Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 printer review: Is It Worth It?
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 review – a high-quality photo printer with fast performance and versatile features. Is it worth it?
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 printer ($300) is a multifunction printer designed for photo enthusiasts.
It uses six Claria HD dye-based ink cartridges, including light magenta and light cyan, for better color quality. It can also scan and copy, delivering good speed and image quality in tests.
Connectivity options include USB, wireless, and Wi-Fi Direct. You can print from a smartphone using the Epson Smart Panel app for iOS and Android.
Does it compete with the best printers? Let’s find out in this review.
Table of Contents
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 printer Specifications
| 📌 Feature | 📄 Specification |
|---|---|
| 🔹 General | 🔹 |
| 🏢 Brand | Epson |
| 🖨️ Model | Expression Photo XP-8800 |
| 📑 Printer Type | All-in-one (Print, Copy, Scan) |
| 🎨 Color | Black |
| 🔹 Printing | 🔹 |
| 🖋️ Printing Technology | Inkjet |
| 📏 Print Resolution | Up to 5760 x 1440 dpi |
| ⏳ Print Speed (Black) | 9.5 ppm (ISO/IEC 24734) |
| ⏳ Print Speed (Color) | 9 ppm (ISO/IEC 24734) |
| 🖼️ Photo Print Speed | 4″ x 6″ in 10 seconds |
| 🖼️ Borderless Printing | Yes, up to 8.5″ x 11″ |
| 🔄 Duplex Printing | Automatic |
| 🎨 Ink Type | 6-color Claria Photo HD ink |
| 🎨 Ink Cartridges | Epson T340 series (Black, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Light Cyan, Light Magenta) |
| 🔹 Scanning | 🔹 |
| 📡 Scanner Type | Flatbed |
| 📏 Scan Resolution | 1200 x 4800 dpi |
| 🎨 Color Depth | 48-bit input, 24-bit output |
| 📂 Scanner Features | Scan to PC, Cloud, PDF, Memory Device |
| 🔹 Copying | 🔹 |
| ⏳ Copy Speed (Black) | 9 cpm (ISO/IEC 24735) |
| ⏳ Copy Speed (Color) | 8 cpm (ISO/IEC 24735) |
| 🖨️ Copy Resolution | 600 x 600 dpi |
| 🔄 Reduction/Enlargement | 25% – 400% |
| 🔹 Paper Handling | 🔹 |
| 📜 Paper Capacity | Up to 120 sheets (100 plain paper, 20 photo paper) |
| 📏 Paper Sizes | Letter, A4, Legal, 8″ x 10″, 5″ x 7″, 4″ x 6″, etc. |
| 🖼️ Separate Photo Tray | Yes |
| 📤 Rear Feed for Specialty Paper | Yes |
| 🔹 Connectivity | 🔹 |
| 📶 Wireless | Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n) |
| 🔌 Wired | USB |
| 📡 Wi-Fi Direct | Yes |
| 📱 Mobile Printing | Epson Connect, Epson Smart Panel, Apple AirPrint |
| 🔹 Display | 🔹 |
| 📺 Screen Size | 4.3″ color touchscreen |
| 🔹 Physical Specs | |
| 📏 Dimensions (W x D x H) | 13.7″ x 19.8″ x 6.3″ (printing) |
| ⚖️ Weight | 14.6 lbs |
| 🔹 Other Features | 🔹 |
| ✅ Energy Star Certified | Yes |
| 💿 CD/DVD Printing | Yes |
| 📦 What’s in the Box | Printer, Power Cord, Setup Ink Cartridges (Black, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Light Cyan, Light Magenta), Documentation |
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 printer Design
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 has a 4.3-inch color touchscreen that makes navigation easy. The control panel, including the power button, tilts up to 90 degrees. Compact and lightweight, it measures 13.7 x 20.7 x 7.2 inches and weighs 14.6 pounds.
Under its lid, there’s a flatbed scanner for single-page scanning and copying (no automatic document feeder). It also lacks automatic two-sided printing.
The XP-8800 has three paper trays. Two front trays hold up to 100 sheets of plain paper or 20 sheets of glossy photo paper. The upper tray supports smaller photo sizes (3.5 x 5 inches to 5 x 7 inches). A rear slot handles specialty media up to 8.5 x 47.2 inches, but only one sheet at a time. The output tray extends automatically when printing.
It also features a CD/DVD tray for printing on coated discs and an SD/MicroSD card slot for direct printing.
The XP-8800 uses Claria HD inks, which Epson claims offer “lab-quality” photos—better than their standard inks but below their professional UltraChrome line.
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 printer Print Speed
The Epson XP-8800 delivers fast printing speeds. It printed a letter-size glossy photo in just 1 minute and 26 seconds—nearly three times faster than the average of 4 minutes and 9 seconds.
For plain paper, it printed a six-page color document in 1 minute and 8 seconds (5.3 ppm), almost double the category average of 2.7 ppm. A five-page text document took 40.5 seconds (7.4 ppm), slightly below the 8.7 ppm average.
A high-quality 4 x 6-inch photo printed in 1 minute and 27 seconds, while standard quality took just 40.5 seconds. Draft mode reduced the time to 24.5 seconds.
These tests were done on a Windows 10 PC, with similar results from an iPhone 7 using the Epson Smart Panel app.
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 printer Copy and Scan Speed
The Epson XP-8800 copies and scans quickly. It made a color copy in 17.1 seconds, much faster than the 28.2-second average. Black-and-white copies took 14.4 seconds, close to the 15.9-second average.
Color scanning at 600 dpi took 52.1 seconds, beating the 1-minute, 7-second average. However, black-and-white scanning at 300 dpi was slower, taking 18.2 seconds per page, compared to the 12-second average.
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 printer Print Quality
The Epson XP-8800 produces sharp, dark text, though letters appear slightly heavier than those from a laser printer. At the highest quality setting, text becomes a bit darker and sharper, but differences are only noticeable up close.
Color graphics on plain paper are detailed and accurate, though PDF text appears slightly rough. High-quality settings improve text slightly, but graphics remain the same.
Photos on glossy paper look excellent, with rich colors and fine details. Even at standard settings, images remain vibrant, with only minor saturation boosts at higher settings. Differences in quality are so subtle that only careful inspection reveals them.
Copies are clear and detailed, with color and black-and-white graphics looking sharp. Text remains crisp, nearly matching laser prints, though slight roughness is visible upon close inspection.
Scanning and copying near book bindings may cause slight blurring due to the light lid, but pressing down on it solves the issue. Scans of color graphics are detailed with natural colors, and the dust-removal feature works well without adding unwanted distortions. However, very small text in laser-printed documents may appear slightly rough in scanned PDFs.
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 printer Ink Usage & Cost
Epson XP-8800 uses six dye-based inks: black, cyan, magenta, yellow, light cyan, and light magenta.
The black ink cartridge costs $11.99 and prints 240 pages, with a cost of 5 cents per page. The XL black cartridge ($19.99) prints 500 pages, costing 4 cents per page—both are cheaper than the category averages.
Standard color cartridges are $11.99 and print 360 pages (21.6 cents per color page). XL color cartridges cost $22.99 each and print 830 pages, bringing the cost down to 17.8 cents per color page.
A three-pack of cyan, magenta, and yellow costs $33.99, saving you almost $2 compared to buying them separately. A two-pack of light magenta and light cyan costs $22.99, saving 99 cents. The cost per color page with both packs is 19.8 cents, which is higher than using individual XL cartridges.
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 printer Easy Setup & Software
Setting up the XP-8800 was easy using the Epson Smart Panel app on my iPhone. I followed the instructions, connected it to my Wi-Fi by entering the router password, and later added it to my Windows 10 PC by downloading the driver from Epson’s website. The setup also required a firmware update, which had to be retried due to a network issue.
The Epson ScanSmart software worked well on Windows, automatically detecting multiple photos and saving them separately. However, in document mode, it lacked auto-cropping, so irregular-sized pages had extra white space.
You can also scan or copy directly from the mobile app. The “document capture” feature lets you take a photo of a document and print it, though the quality is lower than a flatbed scan.
The Smart Panel app offers basic photo edits like auto-correct, sharpness, and contrast. For creative projects like CD/DVD printing, collages, and stationery, you can use the Epson Creative Print app.
The XP-8800 starts up quickly—its touchscreen menu appears in 7 seconds, and after 16 seconds, it’s fully ready to print.
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Pros & Cons of Epson Expression Photo XP-8800
| ✅ Pros | ❌ Cons |
|---|---|
| 📷 Excellent photo quality | 🐢 Slightly slow text printing |
| ⚡ Fast color photo printing | ⏳ Slow black-and-white scanning to PDF |
| 🖨️ Quick color printing & copying | 🔍 Small text in PDF scans could be sharper |
| 🎨 Fast color scanning | 📄 Rear paper slot holds only one sheet |
| 📑 Above-average black-and-white copying | ❌ |
Conclusion
Epson Expression Photo XP-8800 stands out with its excellent image quality, fast performance, and photo-focused features like CD/DVD printing, an SD card slot, and a specialty media tray for large prints.
Its large touchscreen makes operation easy, and ink costs are average for color prints. While text printing isn’t the fastest, it excels in color printing, scanning, and copying. If you’re passionate about photography and need a printer that also handles everyday tasks, the XP-8800 is a solid choice.
