Epson WorkForce Pro WP-4095DN review

The latest addition to the WorkForce Pro inkjet range is able to print 13 business quality pages per minute. Simon Handby investigates whether the printer is worth double the price of the HP OfficeJet Pro 8000 Enterprise.

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IT Pro Verdict

This sturdy, simple printer feels like it would give years of service, producing high quality prints with the minimum of fuss. Unfortunately, it's more expensive than HP's similar OfficeJet Pro 8000 Enterprise, which is a better choice where print language emulations are essential. Where host-based printing is fine, Epson's own WorkForce Pro WP-4015DN does the same job for less.

Inkjets are generally deemed suitable for home use, with laser printers seen as the default choice for businesses. For high-volume applications this is true, but Epson's WP-4095DN is one of several inkjets, which is an alternative for a smaller workgroup or branch office.

One of two new models in Epson's WorkForce Pro range, the WP-4095DN sits above two existing single-function inkjets. All three models share near-identical specifications. Epson quotes a maximum speed of 26 mono or 24 colour pages per minute (ppm) and a print resolution of 4,800 x 1,200 dots per inch but there are differences in the supported interfaces and print languages.

Test results

Time to first print: 9 secondsDraft speed: 14.3ppmDocument speed: 13.5ppmColour speed: 5.7ppmCost per page: 3.3p

Full specifications and test results

The entry-level WP-4015DN can be picked up for just under 100 excluding VAT, while the WP-4025DW adds wireless networking for around 15 more. Both cheaper models are host-based, and this model adds language emulations including PCL5c, PCL6 and PostScript 3. This makes it a direct competitor for HP's OfficeJet Pro 8000 Enterprise. But is Epson's WP-4095DN really worth over twice as much?

Performance

Anyone used to fast departmental lasers will be disappointed by the speeds of the WP-4095DN. Despite Epson's claimed maximum of 26ppm, we couldn't get our 25-page mono document to print faster than 14.3ppm, even using the driver's Economy setting, which produced faint text. The same test at the Normal quality setting completed at a rate of 13.5ppm, which is brisk for an inkjet and not too far off Epson's claimed 16ppm for 'business quality' documents.

Thanks to the complexity of our graphics-heavy test document, the WP-4095DN was far slower when printing in colour, managing only 5.7ppm over 24 pages. This is slower than almost all colour lasers, and only half Epson's quoted 11ppm for a business quality colour document.

Simon Handby
Simon Handby

After a brief career in corporate IT, Simon Handby combined his love of technology and writing when he made the move to Computer Shopper magazine. As a technology reviewer he's since tested everything from routers and switches, to smart air fryers and doorbells, and covered technology such as EVs, TVs, solar power and the singularity.

During more than 15 years as Shopper's long-time printer reviewer, Simon tried, tested and wrote up literally hundreds of home, small office and workgroup printers. He continues reviewing smart products and printers for a variety of publications, and has been an IT Pro contributor since 2010. Simon is almost never happier than when surrounded by printers and paper, applying his stopwatch and a seasoned eye to find the best performing, best value products for business users.