Epson EcoTank ET-3850 review 2024: for home and office use

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Epson has introduced a new series of all-in-one printers aimed for the home office, and the EcoTank ET-3850 is the model that falls in the middle of that line. It is a multifunction device that can copy, scan, and print in addition to having an automated document feeder (ADF) and refillable ink tanks rather than cartridges. When you consider that it comes with enough ink in the box to print 14,000 black and white pages or 5,200 color pages.

An all-in-one that costs around $400 (approximately £360, AU$680), which may seem like a lot for a device that does not have a touchscreen and does not have a dual scan mode, may look like a good deal. That is equivalent to somewhere about 70 cartridges, and Epson’s bottled ink refills are pleasantly affordable to purchase. According to Epson, it is up to ninety percent less expensive than cartridges.

Epson EcoTank ET-3850 Specifictions

Specification	Description
Print Technology	PrecisionCore Heat-Free Technology
Maximum Print Size	8.5″ x 14″
Print Resolution	Up to 4800 x 1200 optimized dpi
Print Speed	10.5 pages per minute (black), 5 pages per minute (color)
Connectivity	Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct, Ethernet, USB
Paper Capacity	250-sheet input tray, 30-sheet ADF
Duplex Printing	Automatic duplex printing

Design and Build

The Epson EcoTank ET-3850 is a little bigger than other A4 all-in-one printers because it has to fit four large ink tanks, but it does a good job of hiding its size. It looks almost like a cube because all of its flaps, including the automatic document feeder (ADF) and tilting control panel, fold away smoothly. It is surprisingly light at 6.7kg, and it doesn’t feel very well made. Our sample came in a damaged box that looked like it had been dropped, and even though it was packed in polystyrene, it was enough to make the flaps of the ADF fall off. They clipped back in, and there was no damage that would last, but it doesn’t feel like a high-quality product. You can buy this printer from its official website

Setup and operation

The setup process for the Epson EcoTank ET-3850 couldn’t be simpler, owing in large part to Epson’s top-notch new app for Android and iOS. Due to the lack of a touchscreen, entering lengthy Wi-Fi passwords(opens in new tab) could be a hassle, but the free Epson Smart Panel app turns your smartphone into the interface. These days, it seems like every printer has an accompanying app, but this one is by far the easiest to use.

You’ll need to use the ink that came with the printer to refill the reservoirs. The bottles and tanks were so well made that we didn’t even have to worry about a single drop getting spilled. It’s reassuring to know exactly how much ink is left in your printer. It was always difficult to tell how much ink was left in a cartridge.

Epson EcoTank ET-3850: Performance

In comparison to the PrecisionCore design utilized in the ET-3850, which is typically reserved for more costly machines, the Micro Piezo print head used in the less expensive Epson EcoTank designs severely restricts print speed. ISO/IEC 24734 specifies a maximum print speed of 15.5 black-and-white pages per minute and 8.5 color pages per minute, however the product specs state a maximum print speed of 33 black-and-white pages per minute when using the draft mode.

When we ran my own tests, the first of five monochrome pages we sent came out in seconds after we hit “send,” and the last four came out within 30 seconds. The printer’s speed increased to roughly 10 pages per minute on lengthier print jobs, and it can print nearly twice as fast in draft mode.

Price and Availability

EcoTank printers come with a lot of ink, and using them doesn’t cost much. To make up for this, Epson made the printer more expensive than a normal cartridge of the same size and type. The RRP in the UK went from £429.99 to £379.99 very quickly, and you can easily find it for less. Amazon, Argos, Very, Box, Currys, Ebuyer, AO, and Laptops Direct are all places you can buy it. The printer costs $449.99 in the United States and can be bought from Epson, Amazon, Staples, and BestBuy.

Final Words

This three-in-one printer from Epson is a great choice for a home office. Even though it can hold a lot of ink, it’s not too big, and it has all the important features of a business printer already built in. It’s too bad it doesn’t have a touchscreen, a USB Host port, or dual scanning, but we’d happily give up those features for such low running costs. The high price of the Epson EcoTank ET-3850 is more than worth it because it comes with so much ink. The most important thing is that it prints well, both for papers and photos.

Epson EcoTank ET-3850 review: The good and The bad

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