I hear the Epson 1270 printer puts out awsome prints, but I can't get myself to totally rule out the HP 1220. My concerns with the Epson is that they appear to be more troublesome, have more problems with inkked over heads and the suck ink, but I hear the results are more true to being photographic. Does the HP have postscript capabilities? Any info to help make this expensive decision is appreciated. Has anybody got their hands on these babies yet?

I have used both printers and I prefer the HP far ahead of the Epson. The Epson was much slower, noiser, and the drivers were much less Mac. The Epson also uses the same print heads and technology as the 800, which I have used and have had numerous terrible problems with print heads that clog up. This has been a known complaint among Epson users. The HP on the other hand, in my opinion, printed color prints exceptional with greater clarity on good paper. I am not sure about the PostScript thing, but I ended up getting the HP and am very happy. Good luck.

Actually I myself own an Epson Stylus Color 800 and have had NO problems with it whatsoever. I also own a Stylus 1250, and no problems with that either. I don't see where the problems are with the drivers. In my experience Epson makes the best printers you can buy. I've used HPs, and found that the quality of the printout seems lower, and at times they are slower. I'd go to epson.com and look over some of the printers and see what's best for you. All the specs are listed there, even things such as the sound level and ink drop size. Another reason I'd go with Epson, HP almost dropped support for Mac last year, and they could do it this year. Not exactly a plus when purchasing a printer.

I also run a Color stylus 800, and for two years never a problem, it prints flawlessly.
I can only tell you that we buy our paper in bulk, just to give you an idea as to how much this printer has worked. I’m looking forward to it breaking just so i can see what the new one’s will do.

It’s noisy I’ll give ya that, but when I compare it to the HP the quality wins hand down.
Sorry Bearcat, the thing is just so faithful, I mean if it were a car, it have a million miles on, and I haven’t had to fix a flat.

[gunnar]

I just bought the 1270 and i can say that it is the best printer I've ever used. The resolution is excellent and most times equally good as any commercial photographic print. The software is very mac-like and allows a large degree of customization options which is very nice for colour matching and photo-tweaking. The speed is fine and as fast as you could expect for this kind of resolution. the wide format is exceptional too for up to 13 x 44" panoramas.

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december3 - new media design & marketing

Well, I went with the 1270, but so far it's been a nightmare. Epson packed software for the 870 instead of 1270. Epson tech said he'd send cd with proper drivers. Hasn't arrived in alost a week. Epson Tech told me to download from net . Drivers didn't work. Epson tech didn't believe me. Next morning called Epson. tech said drivers fine and I should call ISP! Idiot! The drivers were not accessible until late in the day. Noticed that the file was 2 MB larger. It worked. Got Excited. Well, printer wouldn't spit out sheet after printing. Called Epson. Followed directions for ROM reset(?) Result..Fatal error. Tech said he would ship me new printer. Haven't got it yet. I hope that this isn't a portent of more troubles. The printer seems to be quite user friendly and not so noisy as other epsons though.

[exa]

My stylus 800 has tons of problems occuring frequently... random hex dumps, red lines on photos when printed at 1440 dpi (cleaning/aligning doesnt seem to work), color in the ink not working making me waste a color cartridge... these things just don't last. And the epsons at our school, 1500 something, not sure, they have many problems, like printing the second page on the first... such annoyances. The epsons have incredible quality but could have a bit more stability....

I have an Epson, though not the one you mentioned, and have been very pleased with the photos I print! I admit that I have had some minor problems with it, but the photos are amazing! I'm a photographer and have been quite impressed with the output. Owned an HP in the past and it doesn't come close!

Woe is me! Today I received the cd with correct drivers...BUT Epson sent me an 870 instead of a 1270 printer. I should get a 1270 tomorrow. At the moment I have two printers and tomorrow will bring three. I asked the customer service rep (manager?) for Epson to show its appreciation and do something to make this all up to me. He said two ink cartridges. It seems piddly after all my grief and toll calls. Can I convince them to be more generous? Or do I just lose again?

Unless I missed it, no one has mentioned so far that the Epson 870 and 1270 printers, when used with their ink and paper, will produce prints that won't fade for 15-25 years. This is a huge consideration if you plan to print photos and art for display. Most color inkjet prints (including all HP prints) begin to fade very quickly.

Paul