Installation

The Quick start sheet recommends you install the Driver software before you connect the printer to the computer. There are two options Easy Install or Custom Install, you should close all other applications and turn off any anti-virus software during the installation process. Do not connect the printer just yet, the installation will prompt you when to connect to your PC or Mac. I like the clean interface and the custom install lets you install the applications you require, just in case you are not sure what each does, there is a yellow " i " at the top right which provides full details of each application.

Click on the Easy Install if your in a hurry	or click the Custom Install if your not.
Driver version 5.50 is installed v 6.03E is indicated.	Plug in the printer now - I am using USB 2

I will cover the software later in the review, the driver will be featured throughout the review. Although the screen shot shows version 6.03E is being installed, the printer properties box says version 5.50 is being used. Perhaps the Printer Utility setup is version 6.03E. The driver took about 2 minutes to install and this included connecting the printer to the PC.

Some key parts

Before moving on with the actual prints, let's take a look at some of the printer parts.

Front view	Rear view
3 section rear paper guide	Extra grip for Matte paper stock
Rear paper feed for single sheets of Art media	Sprung front paper catcher
Lift cover to release front CD tray holder	Slip in a CD or DVD
Sprung cover stops expensive crashes	Lovely buttons
Side view	Firewire and USB 2 connections

The three section rear paper guide is contained within the top cover, this also acts as a dust cover when closed. The paper guide is a solid construction and holds media up to A3+. An extra rubberised grip is attached to the top edge to prevent A3 Matte media from slipping, use this when you are loading more than one sheet at a time. The Manual rear feed tray is for single sheets of Fine art paper. The front paper catcher has a neat sprung action, press the front panel and the tray folds out and lifts up, you have to then manually pull it out. Lift the top cover to release the CD feeder tray, the CD tray now slips into the grooves - I was once asked "why would you want to play CD's on your printer"? Just to keep the record straight, the CD/DVD tray is for printing logo's etc on printable CD/DVD's. The top cover is also sprung loaded, this will gently lower the lid should you dash to answer the phone. The buttons on the right hand side are a nice design but do not feel very positive, I prefer a nice click. There are two ports at the rear, Firewire and USB 2.0 - USB 1.1 can be used but you will not benefit from the extra performance.

I will cover the various parts in more detail as I use them. The next section will be the first prints, this will be published on Tuesday afternoon (I judge print colour under daylight after they have dried for about one hour)