Summary of Customer Reviews
The Epson Expression Home XP-5200 Wireless All-In-One Color Printer receives mixed feedback from users, reflecting both strong positive and negative experiences. On the positive side, users frequently praise the printer for its compact size, easy wireless setup, and good print quality for basic home use. However, a recurring theme in reviews is dissatisfaction with its ink consumption, technical setup, and occasional difficulties in printer connectivity. While many customers find it a reliable device for casual use, others are frustrated with the costs associated with ink and the complexity of installation processes.
PROS
Compact Design: Many users appreciate the printer’s small footprint, making it ideal for home office setups. One customer mentioned, “It’s a great all-in-one with a clean design, fitting perfectly on a small desk”​.
Easy Wireless Setup: A frequent positive mentioned across multiple reviews is the straightforward wireless setup. One user noted, “Setting up the printer was a breeze; the software held my hand through each step”​. Others found it quick to connect to their devices, especially with the use of the Epson Smart Panel App​​.
Quality Print Output: Users highlight the good quality of both black-and-white and color prints for everyday tasks, such as printing documents, reports, and homework. One customer stated, “The print quality is excellent, particularly for everyday document printing”​.
Affordable Price: Many customers appreciate the affordable price of the XP-5200, especially considering its all-in-one functionality (print, scan, and copy). For instance, a review said, “This printer is priced right and does exactly what I need for home use”​.
Quiet Operation: Several reviews have highlighted that the printer operates quietly, which is a relief compared to previous models. A user mentioned, “It’s much quieter than my previous Epson, and that’s a big plus”​.
Double-Sided Printing: Automatic two-sided printing is a much-praised feature, which many users find efficient for home office use​.
CONS
High Ink Consumption: One of the most common complaints across reviews is the rapid consumption of ink. Many users are frustrated that the printer requires frequent ink replacements, even after light usage. A user complained, “This printer drinks ink like water; I’ve had to replace the black cartridge after just a few dozen prints”​.
Expensive Ink: Not only is the ink consumed quickly, but customers also report that replacement cartridges are costly. One review said, “I feel like I’m spending more on ink than on the printer itself”​.
Complicated Setup Process: Several users found the initial setup, particularly for non-wireless or USB connections, to be overly complicated. One user who works in IT described it as “the most convoluted printer setup I’ve ever experienced”​. Some users also had difficulties connecting the printer to their Wi-Fi​​.
Inconsistent Print Quality: Although the print quality is praised by many, a few users reported issues after initial use. For example, one reviewer said, “After a few prints, the quality deteriorated significantly despite running cleaning cycles”​.
Small Ink Cartridges: Customers also pointed out that the printer’s ink cartridges are small, requiring frequent replacements. One user noted, “The ink cartridges are tiny, and they run out very quickly”​.
Noisy Operation: While some find the printer quiet, others experienced significant noise during printing. “This is the noisiest printer I’ve ever heard,” mentioned one customer​.
Touchscreen Usability: The touchscreen interface was a source of frustration for some users, as they found it hard to navigate​.
Who Should Buy?
The Epson Expression Home XP-5200 is well-suited for casual users looking for a reliable, compact printer for basic home tasks such as printing documents, homework, or reports. It is particularly beneficial for individuals or families who value wireless functionality and easy integration with mobile devices. Those with limited printing needs will likely appreciate its cost-effectiveness and ease of use. However, it may not be the best option for users who print large volumes or rely on high-quality color printing for creative projects, as the ink costs can quickly add up. Moreover, users who are not tech-savvy may find the setup process challenging.
Do Users Recommend This Product?
The majority of users recommend the Epson XP-5200 for light, everyday printing tasks, with many noting its affordable price and compact design. Positive reviews emphasize ease of setup and good print quality, making it a great fit for home use. However, some users do not recommend it due to high ink consumption and costly replacement cartridges. As one reviewer put it, “The printer works well, but the ink costs are a deal-breaker for me”​​. Overall, if your printing needs are moderate and you can manage the ink usage, the XP-5200 offers good value.
Customer Reviews​
Updated on March 9, 2024
Read the box. Will not use substitute print cartridges
I have limited use for printing so an inexpensive printer and ink suits my needs.
Machine comes with puny starter ink cartridges. I ordered correct but off brand replacement ink from Amazon.
The use of these trigger a firmware update which disabled my printer. Epson support asked, “didn’t you read the box?”.
No I didn’t. I read the specs to ensure this machine met my limited needs. I didn’t read the little notice on the box when Amazon delivered it”
Articles online indicate they only started adding the information on newer models after a class action lawsuit made them act like a decent & ethical company. Still didn’t cause them to make a sincere and apparent disclosure.
Let’s not pretend they want consumers to be well advised about this or they could & would make a real effort to provide forthright disclosure before disabling my new printer.
This tells me everything I need to know about Epson.
Throwing out their machine. I don’t trust companies that use dubious techniques to take my money. This offer you can’t refuse method of commandeering products to force sales of their products should be treated as extortion.
I want to know exactly what the off brand ink does that Epson claims damages the printer. Because it was working fine until EPSON disabled it. So who damaged my new printer? Seems like Epson did not the replacement ink.
- 68
- 0
Must buy entire black and color ink packets for printer to work
1. The printer came with ink cartridges of limited ink.
2. I print in black ink only so went the black cartridge got low I only replaced the black ink – I could not get the printer to print.
3. Contacted online help and they stated that you MUST buy the entire black and color ink packets for the printer to work – YOU cannot just replace the black ink cartridge – they gave me steps where I should be able to print out a few pages with black ink but the copy was terrible and unreadable.
4. Nowhere in the printer instructions could I find a statement that you must buy the entire ink packets and that replacing only one cartridge will not WORK. The entire ink packets are expensive.
5. Customers need to be aware of this and in the specifications of the printer, this needs to be clearly stated so customers do not have to learn this from the helpdesk.
6. DO NOT BUY!
- 34
- 0
Really a nice All-In-One
I bought this to replace my 12 year old Epson 835 All-In-One.I was never able to get a wireless setup, as it took 30 miutes to enter just 3 of the 12 characters of the SSID password. I am happy to report this was not a problem on the 5200. As others said, following the lead of the setup instructions lead to success. Printing only the setup images to align left me with 99+ percent ink in the cartridges. I still have not figured out the use and value of the software, but as long as I can copy, scan and print from the control panel, and select the 5200 when I print off the laptop, I really do not care.
update: I finally printed some pictures on photo-quality paper, on plain paper, within some Word document. The photo quality prints were very good. The photo inserted in the Word Document looked good. The photo printed on plain paper was not very good … maybe what some have described as very grainy. The 839 still sells for over $500 on Amazon. I think it pretty good that this 5200 can print almost as good a photo as the 835. The 5200 does what I want and I am happy.
- 31
- 0
Epson fan BUT this one is bad...
I’ve had Epson printers for years, my XP 830 lasted for a long time with great quality, so when I needed to buy a new printer I thought to go back to Epson. However, I am about to return this one and go to another company. My issue is that this brand new printer, in which I purchased ink directly from Epson.com, is printing extremely faded and pixelated. Every print job is faded with very weak colors. I work in tech and know how to troubleshoot basic things so I’ve gone into my advanced settings and increased print quality, etc. etc etc. I’ve posted some photos in hopes in helps someone else but it’s very hard to see the print quality when taking a picture with a cell phone. Also the other documents are work product that I can’t post.
I called Epson tech support and the first lady hung up in my face. The second representative asked me the same questions over and over again getting absolutely nowhere for a good half hour. By then I was running terribly behind for work and prep for some meetings, so I am deciding to return this and go elsewhere.
- 23
- 0
Simple set-up, works well with my wi-fe
Just finished setting up and printing some documents on the XP-5200. I was worried that the set up would be difficult — I long for the days when you could download a driver and hook up with a cable and off you go. I was pleased that the set-up, using both the front panel and the app which you must download, the process was pretty seamless. No frustrating errors or mishaps.
It does take 30 minutes or so for the entire process, but the app takes you step by step through the process. A third of the set-up is just getting the printer ink charged and going through the alignment process.
Print quality is excellent. That said, I am mostly printing calendars, reports, and word documents, so color alignment is not a high priority.
Same size as my previous HP 2700 printer. There was nothing wrong with my HP printer EXCEPT that when I upgraded my wifi, the printer was no longer compatible. In additional the HP app was a nightmare compared to the EPSON.
- 22
- 0
Setup from iOS App does not work. Use control panel to set up manually instead!
Got the package today. Setup from iPhone 14 Pro for wireless network connection was a nightmare. The Epson App kept generating a message “Printer’s WiFi setup is complete but the printer can’t be located on the WiFi network”, following by asking whether I used a wrong password – how can the setup be complete if the password was wrong? Repeated 3 times, got the same message. No other diagnostics or suggestions given, except “move the printer closer to router. Extremely frustrating! Finally gave up on the app, started to punch the printer’s control panel to try my luck – to my surprise the printer could already see my WiFi, with a strong signal level, and the “Next” button led to password entry, then everything works! I don’t understand how EPSON can release such a lousy app that simply acts as a roadblock for the user. Where is your QA process?
- 21
- 0
Love it
I Love this printer, the only thing i will say, it is an ink gusler, it will go through all its ink in 30 copies. And ink is not cheep for this printer it can run around $40 a set, so keep that in mind if you want this printer.
- 17
- 0
Pain in the neck to set up
First – it is much easier to set up the printer and enable networking from a PC. It might be possible on a Mac but I gave up on that effort. Their install app is worthless- just set it up manually. They force you to sign up for a support contract which is a scam. Their touchscreen menu on the printer is horrible. Print quality is only average. Would not recommend.
- 15
- 0
Epson
it prints slow compared to the HP I had but the HP had all sets of problems thats why I got rid of it. It connects to our cell phones with no problems. Phot prints are OK.
- 13
- 0
Just what I needed
I just received the printer and have tested all the functions. Scanning and copying are easy and the setup is a breeze. What I did not expect was the automatic double-sided printing would be as quick and easy as it turned out to be. This feels like a good decision and will save me a lot of time and money.
- 12
- 0