Epson R2400 Ink Usage
When I entered the scene of digital photography, it was with great enthusiasm. I was stunned by the picture quality these cameras could deliver, not to say all the possibilities in post processing. It didn't last long before I missed the opportunity to print high quality black and white photos. My trusty old Canon i905D just couldn't do it for me, so I had to look elsewhere.
After scanning through countless reviews, tests and forums, I ended up buying the Epson R2400. I had inspected prints in the shop, and there was no doubt about the quality - superb. The one thing I didn't find was a good analysis of the ink usage.
I had to know approximately what each print would cost me. My approach was to log all my prints for several ink sets. I logged each square cm I printed. Each time I changed a cartridge, I took approximate readings of the status monitor. This continued until the calculated ink cost became fairly stable.
The ink usage
Out of one complete inkset (9 cartridges), I could get approximately 79 borderless A4 pages.
During this time, I used the printer frequently, meaning almost no clogging at all. I also very seldom changed between Photo Black and Matte Black. Since then I have stopped the cost tracking, but my gut feeling tells that this is reduced to around 50-60 pages when you reduce the output and start to change between cartridges.
I usually used the printer setting "Best photo", but occationally I bumped up to "Photo RPM".
Cost calculations
Due to the large variation on retail prices for ink cartridges, I'm not going to tell you what each page is going to cost you. You can, however calculate this yourself based on what you pay for the ink.
These calculations assume 60 A4 pages for each inkset.
Chose the equation that suits you best (metric or inches), and do the following substitution.
* H - Picture height (cm or inch)
* W - Picture width (cm or inch)
* C - Cost for one single cartridge in your own currency
Metric calculations
Ink Cost = C*W(cm)*L(cm) / 4158
Inches calculations
Ink cost = C*W(inch)*L(inch) / 645
Example
I want to print a 20x25 cm picture (approx. 8x10 inches) and each cartridge cost 110 Norwegian kr (approx $17)
Ink cost = 20cm * 25cm * 110kr / 4158 = 13.2kr
or in inches and USD
Ink cost = 8inch * 10inch * $17 / 645 = $2.1
Don't forget to add the cost of paper as well. Also, if you want to calculate a prize for selling your prints, don't forget all the rejects.