Epson has released new lightfastness ratings from testing done for them by the Wilhelm Instutute.
Below are the latest figures from Epson on expected display life of
their inks and papers. All the new R series printers with the HQ inks
sit in the second column.
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Media
|
6 color Photo 825, 925, 960, 1280 | 6 color HQ inks – R and RX series | DURABrite Ink | PictureMate Ink | UltraChrome Ink | UltraChrome Hi-Gloss Inks |
| Premium Photo Papers | ||||||
| Premium Glossy Photo Paper | 23 years | 85 years | 104 years | |||
| Premium Luster Photo Paper – Cut Sheet | 22 years | 71 years | 64 years | |||
| Premium Semigloss Photo Paper | 22 years | 77 years | In progress | |||
| Matte Papers | ||||||
| Double-Sided Matte Paper | 15 years | |||||
| Enhanced Matte Paper | 71 years | 76 years | 110 years | |||
| Matte Paper heavyweight | 18 years | 30 years | 105 years | Over 150 years | ||
| Photo Quality Ink Jet Paper | 8 years | In progress | ||||
| PremierArt Matte Scrapbook Photo Paper for Epson | 94 years | 108 years | In progress | |||
| Premium Bright White Paper | 5 years | 74 years | In progress | |||
| Fine Art Papers | ||||||
| Ultrasmooth Fine Art Paper | 108 years | |||||
| Epson Velvet Fine Art Paper | 61 years | |||||
| Watercolor Paper Radiant White | 92 years | |||||
| PremierArt Water-Resistant Canvas for Epson | 75 years | |||||
| Glossy Papers | ||||||
| ColorLife Photo Paper | 27 years | 36 years | ||||
| DURABrite Ink Glossy Photo Paper | 55 years | |||||
| PictureMate Photo Paper | 104 years | |||||
| Semigloss Scrapbook Photo Paper | 27 years | 36 years |
Epson use the Wilhelm Institute for their testing. See the Wilhelm Institute website here. You can also read an interview I did with Henry Wilhelm here.
Interesting from the above is that the Epson dye inks are no better
than, and in some cases worse than, Canon’s latest dye printers using
ChromaLife 100 inks, with 30 year display lightfastness.