The Epson EcoTank ET-3850 is an all-in-one supertank printer designed for small or home office use. It replaces the Epson EcoTank ET-3760, and it performs similarly to this previous version, but it has higher page yields for both color and black-only text documents. The unit comes with a high-resolution flatbed scanner and an automatic document feeder, so you can easily digitize reports or forms. Unfortunately, its color accuracy is bad, so it’s not for those looking for a unit that can handle exact color reproduction. While it does offer good access to paper jams, it doesn’t feel as well-built as other supertank options.
The Epson EcoTank ET-3850 is a very good printer for small or home office use. Its supertank system yields an incredible amount of black or color pages, which keeps the cost-per-print outstandingly low. It has a high-resolution flatbed scanner and an automatic document feeder to easily digitize any reports or receipts. There’s also an Ethernet port to connect to a wired home or office network. Unfortunately, its build quality is only decent as the ADF feels a bit flimsy. Since it’s an inkjet printer, it requires consistent maintenance to stop the printheads from clogging.
The Epson EcoTank ET-3830 is part of the Printers test program at Consumer Reports. In our lab tests, Printers–All-in-one models like the ET-3830 are rated on multiple criteria. Text quality This indicates how crisply and clearly a printer produced black text in a variety of faces, sizes, and styles. Models with higher scores produce more uniform type, with sharper edges and smoother curves.
Text speed This score reflects how quickly the model can print text on five pages of plain, letter-sized pages. Less than 14 seconds is Excellent; 14 to 19 seconds is Very Good; 19 to 28 seconds is Good; 28 to 39 seconds is Fair; and longer than 39 seconds is Poor. Graphics quality Our assessment of the appearance of color graphics produced by the printer. Black and white lasers were judged on black and white graphics.
A 250-sheet input tray works with documents up to 8.5 x 14″ and a long-document mode enables the production of media up to 8.5 x 47.2″. For scanning and copying the unit has an 8.5 x 11.7″ flatbed scanner that allows scans up to 8.5 x 11.7″ and copies up to 8.5 x 11″. Settings can be checked and quickly changed via the 2.4″ color touchscreen, and for maximum versatility during setup, the ET-3830 is equipped with USB 2.0, Ethernet, and Wi-Fi connectivity. Mobile printing is made possible via the Epson Smart Panel app, Epson Email Print, Epson Remote Print, Epson Scan to Cloud, Epson Print and Scan app, Apple AirPrint, Android printing, Fire OS printing, and Mopria Print Service.
