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Crazy to buy an Epson 7890?

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by AndrewKelley on Tue Jan 17, 2012 9:55 pm

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I've found a very good price on an Epson 7890 from a reputable dealer. Would it be foolish to buy the printer at this point in its life cycle, e.g. just after it has been replaced by a new model? I assume that I'll be able to purchase ink for the foreseeable future?

I'd really like the 24" capacity, and surprisingly, my wife has blessed the deal.

Thanks,

Andrew

Andrew S. Kelley
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by E.J. Peiker on Wed Jan 18, 2012 1:10 am

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It's still a great printer so if you have a great price and it isn't worn out, why not?

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by Royce Howland on Wed Jan 18, 2012 1:16 am

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The 7890 has not been replaced, it is in fact a very new model replacing the previous 7880. If you're thinking about the 7900, thats's an older model, released about 2.5 years ago. The 79xx series runs in parallel with the 78xx series, Epson does not bill them as direct substitutes for each other.

Ink will not be a problem for either one. Ink is where the printer companies make their bucks, they will keep selling it as long as people keep buying it. The K3 + Vivid Magenta inkset used by the 7890 will be around for quite awhile.

There are many debates about the pro's and con's among the big printers from Epson, HP and Canon. If you haven't researched the other (non-Epson) options, you may want to do that yet; the alternatives have their boosters, for good reasons. But the 7890 would be a killer machine any way you slice it.

Royce Howland

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by AndrewKelley on Wed Jan 18, 2012 1:25 am

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Thanks, E.J. and Royce. Seems I have a bit more research to do on the various Canon wide format professional printers. Frankly, I didn't think I could afford a 24" printer. When I saw the great price on the 7980 (and the 7900) I assumed that the 7890 was an old model.

I'll also look into the Canon and HP wide format printers. I'm a little partial to Epson, having used their smaller printers for many years, but given the investment, definitely worth checking out the other options. I have heard some suggestions that HP may be moving out of the large format market. Royce, do you have any thoughts on that front?

Andrew S. Kelley
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by Les Voorhis on Wed Jan 18, 2012 10:36 am

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Andrew,

I use the 7880 and it is a great printer. My 9800 (44") has recently died and I am probably going to replace it with the 9890 which is the big brother to the 7890. When I do I will probably sell my 7880. I have used printers from all 3 of the big guys and I MUCH prefer Epson. Probably mostly since I am most comfortable with their interface. I really don't like Canon's driver system and the HP printer I worked with, while it made beautiful prints, was very tempermental. In all fairness though that was about 6 years ago so I am sure some of that has been resolved. If you get the 7890, my assumption would be the printer will wear out before the ink will quit being sold. They still regularly make ink for the 7600 and that was several printer versions ago.

Les Voorhis
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by Royce Howland on Wed Jan 18, 2012 10:57 am

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HP is probably in the weakest position right now, since their current printer models don't stack up quite as well as the newer Epson & Canon models. Whether HP or even Canon will remain committed to large format photographic printing has been questioned from time to time. Organizationally, I think HP is under the greatest challenge of the 3 companies, but they have a long history in printing and it would be somewhat shocking if they left the market completely.

I would agree with Les that the printers from Canon and HP can be more tempermental due to design oddities and driver problems in particular with HP. Epson printers are generally more stable & consistent, I would say, including their predictable greater incidence of head clogs and ink wastage through cleaning.

From what I know and based on my personal preferences, I would look most closely at Epson and Canon in the 24" models right now. I looked seriously at Canon when I was in the market for a 17" desktop model but at the time the Canon had too many issues for me so I stuck with Epson. Epson owns the market for good reasons, but both of the others have done some things that offer a lot of benefits, with Canon really stepping it up more recently with their x300 models.

Royce Howland

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by E.J. Peiker on Wed Jan 18, 2012 3:36 pm

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I would bet on Epson or Canon and I have always used Epson printers all the way back to the 1970's so I really dn't even look at other models. I know how they work, understand their interface (despite it being complicated) and know that they will be there in this business for the long haul.

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by nash30 on Mon Jan 30, 2012 8:44 am

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Royce Howland wrote:HP is probably in the weakest position right now, since their current printer models don't stack up quite as well as the newer Epson & Canon models. Whether HP or even Canon will remain committed to large format photographic printing has been questioned from time to time. Organizationally, I think HP is under the greatest challenge of the 3 companies, but they have a long history in printing and it would be somewhat shocking if they left the market completely.

I would agree with Les that the printers from Canon and HP can be more tempermental due to design oddities and driver problems in particular with HP 20. Epson printers are generally more stable & consistent, I would say, including their predictable greater incidence of head clogs and ink wastage through cleaning.

From what I know and based on my personal preferences, I would look most closely at Epson and Canon in the 24" models right now. I looked seriously at Canon when I was in the market for a 17" desktop model but at the time the Canon had too many issues for me so I stuck with Epson. Epson owns the market for good reasons, but both of the others have done some things that offer a lot of benefits, with Canon really stepping it up more recently with their x300 models.

sad to know that HP is not keeping up with its competitors. i have always had my bet and choices on HP brand..

someday you will find me,caught beneath the landslide......
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