Driver and Software installation

Once the inks have been installed you will need to install the drivers and other software. The R2880 is supplied with drivers for Windows Vista, XP and 2000, (operating systems upgraded from ME, 98 and 95 are not supported). For Mac users, Power PC or Intel based Mac running OS-X 10.3.9 or later.

As with most installations, the entire process is automated by wizards, you don't have to do anything other than plug the USB 2.0 cable in when prompted (will also work with USB 1.1). The entire installation process takes about 8 to 10 minutes.

The bundled software includes

The software is a standard package for most Epson printers, most applications are OK if somewhat basic. Given that this printer is aimed at the (Semi)-Pro and Advanced Amateur photographer, I am surprised that Photoshop Elements has been included in the bundle. It is an excellent application that will suit a beginner, but not necessarily Epson's target market for this printer, However, it may make a nice gift for someone or fetch a few pounds on e-Bay.

Printer Design

The R2880 has that Deja Vue feeling, now where have I seen this before? Ah, Ah now I remember it's the R1900 or even a smaller version of the Pro 3800. Epson have adopted this sleek stylist look for their new range of printers, and I must say they look great. One of my gripes with the R2400 was its flimsy construction, I am pleased to see that the R2880 looks and feels like a heavy duty printer that will take a few knocks in a working setup, without falling apart. When all the trays are folded up the printer occupies relatively little desk space, especially when compared to the HP B9180.

The Epson Stylus Photo R2880 A3+ printer
Triple extension front tray	Triple extension rear paper feed
Positive paper guide	Rear Manual feed
Useful CD/DVD printing	Not so useful roll media holder
Front Thick media path	Rear Fine Art & specialty media tray
Front PictBridge Port	Dual USB ports for limited Networking

As with the R1900 and Pro 3800, the R2880 has been well thought out. The parts feel solid and Epson have not made any cut backs on materials used. The inclusion of the CD/DVD printing option is very welcome, I did like this feature on the SP2100 and made use of it, but for some reason it was dropped on the R2400. The roll media holder on an A3 printer is perhaps a bit too optimistic, I never did manage to straighten out the curl on the prints, and there isn't even a cutter (the SP2100 came complete with a cutting unit). However, the printer will print a cutting guide line on the media, all you need to do is sharpen your scissors and make sure you keep the cut straight. Not an ideal solution.

The straight path front paper path is slightly misleading, I thought I could use it for my expensive Fine Art media, Not so. This path is for board media, up to 1.3mm thick. When activated the print head moves to a higher position to allow for the extra thickness. If you use normal Photo media then the nozzles will be in the wrong position thereby producing slightly blurry looking prints.

For Fine Art and other specialty media you must use the single sheet Manual rear holder. This attaches to the rear of the printer and will accept one sheet at a time. I had a few problems with this as I couldn't get the printer to accept the media. However, reading through the HTML manual I discovered that you have to feed the media in until it meets a resistance and then apply a small amount of downward pressure for about 3 seconds until the printer pulls the media in. Not the most intuitive method of loading media.

The R2880 has two rear USB ports, which means you can connect two computers up to the printer, I would have preferred an Ethernet port just to connect the printer up to a wireless router, at least I could use the printer with a variety of computers (we have several). I am still baffled as to why anyone would want to use PictBridge on an A3+ printer. Given the high price of inks and media, I would certainly want to check out my images before committing ink to paper. I can understand PictBridge on an A4 mass consumer printer, but not on a high quality printer such as the R2880.