[December 2, 2023: The letter-size ET-8500 is on sale right now on Amazon for roughly $100 off — it’s been fluctuating between $609 and $615 — while the wide-format (13-inch) EcoTank Photo ET-8550 is on sale on Amazon (and other outlets) for $550 — less than the current ET-8500 cost, and $250 off its normal list price of $800.
If you’ve been on the fence about these rather amazing printers, this is the time to jump. After nearly two years of regular use, we continue to be impressed by these printers. They’re the perfect entry point for anyone interested in learning how to print their own photos..]
I was intrigued last year with Epson’s announcement of the EcoTank Photo ET-8500 and ET-8550, the latest iteration of their “supertank,” high-capacity inkjet printers. These were the first EcoTank printers to offer a six-color print engine tuned for printing photos, while also offering high-quality document printing and scan/copy support. Reading through Epson’s lofty marketing language, which talked about “lab-quality color photos and graphics at an incredible value,” it was clear that, if the company followed through on its promise, the ET-8500/ET-8550 could very well usher in a new era of high-quality photo prints, at significantly lower costs than classic, cartridge-based, photo printers.