Epson UltraChrome K3 8 colour inkset is announced today. The Epson UltraChrome K3 ink has three black inks as well as a full set of colour inks, offering more neutral gradations in colour and black & white prints. The third black ink, light light black, gives excellent greyscale performance. Prints made with Epson K3 ink look good in any lighting condition and have a professional finish even when printed on glossy media. UltraChrome K3 also produces colours that stabilise within half an hour. Photo or matte black K3 inks are interchangeable to enable printing on high quality photo and art media. The Epson UltraChrome K3 ink offers lightfastness of up to 75 years in colour and over 100 years in black & white. The new Epson UltraChrome K3 inkset is used in 7 new printers also announced today, inclduing the A3+ Epson Stylus Photo R2400.

Check out the photo gallery from the European Press Launch

Epson Press Release

Trailblazing Innovative ink set technology places reinforces Epson®’s position at the forefront of digital imaging

New ink technology from Epson revolutionises black & white digital and colour photography whilst simultaneously offering outstanding results in colour imagingand colour proofing.

May 10, 2005 – Marking a new era in digital imaging, Epson – the preferred choice of thousands of professional photographers, self-publishing artists and companies in the proofing market – today announced the availability of UltraChromeTM K3, a new standard in ink technology for the photographic, fine art and proofing markets.

Unlike other inks sets, the Epson UltraChrome K3 range 8-colour ink set has three black inks, as well as a full set of colour inks, offering the ultimate in black & white and colour printing. The three black inks offer more -neutral gradations in colour and black & white prints, resulting in life-like replication of skin tones required for by commercial and professional photographers. The third black ink – light light black – gives excellent greyscale performance, higher Dmax and smoother tonal reproduction for the ultimate in high quality black & white and colour printing.

The new ink set boasts many features to make it the ink of choiceideal for professionals who cannot afford to compromise on quality. Featuring 8 ink cartridges, the UltraChrome K3 ink set produces a wide colour gamut for accurate reproduction of saturated colours and accurate simulation of industry proofing standards. Furthermore, the ink technologyit delivers prints that look good in any lighting condition, and have a professional finish even when printed on glossy media. 

The UltraChrome K3 ink set technology addresses many of the issues faced by professionals in the photographic, fine art and proofing industries. For instance, until now, black & white images printed digitally were compromised by variable colour tones. UltraChrome K3 technology removes the “rainbow effect” occasionally seen in black & white inkjet prints. UltraChrome K3 ink set technology also gives you a great glossy finish with an even higher Dmax to on give dense black shadows

Similarly the ink set takes proofing to another level, thereby satisfying even the most demanding proofing professionals. The UltraChrome K3 ink set technology delivers more consistent results, resulting in accurate proofing, even when working remotely or from two different printers. UltraChrome K3 produces colours that stabilise within half an hour, allowing proofing professionals to make accurate colour matches quickly.

With a unique, advanced black & white mode in the printer driver, photographers and artists can have absolute control over the tone and hue of black & white prints, whilst interchangeable photo or matte black inks enable printing on high quality photo and art media.

UltraChrome K3 ink offers outstanding durability, so prints are more likely to look good for longer on a wide range of paper types. The ink is highly light, gas and water resistant, resulting in a lifespan of up to 75 years in colour and over 100 years in black & white.*

To coincide with the launch of the new UltraChrome K3 ink, Epson announced a new range of Stylus Pro printers - three the Epson Stylus Photo R2400 and the Stylus Pro 4800, 7800, and 9800 – the range features a number of media handling options. These include the abilitynew printers allow users to print any size with maximum formats ranging from A2 A3+ to A0+, in addition to the ability to print on a wide range of materials including high quality photo and art media.

The printers feature Epson’s core technologies to deliver ultra-fineoutstanding results for high definition images. These include Epson’s ground breaking Micro Piezo™ print head technology, which delivers ink in microscopic nozzles that measure a fraction of the diameter of a human hair, thereby allowing greater precision for finely detailed images. Meanwhile, Epson’s variable Variable-sized droplet Droplet Ttechnology ensures that even the finest detail and colour tones are reproduced accurately.

Marc Tinkler, Marketing Manager, Pro Graphics, Epson Europe, said, “Until now, professional photographers, artists, as well as professionals in the proofing market have demanded greater control and consistency. Despite many satisfied photographers and artists, some have been hesitant to adopt the digital format for high-end colour and black & white photography because of the compromise in quality. Epson’s UltraChrome K3 ink technology promises to revolutionise the photographic industry by offering them the ultimate black & white, and colour printing solution, as well as greater control and consistency for proofing.”

Epson UltraChrome K3 ink set key features summary:
· 3 black inks deliver the most advanced black & white digital photographic results to date
· Wide colour gamut resulting in accurate reproduction of saturated colours and industry proofing standard
· Prints look good in any lighting condition
· Colours stabilises shortly after printing
· Unique, advanced black and white mode allows users to take control over hue and tone of black & white images
· Outstanding durability, with a lifespan of up to 75 years in colour and over 100 years in black & white*

Epson Stylus Photo R2400 and Stylus Pro 4800/7800/9800 range features summary:
· Capable of printing on a wide range of media sizesFlexible media handling from A2 A3+ through to A0+ with roll and sheet feed capability
Will print on most types of professional high quality proofing and art media
· Micro Piezo technology print head technology for greater accuracy for finely detailed imagesIncorporates Epson Micro Piezo technology and Epson’s Variable-sized Droplet Technology for high definition results

*Please refer to www.epson.com for test conditions