Epson Introduces Smart Photo Printer that Delivers High Quality, Ease and Flexibility for the Digital Photographer

March 2004

March 2004: Epson New Zealand has released the first of Epson's new range of home photo lab printers with a host of photographer-friendly features designed to make photo printing easier and faster.

The Epson STYLUS PHOTO R310, with new generation dye based inks, more efficient individual foamless ink cartridges and faster print speeds, delivers superb photo prints that are more durable and fade resistant than those made with previous generations of dye inks.

The STYLUS PHOTO R310 creates images with incredible detail, beautiful skin tones, sharper contrast and an ultra-wide colour range. Photography enthusiasts can print beautiful, frame-ready, BorderFree images on a variety of paper sizes and types up to A4.

To make photo management even easier and "PC-free" the STYLUS PHOTO R310 allows anyone to crop, resize, and print photos directly from memory cards or picture CDs without having to use a computer. Photographers can also save images straight from their camera memory cards directly onto a CD-R or a Zip Disk without using a computer, through the printer's front access host USB port. This port makes it simple to connect the printer to a CD-R drive, Zip drive or PictBridge-enabled digital camera.

Once the images are saved to CD the photographer can use the STYLUS PHOTO R310's direct CD/DVD print capability to create an instant index for the archive.

Aimed at the mid-to high end digital camera user, the STYLUS PHOTO R310 has extensive direct printing options to improve camera to print speed, and supports Memory Stick, CompactFlash, Smartmedia, MultiMedia Card, IBM microdrive, xD Picture Card, SD Memory Card and Pictbridge for direct PC-less printing from most digital cameras. It also features USB Direct print and an optional Bluetooth wireless capability.

In its constant quest to extend the longevity of photo prints Epson has re-engineered the structure of the dye molecules in the ink to create a new chemical compound. The result is a more durable ink with a higher gloss finish which offers better resistance to light, gas [ozone] and water.

To support the faster printing speeds of the STYLUS PHOTO R310 and other photo printers Epson has developed a new foamless cartridge with a patented valve that allows a more efficient and even ink flow through to the MicroPiezo[TM] printhead. Earlier cartridges used foam filling within cartridges and a capillary action to filter and draw the ink through to the print head.

More information on the foamless cartridges and an animation of the valve action can be found at http://www.epson.co.jp/e/technology/sankei_7.htm.

The STYLUS PHOTO R310 uses six individual foamless ink cartridges (Cyan, Light Cyan, Yellow, Magenta, Light Magenta and Black) to deliver ink droplets down to a tiny 3 picolitres in volume at a 5760 x 1440 optimised dpi [with Resolution Performance Management Technology] to produce 20 x 25 cm photos in approximately 128 secs in photo mode and 10 x 15 cm photos in approximately 37 secs in fine mode on Epson Premium Glossy Photo Paper.

The STYLUS PHOTO R310 also handles text with ease and can produce a black text document at up to 15 ppm (pages per minute) in economy mode.

Camera to print time is further reduced by the STYLUS PHOTO R310's easy to use control panel that allows the photographer to make selections such as paper type, paper size and number of copies without needing to connect through a computer. The panel provides nine paper types and eight different photo layouts, plus manual adjustments, filters and frames to choose from. It also gives users the ability to save their favourite print settings with a simple "one touch" button.

The STYLUS PHOTO R310 supports PRINT Image Matching (P.I.M.) technology to help the user create the best possible prints automatically without complex colour corrections on a PC. Currently there are more than 130 P.I.M.-enabled products from 20 manufacturers of digital cameras, printers and software. The Exif 2.2 (Exif Print) digital camera standard is also supported. More information on P.I.M. as well as a complete and current list of P.I.M.-compatible products is available at www.printimagematching.com.

An optional Bluetooth Photo Print Adapter is available for the STYLUS PHOTO R310. This adapter allows users to print directly from a variety of Bluetooth enabled devices including mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and Windows laptops and desktop PCs.

The STYLUS PHOTO R310 is both Macintosh and Windows compatible with USB 2.0 Hi-Speed connectivity when using a computer with the printer and a separate USB 1.1 host connection for use with CD-R drives, Zip drives and PictBridge-enabled digital cameras.

The STYLUS PHOTO R310 is available now through Epson dealers for the recommended retail price of $479. For full specifications on this and other Epson photo printers please refer to www.epson.co.nz.

For more information, to obtain high resolution images or to arrange an evaluation unit, please contact Anjna Patel at Epson New Zealand Ltd on (09) 300 3575, or via email at anjnap@epson.co.nz.

Further information:

Anjna Patel
Marketing Services Manager
Epson New Zealand Ltd
Phone: 09 300 3575
anjnap@epson.co.nz

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