It’s Tuesday! Time to let you know about a new cartridge release at Pacific Ink. This week we are proud to announce the release of the HP 74 black and HP 75 tri color cartridges.

These Hewlett Packard manufactured ink cartridges come in both standard and XL capacities. The standard black HP 74 (CB335WN) yields 200 pages, while the HP 74XL (CB336WN) cartridge yields 750 pages. What’s the price difference for the 500 additional pages? The standard cartridge costs $16.99 while the XL cartridge costs $31.99. The difference in price per page is 8 cents (standard) as opposed to 4 cents when using the XL cartridge.

The color HP 75 (CB337WN) yields 170 pages, while its high capacity counterpart, the HP 75XL (CB338WN) yields 520 pages. These cartridges are priced slightly higer becasue they are color cartridges. The HP 75 is priced at $19.99 while the HP 75XL is priced at $36.99. Price per page is 12 cents (standard) and 7 cents (XL).

At this time there are no compatible or remanufactured versions of this cartridge, so consumers are stuck paying the higher HP brand prices.

These cartridges are made with Vivera ink, so they promise radiant colors, enhanced shadow detail, and reduced image grain for stunning color prints and exceptional black-and-white images.

These cartridges work in the following HP OfficeJet J5700 series printers:

These cartridges are one of the first to utilize HP’s new cheaper pricing structure (see previous post) for their print cartridges. Under this plan they will release different capacity cartridges. It is then up to the consumer to decide which capacity they wish to purchase based on their printing habits. It seems the bigger question is, “How much to I want to spend today?” or, “Am I thinking beyond the price tag in front of me to see that if I buy the lower priced cartridge I will be spending twice as much per page?”

If you have to buy 2 or 3 cartridges at $16.99 to make up for the one you could have bought at $31.99, then you are far worse off. You would be spending $33.98-$50.97 versus the initial $31.99. Our warning, do your math at the time you purchase.

We are also hoping this new plan, which was launched to combat Kodak, does not end up causing consumer confusion. HP used to use a variation of the same type of plan a few years ago, and still does use it a little. Ink cartridge numbers ended in a letter that signified how much ink was inside the cartridge. Customers were never really sure if they needed to buy the cartridge that ended in A or G for their printer. In an area that already has so many confusing numbers, this may just make it worse (they are adding different colored boxes as well).

If you have used these cartridges, let us know what you think.

The Epson Stylus Photo R1800 is designed for photographers. Those looking for an office style or general use printer should definitely not purchase this one. If you are a novice photographer you probably don’t want this one either, unless it is “only the best for you!” It is designed to print large archival quality glossy photos. Prices for this printer range from $424.00 - $593.00.

The printer uses an 8 color, individual ink tank system that includes both red and blue inks (in addition to the traditional magenta and cyan). Using these two additional colors gives you a wider color range, which means better looking prints. It also uses a photo black and matte black cartridges in addition to the standard black cartridge. Again, much better color range. Finally there is a gloss optimizer cartridge that provides the glossy finish to the image. Users rave about this cartridge because it makes their prints look like the came right off that expensive equipment in the photo labs.

The R1800 uses the following ink cartridges: T054020 Gloss Optimizer, T054120 Black, T054220 Cyan, T054320 Magenta, T054420 Yellow, T054720 Red, T054820 Matte Black, T054920 Blue. Epson manufactured cartridges for this printer cost around $11.00 per cartridge. There are 100% compatible versions of these same cartridges available at Pacific Ink for about $5 less per cartridge.

The print range of this printer is awesome. It can do everything from 4×6’s up to prints that are 13 inches wide, and panoramic photos that are up to 44 inches long. In addition you can print on a variety of media such as CD-ROM’s and DVD’s.

Here is how Epson describes the printer:

Epson Stylus Photo R1800 quickly creates large, archival quality glossy and matte photos worthy of display. Experience the rich, true-to-life colors and subtle detail that’s evident in every image. It’s all possible with Epson UltraChrome Hi-Gloss Inks, plus an industry leading resolution and ink droplet size - the same innovative features that made the Epson Stylus Photo R800 a resounding success. This printer’s impressive 8-color individual ink system, which incorporates red and blue inks, means you get a wider color gamut for incredibly vivid photos. Its separate matte and photo black ink cartridges are integrated into the system as well, so you get the deepest, darkest blacks on matte paper, and brilliant results on glossy paper automatically. Finally, the unique gloss optimizer makes glossy prints look like they came from a traditional photo lab. And, since the inks are pigment-based, you can be confident the color and detail will remain true for up to 200 years. The Epson Stylus Photo R1800 delivers studio quality results on a wide variety of media and in eight popular borderless sizes - up to 13-inches wide, as well as panoramics up to 44-inches long. Best of all, the Epson Stylus Photo R1800 speeds through every project - so you can quickly print stacks of high-quality photos. And, its expertise goes well beyond the art of photographic prints. This photo printer makes it easy to add that special touch to your portfolio with professional quality printing on ink jet printable CDs and DVDs. Print directly on inkjet printable CDs/DVDs Accomodates 4, 8.3 and 13 roll papers Ink Shelf Life - 2 years from production date; 6 months from first use Input paper tray - 100 Sheets(plain paper)/ 20 sheets (photo paper)/ 1 printable CD/DVD Printer Dimensions & Weight (L x W x H) - 24.2 x 12.6 x 9.1 / Weight - 33 pounds Works with Windows PC and Macintosh.

Overall this printer provides very high quality color photos with good print speed. But, the printer’s nozzles quite a bit more maintenance than most other printers. Users have reported quite a few instances of the nozzles drying out if the cartridges sit without use for a few days.

Here is what users of this printer are saying:

If you own this printer, let us know what you think of it.

Buy the Epson Stylus Photo R1800 Printer

Buy Cartridges for your Epson Stylus Photo 1800