Customer Reviews
Great customer service from Epson 
2008-06-04
This printer lasted a total of 4 pages! Yes, you read that right, 4 pages! Needless to say I was disgusted and called Epson fully expecting the run around. I got anything but the run around! Within a few minutes it was established that my printer was in fact dead and Epson sent me out a new one that day via FedEx and I didn't even have to return the old one. This is first rate customer service and will insure that I buy Epson products in the future.
Good product 
2008-05-26
I bought mine supposedly new on eBay, but apparently it has a clogged nozzle (though it's not that noticeable if I print a very high quality photo). I tried using the utility to clean it, but it hasn't worked. Maybe someone can tell me how to fix this?
Other than that, it's not a bad printer. I've printed a couple of 8.5x11 and a few 4x6 photos, as well as maybe 70 pages or so of document and still haven't replaced the ink. FYI, I did buy a set of ink from Costco for just in case, and the price is cheaper there.
Awsome for a $99 printer, bad design. 
2008-05-24
Besides its terrible design, this printer works great. I installed in on a Power Mac G5 and setup was really quick, I use it mainly to print on DVDs and the results are awesome.
I used to have the R200; compared to it, this new machine is huge! Another downside from the R200 is that to print DVDs it's now necesary to take out the smaller tray and insert it in a higher slot, instead of just flipping it up and down.
Besides this imperfections, I recommend this printer for it's printing qualities and speed.
Not for you if you prefer recycled ink 2008-05-24
This so far has proven to be an overall great printer. Easier to use and has no driver issues like I had with my old HP 1218. Only technical problem I've had so far is figuring out the CD printing tray. I found the trick is not to put the tray in the CD area until the printer is fully booted. Otherwise it goes brain-dead and flashes pretty red lights at you.
Why Epson looses a star from me on this is that they're actively suing and making life difficult for ink recyclers. Up to now, I have found Internet sites that still make recycled ink for this printer. But as I understand it if Epson has their way that will soon stop. One of their single cartridges retails for $20. That's 1 color for about half the price of the 3 colors for my old HP. One complete ink refill and I've practically bought this printer all over again. To me this is a black-eye on Epson's otherwise fine products.
Nice product 
2008-05-22
I'm pleased with the printer. Software was easy to install and works without complications with my computer running Vista Ultimate.
What a jalopy! But great CD/DVD & photo prints. 2008-07-05
I got this unit set up, printed a test page, a very good photo, and 3 very good DVDs using the included Epson Print CD software, then the next time I powered on all 3 panel lights started flashing.
The ink cartridge carriage whizzed around and sounded like it was printing on nothing. The software said my new ink cartrige was empty, and wouldn't relent until I actually broke out a new cartridge. Then it said another cartridge was empty. Fool me once! So I read through the manual, tried various fixes, nothing worked.
I called Epson support (the number for R280 support is in the back of the manual) and they had me unplug, restore the trays to normal printing position, then plug in and hold down the Power and Paper Out buttons simultaneously for 6 seconds to power on. This seemed to make it happy. I was able to go back to printing DVD's.
There's no reason to think that the unit won't flip out again, but if the system reset works reliably, then I would say this is worth it. The R280 is by far the BEST VALUE for a home-use CD/DVD print system I have found, assuming you can get it to work. If you're into cool electronic gadgets that require regular troubleshooting (like most Windows users), this is your printer!
3 have NEVER worked!! 2008-07-02
I have never even been able to see what kind of print quality this printer has because the 3 broken ones that I have received NEVER worked. I got one through my student discount when I bought my Macbook. It had a hardware issue so the place I got it from just sent me another one which also had a hardware issue where the ink cartridge could not move and it also made a VERY loud screeching noise when turned on. On that one I went through Epson's tech support and received another one in the mail today through the manufacturer's warranty. It has the exact same hardware issue as the 2nd one that I had. So now I have 3 broken R280's laying around. I wonder what Epson will do now. This is very cheaply made and I would not recommend it. Spend a little extra money and get the all-in-one. It's definitely manufactured better.
beautiful pictures 2008-06-26
The output from this printer is excellent. No regrets, but like all photo printers the ink is expensive. I'm considering reducing the cost of ink by purchasing a continuous ink system (check ebay).
Excellent Photo printer. 2008-06-11
I've had this printer for a few months now, so far it has performed quite well. Photos print out nice and clear on a variety of medium ranging from photo paper to watercolor paper. I only use this printer for photo printing, I have a laser printer for everyday text and office type jobs.
Something to keep in mind is that this printer is optimized for photo printing. The Claria ink is a step above the standard entry-level inks in that it's designed to be color fast for ~100 years and have less light fade and other longevity issues. For this reason ink costs a little more for this printer, but you do get what you pay for.
In summary - this is an excellent entry level photo printer. The Claria inks are good (probably the best in this price category). The next step up would be something like an R1900 - wide format and pigment based Ultrachrome inks. However, if you are mainly printing labels, text documents, and other general home/office tasks this may not be the best choice as your only printer.
Fun and excellent for making quick, small prints 2008-06-10
I'm a photographer and bought this to replace my Epson Stylus Photo 1280 which produced larger prints but without the long-lived ink. The R280 is smaller, quieter and much faster than the 1280, not to mention cheaper.
The printer I ordered from an Amazon merchant arrived broken, but I simply kept the ink and went to my local Office Depot to pick up another one to give it a chance. Response from Epson on the broken printer has been abysmal. I've been given incorrect tech support phone numbers (which are not toll-free or available 24 hours). I've also gotten completely bizarre responses from email tech support that have nothing to do with my problem. When Epson works, it's great, but when it doesn't, you are hosed, my friend.
On the down side of the R280, unlike the old 1280, there is no setting to center the photo on the page. I bought this unit to print 4x6 photos on 5x7 paper. This leaves a nice border in which I can write captions with my handy Pigma Micron archival pen. Printing a 4x6 on 5x7 with the R280 results in a "sort of" centered photo, but not really, and it can even be slightly crooked.
Set-up of the second (working) printer was a snap. Unlike the 1280, it connects to the computer via USB 2.0, and the USB cable (about $25 for 6') is not included. I just bought a Vista-based computer, and the printer works without a hitch on it.
