LONG BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 1, 2001--Epson America Inc. today announced that it has reduced the price of two of its award-winning products: the EPSON Stylus(R) Photo 785EPX ink jet printer and the EPSON PhotoPC(R) 3100Z digital camera.

These products were Epson's first to offer PRINT Image Matching(TM) technology, which is a breakthrough technology that helps photographers easily produce the best possible prints by ensuring that digital cameras and printers work perfectly together.

The EPSON Stylus Photo 785EPX was developed for digital camera owners and delivers convenient photo printing with and without a computer, as well as compatibility with popular digital camera memory cards and Epson's patented BorderFree(TM) photo printing. This printer is now available for an estimated street price of $199, a reduction of $50 from its original price.

The EPSON PhotoPC 3100Z is a compact, three megapixel digital camera that offers several advanced features, as well as easy-to-use print tools that bridge the gap between digital capture and digital output. With the new price reduction, this camera carries an estimated street price of $599, which is a $200 reduction.

"Epson has built a solid reputation with photographers of all levels by providing digital photography products that offer superior technology, convenience and ease of use," said Lisa Graham, product manager, photo imaging, Epson. "With these price reductions, we are able to offer an even greater value without compromising the level of quality our customers have come to expect."

More About the EPSON Stylus Photo 785EPX

The EPSON Stylus Photo 785EPX features up to 2880 x 720 dpi and Epson's Advanced Micro Piezo(TM) ink jet technology, a six-color photo ink system creating incredible detail, beautiful skin tones, sharper contrast and an ultrawide color range designed ideally for photography.

This printer also offers four-picoliter droplets, delivering the best in virtually continuous tone quality for prints that appear indistinguishable from traditional photos.

The printer's built-in PC card slot makes it compatible with virtually any digital camera by using the appropriate memory card adapter. Compatible digital camera memory types include CompactFlash(TM) Type I and II, IBM Microdrive(TM), Memory Stick(R), Secure Digital and SmartMedia(TM).

The printer comes standard with a CompactFlash Type I adapter that can be exchanged through Epson for either a Memory Stick or SmartMedia adapter.

The EPSON Stylus Photo 785EPX also features a control panel that allows customers to make selections such as paper type, paper size and number of copies without having to use a computer. Images can also be easily enhanced without a computer by utilizing settings such as brightness and sharpness, as well as monochrome and sepia tones.

For viewing photos, the EPSON Stylus Photo 785EPX's optional 1.6-inch color Preview Monitor attaches to the printer enabling customers to review and select images for printing. It is available for an estimated street price of $99.

More About the PhotoPC 3100Z

The PhotoPC 3100Z includes Epson's revolutionary HyPict(TM) image enhancement technology, which provides customers with 2544 x 1904 pixel resolution or 4.8 megapixels. This high-quality resolution, coupled with the camera's advanced features, make the PhotoPC 3100Z one of the most compelling digital cameras in the market today for under $600.

A feature that is especially unique and new to the digital camera market is the print button on the back of the PhotoPC 3100Z. By taking advantage of the Digital Print Order Format (DPOF), the photographer can actually "mark" the images on the memory card by scrolling through the images on the camera's LCD panel.

As photos are viewed, they can be selected for printing by pressing the button either once for a single print or multiple times for more than one print of the same image.

Once images are marked for printing, the card can be placed in a printer that has a built-in memory card reader and reads DPOF files, such as the EPSON Stylus(R) Photo 785EPX. The printer will automatically detect the marked photos and the selected images will be printed.

The camera also features a 3x optical zoom, a 35-second Web-ready video clip feature and built-in microphone. Included with the PhotoPC 3100Z is a 16MB CompactFlash(TM) card that stores up to 199 standard resolution images. The camera also offers increased power efficiency over previous models and includes four AA alkaline batteries, which will last approximately 6 hours when using the viewfinder for taking photos.

More About PRINT Image Matching

This technology ensures that digital cameras and PRINT Image Matching-enabled printers work perfectly together to create the best possible prints. With PRINT Image Matching technology, digital camera manufacturers can set critical image specific parameters for printing, such as gamma level, color space, contrast, sharpness, brightness, saturation, shadow, highlight and color balance, to ensure optimum results for each digital camera model.

The photographer's original intentions are automatically reflected in the printed image. Photographers can now easily create stunning, frame-ready photos with their favorite PRINT Image Matching-enabled digital camera model and PRINT Image Matching-enabled printer without any complicated procedures.

PRINT Image Matching-enabled printers can only utilize the technology when used in conjunction with a PRINT Image Matching-enabled digital camera. In addition to the EPSON PhotoPC 3100Z, there are approximately 23 other digital camera models available today that incorporate the technology.

PRINT Image Matching is being supported by industry-leading names such as Asahi Optical Co. Ltd. (Pentax Corp.), Casio Computer Co. Ltd., Konica Corp., Kyocera Corp., Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd. (Panasonic), Minolta Co. Ltd., Nikon Corp., Olympus Optical Co. Ltd., Ricoh Co. Ltd., Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd., Sony Corp. and Toshiba Corp. A complete list of all PRINT Image Matching-compatible products is available at www.printimagematching.com.

PRINT Image Matching Printers

At its introduction, the EPSON Stylus Photo 785EPX offered PRINT Image Matching support when used without the computer. With a simple software upgrade to Epson Software Film Factory, this printer can now support PRINT Image Matching through the computer.

Customers who own the EPSON Stylus Photo 780, 890 and 1280 printers can also easily upgrade their printer with an updated driver and a new version of Epson Software Film Factory with PRINT Image Matching support.

These upgrades can be only obtained by calling Epson's PRINT Image Matching customer support line at 562/276-7296 to speak to a representative Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. PT, and on Saturday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. PT. A CD-ROM containing the PRINT Image Matching upgrade will be mailed to each customer, free of charge.

About Epson

Epson offers an extensive array of award-winning image capture and image output products for the consumer, business and graphic arts markets. The company is also a leading supplier of value-added point-of-sale (POS) solutions for the retail market.

Founded in 1975, Epson America Inc. is the U.S. affiliate of Japan-based Seiko Epson Corp., a global manufacturer and supplier of high-quality technology products that meet customer demands for increased functionality, compactness, systems integration and energy efficiency.

Epson America Inc. has headquarters in Long Beach. More information about Epson and its products is available by calling 800/GO-EPSON or visiting the company's Web site at www.epson.com.

Note to Editors: Epson and EPSON Stylus are registered trademarks and PRINT Image Matching is a trademark of Seiko Epson Corp. PhotoPC is a registered trademark and HyPict is a trademark of Epson America Inc. Third-party brand or product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.