The SmallBizWindows Epson Artisan 800 Review

smallbizwindows2 The Epson Artisan 800 is a 5-in-1 device, giving users print, copy, scan, fax, and photo printing capabilities.

I have had a copy of this beautiful device installed in my office at The Orbiting O’Odua for the past several months.

The Epson Artisan 800
I unboxed the Artisan, and found it DID contain a USB cable.

(I have deducted award points from the Epson WorkForce series in the past for not having USB cables in the box. I mean, it is a USB cable. For goodness sakes!)

Including that, the box contained a quick-setup guide, and a software disc. I copied the contents of the software disk to the network share for drivers, and went about setting up the printer.

I connected the Artisan 800 to the wired network here at the O’Odua, discovered it on the client systems, and installed the drivers. I then activated wireless networking, and then realized that it required manual tuning - an annoyance, but definitely not a STOP event.

The A800 was auto-discovered by Windows 7, and provisioned with the generic print and scan drivers. I then installed the Epson drivers, and proceeded to be useful

What does the Artisan 800 have?

  •  
    • Dual paper trays – plain paper and photo paper
    • Wired/wireless connectivity
    • Up to 38 pages per minute, in both text and black-and-white
    • A maximum scanning resolution of 4800 dpi,
    • Fast photo printing,
    • Excellent photo prints

Using the Artisan 800
The Artisan 800 displaced my trusty old HP LaserJet 1320dn printer in my office. The speed of the device also allowed me to displace, and eventually give away the Color LaserJet 2900 used by the family.

Was the A800 fast? You betcha’! ::wink, wink::

Everything about the A800 has been superb, and I have to stop myself from using superlatives indiscriminately here. One of the best things about the A800 is how fast it is, be it b&w or color output. This printer is wicked fast.The included software makes creating documents waaay too easy, and for someone with a new child, I have printed a gazillion prints with this device.

What didn’t I like about the Artisan 800?

i) The lack of an included duplexing unit. This removed major points from the printer, and really annoyed me to no avail

ii) Provision for legal-size paper in the paper tray.

Conclusions
I like this printer.

I had thought that the fact that it did not have a duplexing unit would drop it in points. However, the performance of this printer, even under heavy printing loads impressed me.

I cannot wait to see what improvements, if any are contained in the Artisan 810.

This is a SmallBizWindows Superstar product.

smallbizwindows2

Resources used

  • Microsoft Windows 7
  • Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2
  • Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008 R2
  • HP tx2000 Notebook
  • HP tx2 Tablet PC
  • HP dv2 Notebook
  • HP Mini 1000 netbook
  • HP x510 Data Vault
  • HP z400 Personal Workstation
  • HP z800 Personal Workstation
  • HP dx9000 TouchSmart Business PC
  • HP IQ518 TouchSmart PC
  • HP ProLiant M110 G5
  • HP ProLiant M350 G5
  • Toshiba Tecra M7

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