I think the 1280 and 1290 use an ink cartridge with a chip in it. This stops you using third party inks. Not a great problem unless you want to use the true black and white inks that specialist companies make. If you do a lot of black and white, the 1270 is best I think.
A word on pigment based inks - the colour is nowhere near as vivid as normal inkjets. They may have better archival qualities but the prints come 'pre-faded' as the ink doesn't work so well in the first place!! > -----Original Message----- > From: Dan Scott [mailto:daniel559@;directvinternet.com] > > I have the 1270, too, and it is a very nice printer though it > is out of > production. Its successors, the 1280 and 1290, are both > available new, I > believe. One of their nicest features (aside from image > quality) is the > ability to handle good sized pieces of paper--13"x44". The > 1280 and 1290 > both print full bleed, but I think printing an 8"x10" on a piece of > 13"x19" trimmed down a little looks great (that lovely > expanse of white > makes even the most humble photo stand tall). > > Another Epson you might want to look at is the 2200, it uses an > advanced set of inks (pigments, not dyes) with exceptional > colorfastness. Properly mounted, current estimates are 75+ years of > daily display with no perceptible color shift. > > I think the 1270-80-90s are rated at about 25 years depending on the > papers used. > > Dan Scott > >
