A Cold Look at the Epson 740
Written: Nov 17 '99
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: print quality, price, USB connectivity
Cons: what's not to like?
|
|
|
| coldeye's Full Review: Epson Stylus® Color 740 InkJet Printer |
Trying to decide which color printer to buy? Considering Epson's Stylus Color 740 or 740i? Well, here's the lowdown.
In my opinion, I don't think you can do better than the 740 when it comes to the best combination of print quality, speed, and price--the three features that are most important in choosing a printer. Using something called MicroPiezo inkjet technology, which essentially produces much smaller ink drops, the 740 gives you 1440 x 720 dpi photo-quality color and surprisingly sharp black text. It pumps out 4 to 5 pages per minute in color and 6 in black and white, which is more than decent. And as far as price, I paid $149.95 for mine, with free shipping, through Everything iMac (www.everythingimac.com). I think prices are particularly low right now because Epson will soon be replacing the 740 with a new model, the 760. From what I can tell, the 760 might be a little faster, but otherwise seems pretty similar to the 740.
The 740 is flexible, too. It supports parallel, serial, and USB connections and has drivers for both Mac and Windows systems. It also comes in a very cool translucent version--the 740i--designed expressly for iMacs. You can get special covers in all five iMac colors--blueberry, grape, tangerine, lime, and strawberry.
Here's a full run down of the 740's specifications:
-Printing Method: Four-color (CMYK) drop-on-demand MicroPiezo inkjet technology
-Nozzle Configuration:
Monochrome head: 144 nozzles
Color head: 48 nozzles x 3 (CMY)
-Resolution: 1440 x 720 dpi; 720 x 720 dpi; 360 x 360 dpi; 180 x 180 dpi
-Print Speed:
Black text memo: 10 seconds (approx. 6 ppm)
Color speed: approx. 4.5 ppm (text and color graphics)
Photo speed: 4'' x 6'': 1 minute 19 seconds 8'' x 10'': 2 minutes 59 seconds
-Sound Level: 47 dB(A)
-Printer Language: Epson ESC/P2
-Software Driver: Windows 3.1x, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT 4.0x, Macintosh System 7.x and 8.x
-Software: Adobe PhotoDeluxe 2.0, Broderbund's Print Shop PressWriter
-Dimensions (W x D x H): 17.1'' x 11.5'' x 6.6'' (L x W x H) 11.5 lb
-Interface: Parallel interface; Macintosh compatible 8-pin mini-din serial interface (up to 1.8 Mbps max. transfer rate), USB connectivity
-Printable Area:
8.26'' x 10.76'' (letter size)
Top margin: .12''
Left margin: .12''
Right margin: .12''
Bottom margin: .12''
-Paper Capacity:
Input paper tray: 100 sheets/10 envelopes
Output paper tray: 30 sheets
-Paper Handling:
Single sheets: letter, legal, A4, executive, statement, plain, bond, Epson Photo Quality film and paper, transparencies, self-adhesive sheets, inkjet cards, banner paper, labels, envelopes, and iron-on transfers
Envelopes: No. 10, DL, C5, plain paper, bond paper, air mail
-Environmental Characteristics:
Operating: 50 to 95 F(10 to 35 C)
Storage: -4 to 140 F (-20 to 60 C)
Operating: 20 to 80% relative humidity
Storage: 5 to 85% relative humidity (no condensation)
Safety Approvals: Safety Standards: UL1950 with D3, CSA22.2 950 with D3; R.F.I. FCC Part 15 subpart B cl a s s B
-Reliability:
MTBF: 4000 power on hours
Print head life: 2000 million dots/nozzle (color and monochrome)
Total print volume: 75,000 pages (letter or A4)
-Electrical Requirements:
Rated voltage: 120V AC +/- 10%
Rated frequency: 50 to 60Hz
Rated current: 0.5 Amp (max.)
Power consumption: Approx. 18W (self test mode)
-Ink Cartridge Life:
Black ink life: 900 pages text (ISO/IEC 10561 letter pattern) 634 pages graphic (5% coverage)
Color ink life: 300 pages (15% coverage)
Shelf life: Two years from production
-Warranty: One year limited in the U.S. and Canada
All in all, I've found this a tremendous little printer.
Recommended:
Yes
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
coldeye
|
|
Reviews written: 10
Trusted by: 3 members
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.