iPhone 3GS from AT&T. Free Shipping
Entered CNET Catalog: 11/07/2003
SKU: 0010343849525
Manufacturer: Epson
Manufacturer description
Print brilliant photos to share with family and friends - with or without a computer! A versatile, full-featured performer, the Epson Stylus R300M makes printing colorful photos a snap. It even includes a 2.5" color preview monitor so you can see images from your memory card before you print them. And, with the Epson Stylus R300M, you can print directly on ink jet-printable CD-Rs and DVD-Rs. So, now it's easier than ever to personalize your discs with a cool, finished look. With up to 5760 x 1440 dpi and superior 6-color Photo Inks the Epson Stylus R300M offers precise color and accurate skin tones. Plus, BorderFree printing provides a fast, simple way to get bright, vivid prints to frame, place in an album, or share with your friends. Best of all, anyone can crop, resize, save, or print photos directly from memory cards or picture CDs - without using a computer. A front-access host USB port makes it easy to connect your, CD-R drive, Zip drive or PictBridge-enabled digital camera to the printer. The built-in card slots offer a simple solution for also saving images to the PC. Designed by Epson, an industry leader in photo imaging technology, the Epson Stylus R300M supports Exif Print and PRINT Image Matching technology to automatically print the best possible photos from P.I.M.-enabled digital cameras. With stunning image quality, a large color preview monitor, and many easy-to-use features, printing all your favorite photos is a breeze. And, when you pair the printer's individual ink cartridges with Epson's high-quality, value-priced papers, you've got an affordable home printing solution. Whether you're printing with or without your computer, the Epson Stylus R300M offers total control, with remarkable results every time.Product summary
The good: Excellent photo quality; multiple direct-printing options; color preview screen; prints directly onto CD/DVD media.
The bad: Slow; text quality is only fair.
The bottom line: The Epson Stylus R300M photo inkjet printer includes many features sure to please digital photo enthusiasts.
CNET editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 02/03/2004
The bread-box-size Epson Stylus R300M measures 19.6 inches by 10.4 inches by 8.6 inches (W, D, H) and looks like many other inkjets on the market today, with its input tray in the back and its output tray at the bottom. The R300M includes a 2.5-inch color LCD for previewing your digital photos (without the preview monitor, the R300M sells for $50 less). There's also a smaller monochrome LCD on the control panel with a text menu that allows you to resize and crop photos before printing or to change settings such as brightness, saturation, and sharpness--all without a computer attached.
The setup process is seamless. The R300M uses a high-speed USB 2.0 port for its connection to a Mac or a PC (USB cable not included), and its drivers work with Windows 98 and above, as well as Mac 8.6 and above. Epson supplies ample printed documentation, such as a Start Here poster that walks you through the initial installation. There's also a quick-reference card for printing without a computer.
What sets the Epson Stylus R300M apart from other photo printers is its various built-in features. Perhaps the most compelling is the built-in CD/DVD tray, which allows you to print directly onto CD or DVD media--one step beyond printing CD or DVD labels. Using the included Epson Print CD software, simply create a design, insert a blank CD or DVD disc, then print. Potential uses include personalizing holiday or vacation photo CDs and saving thousands of dollars on the cover artwork for your garage band's latest CD or DVD release.
The R300M offers an unprecedented level of connectivity and compatibility with cameras and removable media. Below the monochrome LCD, there's a smoked-plastic lid that flips to reveal a bank of removable media cards. The R300M will print directly from Secure Digital, Memory Stick, CompactFlash, SmartMedia, Microdrive, and xD cards. There's also a USB 1.0 port for PictBridge- and USB Direct Print-compatible cameras as well as Zip, CD, and Magneto-Optical drives. The software inside the printer transfers digital photos to a media card or transfers data from a media card directly to your PC or Mac. And if you add Epson's Bluetooth Photo Print Adapter ($69), you can send and print images to the R300M wirelessly from any Bluetooth-enabled device.
When printing from an attached computer, the R300M's print drivers are easy to use and consist of three tabs: Main, Page Layout, and Maintenance. Within these tabs you select paper type, borderless printing, and the nozzle-cleaning function. The Main tab also includes an advanced screen to tweak individual color levels, saturation, and the like.
In tests comparing the R300M against other six-ink photo inkjet printers, CNET Labs found that the R300M printed very slowly. Text print speeds averaged a dismal 1.8 pages per minute (ppm), significantly slower than the HP Photosmart 7960 at 4.6ppm or the Lexmark P707 at 4.2ppm. On photo images, the R300M print speeds averaged 5 minutes per page (mpp)--much slower than the dirt-cheap Canon i560 at 1.8mpp or the more expensive Canon i960 at 2mpp.
With regard to print quality, CNET Labs gave the R300M mixed reviews. When using Epson's inkjet paper, the monochrome text came out very dark to the point of looking oversaturated with ink. Tiny fonts, while legible, appeared spotty and saw-toothed. Color graphics, on the whole, looked fair, with the printer handling color matching quite well. The blended and shaded areas in our test document (both color and black and white), however, were visibly pixelated and not very smooth. But on photos, the R300M really shone. Our complex, high-resolution test document looked extremely crisp--there was only the faintest hint of dithering visible in the background, and skin tones looked smooth and balanced.
CNET Labs obtained a reasonable ink consumption cost of $1.08 per page when printing a high-resolution, complex 8.5x11 test photo. If you're printing mostly 4x6 photos, your real-world costs will be half as much. The R300M uses individual ink cartridges, so you replace each depleted color separately. Black ink cartridges currently run about $17, while individual color inks are $12 each. These ink prices are a smidge more expensive than those of the Canons but well below the prices of the HP 7960's inks.
Inkjet printer text speed (Longer bars indicate better performance)
|
||||||||
|
Inkjet color photo speed test (Shorter bars indicate better performance)
|
||||||||
|
Inkjet printer quality
| ||||||||||||||||||||
|
Epson backs the R300M with an industry-standard one-year warranty, which you can upgrade to two or three years for $70 and $100, respectively. Automated toll-free tech support is available 24/7, but toll-call live tech support is available only Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. PT for the life of the warranty. Canon, on the other hand, offers toll-free live support Monday through Saturday, but only for the first 90 days.
Epson provides a thick user guide, with everything you need to start printing or to perform more complex printing tasks. Also included are troubleshooting tips. The Web site offers driver downloads, FAQs, manuals, troubleshooting tips, and access to e-mail and fax-back tech support.
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 User Rating: 
7/10
Great photo printer
Pros: Excellent photo print quality
Cons: Paper jams!!!!!
User Rating: 
5/10
Ink Jet Cartridges dry up with non-use
Pros: Great picture quality, easy to use
Cons: Automatically determines when ink jet cartirdges require replacement, whether they need it or not. Ink dries up quickly if you don't use your printer often
User Rating: 7/10
Great photo printer
Pros: Good quality photo prints
Cons: Very, very slow printing.
User Rating: 
8/10
Perfect quality photo printer
Pros: awesome photo printer,less Ink price than other Inkjets
Cons: less speed , not for text , more ink uses
User Rating: 8/10
Great photo printer for the money
Pros: Great pictures (you HAVE to use epson premium photo paper). The print CD function is more useful than you'd think
Cons: Photos could print faster
User Rating: 8/10
Good quality printer for the price
Pros: Text quality far better and faster than the HP printer it replaces.
Cons: Can't be connected through PC power distribution panel; power off and on must only by done on the printer. Powerup sequence is slow.
User Rating: 
2/10
Warning: VERY POOR Support.
Pros: It's nice to be able to print to a CD... but it's finicky. As careful as you are loading the CD you will find the printer refusing to print it...after a lengthy preamble. Other than the CD printing this printer does not warrant special mention. Its pros d
Cons: Although it's handy to be able to print CDs, the operation of the printer is quirky at best. When I printed according to Epsons instructions the printer would (after a lengthy preamble) enough times to be annoying, eject the CD without printing and ask
User Rating: 8/10
Amazing results
Pros: Unlike some reviews where ppl rate about an item they do not own or have not used; I own the R300. I have had this printer for 1 year now. Just last month I replaced the ink - $70. Of course that is normal, you print, you run out of ink. In 5 years I will
Cons: Non that I can think of, it is a wonderful printer and has served it's purpose well - to make superior photo print-outs.
User Rating: 
6/10
CD/DVD Printing Sucks
Pros: Photo print quality is good and CD/DVD prints are good too.
Cons: The direct printing of CD/DVDs is nice, if I could get one that will actually do it. I've gone through three going on four that fail to feed the CD tray into the printer. If I give the tray a push it will feed through and give great CD prints but it sucks
User Rating: 8/10
This is a GREAT printer for home use!
Pros: Amazing photo quality prints. Best with Epson paper of course, but good on no-name brands as well. Card reader can be used to put files on your hard drive. More features than you can shake a stick at for about $200. Extremely quiet.
Cons: May want to look at the R300 which has a buit-in display and all the same features for le$$.
User Rating: 7/10
OK compared to Canon i900 and HP 7960
Pros: -Highest resolution than HP's and Canon's 5760x1440 instead of 4800x1200 -Card Reader -6 Inks print better than 2(HP) and also costs less in the long run. (Print alot of blue, replace it for 12.99. In an HP costs 34.99) -Costs around 20-50 bucks less (i90
Cons: -No LCD so you have to remember which picture numbers are which. -(Canon i900 and HP 7960) have color LCD
User Rating: 8/10
Skip the R300M and get an R200 instead
Pros: Ink and paper costs are quite reasonable.
Cons: After testing an R300M from it's memory card slots and an R200 printing from a computer, I was shocked to find that the R300M's prints were noticably off. There was a green cast on every photo I printed. The R200 had none of these quality problems. Now th
User Rating: 7/10
not the greatest text but great photos !
Pros: Photos are fast and very sharp with great color retntion
Cons: text not as good as other epsons Ive used and unless you find online discounters or alternative catridges ink can be costly! 67% of the printers cost for all colors and black !
User Rating: 
1/10
either no photos or no printing
Pros:
Cons: epson has sent me 2 r300m.The first one did not accept lexar media cards. the second one does not print but accepts the cards. i am returning the second one too.
User Rating: 
9/10
Wonderful Photo Quality
Pros: Great quality photos. If someone doesn't like the prints that come out, they're probably using the wrong paper. I used Kodak Premium paper and compare it to the Epson - the photos printed on the Epson paper were far superior. 100 sheets of high gloss 4 x
Cons: Darker images look a little bit like they were printed from an ink-jet if you look close. But that was with a photo taken with a 2 MP camera. A very high-res image I took off the internet showed up better.
User Rating: 8/10
Bad A**
Pros: This is one printer you don't want to pass up.. Great photo's right out of the box and for months to come... A HUGE step up for the 925.
Cons: start up is a little slow.. i'd rather turn it on and start printing but i think it's probably my impatients...GET THIS ON. YOU WON'T BE LET DOWN.
User Rating: 8/10
Perfect for the digital photographer
Pros: Prints on Epson premium glossy paper are as good or better than 35mm film from the photo lab. Prints on CD printable media are amazing. Epson software is excellent and easy to use.
Cons: Some would be put off by the slow speed at the "best photo" setting. I compared text on the standard Windows XP test print to my old HP 932C and the HP had slightly clearer text. But after all the R300 is a PHOTO PRINTER. If you want to PRINT PHOTOS, thi
User Rating: 9/10
Very good printer for the money
Pros: This printer has a high resolution and produces excellent borderless prints. The added feature is that it prints right on the printable CD/DVDs or if you apply an adesive label to the CD/DVD it will print on it. It comes with CD printing software. It h
Cons: It does not have a film roll holder as some of the other Epson models but not everyone needs this feature.
User Rating: 6/10
EPSON SERVICE LEAVES A LOT TO BE DESIRED!
Pros: The Pinter looks to be quality built and so far the imges look good on just plain paper. This is good to see and help monitor for using quality paper.
Cons: THE TECH SUPPORT AT EPSON LEAVES A LOT TO BE DESIRED. THERE IS NO EMAIL SUPPORT ON THEIR WEB SITE! NO LIVE CHAT SUPPORT ON THEIR WEB SITE! YOU CAN NOT REACH TECH SUPPORT UNLESS YOU HAVE A LONG DISTANCE CHARGE TO YOUR PHONE! I FEEL LIKE THEY ARE ONLY CONCE
User Rating: 7/10
Best Photo Quality
Pros: Pictures look fantastic on Epson paper. I have had both Canon(I850), HP(P1000). This printer by far has best photo quality, ink will not smear even if you poor water on it directly after comes out of printer.
Cons: As with all new inkjets, cost of replacement ink is high.
