Interesting Computer Info & Offers. Daily Updates!!

I read review after review debating which printer I should buy for mostly photo reproduction. While not wanting to go to the large size, photo dedicated pro version….I wanted to stay under $200. It came down to the Canon Mp640 and the Epson Artisan 710. Reviewers were pretty much split between the two as positive and negative…What to do? Both have very similar features…wirless, scan, etc..neither of which had much to do with my decision. I finally just decided to take my SD card and have each printer print two or three of the same pic. I started with the Canon, and the print menu was easy and the print speed was great. The pics were very good, but at side angle, had a bit of a hazy quality. Uploaded the same images to the Epson….there was no comparison, photo lab quality through and through. There were areas of one image that were dark and undifined in the Canon print, but were detailed and exposed well in the Epson.

When you also look at Epson having a 2 year warranty vs. 1 for Canon, it says something. The real kicker is from my research, I had every intention of buying the Canon….but the proof was in the photos.
Rating: 5 / 5

The Artisan 710 I have is a replacement for an Artisan 700 I originally purchased.

I will first address the customer service of Epson in regard to this replacement.

The 700 that I originally purchased developed an ink clog that would not clear after numerous attempts to clean it. I had registered the 700 so I was eligible for overnight replacement. I received a refurbished 700, but that printer was defective. (I also received a set of high capacity cartridges with it.) I called Epson, and asked to speak to a second tier tech. After relating my experiences with the two defective 700′s, the tech said that instead of sending another refurbished 700, I would be sent a new Artisan 710. She also agreed to send another set of high capacity ink jet cartridges since I had used up most of the ones I had in the original 700 while attempting to clear the nozzles.

My impression of Epson customer service is that they went beyond what is required in their warranty. Getting an upgraded printer was worth about $50 more than the original 700. The two sets of high capacity cartridges was worth almost $200. (I did get the regular capacity sets as well.) Overnight shipping with pre-paid return for the defective printers was also included.

Installation is much improved over the Artisan 700. Connection to a wireless network is simple. The 710 found my network immediately and it was just a matter of entering the encryption key.

Now as to the features of the Artisan 710. I have used Epson printers for almost twenty years. Each new model has provided the highest quality prints available possible with the technology available when it was introduced. The 710 continues that trend. The printer is quieter and faster than the previous models I have owned. The Claria ink produces beautiful images and is instantly dry when leaving the printer. Claria ink is purported to have a lifetime similar to commercial printing. CD and DVD printing is great if using quality media. I use TDK White Matte DVD+R and Verbatim silver CD-R printable media.

Scanning is simple, although I did have to run the installation disk a second time in order to make the scanner connect wirelessly. Scanning works with any program that supports Twain.

I have found that the 710 seems to use much less ink during normal printing than the 700. I got the 710 a little over a month ago and all of the (standard capacity) ink cartridges still show as almost full.

Some have complained that there are only a few sheets of 4×6 Ultra Premium photo paper included with the printer, along with one printable cd. This is enough to allow new owners to see what is possible with this printer. Previous owners of Epson printers, such as myself, already know which media they need. To include a full package of paper would undoubtedly increase the cost of the printer. It would also possibly be a waste for people like me who only print 8×10 photos. Like any product which relies on disposables, such as razors, Epson makes their real money on ink and paper. It is up to the individual customers to determine which of these disposables they need.
Rating: 5 / 5

I love this printer. The print quality and speed are excellent. Photos are amazing. Also the scan quality is the best I have seen, and if you scan a text document you can get great quality with only a small file size. I have used HP and Brother AIO’s that tend to always create huge file sizes in the range of 2mb per page of text and if you lower the quality to save on size, you “really” lower the quality. The only short coming is not having a document feeder, but you know going in that it doesn’t have one. You can set the software to ask if you have another page after it scans, so you can have multiple page scans. I have scanned in old pictures and they look great on the screen and I reprinted some on 4×6 paper that looked as good as the originals. They didn’t look as good at 8 1/2 x 11, but I expected that.

I have found none of the ink usage problems that another review mentioned. I can only speculate that there is a defect with that printer, as it is so far from my experience. I have had this printer for almost a month and have printed a few pages or pictures on most days. The cartridges all still have over 80% according to the printer’s ink status and no print quality issues.

My only real issue with Epson is with the setup. On two computers that run XP, it was great and easy and everything worked fine, but with a Macbook running Snow Leopard, it was a totally different story. First, you have to go and find the software on Epson’s website and Epson’s website is poorly designed. Then, the new software needs a lot of work. I have the printer wired to my router, and while it would print, it would not scan. I had to go in and change the setting in the software as it was set as if I was using a USB cable when scanning. Also, it would not duplex until I changed some setting. Lastly, the CD Print software on the Mac I found to be useless. On the XP it is very easy to quickly design your cover and the CD/DVD’s come out really great, but then I tried it on the Mac, and the software they provided was very onerous to use, with some time maybe I could figure it out, but it was just so easy on the XP, that I doubt I ever try to figure out the Mac. It was not very intuitive. I have to say that this is the very first time something was easier to do on a Windows computer than a Mac.

The scan straight to a flash drive is also a really nice feature.

Overall, I really like this printer and would highly recommend this printer to anyone using XP. I think (or should I say “hope”) Epson will be able to quickly fix the software problems with Snow Leopard. I imagine they are having problems with Windows 7 right now as well, but I have no first hand knowledge on that. For speed and quality of printing and scanning, this is one great printer and even with the Mac, once I was able to work through the setup problems, it has been a real joy to use. I would get it again even with the issues I had.

Update: I have continued to have problems with Epson running on Snow Leopard. The Epson print drivers cause iPhoto to crash. Also, I am having problems with the printer getting an IP address from the router. I have never had this problem with other printer brands and I am no expert in this area, so I am unable to understand and correct the issue. The printer is wired to my router, but it requires a specific IP address in the Epson Scan Setup software on each Mac running Snow Leopard. When the router changes IP addresses, it messes things up for the whole network. I don’t have any issue with windows XP, just when I turn on a computer running Snow Leopard. After using this printer for almost 2 months, I would strongly advise against buying this if you have a Mac. I may retire this printer when the ink cartridges run out as I had to uninstall the scan function on all my Macs. Epson, please fix your Snow Leopard drivers and your website so it makes sense.
Rating: 5 / 5