Great Budget Printer (Epson Stylus Colour C20SX)

Member Name: rooooo

Product:	Epson Stylus Colour C20SX
Date:	15/03/02 (682 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Price, Looks, Footprint

Disadvantages: Noise, Speed

When my old Epson Stylus Colour 400 died after 6 years of faithful service, I've got to admit, I only really looked at one manufacturer - another Epson.

For me the choice wasn't difficult. I wanted a top quality photo printer, but until I get a digital camera outfit, there seemed little point in spending the £200 + on something I wouldn't use...yet. So I chose to go for a budget printer that would tide me over until then and do the small amount of black and white and occasional colour printing I do.

The budget end of the market is fairly sparse, with printers from HP, Lexmark and Xerox offering low cost. But the former two also offered low quality and high cartridge prices. The reviews of the Epson C20 and the Xerox M760 I had read had all been favourable, and combined with the low price had cheaper cartridges it was a tussle between these two. What swung it for me was my previous good experience and the looks of the Epson.

It was well packaged and came with the cartridges and power cable, although not a USB cable. The instructions, both paper based, and on screen were easy to follow. Installing it was a breeze - although some of the paper based instructions didn't match what actually happened on screen, which could cause confusion for novices. When I did the first print run there was an awful grating sound coming from the printer. This turned out to be a hidden bit of packing, which wasn't mentioned in the instructions, and wasn't easy to see when installing the cartridges. After this was removed, everything worked fine.

I never expected print quality to be excellent, although I did expect a slight improvement over my old Epson, and that is exactly what I got. Printing on plain paper, the black print quality is acceptable, and the colour is above average. I've not yet tried anything too complicated but when I do, I will let you know. The prints are caught by a funky slide out tray which can be tucked a
way when not in use - very useful if you have limited space.

The major downside for me is the noise - it makes a bit more of a racket than my old Epson, although it isn't a major issue. Print speed isn't blistering either, but at this end of the market, it is adequate.

The main plus points are the looks - it really does look quite smart, especially for a budget printer and the amount of space it takes up when not in use is also admirable, the HP and Xerox equivalents have a large footprint all the time. Aa least with the C20 you can fold the paper tray away. But the price is the biggest winner - it is not feature rich, nor is it the best printer out there, but it does a good job at most things, and for a budget printer that is all you could ask for.

Summary: