A Friend Asked Me Buy a 4880 or 3880

[Gemmtech]

I had a friend ask me which printer to buy, the Epson 4880 or the 3880?  At first I immediately said get the 3880, it's less expensive, will do borderless
sheets and is the latest and greatest, but then I did some more thinking and came to the conclusion that these are basically the same printers from an
ink and quality of print POV, the 3880 does borderless and the black ink swap cost less than the 4880,  but then the 4880 has a vacuum hold down, will accept rolls (does borderless on rolls) is substantially faster (according to Epson specifications) and the biggest difference, the 4880 is actually less expensive to buy!  Why buy a 3880 if the 4880 cost less?  I'm assuming that the 4900 is on the way and that's why the rebate, but I believe there's some overlap and if you were smart enough 1-2 weeks ago the 4880 actually had another 350.00 off meaning that it was a lot less than the 3880.  Am I missing something here?

[Tklimek]

Gemmtech...

One thing I can note is not to forget where the printer will be going.  For most people (notice I said "most" .....not "all"), some sort of stand is required for the 4800 series because of the size and weight.  The 3800 (I've not seen the 3880) is really a large desktop printer while the 4800 series is.....well.....bigger and heavier.  For most, the 4800 series will require two people to move around, unbox, etc. while the 3800 can be done by a single person.

Albeit, that probably shouldn't be a deciding factor, but some do take that into consideration.  For example, when I was contemplating the 3800, it was going to go on my desk.  When I purchased the 4880, that would not fit on my desk and found myself purchasing a $500 piece of Ikea furniture to put it on.  I'm VERY happy with the 4880 and have no regrets whatsoever, but perhaps that may also be a decision factor for some folks.

Also, don't forget with the 4880 you can use the larger carts which lowers long term ink cost.

Cheers...

Todd in Chicago

I had a friend ask me which printer to buy, the Epson 4880 or the 3880?  At first I immediately said get the 3880, it's less expensive, will do borderless
sheets and is the latest and greatest, but then I did some more thinking and came to the conclusion that these are basically the same printers from an
ink and quality of print POV, the 3880 does borderless and the black ink swap cost less than the 4880,  but then the 4880 has a vacuum hold down, will accept rolls (does borderless on rolls) is substantially faster (according to Epson specifications) and the biggest difference, the 4880 is actually less expensive to buy!  Why buy a 3880 if the 4880 cost less?  I'm assuming that the 4900 is on the way and that's why the rebate, but I believe there's some overlap and if you were smart enough 1-2 weeks ago the 4880 actually had another 350.00 off meaning that it was a lot less than the 3880.  Am I missing something here?

[Randy Carone]

The ink cost on an 80ml cart for the 3800 will cost almost double the cost of a 220ml cart for a 4880, per ml. The 3800 is ~.61/ml while the 4880 is ~.36/ml. However, I just bought a 3800, an upgrade from a 2200, because of size (mentioned above) and the fact that I don't print enough volume to justify the 220ml carts. I also prefer to print sheets and sometimes print borderless.

[digitaldog]

I’ve got both. Todd and Randy pretty much summed up the salient differences very well. I did end up with that big Epson stand/cart for the 4880 which is very nice but an extra cost. Its really a must for a printer this size.

One thing I’ll say about the 3880 is it is super quiet. I really like not having to listen to the 4880 suction/fan on all the time.

[Gemmtech]

OK, cost being the same, which to buy?  Isn't it a no-brainer?  Buy the 4880 since it's slightly less when including the the rebate?  DD, you have both, so I was wondering is it correct to state the quality is 100% identical?  Size doesn't matter (This time    )

[digitaldog]

DD, you have both, so I was wondering is it correct to state the quality is 100% identical?

I think so.

[Tklimek]

I have *heard* that the 4880 is an "industrial strength" printer and can be run for hours on end.  I certainly don't run mine like that, but I have heard this to be true on these forums.  I'm not sure if the 3880 was designed for an environment like that.  All things being the same I would certainly get the 4880 for the simple fact alone of accepting roll paper.

Cheers...

Todd in Chicago

OK, cost being the same, which to buy?  Isn't it a no-brainer?  Buy the 4880 since it's slightly less when including the the rebate?  DD, you have both, so I was wondering is it correct to state the quality is 100% identical?  Size doesn't matter (This time    )

[Wayne Fox]

I'm assuming that the 4900 is on the way and that's why the rebate,

Of course the 3880 was rumored for about 2 years before it finally showed up ...

Epson almost always has some kind of rebate or specials going on, because they know people that buy printers buy ink (and sometimes their paper), so you can't always read "replacement" coming into their rebate program.  

They may not even be able to get the 79/9900 technology into a 4880 footprint.

Theoretically I believe the screening in the 3880 is newer and better than the 4880, but doubtful that will translate into any significant visual difference in output.

[howardm]

the 3800 will also do small cut sheets ala 4x6 whereas the 4800 I believe is minimum 8x10 although w/ roll you could tile-up.

as I recall, when switching between PK & MK ink on the 4880, you throw away a lot of ink ($$$$), on the 3800, it's very little

[Gemmtech]

Cut sheets with borderless, perceived fewer problems won the battle, so it was the 3880.  Thanks for all the input, it's great having people on this website that are so knowledgeable and own all the different printers, especially Wayne!  Thanks.

I was told  by somebody I believe knows her / his stuff that there absolutely, positively will NOT be a 4900 with 7900/9900 technology, so I'll be curious because s/he told me s/he'd bet me $1 million no 4900     I know about NDA, so I wont mention his / her name!  I'm curious and wondering what the next 4x series will be.  Speculation, I love it!

[Kevin Gallagher]

I’ve got both. Todd and Randy pretty much summed up the salient differences very well. I did end up with that big Epson stand/cart for the 4880 which is very nice but an extra cost. Its really a must for a printer this size.

One thing I’ll say about the 3880 is it is super quiet. I really like not having to listen to the 4880 suction/fan on all the time.

 Hi Andrew, do you know if the 4880 will fit on the Epson 4000 stand?

  Thanks, Kevin

  PS I'm really getting the hang of the new coffee roaster!!  

[digitaldog]

Hi Andrew, do you know if the 4880 will fit on the Epson 4000 stand?

It should.