Epson WorkForce ST-C4100 Supertank Color MFP

The WorkForce ST-C4100 Supertank Colour MFP with PrecisionCore Heat-Free Technology makes your business shine when it matters. Its breakthrough printing and easy-to-fill, supersized ink tanks boost productivity for small work teams. The package contains up to 2 years of ink—enough to print 14,000 black and 11,200 colour pages. With low-cost replacement ink bottles, you save up to 90%, or 90 ink cartridges. Your CFO will enjoy this. The WorkForce ST-C4100 has a 250-sheet paper tray, fax, a 2.4″ colour touchscreen, a 30-sheet ADF, rapid auto 2-sided printing, and wired and wireless networking. The Epson Smart Panel app, which lets you setup, monitor, print, scan, order supplies, and more from your phone, works with the WorkForce ST-C4100. The ST-C4100 fits in narrow locations thanks to its 90-degree power cord.

Epson WorkForce ST-C4100 Supertank Specification

What’s similar and different?

The EcoTank ET-4850 and WorkForce ST-C4100 are identical. It prints, scans to a PC, acts as a standalone copier and fax machine, and scans to internet services. It has a 250-sheet drawer, automated duplex printing, and a letter-size flatbed with a 30-page ADF for scanning. The ADF cannot scan two-sided originals or reorder pages. The ST-C4100 is identical to the consumer AIO except for its white colour and lack of EcoTank branding. The ET-4850 comes in black or white. The same USB, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and Wi-Fi Direct connections and desk-friendly size (10 by 16.4 by 19.8 inches with paper trays extended) apply. Standard warranties are comparable, but extended warranties are not. Both have two-year warranties; however, Epson requires you to register the ET-4850 for the second. While the EcoTank only offers a one-year service plan, the WorkForce ST-C4100 offers plans that extend the warranty to five years and include next-business-day replacement. If you buy the ET-4850 from a dealer, you may get longer coverage but not next-day replacement.

WorkForce ST-C4100 Test: Same Performance and Quality

Both Epsons printed 15.5 monochrome pages and 8.5 colour pages per minute (ppm) and performed similarly with every document in our test suite. I timed the ST-C4100 at 16.8 ppm for black-and-white text using our 12-page Microsoft Word file and our regular testbed PC and Ethernet connection. The text document was 7.5 ppm in our business software package, which included colourful PDF, PowerPoint, and Excel files. WorkForce typically prints 4-by-6-inch pictures on Epson Presentation Matte paper in 1 minute and 25 seconds. The two printers’ stopwatch differences were one second, nicely within the error margin. The cheaper, cartridge-based Brother MFC-J4335DW, our Editors’ Choice for low-volume home and micro-office printing, matches both for text printing. In our business applications suite, the Brother’s 10.5 ppm outscored both Epsons. Text and graphics output quality was similar for the ST-C4100 and ET-4850, just below top-tier business inkjets. All the fonts used in regular business papers were legible at 5 points, even though the text edges weren’t laser-printed crisp. Graphics on plain paper had some fill banding at default settings, but colours were vibrant and thin lines held up. Epson’s Presentation Matte paper produced better images than EcoTank’s glossy paper, but that’s because of the materials. Business graphics on matte paper had no banding and more brilliant colours than my examples on plain paper.

Choose Printing Value

As expected, the WorkForce ST-C4100 and EcoTank ET-4850 are similar home-office and workgroup AIOs. If you won’t print many pages, try a cartridge-based inkjet like the Brother MFC-J4335DW or the wide-format Epson WorkForce Pro WF-7840 or WF-7820. If you like its extra-cost next-day replacement policy, the ST-C4100 beats the EcoTank and SuperTank siblings. Both are heavy-duty, small-office multifunction printers and Editors’ Choice winners. Check both because either may be superior on any given day.

Details

• Printing, copying, and scanning on one printer
• For optimum readability, the printer offers a 4800 x 1200 dpi resolution.
• 15.5 ppm black/white, 8.5 ppm colour, automatic duplex, 5000 pages per month.
• Wi-Fi, LAN, and USB 2.0 boost productivity.
• Dimensions: 9.1″H x 14.8″W x 13.7″D
• Envelopes, plain paper, glossy picture paper, photo paper, and matte paper are supported.
• The fax memory holds 100 pages for snag-free operation.
• Automatic duplex printing with a 30-sheet auto feeder conserves paper and creates two-sided documents.
• Manage tasks with the 2.4″ touchscreen and enjoy high-quality printed text and photos with 1200 x 2400 dpi optical and 9600 dpi interpolated resolutions and 24-bit colour depth.
• Beats or matches Energy Star, EMC, CAN/CSA-CEI/IEC CISPR 22 class B, C22.2 No. 60950, RoHS, UL 60950, and FCC Part 15 Class B standards.
• Limited 2-year manufacturer warranty