Is It Worth It to Buy the Epson F170 Dye-Sublimation Printer?

The Epson SureColor® F170, model number C11CJ80201, is a light dye sublimation printer that allows you to make stand-out and customized t-shirts, mugs, tumblers, home stylistic layouts/decor, and more for both individual and business use.

Epson introduced this printer in November 2020, and authorized retailers began selling it in December 2020. The actual printers were delivered to the dealers in January, and they started processing customer orders in January 2021.

The Sawgrass SG400 (gone) and SG500 printers are direct rivals of the F170. They are all “genuine” sublimation printers, hence none of them requires conversion. Those who are quite plug-and-play sublimation printers, so as soon as they are set up, you may print and press your first sublimation product.

Epson F170 Dye-Sublimation Printer

Review of the Epson SureColor F170

The Epson F170 is the ideal tool for starting a small or at-home sublimation printing company to produce customized face masks, t-shirts, and other promotional items. It may be kept anywhere in the room or at work because of its small size. Additionally, the print image quality is excellent, which will undoubtedly help your business grow as quickly as feasible. Think of it as a one-time investment for your job, home, or business, and you’ll generate a tonne of money down the road.

One of the most mind-blowing sublimation printers for novices, the Epson SureColor F170, offers remarkable print quality on account of Accuracy Bead Control. Each print has a very affordable cost for the professional quality.

Genuine Epson dye-sublimation ink technology, which offers incredibly high colour contrast and colour saturation, is another factor in the quality.

One of the top Epson printers for sublimation printing is this one. To hold the pages that need to be printed immediately away, it has a 150-page auto-feed tray. For individuals who require to print something immediately, this seems to be suitable.

Unlike other common printers, the Surecolor F170 need ink replacement after a time, and the procedure is clean. The printer is appropriate for both home and workplace use overall.

Configuration FOR F170 PRINTER

Setting up the F170 is quite easy. The ink tanks only need to be filled with the sublimation ink that is included, plugged into an outlet to charge the inks, connected to your computer, and the drivers downloaded.

Sublimation Paper By Epson

For use in this sublimation printer, Epson suggests Epson DS Transfer Paper. They are intended to hold the sublimation ink on the covering and release it to your sublimation blank while heated appropriately using a heat press.

Epson-ds-transfer-paper-printable-side-is-brighter-for-F170-dye-sublimation-printer-review-by-qtyprinters

Epson F170 printer-compatible sublimation paper

Key Features

The Epson SureColor F170 Printer offers quick, dependable dye-sub printing right out of the box. This high-performance dye-sublimation printer uses potent PrecisionCore® technology to produce prints of a professional calibre and is perfect for customising trophies, mugs, mousepads, and other items. The SureColor F170 comes with authentic Epson dye-sublimation ink technology, a 150-sheet auto-feed tray, and Mac and Windows print software, making it a total turnkey solution. Additionally, you can maximise workshop space thanks to its amazingly compact, space-saving design.

  • Amazing print quality thanks to Precision Droplet Control provided by the PrecisionCore printhead.
  • Genuine Epson dye-sublimation ink technology provides exceptionally high colour contrast and saturation.
  • Adaptable media compatibility with a 150-sheet auto-feed tray for increased productivity
  • High-capacity ink bottles with auto-stop for simple, mess-free filling allow you to replace ink less frequently.
  • Take on a range of print projects with Epson DS Multi-Use transfer paper, which generates stunning images on both soft and stiff materials.
  • Reliable performance backed by exceptional service and support from Epson®
  • Easy printing right out of the box thanks to print software that is simplified and dye-sublimation-optimized.
  • Connect to the printer with ease using USB, Ethernet, or the built-in wireless.

Genuine ink is highly advised by Epson in order to guarantee the best print quality and performance.

What’s Included in the Epson F170’s Offering?

Strong but little

You can give your shop strong, compact equipment with this Epson SureColor® printer. You may complete initiatives that increase profits without compromising important workspace thanks to its space-saving design.

An all-encompassing answer

The SureColor® F170 has a 150-sheet auto-feed tray, Epson dye-sublimation ink technology, and Mac and Windows print software so that businesses can start working on assignments right away.

Printed according to industry norms

Whether you’re printing at home or in the business, the Epson SureColor® F170 dye-sublimation printer creates prints of a professional caliber thanks to Epson’s potent PrecisionCore® technology.

Thanks to the PrecisionCore® printhead, it is designed to give enhanced speed and unrivaled image quality for a variety of print workloads. It also offers Precision Droplet Control for remarkable clarity.

Aesthetically attractive colors

In our Epson SureColor F170 review, we give genuine Epson dye-sublimation ink high marks. You’ll be delighted with the outcomes, which boast excellent and exceptional colour saturation.

High-capacity ink for high-performance printing in bottles

Additionally, the printers utilize four-color OEKO-TEX® ECO PASSPORT certified inks (C, M, Y, K). When correctly applied to the fabric and fixed, the inks are safe for usage by adults, kids, and newborns.

A 140 mL bottle with a large capacity also means fewer ink changes. Easy, their auto-stop technology enables the mess-free filling.

Epson strongly advises using authentic ink to guarantee the greatest print quality and performance.

What Sets Sublimation Printers Apart from Converted Printers?

Let’s contrast dye-sublimation printing with conversion printing. A dye-sublimation printer is the F170. It was designed to be sublimated. That indicates that this printer has the necessary technology for your sublimation needs.

I should point out that the limited warranty does not cover any damages caused by dye-sub ink when converting a normal EcoTank printer to a dye-sub printer. The Epson F170 printer is planned specifically for sublimation.

Whenever you set it up and add the sublimation ink, the printer performs just as it was designed to. This indicates that you will not violate any warranties and that Epson will provide complete support for the printer. Additionally, a real sublimation printer produces stunning colours without the need for colour correction!

A Sublimation Printer is What?

A sublimation printer is a special kind of printer. It produces your sublimation prints on specific paper with unique ink. You might make projects that look proficient by utilizing a wide range of sublimation spaces with these sublimation prints. You might use a normal printer to print out a sticker sheet or a child’s schoolwork. For those jobs, you shouldn’t use this printer.

Materials Required for Sublimation

Here are the things I’m using right now to use the Epson SureColor F170 Sublimation Printer:

The Flexibility of Printing in Different Ways

The Epson SureColor® F170 dye-sublimation printer offers a 150-sheet auto-feed tray in addition to Epson DS Transfer Multi-Use Paper for increased productivity. Several different fabrics and textiles can be printed on using dye-sublimation technology, including:

  • T-shirts
  • Banners
  • Sportswear
  • Flags
  • Masks
  • Table Cloths

With this Epson printer, you can also use it for hard printing applications like:

  • Mugs
  • Personalized Recognition
  • ID Cards, Aluminum Panels, etc.
  • Ornaments

These are only samples; Epson SureColor® printers are capable of much more. The outstanding photo quality of rapid dry paper is advantageous to stiff and fabric items.

INCLUDED IN THE BOX

The F170 printer, a full set of CMYK ink, the installation manual, and the power cord are all included in the box.

You may set up your new printer using the thorough, step-by-step instructions and diagrams in the installation guide document. A brief troubleshooting guide, instructions for using the control panel, phone numbers for technical help, and part numbers for the replacement ink are also included.

The F170 is a lightweight printer that weighs around 10 pounds. It is wrapped in plastic and is simple to remove from the box. To prevent pieces from shifting during transportation, it features many protective tapes. The actual removal of all these tapes is the first step. Ensure that each and everyone has been taken out, including the one within the top printer cover.

The kit contains four 140ml-sized CMYK sublimation inks. They are placed in polypropylene vacuum-packed bags and individually sealed. To keep the ink reliable and fresh, Epson advises waiting to open them until you’re ready to load your printer with it.

The power cord is the only cable that is included. You’ll need a USB 2.0 cord if you want to connect to this printer directly from your PC or laptop. Using a Cat 5e or higher 10base-T cable, Ethernet connectivity from your LAN (local area network) hub is also feasible.

The Epson SureColor F170 Sublimation Printer: How to Operate It

I already noted that specific supplies are required for use with a sublimation printer. It is impossible to successfully print using sublimation ink on standard paper. A sublimation blank and sublimation paper are required. A chemical reaction occurs with any poly-coated blank when heat is applied, including polyester shirts.

For the greatest results with shirts, you would need a polyester content of at least 65%. You’ll get those large, brilliant, bold results using 100% polyester. I’m also using a hardboard hexagon coaster, a metal bookend, a poly-coated cup, and a poly-coated tumbler. These are all described as sublimation blanks. Look for blanks that say they are sublimation blanks to be sure.

I am using Epson sublimation ink that comes in the box and Epson sublimation paper with the Epson SureColor F170 sublimation printer. To test how the Epson F170 performs with all of these various presses and blanks, I will use a heat press, tumbler press, and mug press.

Excellent for Large and Small Shops

Without describing the features of the Epson SureColor® F170, our review would not be complete. With just a little space and this printer’s compact size, you can finish a lot of tasks. It is a fantastic option for small shops.

Large print shops would also benefit from an Epson SureColor® F170 dye-sublimation printer. With a large selection of fabrics and hard materials, your product line can be swiftly expanded, and profits can be increased with little outlay of capital.

The Epson SureColor® F170 is a tough competitor in terms of price, dependability, and versatility. Business owners can benefit from its capabilities by ordering anything from personalised corporate awards to T-shirts for little league baseball teams, among other things.

DTG wants to provide you with top-notch equipment to expand your company. If you have any questions about our Epson SureColor® F170 review or any of our other printers, we’d love to hear from you. Notify us by phone or email, and we’ll be pleased to assist you.

What did We like About Epson SureColor F170 Printers?

1. Simple Setup

With the installation manual that is included, setting up the F170 is simple. Unpack, fill with ink, download drivers, connect to your computer, and print—all that’s there is to it.

2. Made to Fit Different Sublimation Blanks

The printer driver for the F170 includes options for both soft and stiff materials. You can sublimate on a number of blanks with these two settings, including clothing, dishtowels, neoprene mousepads, ceramic mugs, metal tumblers, aluminium, and more.

3. High-Quality Printing

The colours you see in the pressed results are vivid, colourful, and colourful. This printer can print at a maximum resolution of 1200 x 600 dpi. This is accomplished via a total of 784 nozzles.

4. Inkjet Sublimation

A full 140ml set of ink is included with the F170 printer. When you first set it up, there is more than enough to fill the CMYK ink tanks and lines.

The pricing of the sublimation ink for this printer is fantastic news. The cheapest sublimation ink made for “real” sublimation printers is this one.

Each bottle of ink costs roughly one-third less than that of the rival sublimation printer. Additionally, each bottle is roughly four times larger than those of their rivals (140ml versus 31ml of Sawgrass Sublijet Ink).

6. Warranty With Technical Assistance

A one-year manufacturer’s warranty and toll-free phone service is provided for the F170 from Monday through Friday (days and hours may change without notice).

7. Miniscule Footage

The printer is ideal for compact locations because of its small footprint. It weighs under 10

DYE SUBLIMATION INK FOR EPSON

The printer comes with a full set of 140ml, full-sized CMYK ink, as was previously mentioned. It’s sufficient to completely fill the tanks, so you won’t soon require replacement ink.

During the initial ink installation, some of the ink will be used to charge the print heads and some will be used to fill the lines. As a result, your initial supply of ink may produce fewer pages than subsequent refills.

Epson ink is the most affordable of all the inks for genuine sublimation printers. Actually, these ink refills are the exact same ones that were used in the F570 version.

Sublimation Link

The refills that you need to order are

Black T49M1

T49M2 – blue

magenta T49M3

Yellow T49M4

The outer cap and the inner cap are the two pieces that make up the caps of these sublimation inks. Make sure to keep the inner cap on and just remove the outer cap.

Since they are specially formed keys that only fit in the ink port (tank) they go into, the inside cap is different for each colour. You won’t ever add the incorrect ink colour to the incorrect ink tank thanks to this clever design.

Sublimation Ink Tank

The ink will immediately flow into the tank after you directly insert the ink bottle into the port. The bottle doesn’t need to be squeezed in order for this to occur.

Simply remove the bottle when the ink reaches the top fill line to stop the flow of ink. If there is any remaining in the bottle, you can recap it.

The ink’s shelf life after being sealed Epson’s sublimation ink has a two-year shelf life from the printed manufacture date or six months following bottle opening.

For its ink bottles, Epson also offers a recycling scheme. This green project is a responsible method to conserve resources, lessen the amount of garbage going to landfills, and lessen pollution.

Because they passed the stringent chemical testing and were certified, the products with pressed inks on clothing are totally safe for newborns, kids, and adults to wear. This lowers your risk, particularly if you offer sublimated shirts, sweatshirts, baby bodysuits, and other clothing.

The Epson F170 Printer’s Reason to Buy

  • Simple to established
  • Intended to be used with different sublimation blanks
  • excellent print quality
  • inexpensive ink replacements
  • Warranty plus technical assistance
  • Little Footprint

The Epson F170 Printer’s Reason to Avoid

  • The printer is relatively more costly than a normal printer.
  • No printing without borders

Epson F170 versus Sawgrass SG1000

Epson Surecolor F170 is one of the printers made by Epson that is highlighted in this comparison. In a similar vein, Sawgrass’s SG1000 printer is among its best-selling models. Both printers produce stunning prints at affordable prices and excel in dye-sublimation printing. However, the differences that we have described here are not many.

  • Although the performance of both printers is solid, Epson F170’s ink is comparably less expensive than Sawgrass SG1000’s ink.
  • The Epson F170’s ink tank has a larger capacity, so refilling will be necessary more frequently.
  • Sawgrass SG1000 connects exclusively via WiFi while Epson sc F170 can be linked by WiFi and Ethernet.
  • Epson T49M Ink Bottles are the ink type used in Surecolor F170, while Standard Cartridges C, M, Y, and K (31 ml), Extended Cartridges C, M, Y, and K are used in Sawgrass SG1000 (70 ml).
  • The print resolution of the Sawgrass SG1000 is 4880 x 1200 dpi compared to the Epson F170’s 1200 x 600 dpi.


Epson SureColor F170 – Everything You Need to Know (Review, Unboxing, Setup, Test print) Video

What and how to Think About Before Purchasing an Epson F170?

There are a few things to think about before purchasing an Epson Surecolor F170 dye-sublimation printer. These elements will make your shopping experience unforgettable, and you’ll end up happy with the outcome. For your convenience, we’ve included a few things you should consider before making a purchase below.

1. Business requirements

If your business requirements are modest, a sublimation printer would be ideal. The main reason is that it prints substantially more slowly than a standard printer. Still superior to the majority of dye-sublimation printing printers. In general, Epson F170 is ideal for modestly sized home enterprises. The printer is also appropriate for personal use at home, such as printing several high-quality photographs for children’s assignments.

2. Beginning Cost

Its cost is comparatively greater than that of other conventional printers. Future reductions in the cost per page of printing balance out the higher price. Therefore, you’ll need a bigger budget to get the Epson F170 because it’s relatively pricey. But in the future, you’ll adore it since it will offer prints of higher quality at a lesser price. Think of it as a one-time expense required for every successful company.

3. Printing Speed

It prints somewhat more slowly than many dye-sublimation printers, although it is still faster than most of them. This printer is not for you if you need to print quickly for business purposes or in large quantities. Although it prints at a high volume, the pace is slow. You should take it into consideration if your job primarily focuses on print quality rather than printing speed.

4. Ink Filling

Other printers require routine cartridge change and ink filling, which is an expensive and time-consuming process. In order to avoid these uncomfortable circumstances, Epson has made a significant effort. Its ink filling is quite simple and doesn’t call for any special skills.

Simply place the EcoFit ink bottles into the printer, and you are ready to go. Additionally, clean ink filling is quite beneficial to you. Other printers use ink that is persistent and difficult to wash off of your hands.

The business has worked very hard to prevent this scenario and has introduced EcoFit ink bottles that are simple to fill without creating a mess.

FAQs About Epson F170 Dye-Sublimation Printer

What more paper can the Epson F170 hold?

The printer’s tray can store a maximum of 150 pages at once. For your convenience, there is a tray that can keep sheets if you need to print multiple pages quickly.

Would be the Epson F170 pricey enough?

Excellent value, dependability, and versatility are all features of the Epson SureColor® F170. Its features enable business owners to offer a wide range of products, including customised corporate awards and T-shirts for little league baseball teams.

Where large would Epson F170 prints be?

The largest print size is 8.5 by 14. 1200 x 600 DPI is the maximum print resolution.

Is special paper required for sublimation printing?

image outcome

Specialized paper known as the sublimation transfer paper is only utilised in sublimation printing. made from a paper substrate that is roughly analogous to a standard sheet of paper. The dye sublimation inks are kept on the paper by a specific coating.

Does the Epson F170 have a built-in cutter?

No, the printer lacks a built-in cutter, which is a feature that most printers have to print pages of various sizes. You must insert the page appropriately because the essence of this printer is to print numerous prints of the same size.

Verdict

In essence, we may state that the Epson F170 exists alongside dye-sublimation printing. Everything you require for a fully functional printing studio or business needs is provided by the printers. Additionally, by making a small initial investment and planning ahead, you can start a small printing business with this printer.

Lower expenses than profits are necessary for profitable businesses, and this printer makes that possible. Therefore, for both home and commercial use, we highly suggest the Epson SureColor F170 Dye-Sublimation Printer.

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