Epson Stylus RX640 : Good quality all-in-one (Epson Stylus Photo RX640)

Member Name: tor0908

Product:	Epson Stylus Photo RX640
Date:	25/06/09 (14 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Has printer, scanner, copier, direct from memory card printing and direct CD printing

Disadvantages: Quite bulky

I'm a big fan of digital photography, photoshop and printing my own pictures in every imaginable format. Ever since I invested in my own digital camera I have loved printing my own little 6x4 prints straight away and at a relatively low cost.

I've had a succession of Epson printers and a separate scanner but when I saw the RX640 model which is an all-in-one inkjet printer, scanner and copier I decided that it was best to consolidate.

My old printer had the multimedia card slots and direct CD printing so I wanted to make sure my new one would at least have those functions. I archive a lot of photos on DVD and I like printing my own designs on them so that was quite important to me.

I ordered the RX640 from amazon.co.uk for £171.32 plus £7.65 postage and packing charges. It arrived very quickly and I eagerly opened the box to get it set up.

First off I realised it is quite a bulky item but considering it has three main functions to it, that wasn't surprising. It had a 2.5" LCD display screen for previewing pictures when printing from memory cards, which is useful as it means you don't have to turn your computer on to print pictures if you are in a hurry. The paper tray at the bottom flips down when in use so it keeps the unit looking neat and tidy.

You can connect this printer to your PC via usb cable but I don't think it is essential. You could use it as a standalone machine to print out photos direct from memory cards, or as a photocopier. All you need then is a power supply.

The software takes a while to load on as there are quite a few different applications to install as well as the drivers, such as the PrintCD program for printing your own designs on printable media or the EpsonScan program which makes scanning extremely easy.

The print quality from this printer is excellent, especially when using the original Epson ink. However this can work out quite expensive as you require six separate cartridges (black, cyan, light cyan, magenta, light magenta and yellow) and they retail for approximately £10.99 per cartridge. After twelve months I have always bought compatible ink which is a lot cheaper (around £8.99 for a full set). The borderless prints come out well and you can go up to A4 size prints if you wish.

The scanner on this model is also really good. I use the EpsonScan program to scan documents and photos and it automatically scans and sizes the images so the file sizes are not too big, without losing quality. You can alter the settings for better results if you wish but I have left them on default and have no complaints about the image quality.

I haven't really used the copier function much but you can either copy in colour or black and white and the text documents I have copied have turned out well.

I really like this all-in-one and it has certainly saved some room on my desk!

Summary: Economical printer with decent features