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A cheap multifunction printer from Epson is nothing new but the Stylus SX218 is a refreshing change because it only is it affordable to buy but it also affordable to run in terms of the cost of its printers cartridges. The Epson SX218 ink cartridges are affordable because they are four separate Epson ink cartridges, one for each colour and this means you only have to change the colour that’s empty. This MFP looks like a slightly smaller than previous versions from Epson and the built quality seems to have improved too. In terms of performance the SX218 goes beyond what you would expect from a budget device the copier produces accurate copies in both black and colour with reasonably good speed and is one of the features of the SX218 that works without the need for a PC. The scanner performs well and is aided by some useful software for photo editing and OCR which enables converting printed text documents into editable files. Another feature that woks without a need for PC is the direct photo printing from memory cards, digital cameras and camera phones thanks to the SX218’s integrated memory card reader and PictBridge. The jewel in the crown of the SX218 is its printing quality, not only more text documents and graphics but high quality photo prints which are amazingly good for a printer with only four colours in its ink system. While the SX218 excels in terms of print quality the speed in which it prints leaves a lot do be desired with an average speed of 4ppm for text printing in a reasonable quality setting. Overall though the SX218 is great value for money as it has a long list of features most of which it performs better than its more expensive priced competitors.