Epson Artisan 725 Color Inkjet All-In-One (C11CA74201) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Epson's Artisan's 725 turned out to be slightly less than what its name implies (all-in-one) and surprisingly more. It is less than what we normally call 'all-in-one' because a FAX send/receive capability is absent. I would say that it's 'more' because, for reasons known only to Epson, it is not advertised as also a 'photo printer' which it is and quite a good, feature-rich one at that.
Its small paper tray(s) and the absence of a scan/copier feeder make the Artisan a HOME printer. For anyone who doesn't absolutely need a FAX in a printer and who appreciates its 'photo' capabilities this Artisan can be the almost ideal printing device.INSTALLATION
I experienced near-zero issues while setting up the printer. The 'quick start' instructions were clear and, soon after the packaging materials were removed the printer was ready for use.
Once the printer is unpacked, the 6 ink cartridges are loaded and the tray is filled with paper - all done in a matter of minutes - the printer practically configured itself once we turned it on and told it that we spoke English. It quickly detected our Wi-Fi network and it configured itself to use it. Once it checked its print heads and made sure that they were clean and well aligned the first test page came out.
On the PC side we installed the drivers without any issues and loaded additional apps such as Easy PhotoPrint, Epson Scan and the user's manual. The only one that acted up was Epson Scan which was unable to detect the printer a couple of times but whatever problem it had in the beginning it seems to have been temporary because Scan works okay now.FEATURES
Once the printer is on, the front Control Panel provides full access to printer's features. Alternatively, most of printer's services, at least the ones that really matter can be controlled from any PC-based app that can access the installed driver.
The 2-tray claim is technically correct but in practice there is ONE paper tray plus a 'photo tray' on top of it that can hold up to 20 4x6" or 5x7" photo sheets. The actual paper tray can hold up to 120 letter, 8x10" or A4 sheets or up to 50 legal size sheets - as I noted already, this is definitely meant to be a HOME printer.
When it comes to connectivity, the Artisan did a good job at joining a Wi-Fi network. An Ethernet port is also available. Printer can be controlled either through the front panel or from another remote device on which the printer's driver was installed. The printer's front has ports for USB and SD memory cards. The USB port can be used not only to save or retrieve data from flash drives but also to charge whichever device would normally charge through a USB cable.
One interesting capability is Artisan's ability to print on CDs or DVDs. It's not quick or easy - it involves lifting the control panel, having some special CD tray extended and using dedicated Epson CD software but it worked. I was able to create my own, personalized CD label.
Another interesting and useful feature is the printer's ability to 'make black' when you just ran out of black ink but color ink is still available. This is something I wish I had on another printer some weekends ago when I HAD to have something printed and my 'other brand' machine simply refused to work because it was out of black ink.OPERATION
Printing
-----------
Can be initiated form a PC, a mobile device running software such as Epson iPrint or directly from connected flash drives or memory cards. Mac is supported but I wasn't able to test it myself. The most flexible option is, of course, printing from a PC or a Mac where you have full control over the output quality and any type of document or image can be sent to the printer.Copying and Scanning
--------------------------------
Copying or scanning can be performed one sheet at a time - there is no loader - and you are limited to letter or A4 size (no legal).
As a copier/scanner, the Artisan can do B&W or color, single or 2-sided, can enlarge/reduce the copy size and adjust output quality. When it comes to photo copying, it's possible to revive old photos by restoring colors if faded and perform some basic image processing - adjust brightness, contrast, saturation, even take care of 'red eye' - with no need for dedicated software running on a PC. I found these capabilities interesting but I am not likely to use them. Both photo paper and ink are expensive and I prefer a device with a keyboard and a mouse when cropping a picture and a software application that allows me more flexibility and gives me the ability to get a hi-res preview of output when preparing an image for printing.
Scans can be output as a JPG or PDF. The printer has the ability to direct the output to a PC on the network and even launch the default email application. Alternatively, the output can be sent to a connected USB flash drive or a memory card.
While scanning can be performed through the printer's control panel alone, I prefer the Epson Scan software installed of my PC as the better option. It allows me to control the scan's quality, ranging from 'quick' to 'professional' and save the output on the PC.Other capabilities
-------------------------
From the control panel it's possible to print ruled paper. The menu offers a pretty good variety and the output is good. However... ink is expensive. As a variation to the 'ruled paper', it's possible to create personalized note paper with a scanned image in the background. Also through the control power and with some image in the scanner, you can use the 'coloring book' option to produce an outline that's ready for coloring.MY RATING
The Artisan 725 is definitely a HOME printer. Its small paper tray, lack of a paper loader and of a FAX capability do not qualify it as 'home business' equipment. However, as a home machine, I could hardly find major faults. It was easy to setup, it works well with my PCs, the output is reasonably quick and of good quality and the photos are nothing short of spectacular - my testing involved some high end Canon paper and the highest quality settings - and the ink appears to be reasonably priced. The numerous photo printing capabilities available from the control panel are okay but not likely to be used although it does not hurt to have them there. Same about the printer's ability to print rule paper, it doesn't hurt to have it and it may prove itself to be a lifesaver some day. The printer's ability to 'make' black ink out of colored ink when it ran out of black is as definite plus.
As a home almost-all-in-one AND photo printer, this is a five-star.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Epson Artisan 725 Color Inkjet All-In-One (C11CA74201)

Epson Artisan 725 Color Ink Jet All-in-One |Print|Copy|Scan|Photo|Wi-Fi

Get 50% OFF

Click here for more information about Epson Artisan 725 Color Inkjet All-In-One (C11CA74201)