Epson Stylus Photo R3000 Pro Reviews

This is one of the best photo printers you can buy but print costs appear to be high

The things that make the Epson Stylus Photo R3000 an extraordinary printer are the same things that have made the Epson brand a trusted name for working photographers; print quality, ease of use and consistency. Even though the R3000 suffers from the same ink capacity limitations of most wide-format printers, it's remarkably easy to setup over Wi-Fi, it delivers exceptional print quality on a wide range of paper types and it delivers great consistency (no paper jams or misfeeds during our review process). Add to those benefits the fact that this printer is remarkably quiet and you've got a great solution for in-office printing of photos for clients. Although we found it a bit annoying that loading specialty papers into the front-loading single-sheet tray required navigating the menu on the printer itself every time, this was a minor issue once we got used to the process of loading specialty papers. Newer printers like Canon's Pixma Pro-1 might offer slightly larger ink tanks and some interesting color management, but the Epson Stylus Photo R3000 is a workhorse that gets the job done with great results and a minimum of fuss.

So, do we recommend the R3000? Sure, if this is going to be your first A3+ printer, or if this is going to replace your old R1900/2100. In fact, we can't recommend it highly enough. For R2880 owners though, the incentive isn’t that much (you should probably be aiming for the Pro 3880 as your next step up). At S$1,488, the R3000 isn't exactly what we'd call cheap. Well, at least Epson Singapore has made the sensible decision to not price it out of reach (like in excess of two grand) as we originally feared. But here's further food for thought: in the U.S., the same printer* is now going for US$650 (about S$827) after a US$200 mail-in rebate (though that doesn't include the cost and hassle of shipping). Then again, what price is quality?

The R3000 has many features without too many bells and whistles. The quality of printing is first class, I calibrate my monitor before any printer review so I am confident that it is displaying accurate colours, however I still had to to lighten up the files with an adjustment layer before printing. Once tweaked the files printed out beautifully, both colour and B/W. The printer construction is excellent and should withstand moderate to heavy use. I like the way the trays fold away to seal the printer against dust and other objects that could fall into the works. Once closed, the printer becomes a useful shelf to place boxes of media on.

Few photographers can fail to be impressed by the prints from the Epson Stylus Photo R3000, the colours, contrast and detail are superb. This plus the convenience its new cartridge arrangement makes it an excellent choice for enthusiasts.

The R3000's nine pigments will be welcomed by some, and detested by others. Although the shared feed between Photo Black and Matt Black does appear a bit of a botch job - particularly given the need to flush the system between uses - it's a nice option to have all nine, though it does make this an expensive printer to feed. At least the size of the cartridges is reasonably large, while the option of WiFi connection is rare in this class of printer. At its core this is very good - and reasonably versatile - colour printer with exceptional black and white images, though only well-heeled users who want high-grade A3 prints need apply.

On balance I will choose the Epson Photo Stylus R3000, despite some concerns about long term reliability. This is on the basis of the exceptional Black & White print quality possible with the Epson printer, the added benefit of a roll print facility and the Ethernet connection capability. For anyone looking for a cheaper A3+ printer, then the Canon Pixma Pro 9500 Mk 2 would also make a very good choice, although the lack of ethernet, and roll print could put some off.

The Epson Stylus Photo R3000 A3+ printer is capable of stunningly high print quality for both black and white and colour prints, and once setup correctly, the printer performs admirably. It's well specified for its target market place and capable of handling a wide range of different media. Would I buy it myself or recommend it to a friend? I think I would need reassurance that the test machine was faulty and the problems I experienced were not typical, I love the output but not the problems (real and potential).

The Epson Stylus Photo R3000 is a big step-up from the older R2880 model, if not in print quality then certainly in terms of design, features, connectivity and ease-of use. While it's hard to tell prints from the R3000 and R2880 apart thanks to their shared use of the proven UltraChrome K3 inkset, the R3000 is definitely the one to choose thanks to the addition of wi-fi and internet connectivity, more intuitive LCD control panel interface, wider range of media handling options, much bigger ink cartridges and the dual installation of both photo and matt black. The Epson R3000 ultimately offers fantastic print quality and a better user experience at a slightly higher price than its predecessor, and is therefore well deserving of our Highly Recommended award.

For serious-hobbyist or semi-pro photographers on a budget, this wide-carriage printer offers superb image quality and value. If you do a lot of printing, though, note that the ink costs are a bit high.

Gorgeous output at fast speed makes the Epson Stylus Photo R3000 of interest to both serious amateurs and professional photographers and graphic artists.