Epson WorkForce Pro WP-4590: Low-Cost Corporate Laser Alternative

21.08.2012
The Epson WorkForce Pro WP-4590 works quickly and uses cheap ink, but it isn't available through normal retail channels. It's aimed at large businesses that value service and a low total cost of ownership over a low purchase price. Priced at $500 (as of August 13, 2012), the WP-4590 comes with a three-year warranty and is sold only through VARs and other corporate channels. Consumers who are tired of PIB (Printers in Black) might also appreciate this unit's friendlier putty and light-gray coloring.

Accompanying the WP-4590 are the usual competent Epson software and driver installation routine. Since the machine has USB and ethernet, but no Wi-Fi (a bow to security concerns, per Epson), you will be tethered. The control panel sports a 2.5-inch LCD and the usual array of buttons, arranged in a classic and logical manner. If you've ever used an MFP before, you will encounter no learning curve here. The software includes Epson Scan for scanning and PaperPort 9 for OCR chores.

Paper-handling features on the WP-4590 are quite good. It has a 250-sheet tray on the bottom and an 80-sheet rear vertical feed. If that's not enough, you can buy an auxiliary 250-sheet bottom tray for a mere $100. For a laser printer you'd pay at least twice as much for such an accessory. Having the rear feed is especially nice for photos, since it permits the MFP to process heavier glossy paper with minimal bending. The rear feed also allows you to keep two types of paper loaded.

The WP-4590 has a 30-sheet automatic document feeder for scanning and copying longer documents, and it scans in duplex (via a refeed, not with dual-scanning elements). The lid for the letter/A4-size flatbed scanner telescopes about half an inch to accommodate thicker materials. The WP-4590 also supports automatic duplex printing.

The WorkForce Pro WP-4590 is the fastest inkjet we've tested recently, narrowly edging out its consumer-oriented cousin. Monochrome pages print at 12.6 pages per minute on the PC and 12.1 ppm on the Mac. Snapshot-size (4-by-6-inch) photos print at 6.2 ppm to plain paper and 1.7 ppm to glossy photo paper. Full page photos print at 0.7 ppm, and copies proceed into the output bin at 6.4 ppm.

The corporate-oriented WP-4590 may be pricier than , but its ink costs are outstandingly low. The unit ships with starter cartridges: a 1000-page black, and 900-page cyan, magenta, and yellow. The 676XL retail replacements are $38.49 for the 2400-page black and $24.49 for the 1200-page cyan, magenta, and yellow cartridges. That works out to 1.6 cents per page for black, and 6.1 cents per page total for color. A four-color page would cost a bargain 7.7 cents. The extra-high-capacity 711XXL cartridges listed on Epson's website are slated to be available only through commercial channels rather than retail. Based on the suggested pricing that Epson provided to us, black will cost 1.6 cents per page and each color will cost 1.7 cents per page, for an even lower four-color cost of 6.8 cents per page.