Epson EcoTank ET-2950

The Epson EcoTank ET-2950 is a great home printer that I use to print all my documents and the occasional vacation photos. Installation is easy, and I can quickly operate the printer via the color screen or the Epson Smart Panel app on my phone. I do find it a shame, however, that the printer doesn't have an ADF.

Easy Ink Refills In the box, I find the printer, the manual, four ink bottles, and a power cord. The printer is in a plastic bag with handles, allowing me to safely lift it out of the box. I remove all the adhesive strips and open the ink reservoir. I carefully place an ink bottle upside down on the correct reservoir, allowing the ink to flow into the printer. Now that the reservoir is full, no more ink comes out of the bottle, and I remove it without spilling any remaining ink. I'm not worried about new ink for now, because the included ink will last me up to three years. On the back of the printer, I open the paper support, place a stack of A4 paper on it, and adjust the guides. The printer is small, but the protruding paper stack prevents it from fitting tightly against a wall or cabinet.

Fast Wi-Fi Direct Connection I operate the printer via the built-in color screen with easy-to-use buttons. After the printer initializes and I've customized the basic settings to my liking, I connect it to my phone. I do this via Wi-Fi Direct, so I don't need a router for a stable Wi-Fi connection. In my phone's Wi-Fi settings, I select the printer and enter the password the printer displays on the screen. The printer is now connected to my phone.

Printing via the Epson Smart Panel App With the Epson Smart Panel App, I easily print photos from my gallery or documents from my phone. I hardly ever use my laptop anymore when I print. The same goes for scanning. The result appears immediately on my phone as a PDF or JPG. I also use the app to make copies.

Suitable for home use My text documents look sharp and I often print double-sided. I also occasionally print photos, but these obviously don't have the same quality as those from a photo printer. This printer is more than suitable for vacation photos or mementos for my pinboard.

Initially, I ordered and received the printer as a second-hand item. It turned out that the printer had leaked ink during transport, and it was not recognized by the installation program. CoolBlue took the printer back and delivered a new one in its place, without asking for any additional payment. After filling it with the included ink bottles, the installation proceeded step-by-step without any problems.

The installation was difficult. I kept getting error message 000041. Something to do with the paper transport, but that wasn't it. It took 12 hours for the ink to properly enter the system. After that, the installation went perfectly. So just be patient. Wait 12 hours after filling the ink before proceeding with the installation.