26 June 2008

 

Epson believes too many consumers are at risk of losing precious memories as technologies we rely on today inevitably become obsolete.

Most of us own a home computer with a hard drive full to bursting with photos and important documents. The longevity of such materials will undoubtedly be long out-lasted by a typical photograph or document. Worse still, many of us don’t adequately back up these precious memories, meaning that at any time they could be lost forever in the event of a crash.

Put simply: prints last, file formats and their means of storage don’t, a case in point being the rapidity with which the CD or DVD has replaced the much lower capacity floppy disk as the storage medium of choice for PC users. And even the DVD is now on the cusp of obsolescence as newer, higher-quality systems such as Blu-ray and HD-DVDs become popular.

When you consider it takes around 30 years for one technology to be completely overtaken by another, the problem for digital images held on a PC’s hard drive is simply this: it’s very unlikely that they’ll be able to be read in the same way in the near future that we take for granted now.

And, in the event of this, how many visual records of family history will be wiped out altogether?

There is an easy and risk-free solution for preserving memories. Losing all record of important personal documents, sentimental events, special occasions and family life through technological obsolescence can be avoided by preserving them in hard copy format.

Protection against obsolescence

Epson has been developing printers for over 50 years. Its wealth of experience has enabled it to develop DURABrite Ultra Ink, a unique ink technology designed to meet everyday printing needs, whether it is for document or photo printing. It offers high-quality prints that are smudgeproof, waterproof and importantly will last for a long time. Hard copies of photos can last up to 200 years when stored in an album – a particularly important attribute within the photo market and documents can resist fading up to six times longer than leading competitive prints¹.

Epson DURABrite Ultra printers offer low cost printing with individual inks from just €6.99, only the colour of ink that is used needs to be replaced, making it an economic ‘must have’ solution for the home user.

“DURABrite Ultra is a pigment-based ink with a unique resin coating which allows consumers to print on any type of paper,” explains Jason Savage, Group Product Manager, Consumer Products, Epson Europe. “The resin keeps the ink on the surface of the paper to deliver high quality output.”

Combined with Epson’s unique Micro Piezo™ print head technology, DURABrite Ultra Ink offers laser-like text printing, as well as superb quality photos on all paper types.

What’s more, as the name suggests, Epson DURABrite Ultra prints are relentlessly durable, with prints resistant to water, fading and smudging.

“Why risk losing memories or important documents into the digital ether or watch them fade quickly by using low quality inks, when they could last a lifetime – and beyond?” asks Savage. “Epson gives consumers the quality that ensures peace of mind when printing photos whose value is worth more than a quick print; these are documents of times and occasions that will be enjoyed for generations to come. What’s more, for the home user the Epson DURABrite™ Ultra Ink solution makes creative and financial sense.”

¹Ink fade resistance ratings based on accelerated testing of unframed colour prints in indoor display conditions. Actual print stability will vary according to light intensity, temperature, humidity and other factors. Epson does not guarantee the longevity of prints. See www.wilhelm-research.com

The Epson Stylus S20, SX200 and SX400 series

Epson printers and Epson media are a quality combination that works for the majority of professional photographers, who have made Epson their number one choice.

Family users can also enjoy high-quality prints with the latest additions to the fast performing, easy to use Epson 4-colour printer range. The Stylus DX8400, DX7400 and DX4400 Series all utilise the revolutionary Epson DURABrite Ultra pigment ink system to deliver that combination of exceptional output and high productivity.

Epson Stylus S20 key features summary:

• Everyday document and photo printer

• Save money with individual ink cartridges from €6.99

• Print borderless photos up to A4

• Print up to 26 pages per minute in black and white and 14 pages per minute in colour

• Superb text documents and lab-quality photos with Epson DURABrite™ Ultra Ink

• Automatically improve your photos with Epson PhotoEnhance

• Remove red-eye with Epson Easy Photo Print

• ENERGY STAR® qualified printer

Epson Stylus SX200 Series key features summary:

• PC-free printer, scanner and copier

• Save money with individual ink cartridges

• Print directly from an index sheet, memory card or PictBridge digital camera

• Superb text documents and lab-quality photos with Epson DURABrite™ Ultra Ink

• Print up to 34 prints per minute in black and white and colour

• Create high-quality scans with the 1200dpi scanner

• Automatically improve your photos with Epson PhotoEnhance

• Restore faded scanned photos with Epson Easy Photo Fix™

• ENERGY STAR® qualified printer

Epson Stylus SX400/SX405 additional features summary:

• Printer, scanner and copier with LCD viewer

• View and print photos without PC via the 6.3cm LCD viewer