Well, it looks as if Epson may be releasing the printer that was announced in Japan a few weeks ago to the rest of the world. jasonB over on the DP-Now Forums has spotted a new printer on the Epson USA website. The A4 Epson Stylus Photo R800 printer, which uses UltraChrome pigment inks, will cost $399 and will ship in February 2004! At last, an A4 printer that uses archival-quality inks :-)

Here are the specs:

- Product Available February 2004
- Epson UltraChrome? Hi-Gloss pigment ink for archival quality glossy and matte photos lasting up to 80 years
- Eight individual cartridges, including matte black ink and gloss optimizer
- World’s first 1.5-picoliter droplets and up to 5760 x 1440 optimized dpi for unsurpassed clarity and detail
- Prints a 5” x 7” color photo in as fast as 45 seconds and black text at up to 17 ppm?
- True BorderFree? photo printing in popular photo sizes (4” x 6”, 5” x 7” and 8” x 10”)
- Print directly on ink jet printable CD/DVDs
- Fast connectivity with built-in USB 2.0 High Speed and IEEE 1394 FireWire

Website: Epson USA - Epson Stylus Photo R800