Wide load format printers

[merk1821]

Hi DMT

I have had an Epson Stylus Color 3000 in my possession for about a year now. I rescued it from a colleague who was trying to repair it after the printer experienced some smoke damage. I cleaned up the unit and then proceeded to start it up. As expected it didn’t start up but at least the indicators lights did flash meaning that i had connected everything correctly. My question to DMT is this: should i go through the hassle and expense of trying to get this Epson Stylus Color 3000 repaired? Having a wide format printer would be a great addition for me. If it is worth it, where can i start looking for these resources? Or is the time, money and effort better used to in finding a newer and higher quality wide format printer? And if so which one? The HP 5950 model from HP looks not too bad

Thanks again

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Well, what I'd do is to try to find out what's damaged, then see if it's cheap to fix. If you can't find out, I guess a quotation from Epson is in order..

[Jason Dunn]

Well, the 3000 certainly isn't as "disposable" as most consumer-grade printers are nowadays, but I have to wonder how much it will cost to repair once you factor in shipping + repair tech time. It's also a bit of an older printer, so perhaps that money would be best spent getting something more modern.

Myself, I'd probably go for a Canon i9100:

http://www.steves-digicams.com/2003_reviews/canon_i9100.html

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

The Epson prints larger, as it can do 16x20s.

[KidKomputer]

Don't know about repairs but if you're looking for a new wide format printer you can choose the Canon i9100 (most bang for the buck). If you go this route you should probbably get one soon, I think it has been discontinued...Because it was replaced by the Canon i9900 adds faster print speeds and 2 more ink colors. If you want to spend the big bucks go for the Epson Stylus Photo 2200, it can print 13x44 using roll paper. Reviews on all three can be found at http://www.steves-digicams.com/printers.html.