The printers

There are two new printer models, essentially identical except for their widths, and of course price. The epson stylus Pro 7900 is the 24" version and currently retails for about $4,000. The Stylus Pro 9900 can take up to 44" rolls and retails for about $6,000. Prices vary by country, of course, and there are official rebates and discounts available from dealers from time to time.

These printers are big; big enough for you to require at least three people, and preferably four in the case of the epson stylus pro 9900, to set them up. They are delivered on a wooden palette. Be sure to request that the delivery truck have a lift gate, because otherwise they'll assume that you have a loading dock for something of this size.

Both printers are able to take 150ml, 350ml or 700ml ink cartridges. Ten separate inks in eleven slots are used.

An optional SpectroProofer with a built-in X-Rite spectrophotometer is available for both printers. The test unit which I have did not include this and this report does not cover its use. In my opinion the SpectroProofer is likely to appeal only to those in the proofing trade, which is one of the primary markets that this printer is aimed at.

Indeed, it's worth mentioning that the 7900 and 9900 printers are not replacements for the previous Epson 7880 and 9880 printers. These continue to be available and are at lower price points – about $1,000 less in each instance.

There is considerable new technology in these printers, from heads to inks and more. This does translate into higher quality prints, more rugged construction, and faster printing times, as well as smoother operability and reliability. All at a price, of course. But whether these benefits are worth the financial cost is up to the buyer and user, and therefore Epson has allowed both the previous as well as these new models to continue in parallel.