Customer Reviews

Epson Stylus Photo 890 Inkjet Printer

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I did a review after I first set it up and ran several photos through. Now I have run two sets of color cartridges and 2-1/2 rolls of 4" photo paper and several greetings cards through it and I am even more impressed.

PRINT QUALITY EQUIVALENT TO SILVER HALIDE BUT LIFE MAY NOT: As I said in my earlier review a professional photo-evaluator, had recommended this printer to me, as its print quality looks almost like a silver halide print. One concern however, is storage. It is my understanding ink-jet prints though they may look equivalent to that of silver halide, do not have the life span. Only time will tell.

EASY TO USE I make my living evaluating items for ease of use and this printer impressed me. One concern I had when I first realized you had to change some of the parts of the printer for 4" roll paper was ease of doing this, as it was placed up on a shelf and not easy for me to access. I was pleasantly surprised.

PAPER LOADING THOUGH AT FIRST IS CONFUSING GOES TOGETHER NICE: The Epson printer has a two-piece assembly for the back paper-loading section. One part is made to accept two different assemblies. One for sheet paper, and the other for roll paper. Once you first install this piece, it goes in easy. Initially it was a little confusing from the instructions. However, since you have to change part of this to put in the paper roll, I had a chance to do this at least 10 times. I'm happy to say, loading the paper on the roll and dropping this into the back of the printer is easy to do. Given where I put my printer this could have been a nightmare. The printer once the roll paper is placed here and placed toward the back of the printer virtually self loads. The book does a nice job telling you how to setup the "film factory" software to maximize this usage as well. The 4" roll paper once done can be advanced to cut and then put back in loaded position or in position to remove from the printer. All it takes is one button push for each and the printer does the work.

INK CHANGE MID-PRINTING: This was amazing. My ink ran out right in the middle of a large print run for photos on the 4" wide roll paper. I anticipated wasted paper or a need to prematurely change the ink. Luckily Epson thought this all out for me. Once the ink was exhausted the printing stopped and cued up the ink cartridge. It also gave me plenty of warning if I had no cartridge on hand. Each print I did, I was shown the status of the ink cartridges. When it ran out, it stopped nicely after a print and told me it could go no further. At that time I could advance the picture to cut if I wanted to and then requeue the paper. It offered me instructions (which I used) to change the cartridge and nicely showed me each step, including removing the strip that protects the contacts. Once the cartridge was changed it resumed the printing job. Ironically, once this happened when I could not attend to it, and it patiently waited for over 8 hours for me and then went like clockwork when done.

EASE OF FINDING INK-JET CARTRIDGES AND EPSON PAPER Needless to say, once you get the printer, you will need to purchase replacement cartridges. I'm finding it easier to find the cartridges online. However, I'm sure speciality stores would have these cartridges, but they are not in grocery stores like some of the HPs and Canon's are. As far as the paper, I'm also not finding it as plentiful in the real world as online. Online is amazingly cheaper as well, even considering shipping. Key is buying enough at one time.

FOR BEST QUALITY USE EPSON PAPER: It makes a major difference when you use Epson paper with this printer. If you want the best quality, this is what you should do. This is not saying other papers won't work, but the results may be unexpected. On one of the other competitor's paper, I tried, I got an iridescent 3D effect, when I tried it. Not good.

P.S. This review was before I had used Kodak's One Touch to better Pictures. Please see my Kodak Paper review prior to making your buying decision. I was really impressed with what Kodak did.

COMPARISON: I have owned a Lexmark, Brother and HP printers and have never been so impressed at the quality of the product as I have been with this printer. The external construction is solid, the initial use was seamless and its end product is exceptional. Nice job!

Yesterday, I received the Epson 890.

SETUP IN UNDER 1/2 HOUR

Within 1/2 hour, I had it hooked up and running. I have Windows ME and a Soyata 733MHz computer. (A Soyata is a Rochester NY company that assembles computers)

RECOMMENDED BY A PROFESSIONAL PRINT EVALUATOR

I had been recommended this printer (the Epson 890) or the Epson 1280 (for larger print sizes) based on a co-worker's experiences with an Epson 870. She is a professional print evaluator and told me it was the best on the market. Not quite as good as traditional photos, but for a high mega pixel camera, almost indistinguisable to the amateur (which I am).

LOOKS AS GOOD AS A PHOTO

Well, she was right....WOW! I would be hard pressed to tell the difference in the prints it made, and I was using a photo created by a 1.2 MP camera. Either I'm easy to please or it was real good (Both, could be true).

SETUP NOTES

A couple notes about the setup... All very good.

HUGE BOX FOR SHIPPING, BUT PRINTER VERY LIGHT

The printer arrived in a very big box, but the actually printer box wasn't that big. You had to lift a plastic covered piece of card board with all the small stuff (paper extensions, manuals, etc.) and underneath was the printer. You lifted two pieces of styrofoam and could easily grab the printer. It wasn't really that heavy. Despite the lack of weight it looks solidly built. None of the plastic housings bend when you handle it.

SETTING UP THE PRINTER SIMPLE

You have to remove less than ten peices of very visible blue tape used in packing. It leaves no sticky residue, so this was a cinch. (Don't forget the stuff in the inside too.)

QUICK START WELL DONE

The quick start guide was huge, but well illustrated. I did find it a little confusing on how to put the back paper holder extension in place. As I'm a former mechanical engineer, they might want to work on that a bit. However, once I got the orientation right, it went together simply.

DOES NOT COME WITH CABLES (OTHER PRINTERS DON'T EITHER)

I hooked up the power and USB cable (It does not come with either USB or parallel cables). Ironically, I had ordered a USB cable, but it is being shipped later. Luckily another device I have (a CD burner) had the right size cable and I borrowed it. Following the instructions for PC was simple. The Macintosh instructions are there too.

INSTRUCTIONS WERE ACCURATE

It told me how my computer was going to act and what to do accurately. The software installed seamlessly. There were 3 or 4 photo programs included and I just picked one to use. Mind you have have about 3 already installed on my computer as it is.

RESULTS WERE EVERYTHING I EXPECTED

It came with a roller attachement and paper for it, plus a couple more 8-1/2 X 11 sheets. However, I had some 4 X 6 epson paper on hand that I had used on my other printer. When I used this on this printer, it was phenomenal. Granted, Epson most likely optimized their printer for their paper. They did a good job. It was like night and day from the output I received from my other printer which at 1440 X 720 dpi, was no slouch.

The print was on Epson 4 X 6 photo paper. You would be hard pressed to tell the difference from a tradition photo.

P.S. This review was before I had used Kodak's One Touch to better Pictures. Please see my Kodak Paper review prior to making your paper buying decision. I was really impressed with what Kodak did to make their paper work with this printer.

I started printing my first photos up on Kodak paper with very disappointing results and starting second guessing how wise this purchase had been. Then I used the sample sheet of epson photo paper that came with the printer and all I can say is WOW! This thing is amazing, there's no way to tell between developed photos and ones I've printed up. This was on epsons economical photo paper too, I can only imagine how good they'll come out when I get my shipment of premium glossy epson paper. If your in the market for a photo printer this is the one and remember the paper makes all the difference in the world.

Let me start by saying that this printer is pretty phenomenal! I was a little spooked by a 7/31/2001 review which severely panned the product. However, I'm glad to say that the issues raised in that review did not surface within my experience.

Overall, This printer is awesome! It has decent speed and phenomenal output. The pictures I print have been consistently as good as or even better than the same pictures I get from the store (I've compared picture quality with others who've been with me & taking pictures of the same things I was with their traditional cameras on hikes, family outings, etc.).

The setup was a snap. The directions were clear and easy, and the setup routine was a menu-driven automated system. The printer comes without a cable (as is noted on the marketing literature), so I purchased a USB cable with it. Final installation was as simple as pulling off a few pieces of tape, installing two ink cartridges, and running the automated software.

In printing my first photos, I wasted no paper other than a sheet of plain white paper I used for testing. I utilized the Epson photo software that came with the printer to print my photos. That software is very easy to use, works with any graphics format (jpg. gif, etc.) and and provided stunning results! The only DISSAPPOINTMENT is that the software is only a 21 day trial, after which you must purchase it from Epson ... The other software Epson includes does not have this limitation.

With my purchase, I also purchased ... supplies (8 paper packs, 8 ink cartridges, 3 paper rolls - enough to produce several hundred prints!). The prices of these products were no more expensive than standard ink cartridges and paper products for other printers.

I've used both the photo paper and the roll paper to print pictures with. I actually prefer the roll because it prints with NO waste. The roll paper is a little tricky to install (the print head has some difficulty finding the paper after fresh loads), but a little patience goes a long way as once it's installed, your printing will be a breeze! I've printed 10 photos using regular glossy paper, and ~100 pictures using the roll and I have not experienced the "3 bad prints for every good one" that was written up earlier. I HAVE NOT HAD ONE BAD PRINT YET!

Text printing has been of high quality as well. I wouldn't call it laser printer quality (not quite as crisp). Nonetheless, it's fine for reports, memos, etc. You won't notice the differences until you REALLY look at it.

...you agree that the cost of traditional picture taking and development at a local photolab (24 exposures) is about $20 ($10 for film, $10 for development), and you also consider that you have maybe one or two pictures worth saving from any given roll, it doesn't take long to see how this printer will save you money if you're an avid photo shooter. The digital camera and this printer makes picture taking FUN for me and my family!

In short, if you're going into digital photography, and you've bought the digital camera, you're only half-way there. Finish what you've started and close the loop with a printer purchase. I recommend the Epson Stylus 890. you won't be disappointed.

This is probably the bext printer available for the hobbyist who wants to print digitial photos at home. Overall print quality really is outstanding, with excellent color reproduction and good clarity, and it can be quite cost effective to boot.

The one weak spot is potential color changes that can be brought about by high levels of ozone. This was an issue with the predecessor to the 890 (the 870), and since the two share inkjet cartoridges it has not gone away. I have never experienced the problem, but it does seem to occur for some people. My experience says that this is still the bext printer, even if red colors do shift a little bit towards orange over time.

I prefer to print 4x5 photos, so I print on the 4x5 roll paper from Red River - its less than half the cost of Epson's paper and I like the results better. Print cartridge life is terrific with 4x5 prints, and obviously a good bit shorter with 8x10s. Print speed is fast, and I had no installation issues. It does take a few minutes to become familar with the print driver options, as there are a lot of choices.

I highly recommend this printer. In my experience with Canon and HP photo printers, this Epson photo printer is the best one for money.

Brought this back in May at Amazon for [$] including shipping, this is the best deal for this type of quality. Much more quiet than the stylus photo 700 which I owned. I used Espon glossy photo paper, not the premium glossy, but just the glossy photo papers. The outcome is amazing, and once in a while I use the borderless printing option, and the picture is undistinguishable from a normal picture from the photo lab. Yet, all these wonderful prints are done at 720x1440, I didn't even use the 2880 dpi resolution yet. The color ink last about 18 prints of 8x10. At [$] each, it is actually very cheap compared to others. I tried to use 720x720 dpi on 4x6inch photo, and it looked like a professional processed photograph. So if you plan on print 4x6 size, then your color ink will last much much longer.

Epson has done some fairly naughty things in this bit of hardware that buyers should be aware of before buying.

When the expensive color cartridge is out of any of it's colors the enitre printer ceases to function. Unlike most inkjet printers you can NOT continue to print black output from the full black ink cart. The software disables the whole machine until you feed it another (expensive) color cart. This typifies the business model of selling the hardware (printer) at cost to drive sales of the very lucrative refill market.

The carts also are very prone to becoming fouled and require frequent cleaning, which uses ink and paper, to function correctly. If you do not use this critter daily you can expect to print several pages of garbage each time you do before cleaning is done. Particularly the black carts seen to gum up anytime the unit is left unused for a few days.

Also, the drivers it comes with do not work right under Windows XP. You will need to get the updates from the Epson website.

Those limits in mind it does priont beautiful photo quality, to the edge output. And it does so no more expensively than the solutions from HP and Lexmark. So the good reviews of what it does do here are on target.

I am more than a bit annoyed by the 'driver blakmail' method of forcing a full color cart to print monchrome deocuments. (...)

After reading all the reviews (from Amazon owners, as well as other sites) I was not surprised I would be very pleased. My initial struggle was choosing between the 890 and the 1280 Stylus. The side-by-side specifications looked 98% similar: same ink formula, same inkjet head technology, same software, both borderless prints, etc, etc. OK, OK, but you know, human DNA is about 98% similar to mice DNA. Hmm, I better call Epson to get the real scoop. Bottom line: The 1280 is no better at printing an 8x10 (or smaller) than the 890. Unless you print wide format often, the 890 is probably the better value. Anyways, if I want poster size prints, I can always bring my scanned film to my local lab. The technology is here for you to make better prints than a local shop, so there's no reason to wait any longer. If you love taking photographs and always wanted to "develop" your own prints, the output from this printer is pure eye candy!

I was absolutely stunned at the output from this printer, and I've been around color lasers for years. For the price, I love this new toy.

Paper is key, though. You need to use the premium glossy photo paper to get the prints that are nearly indistinguishable from the real thing. On matte photo paper, the results are more like a poster, still excellent by inkjet standards. You only get one sheet of each to start with, they should provide more. They also provided a feed-in roll so you can print a batch, but I probably won't use that feature.

Source is key, too, if you have crummy pictures, they'll look crummy when printed. I have 2.2 megapixel photos that blow up to almost 8x10 no problem.

Black and white mode is ... well, black and white. Nothing special on that front.

It will also _devour_ ink. Expect maybe 25-35 8x10s before you'll be needing a new color cartridge. It's still a deal compared to lab prices. I didn't deduct for that because you don't deserve this kind of output at the price it sells for.

I wasn't interested in speed, so I didn't mind that the unit takes awhile to warm up and doesn't break any speed records in either color or B/W mode. Setup was easy, I did have one temporary glitch, and the software is pretty solid (WinNT).

I hesitated a long time before buying this printer, in part because HP Photosmart printers seemed a bit cheaper, and also because I had heard horror-stories about some Epson Photo papers. I am glad I finally bought this printer. Installation was a breeze under Windows 98, the printer was up and running in less than 5 minutes, the quality of prints is unbelievable.
The printer is nearly noiseless, it's well protected from dust, etc...
The ability to get borderless prints is a great step forward. I have used the roll of paper and am amazed at the colour and the clarity of definition. I printed around 50 prints with the colour cartridge before it ran dry, but as I know some of the cartridges "given" with a printer are not completely full, I cannot say whether this is an average.
All in all, I heartily recommend this printer to anyone who wants clear, beautiful prints of good-quality photographs, either taken from digital cameras or scanned from old slides.
As for Epson photo paper, just make sure you don't buy an old roll of paper with the mention "for prints under glass or photo-albums", as this mention implies that paper may age when exposed to air. The new paper seems very stable, by all accounts.
Last but not least, use only Epson color ink cartridges if you wish to print photographs.