Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Review, Pros and Cons

The Epson WorkForce WF-2850 is a compact All-in-One printer meticulously made for small workgroups and home offices. It goes without saying that a business-oriented printer must be fast to support efficient printing, and this product seems to meet this demand.

Featuring auto document feeder, the WF-2850 enables simplex and duplex printing without your intervention. While it supports wireless functionality, connecting the printer with other devices is completely easy. It also houses an LCD screen that promises simple setup.

Robust Design with High-Quality Plastic Casing

Most of Epson’s WorkForce printers adopt a similar design which makes it rather hard to distinguish one another. And, I can confirm that the WF-2850 holds this tradition. This model and its sibling, the Epson WorkForce WF-2830 look alike, be it from overall design, layout, and even controls.

This product measures 8.6 inches (H) by 14.8 inches (W) by 11.8 inches (D) and weighs about 11.5 pounds, allowing the device to fit into your small desk. For the depth increases to 22.8 inches while printing, be sure to add extra space in front of the device.

There are not many things to say about its body features and controls. On the top, it houses an auto document feeder that allows easier printing for simplex and duplex. It also comes with a front panel that houses a 2.4-inch LCD screen, giving you a simple setup and print configuration.

The panel also features a variety of buttons, including power button, numerical keys, and functional buttons such as arrow keys and plus-minus. From here, it’s clear that the embedded screen is non-touchscreen. I know it can make this modern device less attractive, but I’m sure it is forgivable.

Monochrome and Color All-in-One Printer

The WF-2850 is a versatile printer designed to tackle a variety of tasks: printing, copying, scanning, and faxing. Much like Epson’s business-oriented printers, it’s packed with a set of features to ensure reliable performance that meets your high standard.

Epson’s WF-2850 redefines your printing experience. Featuring MicroPiezo inkjet technology that is paired with 4-color drop-on-demand, it promises extraordinary outputs for mono and color. And, it supports high print resolution up to 5760 x 1440 optimized dpi for undoubted prints clarity.

Meanwhile, the copier supports color and monochrome copy to help duplicate a variety of documents, both one-sided and two-sided. It can handle copy size up to 8.5 inches by 14 inches with a handful of features, such as adjustment for density and sharpness, adjustable copy resolution, and much more.

If you scan frequently, I’m sure this product can be your great partner. The scanner ensures high clarity as it features color flatbed with 1200 dpi optical resolution. With max bed size up to 8.5 inches by 11.7 inches, you can benefit from its features like scan to PDF, scan to email, and scan to computer.

This model also serves fax functionality that allows you to fax monochrome and color documents. With maximum memory up to 100 pages, this is a great device to support your business.

Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Print Speed

Workgroup printers are demanded to be fast to ensure efficient printing. The WF-2850 is designed for home office and workgroup but its print speed fails to meet my expectation. Epson rates this printer at 10 pages per minute for mono and 4.5 pages per minute for color.

To be honest, this speed rating is far below my expectation at around 15 ppm for mono and 10 ppm for color. But when compared with other workgroup printers in its class, this print speed is forgivable. Considering its price, the WF-2850 is not the slowest among its competitors.

Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Paper Capacity

As an entry-level printer, you shouldn’t expect too much from this model. Despite it is created to support business and office printing, the manufacturer decides not to embed an ample input tray to hold more paper capacity.

This product is equipped with a 100-sheet input tray that is housed under the output tray. This average paper capacity is good enough if you have a low print capacity. But in the event you need to handle a report or project, this capacity might leave you with an extra effort to load the paper frequently.

Aside from the standard input tray, the WF-2850 comes with a 30-sheet automatic document feeder. Of course, it gives you additional capacity to print, copy, or scan documents.

How about media type and size? It is able to print on plain paper as well as photo paper, both borderless and with border. Also, the device can print on a variety of paper types like glossy paper, semi-gloss, transfer paper, adhesive paper, and matte paper.

This model supports a variety of paper sizes that ranges from 3.5 x 5 inches to 8.5 x 10 inches. However, the marketing material mentions that it supports up to 8.5 inches by 44 inches. If you opt to print borderless photos, be sure its size is somewhere between 3.5 x 5 inches to A4 or 16:9 wide.

Dependable Result, Ideal for Business

Growing your business can be started from a small thing, maybe like choosing a good printer with high quality output. When it comes to print results, the WorkForce WF-2850 is quite dependable to handle business documents, such as invoices, reports, contracts, marketing materials, and many more.

With support from capable print technology, it produces highly legible text with rich black color. The characters are well-shaped and weird spacing is hardly found. Printing text-rich documents is not a big deal for this model.

A test with charts and graphics results in a good print. This printer works well for thin lines, allowing you to enjoy smooth printing for table and graphics. Additionally, the WF-2850 does a great job when it comes to fills and gradients with smooth color distribution.

What do I think about photo-printing performance? The four-ink printer is not specifically designed as a consumer-grade photo printer but its photo quality is close. Overall, I can enjoy its vibrant, life-like colors with impeccable details and minimum graininess.

4-Color Printer with Claria Ink

This model uses four Claria ink (CMYK) that ensures vibrant and accurate colors. Featuring 4 individual ink cartridges, it is more efficient for replacement. This model is compatible with 212 cartridges that are bundled with each package of Epson WorkForce WF-2850.

For replacement, the manufacturer offers Epson 212 standard capacity that produces up to 150 and 130 prints for black and color consecutively. Also, you may opt for 212XL high capacity that boasts more yield up to 500 and 350 prints for black and color.

Connectivity and Software

Epson’s WF-2850 comes with standard connectivity that includes USB, Wi-Fi, and Wi-Fi Direct. These connectivity options let you establish wired or wireless connection with compatible devices, be it laptops, desktop computers, or mobile devices.

This printer also boasts mobile printing capability, thanks to the support for Apple AirPrint, Google Cloud Print, and Mopria. You can also upgrade the printing experience with Epson’s software, such as Epson iPrint, Creative Print App, and Epson Print and Scan App.

And, voice-activated functionality gives another plus to this device. With this feature, you can print documents without using your hands. It will be a great feature for multitasking.

Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Pros and Cons

Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Pros

• Compact and Lightweight

Among other pluses, its compact and lightweight design is worth the thought. If your home office has a small space issue, this device won’t make your room feel more cramped. And, it comes with a professional look to boost your mood.

• ADF-Support

This model is equipped with an automatic document feeder that lets you print and copy double-sided documents with ease. As a result, your work efficiency will improve. Not to mention it is able to hold up to 30 sheets, which is generous enough for ADF.

• Full Set of Features

With a full set of features, this is a device to bring your printing experience to the next level. It supports voice-activated functionality, wireless connectivity and mobile printing support that allows you to print right from mobile devices.

• Dependable Output Quality

The WF-2850 highlights trusty output quality which makes it reliable to handle your business documents. It works well for text, graphics, charts, and even photos. Whether you need to print proposals, reports, invoices, or creative projects, this printer can tackle it.

Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Cons

• Relatively Tardy

Despite the manufacturer boast fast print speeds, I found that it can only produce up to 10 pages per minute for black and 4.5 pages per minute for color. Of course, this printer is relatively tardy for business purposes that requires fast work pace.

• Low Input Capacity

If your office has a medium to high print capacity, the WF-2850 seems not a good choice. The 100-sheet input tray makes it suitable for low print capacity only.

Conclusion

In short, I came to the conclusion that the Epson WorkForce WF-2850 is a business-oriented printer that is ideal for small workgroups and home offices. Featuring capable AIO functionality with reliable performance, this printer meets your needs for efficient printing.

This product might be a bit tardy but it can be a great partner to handle a variety of documents. If your office has a low print capacity, the WF-2850 is a printer to choose.