Customer Reviews

Epson Stylus NX515 WiFi Color Inkjet All-in-One Printer (C11CA48231)

5 star:		(42)
4 star:		(29)
3 star:		(16)
2 star:		(21)
1 star:		(67)

 

 

I bought this all-in-one because my other printer is not a copy-capable printer and we need that capability. I did some research and finally decided on the Epson NX515 after reading several reviews. So far I have been very pleased with it. I have a couple of small gripes but nothing that cannot be overlooked.

The NX515 is actually a relatively small printer, taking up a little less space than any of my previous printers. It is also lightweight and easy to move should there be a need.

Setting up the NX515 is simple. There is a quick-start guide that explains the process of configuration and it makes the set-up almost foolproof. From the time I opened the box to the time I had a working printer that was producing output was less than 15 minutes, and there were no confusing or difficult steps in the process.

The only negative about the setup is that Epson, like almost every other printer vendor, does NOT include a USB cable in the box. The cost of a USB cable is actually only a couple of dollars (they're a high-profit item) so including one would not break the bank. If you do no have a spare USB cable available and you wish to direct-connect this printer, be sure to pick one up before trying to set up.

Once configured, the NX515 is a very capable printer. It has the fastest print speeds I have ever seen in an inkjet, printing faster in standard mode than I have seen most printers print in draft mode (for standard text - does not apply to photo printing). The quality does not suffer either and is excellent. I was pleased to see than this printer does not produce the banding I have seen in Epson printers' output in the past.

The control panel for setting up copying is very easy to read and very easy to navigate. It is very simple to change copy parameters and the instructions in the panel are straightforward.

I have not used the scanning capabilities of the NX515.

One feature I wish was available, even if it required buying an attachment, is automatic duplex printing. My other printer handles duplex printing with ease and requires no intervention at all. The NX515 does duplex printing but it requires manual intervention. This is a minor inconvenience, not a deal-breaker.

Epson has produced a very nice all-in-one in the NX515. The setup is simple and the print speeds are absolutely stunning. It is by no means a perfect device but it is an excellent product at an excellent price (approximately $110 at the moment). If you need a printer that can handle scanning and copying while producing beautiful prints, give this printer a close look.

After four Epson printers in my home, I will never buy another one. I purchased the NX515 Model a few months after purchasing an Artisan 800 (A-800). The NX515 was for my daughter to take to college. I was pleased in the first few months with the A-800 and therefore thought the next level down Epson Printer would be ideal for college life.

Well, not so. First the issues with the A-800 that began the whole disappointment with Epson. I purchased the A-800 because of its multifunction capabilities (scan, copy, fax, print) with good photo quality prints. I also purchased it because replacing ink was touted to be cheaper as I would only have to purchase the color ink cartridge that was out and the Epson replacement ink cartridges where priced on average approximately 25% less than comparable replacement ink cartridges for a similar HP printer.

As it turns out the functionality with the machine worked great an the quality of prints was excellent. However the machine burned ink at a much faster pace than anything I had ever experienced with similar HP machines. In order to maintain the good quality prints, the Epson printer frequently required you to run a maintenance process to clean the ink jets and print heads. This initially did not seem like a big deal until one day, about one year into ownership of the A-800, when a message appeared that said, "the Artisan 800 ink pads are nearing the end of their service life...please contact the Epson Service center for replacement." Then about a week later, a message appeared that said, "the Artisan 800 ink pads have reached the end of their service life...please contact the Epson Service center for replacement." After this the printer and all functions completely shutdown. Even the ability to scan and fax, which did not directly have anything to do with printing, became useless. So, as instructed, I contacted Epson. What I learned was that by the time I pay to ship the machine to them, pay to have them repair it, and pay to ship it back, I could just about purchase a brand new machine. How frustrating is that. I felt totally manipulated and used by Epson.

As it turns out from my research, Epson has designed into the machine a required periodic maintenance function that must be performed in order to enable the printer to continue producing quality prints. However, this process is also what sucks the ink out of the cartridges. And it sucks it out of each ink cartridge equally whether that color ink cartridge and ink jet have been used a lot of very little. So where does all that excess ink go that gets sucked out for the ink jet and head cleaning maintenance process...into a holding tank that becomes full and must be replaced. But before the tank becomes full, the machine is programmed with a print counter to begin the shut down process anyway after so many prints.

Now, all that said, let me jump to the machine I was asked by Amazon to review because of my recent purchase from them...The Epson NX515. Well, if you have read this far, you can guess the rest of the story. Yes, the NX515 is now going down the same path of the A-800. So my printing cost return on investment has been much worse than any I ever experienced with HP and I have owned at least 6 HP printers. There is one other twist to the NX515. A selling feature was it's WiFi - wireless printing capability. I could never get the NX515 to work in wireless mode with my daughters Toshiba 64 bit laptop. I could get it to work with my 32 bit Toshiba laptop with no problem. I reloaded the software many times and even went to the Espon software download site to get a patch for this. I am an engineer and I am very good with technology. But still after close to 60 hours of screwing around and attempting to get this to work in wireless mode, I finally gave up and my daughter must plug in to print.

Moral of the story, there will be no more Epson Printers in my house! Prospective Epson buyers, BEWARE!!!

I have owned this printer for about a month, and was really impressed with the ease of setup and the convenience of printing wirelessly. However in the past month, I have printed at the most 100 pages of PLAIN TEXT and it is already time to replace the ink cartridge. Before purchasing this printer, I would advise you to read the reviews on the ink cartridges, where other frustrated epson users have vented about the money that has been spent on ink. After buying two of the high capacity cartridges which would last an average person 2-3 months at the most, you have spent enough to buy a new printer. NOT worth the flashy features of this printer.

So far so good. Been using it for about 3 days now. Very good color and prints fast with the WiFi. Good color for the photo print that I did.
Copy was excellent , but the scan images were not as good as my Canon scanner. Was easy to hook and and set up the WiFi.

Attention everybody!

Please hold on a second before you place the order. I got this printer when it was on sale last Dec and by using the gift card I had, I paid for less than $70 for a all in one printer with WI-FI. I thought I got a pretty good deal. WRONG! What I bought is a piece of JUNK and a dark hole for sucking money.

First: the black ink cartridge is empty with less than 30 pages printing! YEAH, I could not believe my eye when the "INK low" reminder pops out after 3 weeks of rare use! And we only use the normal quality printing, never tried the best photo becuz we know ink is expensive! Epson claimed their ink cartridge can print up to 245 pages. This is gonna be the number one JOKE in 2010.

Second: Once the ink is empty, the printer will lock you in the replacement ink step and won't let you do anything. You can no longer use the scanner even though it seems to be a separate function. The little screen in the printer will stay in the "replace cartridge" page and other operation is "invalid".

Third: When I finally pay the buck and reinstall the ink, the printer head seems to be clogged. Spent hours trying the software and physical cleaning with ethanol with no avail!

I grew up with computers and started to use the primitive dotMatrix printer when I was a kid. This is the worst and ill-designed printer I have ever had. Epson is sucking customers by paying huge dollars times and times again buying their inks.

I am looking forward to smashing this junk piece in front of epson branch office and purchase a new one, of course from other manufacturers.

DO NOT I repeat DO NOT buy this printer!!!
Unless you like buying hundreds of dollars worth of ink cartidges!
This printer is good overall but not worth the fact that you cant afford to print on it!
I have owned many printers, different brands and such, and never have I come accross something like this!
This is the "Houdini" of printers because the ink dissapears to nowhere! I mean it one second you have a full
ink level, and Bam printed 1 paper and you have 3/4! I wish I would have seen these reviews before I wasted my
money on this! I have had it about 8 months and am ready to just cut my losses and buy a new one, not worth continually
investing in! Dont listen to these people who have only had it a month or two, They just don't know yet!!!!!

I have had several other wireless printers and they were not always connected to the wireless network without tinkering (turning on/off, etc.) ... the Epson Stylus was easy to set up and is also immediately available on the network. Quality of copies of great and so far ink is managed well. Great price and great product!

I bought an Epson printer back in 2002 and had to return it less than a year later when the ink jets became permanently clogged. At the time I found dozens of angry reviews from other Epson customers who had experienced the same problem.

I should have learned my lesson, but I figured by 2009, Epson must have solved this problem. Wrong. I bought this printer because it was very well reviewed and reasonably priced. The problem is that professional reviewers evaluate a NEW product. The Epson ink jets are fine for a few months. Then they clog. You can press a button to clean the heads, which uses a lot of ink (and by the way, the ink is VERY expensive and this printer goes through it VERY quickly!) The head cleaning works ok the first few times. But eventually it doesn't work at all. The ink jets become partially and then permanently clogged, meaning the printer goes through the motions of printing, but there is nothing on the page except a few faint stripes.

DO NOT BUY THIS PRINTER! Benefit from my experiences. You've been warned.

Out of the box, the first thing I realized was that every single component of the device was cheap, flimsy plastic. The paper feed tray relies only on loose plastic tabs that snap in; mine has worn out after 4 months and will not stay in place. The scanner's hinges are a joke, and the entire "lid" assembly jiggles and wobbles when opening. The tolerances are so loose on all of the moving components, it's ridiculous. What appeared to be classy looking faux-carbon fiber in the picture is just more of the same tacky shiny plastic when it gets out of the box.

Connectivity wise, it's one of the worst experiences I've ever had with a printer, and I've dealt with a lot of bad printers. Don't even bother with the Wi-fi. It's configured in such a way that you basically have to completely re-established your connection with the network (and the computer your printing from) every time you want to print a document. Not every session. Literally every single time you want to print.

In order to print off the USB, it forces you install tons of unnecessary Epson bloat-ware that can't be uninstalled without brick-ing the printer. It's just such a complete headache compared to any other plug-and-play printer I've used recently (Lexmark, HP, etc).

And to top everything off: I cannot print a black and white document if the color cartridge is empty! Why?! I have a completely fresh, brand new black cartridge and need to print a basic, black and white Word document, but I cannot do it if the color cartidge is out! So I have to run out and spend $50 on the color ink the night before a paper is due just so I can print out my black and white document. This is the stupidest, most blatant rip-off I've come across in consumer electronics in a long time.
Do not waste your money or time with this product.

Prints great pictures, and the price is right. Text looks great, too, and it's relatively fast. Scans look great. But if you are thinking about getting this and you have Macs, beware: The setup is painful. I finally got it to work for one computer, but never could for another. I finally downloaded Gutenprint [...] for the NX400 series, and that seems to work, but does not offer all features. And on the one where I got the Epson drivers to work, it crashes iPhoto. Could be a Snow Leopard problem, in which case I hope it will clear up soon. EPSON also loads dozens and dozens of setup files onto your hard drive that make troubleshooting a challenge. The web-based help is not so good.