REVIEW – After years around commercial print equipment, I managed to avoid buying a printer for my own home. I always had access to better machines at work, so owning one felt unnecessary. That changed when my work shifted into technology and home printing became something I actually needed.
The Epson EcoTank ET-2400 Wireless Color Supertank Printer stood out because it checked the right boxes for a first home office printer. It was affordable at $179.99, it could print, copy, and scan, and the refillable EcoTank ink system promised a much lower running cost than traditional cartridges. The output did not match the professional printers I am used to, but for everyday documents and family photo printing, it did better than I expected.
What the ET-2400 is
The ET-2400 is a cartridge-free all-in-one color inkjet printer with refillable CMYK ink tanks and a flatbed scanner. Epson uses its Micro Piezo print head technology here, which fires ink by flexing a piezo element instead of heating the ink. That pressure-based system gives the printer fine control over ink placement, which helps with sharp illustrations and photo output.
The printer ships in a large, clearly labeled box with product photos and specifications printed across the packaging.
In the box
- Epson EcoTank ET-2400 Wireless Color Supertank Printer
- 522 ink bottles in cyan, magenta, yellow, and black
- Power cord
- User manual
Specifications
- Printing Technology: 4-color (CMYK) Micro Piezo inkjet technology
- Printer Language: Epson ESC/P-R
- Maximum Print Resolution: 5760 x 1440 dpi
- Print Speed: 10.0 ISO ppm (black), 5.0 ISO ppm (color)
- First Page Out Time (FPOT): 7 seconds (black), 6 seconds (color)
- Borderless Photo: 4″ x 6″ Print Speed 69 seconds
- Mobile Printing and Scanning
- Mobile Apps: Epson Smart Panel App (iOS, Android)
- Epson Connect Solutions: Epson Email Print, Epson Remote Print
- Copy Speed: 7.7 ISO ppm (black), 3.8 ISO ppm (color)
- Maximum Copy Resolution: 300 x 300 dpi
- Maximum Number of Copies: Up to 20 pages
- Maximum Copy Size: 8.5″ x 11″ (Letter, A4)
- Scanner Type: Color flatbed (CIS Sensor)
- Maximum Resolution: 9600 dpi interpolated
- Maximum Hardware Resolution: 1200 x 2400 dpi
- Scanner Bit Depth: Input 48-bit color/output 24-bit color
- Maximum Scan Size: 8.5″ x 11.7″
- Scan Features: Epson ScanSmart, Scan to Computer, Computer Event Manager
- Scan Compatibility: TWAIN, WIA, ICA
- Output Formats: PDF, jpeg, png, tiff, multi-tiff, BMP (Windows), PICT (Mac)
- Connectivity
- Hi-Speed USB
- Wi-Fi 4 (802.11 b/g/n)11
- Operating Systems
- Windows, Mac OS
- Paper Handling
- Input Paper Capacity: Rear Feed 100-sheets
- Output Paper Capacity: 30-sheets
- Maximum Paper Size: 8.5″ x 14″ (Legal)
- Paper Sizes: Legal, A4, Letter, Executive, Half Letter, A6, No. 10 Envelope
- Maximum Borderless Size: 4″ x 6″
- Operating Temperature: 50 ° to 95 °F (10 ° to 35 °C)
- Sound Level: Mono: 50 dB(A), Color: 48 dB(A)
- Power Consumption
- Standalone Copy Printing: Approx. 12 W (ISO 24712)
- Ready: Approx. 4.5 W
- Sleep: Approx. 0.7 W
- Dimensions (W x D x H): 14.8″ x 22.8″ x 10.0″ (375 mm x 578 mm x 253 mm)
- Weight: 8.6 lb (3.9 kg)
- Software Included
- Epson printer driver, Epson Scan, Epson ScanSmart, Epson Photo
- Replacement Ink Bottles
- 522 Black ink bottle (65mL) Yield: 4,500 ISO pages
- 522 Cyan, Magenta, and Yellow ink bottles (65mL) Yield: 7,500 ISO pages
Design and controls
The ET-2400 is not a radical-looking printer, but I like the textured black finish. It looks cleaner than the old beige plastic that still comes to mind when I think of basic home printers. The front control strip uses six sealed membrane buttons for power, Wi-Fi mode, network status, black and white copy, color copy, and stop. Indicator lights show Wi-Fi state, ink status, and paper feed problems.
Paper feeds from the rear, where a retractable support and sliding edge guides handle different paper sizes.
The printed pages exit from the front tray, which pulls out when needed and includes a small flip-up stopper.
Because this is an all-in-one, the top lid opens to reveal the flatbed scanner used for scans and copies.
On the back left side, the lower port accepts the included power cord.
The upper rear port is for a USB cable, although a USB cable is not included in the box.
EcoTank ink system
The defining feature is the large EcoTank reservoir on the front. Instead of swapping small ink cartridges, you refill the integrated tanks from Epson 522 ink bottles. A hinged cover opens to expose the fill ports.
There is also a physical ink-level window below the cover. I appreciate that because it lets you check ink at a glance without launching a utility or phone app.
The four-tank CMYK system uses separate cyan, magenta, yellow, and black bottles.
Each bottle tip is shaped to match its tank port, which helps prevent spills and wrong-color filling.
Epson says the included ink can last up to two years, depending on use, and that one set of bottles replaces about 90 individual ink cartridges. The black 522 bottle is rated for about 4,500 ISO pages, while the cyan, magenta, and yellow bottles are rated for about 7,500 ISO pages. That is the value argument behind the EcoTank name, along with fewer empty cartridges heading to landfills.
Once the printer is plugged in and the bottles are ready, the initial setup begins.
Setup with Epson Smart Panel
The Epson Smart Panel app makes setup much easier than I expected. It helps connect the printer to Wi-Fi, checks for firmware updates, and walks through the first-time ink process in a guided conversation style.
The app asks questions and then gives clear next steps, including how to fill each tank.
For each color, you remove the bottle cap and seat the bottle on the matching exposed fill port.
Each bottle took about 30 to 60 seconds to drain into its tank.
The front windows make it easy to monitor the fill level as each color is added.
After all four tanks are filled, the app runs a few checks and starts ink initialization. That process took about 8 to 10 minutes.
I noticed each bottle still had a little ink left after the first fill, so I topped off the tanks before moving on.
With the tanks full and the initialization complete, the ET-2400 was ready for printing.
App and daily use
The printer worked well in testing, but Epson’s computer software was the weakest part of the experience. The setup instructions pushed several PC apps that felt clunky and not especially useful. The phone app, in contrast, was much better.
After setup, Epson Smart Panel made phone printing straightforward. It can also link the printer with Alexa, Google Home, or Siri if voice control is something you want.
I could print documents directly from my phone, and the app could capture documents with the phone camera and send them to the printer.
The app also shows print jobs and gives access to printer settings.
Smart Panel does try to steer users toward Epson Creative Print, but I found that app to be more bloatware than must-have utility, much like the PC software.
Printing supplies and photo tests
To test the ET-2400 properly, I bought a few supplies from Amazon. For black and white documents and copying, I used Hammermill Premium Inkjet & Laser 8.5″ x 11″ paper. For photos, I used Epson Premium Glossy Photo Paper in 4″ x 6″ and 8.5″ x 11″ sizes.
For photo quality, I printed pictures of my pup Addy. The printer handled borderless 4″ x 6″ prints nicely, with punchy colors and crisp detail.
I printed more colorful images and adjusted the quality settings, and the results stayed strong.
Larger 8.5″ x 11″ glossy prints were also impressive. The color and detail looked excellent, and the print speed was better than I expected for photo output.
Document, scan, and copy results
Plain black and white document printing was less impressive than the photos, even after I experimented with settings.
The blacks leaned gray rather than deep black, and text did not have the same crispness I would expect from a laser printer. That comparison is not completely fair, since the technologies are different, but it is still worth noting.
I also tested the flatbed scanner and copy functions.
For the scanner test, I printed a standard optical scanner target. That target checks whether the scanner can reproduce tiny white gaps between lines as the spacing gets tighter. It also reveals some printer limitations because the scan is made from a target first printed by the ET-2400. At the highest quality setting, the printed target was acceptable but showed gray buildup between the line scales.
The scan of that target was only fair. It held the spacing on the larger lines, but the smallest details were not captured cleanly. For a $179.99 printer that includes up to two years of ink and is aimed at everyday home use, the result was still reasonable.
Overall, I was pleased with the ET-2400. The photo output surprised me, and the large ink supply makes it easy to print without constantly worrying about replacement cartridges. When the bottles finally do run out, Epson’s refill ink is a much better value than typical cartridges.
What I liked
- Easy setup through the Epson Smart Panel app
- Excellent ink longevity and refill value
- Impressive photo print quality for the price
What I would change
- Plain paper print quality and scan quality could be better
- The build feels a bit fragile
- The setup path pushes too much Epson software
Final thoughts
The Epson EcoTank ET-2400 Color Printer is a versatile and affordable home printer. As my first home printer, it left me happy, mainly because I will not be spending a fortune on ink cartridges. My print-professional side was not blown away by the scan quality or plain paper output, but the photo prints genuinely impressed me. At $179.99, with refillable ink tanks and strong running-cost savings, the ET-2400 is an easy recommendation for a home office or family printer.
Price: $179.99
Product Link: Target and Walmart
Source: The sample of this product was provided by Epson.
RATING: 4 stars
