I am looking to upgrade from my Epson Stylus Photo R220 to a 13" wide printer. My price limit is $500.
I do mostly landscape photography, just about equal amounts of color and black and white shots.
I vastly prefer matte paper, only printing glossy photos on extremely rare occasions.
I've done some research, and found that an Epson R1800 and a refurbished Epson 2200 are both around $500. The new R2400 is a bit out of my price range, even refurbished.
I am leaning towards the 2200 because of my almost exclusive use of matte papers. Reviews tend to say that the R1800 is not all that good for matte papers. Also, I've read that the R1800 is not very good for B&W prints because of the single black ink compared to the 2200 with it's second light black ink.
If you were in my shoes, what would you do? Go for a new R1800, get a refurbished 2200, or get something else altogether? Or am I better off just saving up a bit more for the R2400?
Thanks so much for your expertise and recommendations. I'm very excited to be able to print my own 11x14's as well as printing the sizes I can already do with my R220 with much better results (especially in B&W).
Full Version: 13" Wide Printer in the $500 range
Save up and get the 2400, hp b9180 or canon 9500.
If you can't wait for the 2400, I'd definitely go for the refurbished 2200. Mine has been a workhorse for three or so years now and still doing great. Do expect to pour a lot of money into ink, however, Some folks suggest the 3800 as cheaper in the long run than either the 2200 or the 2400, just because the ink cartridges are so much bigger (and the ink accordingly much cheaper per ml).
Penguin and Eric, thank you for your suggestions.
I think I have made up my mind. I want the R2400, but cannot afford it at the moment. I am just about out of ink for my R220 and will need to purchase 5 ink carts very soon if I do not obtain a new printer. Obviously, I do not want to buy a almost whole new set of ink if I am upgrading in the near future.
My plan is to do the following.
1. Purchase a used Epson 2200 on eBay for around $300.
2. With the extra $300 left over with my $600 budget (I budgeted $500 for a printer and $100 for extra ink), spend $100 on ink, $100 on some nice paper, and set aside $100 to save up for an R2400.
3. When I have saved up $400 for the R2400, purchase a refurbished one for $600.
4. Put the 2200 back on eBay and sell to cover the difference.
This way, I get a very good printer *right now* for a very good price. I should be able to recover at least 1/2 of this purchase by selling it on eBay when I am ready for the R2400.
What do you think about this plan? Is there another model printer I should look for on eBay to 'hold me over' until I can get the R2400?
Thanks again in advance for your suggestions and expertise.
I think I have made up my mind. I want the R2400, but cannot afford it at the moment. I am just about out of ink for my R220 and will need to purchase 5 ink carts very soon if I do not obtain a new printer. Obviously, I do not want to buy a almost whole new set of ink if I am upgrading in the near future.
My plan is to do the following.
1. Purchase a used Epson 2200 on eBay for around $300.
2. With the extra $300 left over with my $600 budget (I budgeted $500 for a printer and $100 for extra ink), spend $100 on ink, $100 on some nice paper, and set aside $100 to save up for an R2400.
3. When I have saved up $400 for the R2400, purchase a refurbished one for $600.
4. Put the 2200 back on eBay and sell to cover the difference.
This way, I get a very good printer *right now* for a very good price. I should be able to recover at least 1/2 of this purchase by selling it on eBay when I am ready for the R2400.
What do you think about this plan? Is there another model printer I should look for on eBay to 'hold me over' until I can get the R2400?
Thanks again in advance for your suggestions and expertise.
QUOTE (jersey_emt @ Jun 28 2007, 06:08 PM)
I am looking to upgrade from my Epson Stylus Photo R220 to a 13" wide printer. My price limit is $500.
I do mostly landscape photography, just about equal amounts of color and black and white shots.
I vastly prefer matte paper, only printing glossy photos on extremely rare occasions.
I've done some research, and found that an Epson R1800 and a refurbished Epson 2200 are both around $500. The new R2400 is a bit out of my price range, even refurbished.
I am leaning towards the 2200 because of my almost exclusive use of matte papers. Reviews tend to say that the R1800 is not all that good for matte papers. Also, I've read that the R1800 is not very good for B&W prints because of the single black ink compared to the 2200 with it's second light black ink.
If you were in my shoes, what would you do? Go for a new R1800, get a refurbished 2200, or get something else altogether? Or am I better off just saving up a bit more for the R2400?
Thanks so much for your expertise and recommendations. I'm very excited to be able to print my own 11x14's as well as printing the sizes I can already do with my R220 with much better results (especially in B&W).
THE ONLY THING U WILL FIND FOR THAT IS EPSON 1800. U REALY NEED TO SPEND AROUND $1200 LOTS OF DEALS CAN BE HAD FOR EPSON 4800
I do mostly landscape photography, just about equal amounts of color and black and white shots.
I vastly prefer matte paper, only printing glossy photos on extremely rare occasions.
I've done some research, and found that an Epson R1800 and a refurbished Epson 2200 are both around $500. The new R2400 is a bit out of my price range, even refurbished.
I am leaning towards the 2200 because of my almost exclusive use of matte papers. Reviews tend to say that the R1800 is not all that good for matte papers. Also, I've read that the R1800 is not very good for B&W prints because of the single black ink compared to the 2200 with it's second light black ink.
If you were in my shoes, what would you do? Go for a new R1800, get a refurbished 2200, or get something else altogether? Or am I better off just saving up a bit more for the R2400?
Thanks so much for your expertise and recommendations. I'm very excited to be able to print my own 11x14's as well as printing the sizes I can already do with my R220 with much better results (especially in B&W).
THE ONLY THING U WILL FIND FOR THAT IS EPSON 1800. U REALY NEED TO SPEND AROUND $1200 LOTS OF DEALS CAN BE HAD FOR EPSON 4800
QUOTE (ed j @ Jun 29 2007, 07:11 PM)
THE ONLY THING U WILL FIND FOR THAT IS EPSON 1800. U REALY NEED TO SPEND AROUND $1200 LOTS OF DEALS CAN BE HAD FOR EPSON 4800
(a.) I'm looking for a 13" wide printer, not a 17" wide. I barely have free desk space available for a 13" printer.
(b.) My price limit is $500 at the moment. I'm obviously not opposed to a used or refurbished printer, so I have other choices than the R1800.
Suggesting a 17" printer that costs $2,000 to someone who is looking for a 13" printer for $500 really isn't all that helpful.
The 2200 seems to me to be my best choice at the moment. It's well within my price range, and the fact that I do very little, if any, glossy printing saves me from most of the major problems with that printer. Yes, I am well aware that the R2400 is a better printer. But is the difference really worth the (significant) extra cost, especially for someone who is on a very tight budget?
If someone has a really good reason why I should NOT go for the 2200 based on the descriptions of my work and what I am looking for in my first post, please, PLEASE offer your advice and suggestions for an alternative. I'm quite flexible, not tied to any one brand, and am willing to buy used or refurbished to save money. I also have no problem with buying "yesterday's" technology, as even that is a HUGE step up from my current R220!
Thanks again!
Sounds like a good plan to me.
I just won an auction for a 2200 for $315. It's from someone local so I can pick it up and save on shipping. Just waiting to hear back from the seller when is a good time for him for me to stop by and pick it up. I'm very excited about this!
Thanks again for your input.
Thanks again for your input.
QUOTE (jersey_emt @ Jul 2 2007, 08:56 AM)
I just won an auction for a 2200 for $315. It's from someone local so I can pick it up and save on shipping. Just waiting to hear back from the seller when is a good time for him for me to stop by and pick it up. I'm very excited about this!
Thanks again for your input.
Thanks again for your input.
You'll enjoy the 2200 immensely. Mine's still going strong after 4 years. I don't use it as much now that I have the Z3100 but its still in use producing greeting cards. If you're looking to do B&W on it invest in QuadTone RIP (QTR). It's very reasonably priced and the results are excellent.
Oh, yeah, check out Atlex for supplies. Great prices and service.
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