Epson Stylus Photo R1900 Printer Review

The Epson Stylus Photo R1900 printer is one of the latest full format photo printers in the market that can accommodate 13″ x 19″ prints or wide rolls of paper for panoramic shots with a maximum height of 13. It is also able to print individual coated white inkjet printable CD/DVDs.

This printer modestly priced at about $500, obviously aimed at the dangerous amateur/frugal professional market. I found the printer and the enclosed printer profiles produce entirely accurate results, using both Epson paper and Ilford semi-gloss Pearl paper. The printer driver offers an elegant set of color management options under the Advanced tab.

Under the ICM radio button, there is an option to turn off color management, which I recommend all users of Photoshop to do. The driver’s color management is only beneficial for applications that have no natural color management features, like Epson’s Print CD software.

Printed without the High-Speed option checked is the best option. (I hope I’m never in such a hurry to choose High Speed.) An 8.5″ x 11″ print took only about a minute and a half. The colors were quite vibrant, based on the supplied printer profile. Very little saturation through Photoshop was necessary. Printing in black white was somewhat trickier since there is always some metamerism or color bleed. You may need to make adjustments in additional prints, mainly when printing more extensive 10″ x 15″ photographs.

I did not test the roll paper feature, because I don’t have the patience for it, particularly when the paper always curls so annoyingly. It’s a technology that demands nerves of steel I don’t possess.

Speaking of the Print CD/DVD option, how did it work? We examined it with the white-coated CDs included with the unit, and they took the ink admirably. But bear in mind that inkjet printable CDs and DVDs cost a bit more than standard blanks (about 50% more, if Staples is a reliable indicator). Just for kicks, I did try printing on a standard blank. The ink didn’t take. The printer needs white-coated CDs. Epson’s Print CD software is easy to use and will produce good results. I wouldn’t use this feature as a bulk CD printing operation but as a once-in-a-while nicety. Note that the individual coated white inkjet printable CD/DVDs cost more than standard black CDs and DVDs. Also, they are not available in every store. I have yet to see them available in a double-layer DVD size.

We did notice some bronzing in one black white print, which can occur with pigment inks when the printer’s “gloss optimizer” is turned off. The gloss optimizer feature took care of most of it, offering two options: (Auto – the optimizer is applied only to the parts that need it, and Full – the optimizer coats the entire photograph with the optimizer ink.) A print that uses optimizer has a minimum, bronzing effect. There was no other bronzing in the additional copies we tested.

This printer highly recommended.