Designers and creators, here’s an Epson printer that prints on and on and on… and all cartridge-free!

Have you ever been in the middle of printing something and suddenly the paper scrolls out, only with half the job done – and with that dreaded message popping up on your screen: Printer out of paper. Ahhhhhh!

It used to happen in our office all the time – usually when we’ve been in the middle of printing address labels for competition winners (and often on the last page!) or when we’re printing out QR codes for events we’re going to over the weekend – and you know how much ink a concert ticket can use up when its ultimately printed out, particularly those with big ads all over them.

But that’s what you get when you put your trust in an ink cartridge-only printer.

Thankfully, the clever folk at Epson have unveiled a range of wireless, all-in-one printers that offer cartridge-free printing with easy-to-fill, supersized ink tanks. And I mean supersized.

For the EcoTank ET-2850, which we’ve been using in the office, each replacement ink bottle set includes enough ink to print around 6,000* pages. Not only is this handy in that we don’t have to bother with all the replacing of cartridges, the number of pages printed would have otherwise have required about 188 individual cartridges!

What this means of course is less landfill or recycling required of those plastic carts we would have otherwise used. When it does come time to refill each tank, things are nice and easy, as each EcoTank colour ink bottle is uniquely keyed and labelled.

Each bottle is keyed so that it only fits into the corresponding ink tank on the printer, which means no mis-filling and no spillage. 

Additional low-cost ink can be bought in convenient high-volume bottles that have a drip-free nozzle and resealable cap for easy storage and refilling. Super-neat!

It’s all so easy to set up and fill up, while colour geeks, like me, are sure to get a kick out of seeing each of the colour ink canisters – cyan, magenta and yellow – filling up with their designated vivid liquids.

PRINT STACKS OF STUFF

We’re aware that you’re as eco-friendly as we are and so you avoid printing any time you can. Those pages that you no longer need probably go into your trusty recycling bin, and you’re always – like us – looking to avoiding printing errors to save paper.

But there are times when you do require a big printing job – the announcement of some big news… a poster being circulated for a lost puppy… a birthday party to plan when you want a nice printed aesthetic and not a cheap Facebook invite.

Even better news is that the Epson EcoTank ET-2850 boasts a 100-Sheet Paper Capacity – printing stacks of pages without interruption and without you having to get up and top up the paper tray every few days. An automatic two-sided printing option means you can also save up to 50% of your paper supply.

Fitting in stacks of paper, a bigger paper tray means a bigger machine, but the look of the printer itself is minimalist in design: big, black (or white), and blocky so that it fits in with any office (or home office) décor.

PRINTING ON THE GO

This premium printer also offers convenient wireless printing from tablets and smartphones. Easily print from iPad, iPhone, Android tablets and smartphones I with the printer’s already installed software including Wi-Fi Direct.

Now here’s the spooky techno bit: the EcoTank ET-2850 is powered by a heat-free technology known as Epson Micro Piezo which utilises piezo crystals that pulse when electrical signals are sent to them by the printer but that keep the machine cool. It produces incredibly consistent droplets, both in shape and size, so as to deliver clear and sharp printing.

To test it, simply sync up your iPhone** or Android device, take a snazzy shot, press the print button when it pops up, et voila, a quality printed document comes out.

While all the action is happening wirelessly, you can keep up with exactly what’s going on by viewing the 1.44″ colour display screen at the front of the printer. Admittedly, the screen could be a little bigger, still it’s a convenient panel that makes it easy to monitor, print, scan and do more, all from your hand-held device.

The Epson EcoTank ET-2850 all so very compact, easy-to-navigate, and less of a hassle, really; a huge saving grace (not to mention the cost savings) in a busy little office like ours.

Antonino Tati

The Epson EcoTank ET-2850 retails at RRP $499, available from quality electronic outlets and through Epson direct at epson.com.au.

* With an integrated high-capacity ink tank system, the Epson EcoTank ET-2850 comes with enough ink in the box to print up to 6,500 pages in black / 5,200 pages in colour without worrying about ongoing ink replacement and costs.

** Good news for Apple users: Apple^® Airprint™ makes it simple to print emails, web pages, presentations and documents straight from an iPad or iPhone. There’s no software to download, no drivers to install and no cables to connect. Your Apple IOS device will automatically connect to the printer.