Epson Stylus R320 Photo Inkjet Printer

I bought this printer based on reviews and some blind faith.

My wife wanted a printer to print occasional text and some photos. I was under the assumtion that you either want to print photos period or text period and if you want to print text then you're better off with a laser printer and if you want to print photos then get a good dedicated photo printer.

My wifes camera is a small digital. She's been printing pictures from her mothers printer which are painfully pixelated. I didn't want to get something that poor, I insisted on something somewhat better. I thought I'd have to spend $500+ which you can, but she insisted she didn't want something that expensive for scrapbooking. I saw this for $200 and bit my lip. The printers I use at work cost thousands. I thought this would be painfully slow, cheap, marginal quality.

This printer prints amazingly well. It's considered on the high end for a photo printing ink jet. The 8 colors would be better...Read more

I was initially going to give four stars because I hate to give five - but I honestly can't find anything wrong with this printer. It does just what it claims to do, and does it well. Being able to print directly to printable CD-R or DVD-R media is a novel plus, and fun to do. The quality is great on photo papers (Epson paper is best), CDs, and plain paper. The printer operates very quietly. It's a great printer for the price. The six color ink system and Epson's inks yeild very high quality photo prints. Highly recommended.

UPDATE 12/14/2009: I still have this printer after five years, and it is still my primary. It continues to work marvelously and prints photos with lab-like results. It is likely that this specific model is no longer available, probably superceded by a new one - but if you are shopping for a printer, and considering an Epson... they are top quality!

I've owned a long line of HP DeskJet (ink jet) printers. The R320 is my first EPSON, so what induced me to switch?

1. Direct printing of labels onto CD/DVDs -- only EPSON (of the mainline brands) offers this feature. The disks have to be special printable disks (appear to be readily available) with a matt white finish on the top surface. When archiving photos onto a CD, I use one of the pictures to remind users of the included content in addition to the printed description. My Dad really likes this because he can tell at a glance what's on the CD. My daughter uses it to include cover art on music compilation CDs. EPSON's CD/DVD label printing system combines an easy label maker software program on your computer and an included carrying tray that lets the printer handle the printable disk like an envelope tray on many other printers. Very slick and useful addition.

2. Durabrite ink -- EPSON's ink system resists water spotting and looks more like a...Read more