Epson Stylus C88+ Color Inkjet Printer (C11C617121) and Epson T060120-BCS DURABrite Ultra Black & Color Combo Pack Standard Capacity Cartridge Ink

I bought a Stylus c88+ printer 8 years ago when they were sold everywhere. Due to easily attended issues like printing a color page monthly, or even loading and charging the ink. The attention you should pay to this Epson is well worth the quality of print. When my old one stopped working in April, this is the only new one I could find but we could not afford it and I bought a name brand competitor printer for much less. I returned it the day after I set it up. The print was faded and I printed Van Gogh's Irises. With my Epson, the colors pop and you can see Vincent's brush strokes, on 8.5 x 11 plain paper. I also print on canvas sheets which you can buy on Amazon. I have used plain soft cotton sheets in there and it feeds, prints and dries before I collect it. If you buy this amazing printer, MAKE SURE YOU PRINT SOMETHING MONTHLY TO KEEP YOUR PRINT HEADS CLEAN.

As bad luck would have it, my printer decided to die when I needed it most: to print various items for my grand daughter's Bat Mitzvah. This printer did a fantastic quality job printing on 32# bonded paper (used as program cover) and 24# bright white paper (for the inside). I did find it's not particularly fond of standard 16# or 20# paper and tends to feed a little crookedly. One thing I learned was it's important to push the paper towards the back of the feed tray (after loading) and ensure it is placed behind two small clips located on the inside bottom of the feed. When putting your hand down the feed tray, just gently push the paper towards the back and you will hear a faint click. This is quite important to ensure the paper feeds correctly and doesn't become off kilter when printing. Also printed pictures on photo quality paper with excellent results. In short: I'm impressed. I do recommend reading the reviews on this printer and keep in mind it does have a few quirks.. For example, it's important to use it regularly to ensure the ink doesn't dry out and mess up the heads. I found several YouTube videos which address this issue as well as recommended maintenance. One of the nice things I found is that this printer is widely supported for CISS systems (continuous ink) and refillable cartridges. So with a little homework, you could have this printer work well with pigment ink, dye ink, and/or sublimation ink. Keep in mind, though, you will need to thoroughly clean the heads when switching and the CISS YouTube videos address that as well.

So lets be a bit clear, the printer is good. Issue is the ink cartridges are highway robbery and expensive.. They also finish VERY quickly (unless they are demo cartridges included). My experience with this printer is very mixed.. which is a rare for me. It got the job done with shirt presses, but its VERY messy. I am using a perfectly good CISS system for it, and the leakage gets on the paper because of the way the ink is handled.. Heat transfer paper is not cheap. I understand that the CISS system isn't "compatible" or rather "created by epson" (why would they? They'd lose all this money on up selling you expensive basic ink), but it shouldn't alter the fact that the way the system handles the ink is a bit messy. Now, I can't say this issue is the printer itself, but I do know these are my issues with the setup..- Constant need to calibrate after not using for a while- Constant wasting of ALOT of paper because of printing issues due to the fact that borderless printing is non-existent with this printer. Had to troubleshoot for hours and days to find out it really doesnt handle borderless well or at all.- Support is eh- Printer handles ink messy- You can't fully open it up for thorough cleaning.What I do remember is several others had the same issue with ink leakage and borders in both their forums and in google, which I am almost certain they were using original Epson cartridges.Overall review? Just get another more expensive printer if you really want quality prints. ESPECIALLY if you are doing heatpress for shirts. Had I known this would happen, I would have invested in the higher tier $200-300 Epson printer or another brand that I was looking at during the same time of purchase.

Epson has always made a quality product. I've been using the C88+ printers since they first came out. The ink that comes with it lasts no time at all, less and less each time I replace a printer (this is my third one), but they're making their money on the ink so you can't blame them for trying. So be sure to order extra ink when you order the printer. As this printer gets used all day six days a week, I actually find it quite economical. It happily prints on nearly every paper I've put through it (thanks to the straight-path feed) up to and including 90# watercolor paper, though it does take a little hands-on encouragement to get it started at that weight. Card stock works just fine and almost any inkjet or copy paper works, though it will jam with really cheap paper. I'll buy another one when the time comes (in about 6 years).

Arrived on time and is as shown but I will not be using it until I get some proper paper for my needs and some other business supplies.Looks good though.Thanks!