Epson Stylus CX6000
Epson recently renewed its entire line of multifunction printers; the Stylus CX6000 takes on the job of replacing the Stylus CX4800. Fortunately, a lot has been changed, and this product will let Epson stay in the race with its competitors, even if certain aspects - in particular printing speed in photo mode - are still disappointing.
Ergonomics And Design
The first big change over the CX4800 is that the CX6000 has an LCD display; as on the Canon Pixma MP510, however, it's only a 2"er, and even stranger, it's square instead of rectangular. That's an odd choice that does nothing to improve comfort when viewing photos loaded from a memory card. The control panel has been entirely redesigned, and is much more pleasant to use. The information given on the panel and on the display is more precise, and you're not left scratching your head all the time over what an icon might mean. Beyond that, the characteristics are standard, with regard to both the paper capacity and the type of loading. The only criticism we might make about the organization of this printer is that the memory card slots are located toward the bottom of the housing, behind a flap that's overhung by the forward part of the scanner. That makes access somewhat difficult if the CX6000 is near the floor.
Print Quality
Since the CX6000 isn't part of Epson's Stylus Photo line, we didn't expect remarkable print quality. The results were average, but paler areas and shading clearly suffer from the absence of photo-specific ink; it's no problem with text or graphics though. Do note that the draft mode is very stingy with black ink, and text came out looking very pale.
