rescue and I was soon cluttering up my office with print after print. Once I’d installed the bundled software onto my Mac (Easy Photo Print/Event Manager/Photo Enhance and so on) it was time to get stuck in.
Draft black text and colour printing was rapid at my timed 28ppm (limited by my poor old G4 Mac, I think — Epson quotes 36ppm), fed by the 120-sheet feeder (120 sheets of plain 60gsm).
Photo printing times were pretty good all round. A bordered A4 print (using Epson Premium Photo Paper Glossy) on the highest quality setting took around three minutes from the moment the TX550W whirred into action. Print quality was good here, although I felt the lack of a dedicated photo black made dark scenes a touch lacking in depth. However, it isn’t a dedicated photographic printer, but a home office device with photo printing ability. Otherwise the Epson produced a good blend of highly resolved and natural colours with excellent detail.
The scanner is also worth mentioning, providing good resolution at the maximum claimed 2400 x 2400dpi. I used it to scan some old silver-halide photos (remember those?), and the printed result was certainly close to the original, with only a subtle generational loss and slightly muted colour reproduction to separate the original and copy in terms of quality. So while the TX550W may not be the printer of choice for diehard photographic enthusiasts, it is certainly capable of some pretty good results for the majority of us snap-happy chappies.
EPSON STYLUS TX550W – Specs
Print Speed: Up to 36ppm (black and colour text, draft)
Print Resolution: Up to 5760 x 1440dpi
Cartridges: Black, cyan, magenta, yellow
Scanner: 48-bit, 2400 x 2400dpi
Copier: Approx 36cpm (draft)
Memory Card Compatibility: CompactFlash, Memory Stick, SD/MMC, xD
Dimensions: 450 x 342 x 182mm (W/D/H)
Weight: 6.1kg
CONTACT
www.epson.co.nz
PROS
- Great bang for the buck
- Nice detailed prints
CONS
- Difficult wireless setup
- Slightly one-dimensional blacks
Design                    18
Performance          17
Features               17
Image Quality          17
Value for money      18
TOTAL 87/100
This article is from D-Photo 32.
January 21st, 2010 by D-Photo
Epson is calling for entries for the International Pano Awards, its competition dedicated to panoramic photography.
A pool of over $18, 000 in cash and prizes is up for grabs, with category winners competing for both Photographer of the Year and Amateur Photographer of the Year titles.
Categories for both pros and amateurs span nature and the built environment.
The judging panel includes some of the world’s top panoramic photographers and industry professionals, including Christian Fletcher, David Hugh Evans, Nick Rains, Jaspal Jandu, Peter Eastway, Christian Fleury, Tom Putt, Glenn Beanland, Michelle Novak and Doug Segal.
Entries close at the end of April 2010. More details can be found at www.thepanoawards.com
December 10th, 2009 by D-Photo
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October 8th, 2009 by D-Photo
Phil Hanson says all-in-one printers have come a long way but wonders if cramming so much technology into one box delivers the quality of prints photographers expect.
Quality photo printers that take up to A4 paper have become an endangered species.
These days, people wanting a printer to work with the smaller paper sizes find they have to buy a workbench space-wasting A3 or go for a multi-purpose machine that prints, scans, copies, faxes and makes the coffee. Manufacturers obviously see advantages in offering desktop Swiss Army knives, instead of single-function dedicated printers.
The Epson TX700W is an upmarket member of the TX family whose $120-ish TX200 D-Photo reviewed last year, and which effectively dealt to scepticism about whether all-in-ones could be any good.
Costing roughly three times as much, the TX700W ups the ante in all areas and adds a really useful bonus: wireless (and Ethernet) connectivity for both PC and Mac. It’ll also print on suitable CDs.
First appearances
Styled in Italy and finished in gloss and matte blacks, the TX700 is of generally sturdy construction, although the double paper trays feel flimsy. Controls are nicely arranged on a tilting panel around an LCD screen that guides the user through various modes and maintenance functions when not working the device from a computer.
At 44.5cm wide and 38.5cm deep, the TX700W doesn’t occupy too much space.
A wide range of media devices can be accommodated, including SD, xD, Compact Flash cards and USB memory sticks.
Up and running
Those who follow the simple setup instructions will be printing within minutes. I found the separate wireless connection instructions somewhat confusing, but managed to get there.
The printed manual isn’t up to much, but the on-screen version is excellent. Full marks too for Epson’s on-screen utility that allows such an easy interface for such things as maintenance and ink management.
Six of the best
The TX700W uses six cartridges of Epson’s Claria photographic inks, which D-Photo matched with the gorgeous 300gsm Epson Ultra Glossy photo paper. Letting Photoshop handle the colour management, the machine produced excellent prints from JPEGs and TIFFs — and did so at blazing speed. The results easily exceeded the TX200.
Moving right along
No nasties spoiled the scan and copy functions. It’ll scan up to a decent 4800dpi, and Abbyy OCR software is included for getting documents into a word processing program. As with printing, it scans at impressive speed. Copying is also quick and easy.
Conclusion
This is a very good machine. Who’d have thought three or four years ago that you could get a multifunction unit that produced this kind of quality work for four hundred bucks?
EPSON STYLUS TX700W – SPECS
- Printing method: Piezoelectric inkjet
- Minimum ink droplet volume: 1.5 Picolitres
- Resolution: 5760dpi (using resolution performance management)
- Paper sizes: A4, Letter, Legal, 8×10, 5×7, 4×6, 3.5×5, 5×8, A6, A5, B5, Half Letter Envelopes: No10, DL, C6
Scanner
- Scanner type: A4 flatbed colour image scanner, CIS sensor
- Pixel depth: Input 48 bits
- (16 bits/colour); output 24 bits (8 bits/colour)
- Scanning resolution: 2400 x 4800dpi
- Mono scan speed: A4 1200dpi 2.2msec/line
- Colour scan speed: A4 1200dpi 12msec/line
Copy function
- Copy speed colour/mono text (A4): Approx 39cpm
General
- Operating systems/Printer drivers: Windows 2000/XP/XP x64/Vista, Mac OS 10.3.9 or later with USB
- Dimensions: 446 x 385 x 150mm (W/D/H)
CONTACT
www.epson.co.nz
PROS
- Stellar performance for its price
- Takes relatively little space
CONS
- Below average printed manuals
Design                   16
Performance          16
Features               18
Image Quality          16
Value for money      19
TOTALÂ Â Â Â 85/100
This article if from D-Photo issue 29.
September 28th, 2009 by D-Photo
Epson has updated its range of Stylus Photo printers with the inclusion of the TX710W and the T50 models.
The multifunction Photo TX710W can be integrated into the home of small office with WiFi and Ethernet networking capabilities, allowing for shared printing and scanning. It also boasts print speeds up to 40ppm in mono draft mode, with quality 4 x 6 inch prints produced from 10 seconds.
The single-function T50, on the other hand, replaces the R290 model, offering printing performance up to 38ppm in mono draft mode and 4 x 6 inch photos in as little as 12 secs. The Photo TX710W and Photo T50 both offer CD/DVD printing and BorderFree photos up to A4 on a wide range of Epson photographic papers, while the TX710W also provides stand alone copying and direct photo printing from PictBridge enabled cameras and from memory card slots.
The two new models are available now at $399 for the TX70W, and $199 for the T50.
August 18th, 2009 by D-Photo
Epson’s Stylus Photo R1900 brings to the party a set of new pigment-based UltraChrome Hi-Gloss2 inks that includes an orange cartridge to help deal better with skin tones. There’s also a gloss optimiser cartridge that sprays a clear overcoat on top of glossy paper to enhance the appearance that users of that medium favour.
This newest member of the Stylus Photo range is no shrinking violet. With input and output trays extended, the $1299 printer measures 60 x 41 x 78cm, so it needs a good workspace, especially as Epson suggests you put it at least 100mm from the wall when using longer papers.
Within that generous footprint lies a versatile machine. It can print on a wide range of paper types and sizes, either sheet-fed or on a roll; it can print directly onto suitable CDs and DVDs; it’ll print web pages; print from a scanner or directly from a digital camera that has PictBridge or USB Direct-Print.
Setting up was so simple I kept thinking I’d missed a step. But no, 20 minutes after pulling the big boy from its box, I was ready to push the button. It wasn’t supposed to be quite that quick. I had scoured the box for an instruction manual but there wasn’t anything beyond a fold-out setup guide.
Epson puts all its user information on a CD, and very clear it is to. But I miss a printed manual, which can be quicker and easier to use — and I was going to read it in bed that night to become a total expert before committing the first sheet of that big A3 paper. Printing the 59-page guide is always an option.
Whole books (and a good part of the Epson guide) have been written on colour management; it can be a huge and involved subject, but I wanted none of it. I get frustrated by the minutiae of colour profiles and related matters; I want a printer that gives the best possible result with the least fuss — in other words, instant gratification.
So I was delighted when the first print rolled out of the printer about 80 seconds after pushing the button. I had printed a TIFF from Photoshop exactly as it sat on the computer, except for assigning Epson’s glossy paper profile, letting Photoshop do the colour management.
The colours and contrast in the print were spot on, but overall the print was a little light. I tweaked the levels, tried again and got a print worth framing. It pays to take your time to save wasting paper and ink.
Some colours sometimes seem hard for inkjets to render well (blues and purples for example), but the R1900 with its new inks and a wide colour gamut took them in its stride.
Epson provided three types of its paper to try: Premium Semigloss, Premium Glossy, and Acid-Free Cotton Rag Velvet Fine Art in A3+. Each has its place but working with the thick (260g/m2) and luxurious Velvet was a tactile as well as visual treat. The prints were lovely, even though the R1900 is said to be optimised for glossy paper.
The simplest way to print is straight from a suitable camera via a USB port on the front. Epson makes the process simple and intuitive and I mostly couldn’t fault the quality of the prints that it sucked from the JPEGs in my dSLR.
Specs
- Size: (Stored) 616 x 322 x 214mm
- Printing technology: Micro Piezo eight-colour pigment inkjet, 180 nozzles x 8
- Ink: Epson UltraChrome Hi-Gloss two-pigment, photo black, matte black, yellow, magenta, cyan, red, orange, gloss optimiser
- Paper: Single sheet or roll to 0.11mm thick
- Resolution: 5760 x 1440 optimised dpi
- Print size: 9 x 13 to 329 x 483mm (A3+)
- Print speed: 44sec to 1min 32sec depending on size
contact
www.epson.co.nz
Pros
- USB printer cable supplied
Cons
- Black and white prints a little soft
Design                 16
Performance         17
Features                18
Image Quality        18
Value for money    17
Total 86/100
This review is from D-Photo issue #023.
June 11th, 2009 by D-Photo
Tim Steele tests Epson’s new A3 printer, a model that employs the same technology found in some printers used in professional photo labs
The Stylus Photo R2880 is the latest A3+ printer from Epson. At $1699 it’s hardly a cheap shout, but it does deliver Epson’s ultimate photographic quality eight-colour inkset and all of the latest innovations from a company that — according to its own research — is favoured by more than 70 per cent of New Zealand’s professional photographers.
If nothing less than state of the art will do, then the subject of this review may be just what you’re after. This is a photo printer with sheet and roll capability that uses Epson’s Ultrachrome K3 ink with vivid magenta.
The vivid magenta and light vivid magenta portions of the inkset combine to widen the colour gamut of the R2880 over earlier models, making the reproduction of a broader range of colours possible. This is particularly noticeable where blues and purples are concerned. The new inkset has migrated down to this model from the Epson large-format printers such as the Pro 9880 and 11880 found in commercial laboratories, signage and commercial graphics companies.
If you need one printer capable of making everything from a postcard to an A3+ print then an R2880 will do the job. It also has the ability to print on compatible CD or DVD discs.
Every new Epson seems to produce prints a tiny bit sharper than its predecessor, more quietly and more easily. The R2880 is no exception and every print I made, colour or monochrome, looked stunning. A range of Epson papers was used for testing, in both glossy and matte surfaces.
Variable-sized droplet technology combines with the Epson’s ‘Active Meniscus Control’ for accurate placement of every single drop of that precious ink — in droplets as tiny as three picolitres. That’s a droplet smaller than the diameter of a human hair and it’s what makes a resolution of 5760 x 1440 dots per inch possible. The net result is fine detail and absolute separation from neighbouring colours.
As with other high-end photographic printers from Epson, users of the R2880 must change the black cartridge — swapping from matte Black (MK) to photo black (PK) — depending on the paper surface being used for each print. It makes good sense to print in matte or glossy batches rather than in a haphazard fashion, as some ink is wasted in the changeover process.
I liked the second USB connection on the printer that allows you to connect two computers to the R2880 at the same time. It’s ideal for those with a Mac and a PC, or a desktop and a laptop, as you won’t have to swap a single USB cable between your computers.
Independent Wilhelm Imaging Research data claims that prints made with this inkset will remain lightfast for up to 108 years for colour and 200-plus years for black and white prints. Just make sure that you stay within the family of Epson inks and papers to ensure that long-life print; use anything else and it’s a lottery.
Overall verdict
Stunning results from a stunning printer.
SPECS
- Model: Epson Stylus Photo R2880
- Price: $1699
- Printing Technology: Epson piezoelectric inkjet
- Print Head Nozzles: 180 nozzles per colour x eight colours
- Ink: Epson Ultrachrome K3 ink with vivid magenta (photo black or matte black, light black, light light black, cyan, vivid magenta, yellow, light cyan, light vivid magenta)
- Max Resolution: 5760 x 1440 optimised dpi
- Max Paper Size: A3+ sheet / A3+ width rolls
- Print Speed: 9ppm (A4 draft black text or colour text memo); 8×10-inch photo approx 91 seconds
- Interface: USB2.0 x 2, PictBridge and USB direct print port
- Paper Capacity: 120 sheets A4 plain paper (other sizes/weights vary)
- Printer Features: Borderless printing in 4×6, 5×7 and A4; Mac and PC compatible
- Size: 616 x 322 x 214mm (W/D/H – closed)
- Weight: 12kg without cartridges
CONTACT
www.epson.co.nz
PROS
- Stunning quality prints
- Long print life
- Stylish design and build quality
- Comprehensive software bundle
- Twin USB ports
CONS
- Need to change out black cartridges
ALSO CONSIDER
- Other Epson A3+ printer options: Epson Stylus Photo 1410 A3+ $799 (Uses Epson Claria inkset), Epson Stylus Photo R1900 A3+ $1299 (Uses Epson UltraChrome Hi-Gloss2 inkset)
| Design |
17 |
| Performance |
18 |
| Features |
16 |
| Image Quality |
17 |
| Value for Money |
17 |
|
|
Total
|
85/100
|
This review is from D-Photo issue #026.
Tim Steele
March 20th, 2009 by D-Photo
The Epson RX630 is an efficient photo printer with a few added extras that make it a very desirable unit. Epson calls it a ‘copy centre’ and that is not far from the mark. It is a rather substantial machine that is a breeze to set up and operate thanks to easy-to-follow instructions. Within five minutes I was printing from my PC!
Quality Adjustment
The RX630 offers many printing modes. I prefer the Professional setting, as the Auto mode delivered quickly an average quality print, but did not pull everything out of the image.
Five inks are used: black, cyan, light cyan, magenta, light magenta and yellow, giving realistic colour reproduction.
Many adjustments are possible from the properties menu. These, along with the supplied software, can produce stunning results. And with a little tweaking, photographers will find the menu more than adequate to produce quality prints.
Print Direct
You can print directly from a memory card; a slot in the front of the RX630 provides for easy access and can be closed when not in use, ensuring it stays dust-free to protect the electronic contacts – a nifty solution!
Alternatively, if you want to print directly from camera instead of memory card, hook up your USB camera cable to the printer, or use PictBridge or your Bluetooth connection.
Simple Steps
When printing from your memory card, the large two-inch LCD screen goes through all the necessary steps. You do not need your PC/Mac, as you can easily download from memory card to your computer for more editing later. Included software also lets you email your shots to family and friends.
Scanning Options
You can scan in three modes: Auto, Home and Professional. I would definitely recommend the last mode for best results. Fully Auto does not recognise transparency film, only colour negative. Home mode gives many options and Professional is indeed that – very professional.
The RX630 has a built-in transparency unit to scan a six-exposure filmstrip or scan four mounted 35mm transparencies. Placing the filmstrip inside the holder is straightforward and holds firm, but mounted transparencies don’t sit firmly. I also found the heat of the backlight causes film to curve a little.
Epson told me that this demo model had been shipped all over New Zealand, so I have a feeling that this has caused a misalignment in the focus lock for film, because I was unable to get the trannies in full focus.
Copy That!
Copies from thick books are no problem with the RX630. The lid lifts off and you can place your book on the copier without restraint. No fiddling is required to keep the lid on top of the book either. Adjust your settings to make your copy the way you want it: the Auto Instant preview shows the changes as you make them.
Conclusion
Overall, I’m impressed with the versatility, quality and features of Epson’s ‘copy centre’.
Epson RX630
Pros: Excellent flatbed copier, almost professional quality colour images, extensive and user-friendly software
Cons: Average holder for mounted trannies
Design: 4.5/5
Features: 4.5/5
Performance: 4/5
Print Quality: 5/5
Value for Money: 4/5
OVERALL RATING: 4/5
March 15th, 2009 by D-Photo
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I was going on vacation when the EPSON PictureMate arrived at the door. Its convenient carry handle made it easy to transport from the car to each of our destinations, so it was always available to print our digital snaps.
The PictureMate resembles a ghetto blaster radio with its carry handle and toaster shape, but hidden under the covers is one of the best personal printers you’ll find.
Designed to print 4×6 (postcard) prints, it is ideal for the hobby photographer or the digital scrapbooker (see Issue 2 of D-Photo).
Lift the rear cover to load EPSON’s fabulous Premium Glossy Photo Paper (Cat # SO41729), then open the ink cartridge packet and shake it several times before locking it into place in the rear of the printer. The cartridge contains five colours and black for an incredible tonal range, providing users with near photo-quality images.
On The Cards
The main front cover is a receptacle for your completed prints while the right side cover houses three card slots. It accepts nearly every card, including xD, Smart Media, Compact Flash, Microdrive, SD, MMC and the plethora of Sony Memory Sticks, including Memory Stick Pro. Cards like miniSD cards can only be used in the PictureMate with an SD card adapter.
Once you have inserted your memory card, you can print out a proof sheet using the menu on the PictureMate’s large LCD screen. It’s then a simple matter of choosing the pictures you’d like to print from the proof.
This printer also provides plenty of control, including the ability to zoom.
Make The Connection
Setting up the printer with my computer was a breeze. I just slipped the CD into the computer and followed the instructions. Everything went smoothly and I was printing without problems. The only hiccup I experienced was trying to print an image with the wrong orientation – the image was vertical and I had told the printer it was horizontal!
Perhaps best of all, the PictureMate acts as a card reader when connected to your computer (those using Windows XP or Mac OS X won’t even need to load the drivers), allowing you to access the images on your card without having to use up valuable camera batteries.
Pictbridge support
If you own a Bluetooth camera phone you can get a Bluetooth module, so you can transfer images from the phone to the printer. I tried plugging my D-Link Bluetooth module into the USB socket in the back of the printer, but the unit wouldn’t recognise it. Buy the genuine EPSON one and you’re away laughing.
This little printer also has ‘PictBridge’ support, which means you can plug your camera directly to the PictureMate without having to remove the card.
The major advantage to using the PictBridge facility is that you can use your camera’s LCD screen to review the prints rather than making a proof sheet.
Holiday Heaven
This printer was great fun on holiday, allowing me to share my images without having to run to a photo lab for postcard prints. Even better we could use cards from different cameras to make proof sheets and decide what images we wanted to share without having to power up a PC. Images were frighteningly photo-realistic and the B&W images I printed had a lovely tonal range.
I’m sure just showing my friends these results has helped sell at least one of these personal printers!
Epson PictureMate
Pros:Â Very portable, easy to use, loads of options, ink dries immediately.
Cons: Doesn’t print from Tiff files.
Design: 4/5
Features: 4/5
Performance: 5/5
Print Quality: 5/5
Value for Money: 4/5
OVERALL RATING: 4/5
March 14th, 2009 by D-Photo
In our last issue TPM’s managing editor Tim Steele described his experience with the Epson 4800 inkjet printer using Photo Black ink and Epson’s glossy, semi-gloss and semi-matt papers.
This article is part two of his exploration of the printer’s capabilities, this time with the use of Matt Black ink and Epson’s matt, textured canvas and fine art papers.
With the change over to Matt Black (MK) ink complete it was time to re-acquaint myself with some familiar Epson matt paper stocks and discover some new paper types previously known only from catalogue browsing or viewing prints made by friends and colleagues.
The 4800 senses the change of black ink and sets up its printer dialogue menus to offer only compatible papers. This reduces potential paper wastage by preventing the forgetful user from pressing ‘Print’ on incompatible combinations. Very clever indeed as we all suffer moments of total incompetence, in my case usually the result of trying to multi-task after long days and late nights.
Not so clever is the blue tape Epson uses to seal paper rolls, preventing these from unwinding in their boxes. On some of the textured matt stocks the first forty centimeters of paper can be compromised without the user being aware of it. The tape appears to remove cleanly but in my experience some adhesive is left behind, ruining the first print off the roll. Most unfortunate if, like me, your first print is a 100cm long panorama. No such problems were evident with the same tape on the glossy stocks.
I tried the familiar stocks first, Epson Heavyweight Matt paper and Archival Matt paper. These provided the quality results I had become accustomed to with the 2400 printer, here on a larger scale. These smooth and dense papers are excellent for images requiring critical sharpness at close viewing distances or blocks of strong colour. These were used in sheet form and transported perfectly from the printer’s internal tray, surprising me somewhat as I expected these would need to be hand-fed through the sheet feeder.
Epson’s Textured Fine Art paper is fantastic for larger images such as panoramas where high sharpness is achieved at longer viewing distances but the texture also holds detail and is a real point of interest when the viewer moves in for a closer look. I can only describe the effect as ‘painterly’ and this encourages the user to experiment with techniques in Photoshop such as sponge and watercolor. I used this product in roll form and it worked well, presenting no difficulty for the 4800’s internal cutter even after multiple cuts through the strong texture. I would have forgiven the odd snag but nothing eventuated, an impressive performance.
Epson Canvas is a product that I’ve long been keen to try and I was surprised at how easy this was to use. It was necessary to feed this via the sheet feeder but this was a smooth process. The canvas holds ink well and is impressive for colour and monochrome printing. I was impressed by the quick dry down and the way the ink permeated the canvas without any show-through evident from the ‘B’ side. I purchased some canvas blocks from my local stationers and found it surprisingly easy to mount my canvases on top of these. It’s a real ‘measure twice – cut once’ exercise but with careful planning of where you intend to fold and trim and gentle stretching, a really professional result is possible from print number one. Or maybe I simply had beginner’s luck? The canvases were secured around the framing with my trusty staple gun.
Epson Smooth Fine Art paper and Velvet Fine Art paper are other products which were new to me and I sampled these in roll and Super A3 format sheets. These are cracker papers lending themselves well to highly detailed photographic images and both are as smooth as the proverbial.
While my experience with the Photo Black (PK) ink was superb and I particularly enjoyed the semi-matt and semi-gloss papers, I found that I developed a distinct preference for the combination of the matt papers in conjunction with the Matt Black (MK) ink. This would be my standard setup if I owned a 4800 and I’d either purchase an R1800 for gloss work or have these done by my favourite professional lab.
I spoke with Marshall Lefferts, a former commercial photographer turned fine art photographer and hotelier. In his professional career, Marshall was well known for his large format photography of cars with both the mundane and the sublime falling under the critical eye of his 8×10 camera and those expensive sheets of film.
Today Marshall shoots digital with a FinePix S2 Pro and the 4800 is his print partner in crime. An Epson 4800 owner since mid 2005, he runs Matt Black (MK) ink and his papers of choice are Epson’s Enhanced Matt for proofing and Smooth Fine Art for his limited edition Hockney-esque montages. Images are prepared in Photoshop, laid out in Corel Draw and printed from within that program.
The resulting files are large, around 500 – 600 megabytes and typically output at 1440 dpi on the Epson. Like me, Marshall speaks highly of the printer.
Before concluding I need to acknowledge a couple of people from Aarque who made this test totally painless and who were an absolute pleasure to deal with. David Woolford, the company’s dealer manager, and Craig Moore, from technical support, were knowledgeable and attentive and gave generously of their time and knowledge. Quality product aside, this level of service is a great value add and an ongoing one as support just kept on coming, including new printer profiles for materials as the test continued.
For a printer ‘power user’, the Epson 4800 would recoup the initial investment quickly and justify its running costs many times over. While paper costs are similar between the 4800 and its baby siblings this cannot be said for ink costs, where the purchase of ink in bulk in the far larger cartridges has a marked effect on economy of use.
The most surprising thing for me was to discover just how little ink is consumed by a great deal of printing. I’m assured that both the front panel LCD and the on-screen Print Status Monitor are accurate indicators of ink remaining but for my usage, these would not budge. Akin to driving a modern ‘super mini’ class of car, it’s amazing just how far you can go without the needle falling below the Full indicator line.
Obviously the speed bump would arrive in time and the replacement of so many ink cartridges of these large capacities is hardly inexpensive. Like income tax, I think a user would learn to live with this as a high class problem as to exhaust this much ink you would have produced, and hopefully sold, an absolute heap of superb prints.
Suffice to say that the friendly Aarque guys had to remove the 4800 with some degree of quiet assertiveness at the end of the test period. There is now a hole in my heart and an empty area the size of the 4800’s footprint on my desktop that will remain deliberately unfilled in anticipation of its return, sooner or later, by hook or by crook.
Now, about that 9800 model, you know – the one that prints up to 1.2 metres wide … How do I get my hands on that?
TS
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