New photo printers are becoming something of a rarity these days, but Epson is aiming to make the idea of printing exciting again with the launch of the impressively affordable new Expression Photo XP-980 all-in-one A3 printer.
It’s aimed at creative households and hobbyists and is designed to deliver high-quality results with the minimum of effort. Consequently, it’s a comparatively compact unit which won’t take up a lot of space on the desktop and it can operate wirelessly from a computer, tablet or smartphone via Wi-Fi Direct. As an all-in-one model, it incorporates both a scanner and copier for up to A4 size originals.
The XP-980 uses Epson’s Claria Photo HD dye-based inks with six colors – cyan, magenta, yellow, black, light cyan and light magenta – to give extended colour depth and saturation. Print sizes range from 3.5x5.0 inches up to borderless A3 at 11x17 inches. The maximum print resolution is 5760x1440 dpi and the printer has dual front-loading trays (one for up to 100 sheets of plain paper and one for heavier photo papers that takes up to 20 sheets) and a rear specialty media feed.
As the front photo paper tray only accepts up to 5x7 inch sheet sizes, the rear eed is for the larger sheet sizes and can only be done one sheet at a time. The printer supports gloss, semi-gloss, matte and lustre photo paper surfaces.
A neat feature is that the output tray automatically extends from its closed position when a print job starts. Also convenient is automatic print head alignment and control is via a 10.9 cm colour touch screen panel. Alternatively, the Epson Smart Panel app enables the printer to be controlled from a mobile device for set up, monitoring, printing and scanning.
The XP-980 has an SD memory card reader plus USB and Ethernet ports and wireless connectivity via Wi-Fi (2.4 and 5.0 GHz) and Wi-Fi Direct. The printer also supports wireless printing via Apple AirPrint and Mopria Print Service.
The Epson Expression Photo XP-980 photo printer is priced at $279.99 / £249.99 / AU$399.
