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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
62 of 64 found the following review helpful:
 Good printer, but high total cost of ownership Dec 04, 2008
By Erik
I like the printer, and I would recommend it. My only real complaint is the total cost of ownership is high. Order a set of ink at $60 when you order the printer, because within a couple weeks of starting it up, you'll need to replace them.
Pros:
1. Instructions were great for wireless install.
2. Prints quality is good.
3. Machine looks great.
4. The printer has never failed to print.
Cons:
1. 6 individual ink cartridges at $10 each, or $15 each for high capacity.
2. The printer's initial startup uses about 1/2 of the ink that ships with the printer. This is explained in the manual.
3. There is no information on the difference between the high capacity ink cartridges and the standard.
4. I don't think you'll find aftermarket Epson ink like you can with some brands.
5. Sometimes the printing takes a couple minutes to get started.
6. I get a lot of error messages, mostly "The printer has detected some print head nozzles are clogged. To help with the nozzle recovery please wait 6 hours. Then try printing again." Helpdesk's suggestion was that I go into the menu and turn off the print nozzle check. That is an odd solution, but the printer continues to print fine.
7. With the number of print errors I get, and the time it takes to start printing (sometimes), I've never felt totally comfortable with the printer. But helpdesk was responsive, and I've got the box if I need to send it back to Epson.
50 of 52 found the following review helpful:
 Very good but has drawbacks Jan 12, 2009
By Douglas H. Hunter
"dhhunter"
I have owned this printer for about a week now. It is the third Epson printer I have owned. Fundamentally, in terms of image quality this is a very good product. Printed documents, photos, DVDs, as well as photo copies and scans all look very good. I am impressed by how good the images look for how little money this printer costs. I am also impress by how fast it prints. It truly delivers when it comes to basic functionality and printing a high quality image. Also, the CD/DVD printing feature is much improved over earlier printers in the Epson line.
There are some important drawbacks though. First, Epson needs to either stop using six independent ink carts. or make the carts twice their current size. The six cart. system has no practical purpose other than to increase the amount of money consumers spend on ink. In two days I had to replace my black ink cart. If you purchase this product expect to pay a lot for ink over the life of the printer. In addition, if you print a high volume of artwork, or photos, etc. You are most likely better off with another product.
The second drawback is that this is that there are several flimsy plastic parts on the printer. For example, all the moving parts of the paper trays are very fragile, and will no doubt snap off if not handled with care.
The third drawback was the software install. I am an advanced computer user and I have not had a bad software install in many years, until, that is, I tried to install the software that came with this printer. After the first bad install, I uninstalled, and then manually deleted all remaining Epson related files. After that I reinstalled the software. Again, the installation was incomplete. Both times the install stopped prior to completion with no system error message or obvious culprit hindering the install. Regardless, enough software installed that I am using the printer but there is some bad behavior That I have yet to work through.
I purchased the product because I am an author and filmmaker. I rely on my printers do to a lot for me, I print a fair amount of photo based artwork, DVD faces, and documents. While I am very happy with the way everything looks. I can't recommend this printer if what you are looking for is an easy to use, low maintenance product. If you are looking to get a lot out of a single product and don't mind putting up with some potential problems then consider it. But consider other products as well.
28 of 30 found the following review helpful:
 Exceptional all in one! Oct 14, 2008
By Midwest Keiki
I ordered this for what seemed to be the perfect mix of features that would be convenient for my family (occasional copying and scanning, printing color output for the kids, and printing photos). The wireless connection feature made it possible to not clutter the family room (already home to a laser printer and desktop).
OK, it's beautiful just sitting there - but it also works like a dream. Setting it up to add it to my secured pre-N network was a breeze. Printing over the wireless network worked fine (even with my printer being 2 rooms away from my router). The output is quick, and the prints on ultra- or premium photo paper are beautiful. The included tray lets you load regular and photo paper (and just select the one you want) for printing.
The unit has a card reader, that lets you print directly from a card. A cool feature is that you can also scan directly to a card as well. For some reason, I thought it could scan across the network, but a call to (very polite) tech support confirmed that this cannot be done. The scanner seems to be a bit slower (in auto mode) than my Epson Perfection 3170, but I haven't compared it systematically.
This is perfect for a home office, and for a family with kids.
26 of 28 found the following review helpful:
 EPSON Artisan 700 All-in-One Printer Dec 30, 2008
By Michael A. Marsicek
After MUCH research to try and find a good all-in-one that also does pictures, I settled on the Epson Artisan 700. BIG MISTAKE!!! I received the printer and went through the setup process and was confronted with these issues:
1. What the ads don't tell you is that the ink provided with your printer is just about all used up just to "charge" the print head.
2. If your print head needs cleaning (which mine supposedly did on a new printer), you must have enough ink left in your cartridges or it will not work. Epson wants you to run the head cleaning process a minimum of four times before calling for help.
3. You will almost immediately have to purchase more ink cartridges to print anything or to clean the head to the tune of $77 for a full set (I paid $149 for the whole printer!) You do the math.
After MANY attempts at cleaning the head, no luck. Printer #1 back to the company (THAT part worked well at least).
Second printer arrived and THE SAME THING HAPPENED!! It now wants me to fork over another $77 for ink. I don't think so...printer #2 is now going back to Epson. This all occurred within a week.
Bottom line--I would not recommend this printer to anyone! I went out and bought a Canon MP620 (on sale at Best Buy or Circuit City for $99) and this thing runs like a champ! Setup = easy! Pictures = beautiful! Highly recommend a Canon...
16 of 16 found the following review helpful:
Mostly a really nice printer with a few caveats Feb 20, 2009
By Jon Jones
THE LONG
With the recent demise of an office printer, and quirkiness of a disagreeable scanner, I decided it was time to replace them both with the purchase of a new all-in-one unit. On the day I was set to make a purchase Epson had just released a new series, the Epson Artisan all-in-one printer/scanner/copier. After perusing the specs on the Epson site, I decided to purchase the Epson Artisan 700 that day.
The printer comes in solid black, and has a very sleek and smooth appearance, slightly more refined than the similar Epson Workforce series. It is larger than a typical desktop printer, but seemed smaller than I expected from an all-in-one. Considering the unit also includes a full-page scanner, memory card reader, tilt-out control panel, built-in wireless connectivity and dual paper trays, it packs a great deal into a very conservative footprint.
STARTUP SMARTS
Setup was not without snafus. This being my first all-in-one, I was unfamiliar with the number of places from which one might need to remove secure tape and lock tabs on the inside of a printer. (These are in place to prevent the internal components from breaking during shipment.) For my part, upon startup, I was presented an error code from the printer, which I could not override. Further exploration revealed a lock tab still in place. The quick set-up guide is intended to help avoid this, but being a simple printout of cryptic graphics, I found it confusing as a set-up aide. Once set-up was properly completed, installing ink was a breeze with the easy-access ink bin, and I could run the unit through its paces. (I will address concerns about the ink shortly.)
Loading the paper into the Artisan was fairly straightforward, and presented a nifty bonus. The Artisan paper tray is dual-level. The lower tray accommodates standard full-page paper sizes, while the upper tray is designed to accommodate smaller card-sized papers and standard photo-sized papers. This alleviates the need to remove the tray and change the paper every time you need to switch from office prints to photo print mode. This is a good thing, too, because the paper tray is annoyingly delicate. Despite the solid feel of the Artisan exterior, the interior paper tray is rather flimsy, and requires handling with kid gloves. I have frequently dislodged the level separator seemingly from just looking at it wrong. The less I have to change paper, the better.
I think it is important to note, however, that the dual-level nature of the tray makes each layer very shallow, and allows for minimal stacks of paper loads.
I SAID "WORK IT"
Prominently featured on the Artisan front side is a control panel and menu display. The menus are straightforward and intuitive, and allow for many of the printer functions without the need for computer-assisted intervention. With my previous desktop printers, I have set them up to print wirelessly on my home network. This approach has generally made it difficult to accomplish various printer-related tasks such as checking ink levels and routine print-head maintenance. Such tasks required computer intervention via wired connectivity. With the Artisan, these functions are standalone procedures independent of a connected computer. Additionally, basic function such as print, scan, copy, etc are also manageable from the control panel, as is access to photos via the built-in card reader, which boasts compatibility with over two dozen memory card formats. Finally, you can also choose to print ruled or lined notebook style pages, background image stationary, and rudimentary greeting cards and other projects - all from the built-in menu system of the Artisan 700.
Tucked behind the control panel lies a CD/DVD print tray. This allows for direct printing to compatible print-on CDs and DVDs. Direct-to-disc printing is the primary print requirement in my office, and the reason I selected the Artisan. I have printed to discs via Epson printers for several years and have come to rely heavily on this feature. Although it was rather clumsily implemented on previous models, the Artisan takes a different approach by using an automated disc feeder that drops down and outward when selected, so that the user can place the blank disc onto the tray and initiate the automated print sequence. The resulting prints maintain the high quality I have come to expect from Epson, and the discs are printed in less than half the time needed with my previous printer models. This feature has provided a substantial boost to my workflow.
My scanning needs are very modest, and the Artisan performs adequately. It scans at a maximum optical setting of 2400 dpi, and the process is moderately speedy, providing clean, sharp, and reasonably color-accurate scans. Users with more demanding scanning needs might consider the larger and more robust Artisan 800 model.
YOU'VE GOT THE LOOK
The print quality, in my opinion, is nothing short of astounding. I am not a print professional, so I may not have as critical and eye as others regarding the output of an inkjet printer. But out of the 8 Epson inkjet printers I have had over the last few years, the prints I am getting from the Artisan are unquestionably the best I've seen. The Artisan uses Claria inks, which I don't know anything about, except that it boasts smudge-proof, fade and water-resistant prints that Epson claims will last up to 4 times longer than lab prints.
THINK INK
But this all comes with a tradeoff, which brings me to the topic of the Artisan inks. Like the R-series printers I have used for years, the Artisan uses 6 ink tanks. This allows for better color accurate prints, and theoretically more economic value in only having to replace individual ink cartridges when they are independently exhausted. I don't think I have ever seen an Epson printer eat up ink cartridges faster than this Artisan. Certainly, the printer ships with ink cartridges when purchased, but some of the ink is expended when the printer is first primed. The manual explains this, but it also notes that the shipped cartridges are full when shipped - which contradicts a long-held certainty that model-accompanying cartridges only ship at half-capacity.
In either case, after the first 5 photo prints, the printer indicated that I needed to replace one of the ink cartridges because it was already empty.
WHAT?
Luckily, I had ordered a 2nd set of ink cartridges at the time of purchase.
I have subsequently taken to ordering the high capacity cartridges (available only online directly from Epson). While I haven't been able to track down any official specifics detailing the difference between the standard capacity and high capacity ink cartridges, a commonly held belief is that they provide roughly 100% more yield, at a 50% price increase. The higher capacity cartridges have certainly seen me through longer print runs. And I must also note that because the Artisan is a new model series, dedicated ink tank solutions are not yet available from third-party manufacturers. At the moment, using an Artisan printer means using the premium-priced Epson inks, and a conscientious owner will need to factor that into the true cost of ownership.
The Artisan also boasts additional connectivity options through Ethernet or wifi - both of which can be used in a networked printing environment. I haven't used either option, so I cannot comment on those features. It is nice to know that if my office grows into networking needs, my Artisan printer can grow with it.
THE SHORT
As with many new models in a product line, it may take a while to work out the bugs - and new owners may suffer underwhelming experiences with their new devices. Some units off the line have proven to be lemons. A perusal of reviews online have demonstrated that error messages or negative experiences with new models right out of the box are not uncommon. Many reviewers, on the other hand, have had great experiences with this new Artisan printer from the very start. The Artisan launch has been a mixed bag. Luckily, Epson provides a two-year warranty on the Artisan (twice the industry norm), and promises free technical support for the lifetime of the printer. This demonstrates a high level of confidence in the product line, and suggests that if you have a little extra patience during setup and can bear the brunt of premium Epson ink pricing, the Artisan may be a sound investment for your printing, scanning or copying needs.
SHOP SMART
The Artisan can be purchased online directly from Epson, or at any number of online merchant sites, such as Amazon. You can also find it available at several popular office supply or computer stores. Through dealer incentives, rebates and sales, this model has experienced a lot of price fluctuations, so be sure to look before purchasing to ensure you get the best deal at the moment. Also, note that if you are seeking some of the accessories that go with the Artisan, such as an Auto Duplexer, or the High Capacity Ink Cartridges, they are generally only be available directly from Epson.
THE RUNDOWN
PROS:
* Competitive pricing
* Great looking printer
* 6 individual ink tanks
* Beautiful quality prints
* Standalone print/scan/copy capability
* Dual-level paper tray
* Direct to CD/DVD printing with great results
* 2-year warranty and free technical support
CONS:
* Confusing setup
* Flimsy and shallow paper tray
* Uses proprietary and expensive inks with high cost-per-print ratio
See all 110 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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