Epson Stylus C86 InkJet Printer --- Getting the job done cheap

Having burned out my latest printer, it was time to get a new one, and money was going to be a factor. We didn't want to purchase one that would cost us an arm and a leg, and because printing is normally regulated to a few major instances per month, a laser printer was not going to be one of our options. Scanning through the available printers, we were looking for one that could get the job done, while residing on the cheap end of the pricing scale. The one that we ended up going with, was the Epson Stylus C86 InkJet Printer. Having used Epson printers in the past, I knew it was a brand that we could rely on again, and I didn't see any negatives to going with the C86. We tried ordering it directly from Epson, because they were offering a discount. This ended up being a useless endeavor, because they ended up declining out order. So be it. We ended up going over to the Staples online site, and saw that they were offering a discount anyways, which we took full advantage of.

As I stated, we were looking for a cheaper version (cost-wise) in a printer, and this one was only going to cost us $79.99. The listed cost was $99.99, but they were offering a $20.00 rebate that looked pretty nice to me. The cost of the Ink was going to be an add on, and it ended up bumping the price up a little ways, but that was because of bad advertising and bad research on my part. Normally, when you are purchasing a printer, it tells you whether or not ink cartridges will be included in the purchase of your selection. With all of the information I had found, there was no listing of the cartridges being included, so I fell under the assumption that I was going to have to add it to my purchase. For this printer, the colors are in separate cartridges, which makes it easier to change/exchange them when a specific color decides that it is time to run out. With HP printers, you aren't given that choice, instead you have one color cartridge that becomes wasted if you over-use a specific color. For the cyan, magenta, yellow, and black cartridges, the cost of replacement runs anywhere from $11.88 to $13.00 as I have seen on the Net. Looking around for the best deal on those is always the best. Back to assumption that I had, it proved false, as the printer DID come with all of the separate ink cartridges. This was a huge bonus, because it meant we were getting even more value for our purchase, and now we would have a back-up supply of extra ink.

Along with the 4 Ink cartridges, the printer comes with a software CD-Rom, a quick guide to the Epson C86, Printer Installation Directions, A paper support tray, and a power cord. What it does not come with, is a USB cable or a Parallel cable to hook the printer up to your computer. The key here, is remembering to save these cables from older printers, because you never know when one will come in handy. In my example, I had saved the USB cable from my old Epson Color 900, and was able use it just as easily with the C86. The printer works on computers that have Windows XP, Windows ME, Windows 98, windows 200, or on a Macintosh with OS 9 or OS X. The computer that I use, is an Apple eMac G4. We set it up to be workable with both OS9 and OSX, and the installation was quite easy. You simply put in the CD, and follow the instruction pamphlet, which offers step by step instructions on what to click or select in your computers applications files. It came off without a hitch, and we were up and able to print in a matter of mere moments.

For printing purposes, the Epson C86 5 main quality options in the settings that you can print from. These are draft (for rough drafts with a reduced print quality), Text (for documents such as word but with higher quality), Text and Image (for documents with text and pictures), Photo, and Best Photo (photos with extensive graphics). These options allow you to print some things with the best quality of ink possible, and at other times just print off test sheets without using up too much ink. The different options are quite evident when you are printing, and after a little while, you get used to knowing which type of print will produce what results. If you so wish, you can even change the brightness of your prints to conserve even more ink, if that is the route you want to go. Within the same menus, is a window that shows just how much of each type of ink is left in the cartridges. This is useful if you do a lot of printing, and want to know exactly how much ink you have left, or when you need to plan on reordering one of your cartridges. For the installation and/or reinstallation of the print cartridges, it merely takes you opening the flap where they are kept on the printer, and there are picture diagrams inside that tell you what to do. This is also a very easy task to undertake.

The printer can put out about 20-22 pages per minute of just text, but it does slow down a little when pictures are included. I would say around 12-15 pages per minute for color prints, and slightly less if there are pictures in those. If you are using this printer to print full-page pictures, you are talking between 1 and 2 minutes to print out on glossy paper. So, for normal work or home office use, the 22 pages per minute suits most people just fine. Each of the color cartridges advertises 450 pages worth of ink, and the black cartridges 420 pages for the standard capacity, but goes up to 950 if you purchase the high capacity cartridge for a few bucks more. It is really a great thing that the cartridge colors work separately, because then you have an easier time changing out one of them once you have expended it. The paper tray holds about 120 normal size pieces of paper, and if you are going for glossy paper, I wouldn't put more than 20 in there at a time. The tray is also adjustable for sliding in envelopes or address labels that need printed, so it becomes a benefit to having an external tray like on this model.

The Epson Sylus C86 InkJet Printer is not only easy to use, but easy to set-up and trouble shoot. If you ever come across any problems, there is first an on-screen help option from the downloaded drivers, and then there is technical support that you can either find online or through their telephone services. It would seem that they really want their customers to be happy with the products, and they do provide every avenue possible to insure just that. I have been very happy with the C86, not only because of its ease of use, but because we were able to get it for such a low cost. Sure, the ink cartridges can be expensive down the road if we don't conserve our use, but that has never been too much of a worry for us. If you are looking for a desk computer at the office, or just something to hook up at home, I think the C86 is a great option to go with. It is available at most online computer stores, as well as in the physical stores themselves. At less than $100.00 for a great printer like this, there really is no down side.