What Printer

[Stewart B]

Which printer is the best for A3 Colour and Black and white prints (Especially black and white)

[blue dog]

I cannot say what is best.

I can say that I recently saw a B&W demo of the Epson 2400 vs 2200 and the results were impressive. Both do 13" wide material including rolls and has an automatic cutter built in. Both have the same internal hardware mechanisms and imagining engines, but different software and different inks. If I remember correctly, they use 8 ink cartridges. The cartridge set for the 2400 is unique in that it has 2 different shades of black and two different shades of gray and a special B&W mode that it intended for B&W photos w/ toners and line art. Very, very nice. Not too speedy. 8x10 took 2 minutes. About $850 U.S.

They have also released another named r1800, which is again unique. It has two interchangeable blacks, one for mat and one for glossy, and it has a Gloss Finisher cartridge that seals Glossy paper and gives you an extra bit of glossiness. It will also accept roll paper, I don't know if it comes in the box or not. An Epson rep told me that if I did alot of B&W that I would prefer the 2200 over the 1800. ALso, the 1800 appeared to have cheaper components than the 2200 and 2400.

[Doug Nelson]

For black and white, any printer that can use these inks.