Epson Stylus Photo PX720WD review

Epson’s inkjets have long used individual ink cartridges attached directly to the head assembly, but the Stylus Photo PX720WD is something of a departure. Its cartridges fit into a front compartment and ink is fed to the moving print head through tubes.

We’re enthusiastic about the squat design that this arrangement makes possible. While it’s not quite as slick as Canon’s latest PIXMAs, this MFP’s orange-lit, touch-sensitive control panel and the slot underneath it remind us of a very expensive VHS player from the mid-1980s. Unfortunately, the duplexer protrudes at the back, making it much deeper than it looks.

The PX720WD confirms button pushes with a beep, but it’s so annoying that we had to turn the notification off. Fortunately, the controls are quick to respond. You can de-select parts of the bundled software during the install process, but it’s still fairly long – allowing you to mutter at the dubious grammar of messages such as “Epson Easy Photo Print lets you print photos from PC easily and in fantastic layouts”.

A couple of small details help you set up this MFP. Once it’s on the network (there are both wired and wireless interfaces) it automatically prints a sheet with details of the connection and, once the software has installed there’s an automatic print test sheet. Unfortunately there’s no automatic head alignment, but the single-sheet process is easy enough.

Like other Epson inkjets, this isn’t a great printer for black text. Draft output isn’t black enough, but it isn’t striped. Normal-quality text is good enough for occasional use. It’s quicker than many Epson inkjets we’ve reviewed in the past, rattling off draft text at more than 20ppm, slowing to 8.8ppm at the default Text quality.

Things aren’t much slower in colour. Our mixed-colour test appeared at exactly 6ppm and, even at the highest-possible quality, 6x4in photos printed from a PC or memory card took less than a minute and 20 seconds each.

While Epson’s dye inks struggled to assert their authority on plain paper, they produce some of the best photos. In dark areas, where almost all the other printers fared badly, fine details were reproduced clearly – resulting in a huge improvement on two of our most challenging subjects. Despite not having a grey ink, the PX720WD delivered a stunning black and white photograph. None of its images showed any suggestion of grain, while their finish on Epson Premium Glossy paper was superb.

Images captured with the scanner were similarly impressive, with sharp focus and excellent preservation of detail in the lightest and darkest shades. Low-resolution scans were fast and even our 600dpi photo capture took only 16 seconds, though at a minute and seven seconds, the 1,200dpi test wasn’t quite the fastest.

The PX720WD has neither the highest print resolution nor the smallest droplet size, but its excellent photos show that the best specifications don’t necessarily equate to the best results. It isn’t the perfect choice if you have lots of plain-paper printing in mind, but the scanner is great and it isn’t too expensive to buy and run. While manufacturers often claim ‘lab quality’ photos, the PX720WD can actually deliver them. If you’re looking for an MFP for photo work, it’s a superb buy.