Epson Stylus Photo 580 All In One Inkjet Printer

The Epson Stylus Photo 580 performs as expected, which is to say, very well.

I have owned and enjoyed other Epson printers (and all-in-ones) in the past, and their overriding selling point is their quality output. Yes, "genuine" Epson inks are expensive, and it's annoying that most Epson printers will not operate in "B&W only" mode if any other color ink is low/depleted.

Just the same (and especially if you have a Mac), Epson almost seems like some offshoot of Apple Computer branded peripherals. Quality of construction, attention to detail, no-fault set-up, and no-fuss installation makes Epson products a virtual "no-brainer"purchase for Mac owners.

I did initially experience a problem in setting up the Epson Stylus Photo 580 (my very first problematic encounter with an Epson product). The printer would not "recognize" the inks provided in the box. A call to Epson support (not toll free...grrr) resulted in a new set of inks FedEx'd to me within three days. The new replacement cartridges worked fine, and the set-up proceeded faultlessly from then on.

Amazon has yet to disappoint me in any aspects of initial purchase or overall satisfaction. I always price shop my prospective purchases, and Amazon consistently delivers the best overall value over 90% of the time (no sales tax, and free shipping in most cases). No other online source of this particular printer offered a better sale price value. As I have trusted to expect from Amazon; my purchase was delivered in a timely manner, within the projected delivery date, and precisely as ordered.

I have yet to fully exploit all of the available features/opyions of the Epson Stylus Photo 580...but I can report that output of borderless prints, and printing on DVDs/CDs are exceptional, and easy to manage (with options galore).

I would recommend the Epson Stylus Photo 580 to anyone that seeks minimal fuss in set-up, with simple-to-use (and follow) documentation, and a high demand/expectation for quality output.







Although the printer performance has been satisfactory in the two days I've had it working, the Software printer driver installation process was a problem for me. Epson claims Mac OS 10.3 - 10.4 compatibility, but I had to spend an extra $150 to upgrade my 10.3.9 OS to 10.4 before the drivers would install successfully. Prior to upgrading, the driver install program always hung with "6 Files remaining to install" and message saying "Searching: HD". After I gave up on 10.3, bought a new OS, upgraded, and got install to work, Epson finally replied to my email to their online support (only 3 days to respond) with some generic instructions on "How to install on Mac 10.4...", which would further indicate it probably doesn't really work with 10.3 version as they advertise. Hope this review saves someone else from the aggrevation I went through installing their SW drivers...

Maybe it is an incompatibility problem with Windows Vista, but I am unable to print any good-quality pictures on any kind of paper. After trying several "maintenance" options and every single print setting, nothing has worked. Epson responded by saying to make sure I use Epson cartridges (which we did because they came with the printer). I am returning this because it is useless as is.

you unpack this machine and find a notice that says "Before you return this item, call the number below." Now for all I know the RX580 may prove to be a wonderful, reliable all-in-one. Certainly the reviews have been good. My beef - and thus the one star - is with the software installation process. Now, I am a Mac guy, have been since 1988 and I have never had to call tech support for help, for anything. Certainly not to get a printer up and running. I currently have an iMac running the latest OS and the printer I replaced was a Epson. Didn't have to call tech support to get it going. But I sure did for the RX 580. Now the good news is that the tech support person was superb. I was connected to him very quickly and he knew exactly what to do. But the thing is that Epson knows it has a problem with the installation software, thus their little enclosed plea to call before you heave the thing or, god forbid, return it. Epson, can you say HP?

I've had this all-in-one printer for a few months now, and so far no problems with it. I really good machine for the money: scanner is most excellent, good scan software, fast scans, prints DVDs/CDs very well(must use printable discs), has every interface you could possibly use except bluetooth (this requires an optional module). I've heard it can use up ink rapidly, but I noticed the default print quality settings were a bit high for my typical day to day printing- far higher than is really needed actually. Does Epson set this default up so users have to buy more ink? Truly a good all-in-one printer. Highly recommended.

I enjoy using this printer as it really does all that it is hyped to do. I agree that it is much slower than the hp ink jets, but it is comparable in terms of ink usage. I have printed dozens of pages and cds and still have quarter tanks of all the colours. Inks are really expensive though since you have to buy and use all 6 cartridges. I plan to get a continuous ink system for it. My favourite is the printing of cds. The software that comes with the printer ensures that your cd graphics are not printed off centre. I have gotten perfect cds each time. DVD+R Recordable Discs on Spindle, Ink Jet Print, 4.7 GB, White Matte, 25/Pack Its so liberating not to use labels! One bad thing is that printing in draft mode is very light, almost unreadable, like a watermark. I haven't tried printing stuff like envelopes and labels but it is great for regular pages. I also like being able to print and photocopy with the computer off. The photocopies are pretty poor quality really, I guess because I never bothered to adjust the print density. The memory card function is neat too as you can view the contents of the card, select and crop photos without a computer. And it sees a usb drive as a memory card and displays the photos on it. Wouldn't it be great if it could do the same for documents?

The scanner is very fast but does not scan the colors correctly. My yellow scanned and printed as a light brown. The cd tray always get jammed 2 times out of 3 tries. The printer does a good job at printing color photos, but only if you use photo paper. Photo print on plain paper is negligible. Black printing is good. I would not buy another Epson. Going back to HP.

I've been using this printer for a month. The quality of text and photo printing is excellent. A gem for easy use!

By far this is the best printer I've had I been buying epson for many years if you like your pictures to have that pro photo look this the printer to own.The price is great delivery was very quick rec'd it next day.When you buy epson you won't back.

The Epson 580 produces excellent prints, but it does use a lot of expensive ink. The Scanner is no match for my old HP 4570c flatbed scanner.

This is my fourth Epson printer and probably my last. The Epson RX580 needs several ink cartridges. If ANY of them is out of ink, you can't print at all. If you're out of yellow ink, you still cannot print a purely black/white document!! The system should at least default to black printing when a color runs out.

I really resent that Epson is taking advantage of customers like that.

The Stylus 580 prints pretty well so far and seems to be what I expected for ink use. I really don't print alot of color documents or photos though, so I'll most likely be purchasing black refills more than the others.
The scanning works quickly and produces nice quality files. I use the color ink for DVD/CD printing more than anything else. The DVD/CD printing works well after you get used to it for the first time. I'm using Verbatim DVD with great results, no more crappy stick-on labels warping disks or sharpie markers for me.
I have not used the media card printing yet, but I figure it is probably as good as most.

The only thing I do not like much is how you "adjust" the print tray up/down between paper and DVD/CD printing. The single lever and the way the tray moves almost feels like it going to break. So far no problems though. They could have designed this part better IMO.

All and all this was a good buy for the price (in my case) since it has been years since I'm had a home printer and scanner. My suggestion is you just need to try a printer out and see what you think..printers are like BIC pens anymore (disposable) sad to say.

Works as advertised as a printer, card reader, and copier, but the scanning is only fair. The print quality on Epson Premium Photo Paper Glossy (S041727) is outstanding, and at least as good, if not better than Wallyworld photo center or even the more expensive Kodak Perfect Picture mail-out prints. I'm printing 2 and 5 megapixel digital photos, and both turn out great. I've printed from computer and directly from the memory card, and the speed and quality are equally good in either mode.

If the scanner was good for anything but basic copying, I'd give this 4 or 5 stars. Even at very high DPI settings, a scan of a photograph is terrible. The scanner does not pick up a good range of color regardless of the settings you use. The scan function doesn't even come close to the cheapo HP 2200C I bought for $10 at a garage sale. The "scan" function will be adequate for the kids' school work and a couple of document copies you may need around the house or school, but don't get this if you need it for high quality scans.

-1.5 stars for bad scanning, and -.5 stars for high ink consumption rate and cost.

Epson new Claria Ink Printers Suck INK like Monica Lewinsky

All us Epson users should buy the R260, R380, or RX580 and then print like crazy till ink runs out (25 or 30 8.5 x 11) and return for a full refund to dealers who do not charge you on a return with ink all used up. Some do and some don't.

That way Epson will get the message on this series and change something. $3 to $4 ink for a 8.5 x 11 plus paper price plus your time isn't worth it no matter that the print is great. All us pros and semi-pros should boycott Epson for a while!

Just bought it today. The print quality is excellent. However, I had to go back to the store for more ink later in the day (about $90 for a full set) after printing only a couple hundred pages of medical lecture notes for school. Ouch!!!

I'll bet cleaning the heads costs about $5. This will probably be my last Epson because of the high cost of ink. To bad the manufactures don't recognize that screwing their customers on the ink lowers the customers satisfaction with them as a company.

In the two months I've had this printer, I have been very pleased with the results. When printing pictures in the printer's "best quality" mode and using Epson's Matte finish paper, the prints to me are just as good as having them done at the local photoshop.

I haven't used the scanner much, and when I do I use only regular paper. The results are acceptable.

I've printed a couple of CD's, and was very impressed with the results. However, the procedure for correctly lining up the CD is somewhat questionable. The CD tray is inserted into the lower portion of the printer and an arrow on the CD tray needs to be visually lined up with a corresponding arrow on the printer. It is difficult to get a direct view of how these arrows are lined up, and if it's not right then the label will be offset on the CD and may even print off the edge of the CD.

I have been very happy with the performance of this all-in-one printer. I use it as a general office unit and love the ability to copy/scan/print all from one place. I like the built in memory card reader as well.

In terms of color management, it doesn't keep up with our Epson 2200 photo printer. No doubt this is because the print driver doesn't use paper specific profiles. However, the prints are very pleasing.

I would highly recommend this printer.

Uses an absurd amount of ink. printed 3 sheets of 8X10 photos one CD and about 15-20 documents and ran out of ink not just one or two Cartridges but ALL six. customer service ay Epson is awful e-mail went unanswered so i called, tried to explain how much ink i was going thru and how the printer would clean the ink heads before every print job but was told that was normal. i don't know if the printer was defective or not, but i do know that epson customer support is. retuned and bought a cannon mp600 and i love it!!!!

I received this printer as an early Christmas gift from my parents. after going through two HP printers (both under 100 dollars) which both ended up in perpetual paper jams from hell I finally gave up trying to buy a new printer. I installed my new Epson two days ago. the set up process was pretty easy as long as you follow the directions, after it was installed it started working right away and perfectly. I've printed a few sheets, scanned in my daughters school photos and printed one all without any problems. I haven't tried it with actual photo paper yet, so I'll have to update this review in the future.

so far so good :)

I've read the reviews and not one of them mentioned the fantastic feature of photo restoration. I have restored many yellow 1960's and 1970's pictures and they look like I took them today. The colors are fantastic!! This printer even restores polaroid pictures. I have also printed copies of recent pictures and they too look wonderful. A professional photographer talked me into this printer and I'm so glad he did!! Everything else on the printer works well, as well.

I thing this printer is really good at each of its features. I have been very impresed with its printing of 4x6 pictures, which is the main reason we bought it. The pictures are very clear and well basically they look like they are supposed to. We have printed several pictures up to 8x10 and the quality does not have much of a drop off if any at all.

The scanner works well as well. We scanned a few pictures of Fenway taken with a 35mm. Instantly I was on the editor, first time using the software, and I made the picture look better than the one I scanned. I reprinted the picture and it looks very nice. Almost like being there again watching Pedro beat Mussina!

As far as black printing, for text, it leaves something to be desired. I usually would print my old all in one (Lexmark 125) on draft quality and it printed out fairly well. On draft quality here, it does not print very dark at all. I was disappointed in that, but when you change settings it looks sharp. It just uses more ink.

I was really impressed with the print to CD thing. I have never been able to do that, so the first time my wife and I tried it, and it turned out as well as it did, we were very happy.

Really good printer, considered this and the HP c5180, and choose this because it appeared to be better for pictures.

I am an Epson diehard. I have used nothing but Epson printers for the last 10 years. My first printer was an Epson and my last printer will be an Epson,
The new 580 is no exception. It prints quailty photographs in a suprisingly fast time. The quality is as always, exceptional. It features new technology and separate ink cartridges. I will always be a fan of multiple colored ink cartridges. It is a little more expensive that way but there is no waste.
Thanks Epson for once again a great printer at an affordable price!
Ed, NY

I've owned 4 or 5 other Epson printers (as well as several from HP) in the past, but the Stylus Photo RX580 all-in-one is the easiest to use printer I've ever had, with excellent picture quality and a very good built-in scanner as well. Combine that with the fact that it is the least expensive of the printers I have bought and you'll see why I consider this a bargain.

Let me start with the scanner -- it is quiet and fairly fast. The supplied TWAIN compatible software has three levels: fully automatic, "home" use, and professional. It works well. The resolution is fine for home use, although it is not a scanner for film or slides. The scanner integrates with the printer allowing use as a stand-alone copier. It can also copy photos directly to the face of an (inkjet printable) CD or DVD. And there are some interesting surprises -- you can print an index of a memory card -- then fill in a few choices (with a black pencil or pen -- like a test answer sheet) and scan the index sheet and the printer will print photos from the memory card, only the photos you choose on the index sheet, sized and borders as you selected. Very cool -- and easy to use. The scanner also allows you to directly prepare greeting cards without the computer.

The print quality is quite good. The Claria inks are dye-based inks (NOT pigment, as incorrectly stated in other reviews) giving them bright colors, and able to print on many surfaces. This is one of Epson's "Hi-Definition" printers -- which means tiny droplets and great pictures. The inks are separately replaceable, and available in two sizes (regular and high capacity -- from Epson direct -- 50% more ink for only $5 more). The printer works best with Epson papers, and can print on virtually any stock Epson sells. It also creates excellent prints directly on printable CDs and DVDs -- the results can look very good, and are much better than add -on labels.

The 2.5" built in color LCD is very useful -- it allows meaningful dialogues with the printer as well as previews of images from memory cards, etc.

The printer is fully Mac compatible (as well as PC) and includes some useful software, including a CD/DVD print layout program.

What does it lack? Well, an USB cable -- but, unfortunately, most prints ship without a cable. It doesn't do paper sizes bigger than 8.5" wide, and its not aimed at professional photographers (who want larger images, higher resolution scanners, and more permanent pigment inks), but for home/office use it works quite well.

All in all an excellent all-in-one at a reasonable price. I'm very happy with it.

I scrapbook and this printer makes it easy for me to print all the pictures that I want to add to my scrapbooks.
The scanner also works well for all the old slide we have from yesteryear I can scan them with the dust removing option and save them good as new on my computer. Also reprint them for my Heritage Scrapbooks.
I also like that each color is its own cartriage. My old Epson wasn't that way so when the red was used up I had to throw away all that blue and yellow.

My wife and I bought this mainly to print on DVDs/CDs, but we have discovered that this can do so much more! This is really an impressive product. Here is what we have tried so far.

1. Printing on DVDs/CDs--outstanding quality and the ink dries quickly.
2. Scanning--better than our HP 1315v (which we like) and a lot quieter.
3. Copying--only done black and white so far but it was crisp.

Things we look forward to trying: making our own family photos without having to pay high prices at a portrait studio (any size we want too); printing pics off of a PDA or cell phone; printing our own greeting cards by selecting what we want with a pencil or pen and then scanning our selections; printing photos on our choice of paper by marking our selections with a pencil and scanning the results and doing this all PC-free!

We haven't found anything we dislike about this product but we have noticed a couple of things. First, your text/copies/pictures will look good depending on your quality of paper. We noticed that on cheap letter paper heavy amounts of ink will make the paper a little wet. It's no big deal if it is something unimportant. Second, we didn't like all of Epson's backgrounds for the DVDs/CDs. We liked the ones from Memorex's Expressit Label Design Studio a little better. So after some tinkering, my wife was able to convert Memorex's backgrounds (using Corel Photo Album 6) into jpgs and put them into Epson's folder of backgrounds. So that has worked great.

We really thought the small ink cartridges would be a problem but after printing about 5 CDs and some other small graphics the ink levels haven't even moved. A coworker has an RX550 and has cautioned to remove the ink cartridges from the printer if you are going to be gone on a long trip (say more than a week). He was gone over a month and says the lack of use caused the ink to dry out. He had to get new cartridges and run the maintenance cycle 6 or 7 times to get back on track. We will probably take the cartridges out and seal them up when we go on long trips.

Overall this is a GREAT product! We are impressed and look forward to using it a lot!

November 11, 2006 UPDATE: Since we wrote this same review on Circuit City's website, we still think this is a GREAT printer. The images printed on DVDs/CDs are excellent. We have noticed that it uses ink a little faster than non-photo printers but the color(s) that get used depend on the color of your images. That makes sense to us. We didn't have any major problems with software installation. The only snag is that it wants to restart your computer before it is finished setting everything up. We were able to make choices and finish the setup (including the calibration page) by clicking on our choices in the background. After we were done, we clicked on the Windows message box in the foreground to restart the computer. It's really no big deal.

Three more things. First, we still haven't tried out all of the features. Second, when the printer first sucks in the paper it is a little noisy. It startles you, but you don't need ear plugs. We quickly got used to it though. We can stand a little noise for great print quality. Third, after scouring the internet it looks like Newegg has the best deal on ink cartridges for this printer. We didn't see any high capacity ink cartridges on their site but we figure that this will change eventually. Also, we figure that prices will come down a little once the regular capacity and high capacity cartridges become available at more businesses.

This is my third Epson all-in-one. The first died due to a permanent ink clog. The second one died due to a permanent paper jam that caused the print head to bend the paper guide metal. Both Epson AIOs lasted less than two years.

The ink question: Epson uses pigment ink and HP uses dye ink. The Claria Hi Definition ink appears to be the same old archival Epson DuraBright ink. The plain and simple fact is that the Epson DuraBright/Claria ink will outlast your life span but the Epson archival ink is frankly quite dull and lacking in definition, even at best quality setting. When I print the exact same photo on my HP 970 CSe Deskjet the HP colors are deep and the definition is quite good. However standard HP inks might only hold up a few years before fading. HP now claims that certain newer types of their inks last longer.

The RX580 appears to be the basic traditional Epson all-in-one with minor bells, whistles and gongs added. It comes with six ink cartridges but sadly the black cartridge is also a skinny one. In regular print text mode Epson appears to have decided to make the black text type quality sort of blend between draft and regular. RX580 text type only looks acceptable to me if it is printed in a better quality mode.

Nothing really good or bad to report about the scanner function. Nice thing about all-in-ones is that they serve as a simple, slow, home color photocopy machine.

The software installed pretty much normally with the expected MS phone home error report just when the drivers install. The important thing is to install the Epson software before plugging in the non-supplied USB printer cable. The Web-To-Page optional software on the install CD is great.

The CD/DVD print function is a little plastic tray that you can insert, as needed, in the printer output opening.

Finally, just like my previous Epson AIOs, when the printer grabs the paper to begin printing it makes a loud god awful noise as it throws the incoming paper back and forth in the incoming paper tray.





Yesterday I was so excited, I felt like a kid at Christmas! Today I'm not so happy. My previous printer was an Epson Stylus Photo 1280 which still sorta works some days when it feels like it. Loved that printer until it decided that it didn't like printing with black (yes, I did all the maint stuff a zillion times). Anyway... So far this printer prints photos that won't scratch, smear, or smudge. My 3 and 5 year olds made serious attempts at it and I must say the photos are very impressive that way. The printer is fast and not horribly loud.

What I'm not happy about is the colors. I copied a drawing my daughter did in markers and the purple and magenta came out sort of a dull redish color. My photos are lacking a bit on the blue skies, sort of dull looking, and just a bit dark. Today, I tried printing a red border (as selected from a standard excel drop down box) around a spreadsheet and the output was extremely disappointing. I see little lines through the red areas in even intervals (not associated with the cells) and the color is very dull, dark, and sort of maroon.

There is a place on the menu to make adjustments on the cyan, yellow, magenta, brightness, etc, but so far I haven't been able to figure out how to make a big enough difference to make the red look right. I'm really hoping future drivers or a better understanding of the adjustments will resolve the color issue, because other than that, it seems like a great printer.