Over the years, supertank printers have gained popularity in both home and office settings. These devices are known for their high ink capacity and low running costs. If you’re in the market for one, then it’s worth looking into the Epson EcoTank and HP Smart Tank lineups. Their respective models — the EcoTank 4760 and the Smart Tank 651 — are a great place to start if you need a feature-packed printer. But which one is better? Check our comparison below to find out.
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Epson EcoTank vs HP Smart Tank Printer Comparison Chart
Design
The Epson EcoTank and HP Smart Tank are both compact printers. Epson’s printer, however, is sleeker than HP’s.
For multi-functional printers, the Epson EcoTank 4760 and HP Smart Tank 651 have a surprisingly small footprint. These compact devices are certainly welcome in small and cramped rooms, offices, or dorms. Between the two printers, however, Epson’s EcoTank 4760 has a more attractive design. Although it’s made of plastic, the device feels sturdy. Rounded corners help soften the 4760’s blocky form, too, lending the printer a sleek and modern appearance. Users can also get this EcoTank model in white and black variants.
The HP Smart Tank 651, on the other hand, looks slightly outdated. The angled edges and two-colored finish gives the printer a bit of an old-school vibe. Up close, however, the Smart Tank 651 also boasts a solid build. The paper feed is far from flimsy and the tray reliably prevents printouts from falling on the floor. Just like Epson’s EcoTank, the HP Smart Tank features front-facing ink tanks and an auto-document feeder (ADF). Both printers also come with a touchscreen display, although Epson’s is colored.
When it comes to paper handling, the Epson EcoTank has the edge over the HP Smart Tank. The 4760 has a 250-sheet input paper capacity compared to the Smart Tank 561’s 100-sheet input tray. HP’s ADF, however, has a 35-sheet capacity that edges out Epson’s 30 sheets. Despite the impressive paper handling, these printers only have decent scanners. In both the Epson EcoTank and HP Smart Tank, the scanner lid doesn’t extend as much. This makes it challenging to scan thicker materials like books or magazines.
Print Speed and Quality
The Epson EcoTank 4760 may be the faster printer but the HP Smart Tank 651 has the edge when it comes to colored printouts.
If you want to print fast, then Epson’s printer is for you. The EcoTank 4760 has a solid print speed of 15 pages-per-minute (ppm) for black pages and 8 ppm for colored documents. On the other hand, HP’s Smart Tank 651 is rated at 11 ppm for black and a mediocre 5 ppm for color. Aside from the rated speeds, the Epson EcoTank’s duplex-printing feature is automatic, a more productive option than the HP Smart Tank’s manual two-sided printing.
In terms of print quality, however, Epson and HP’s supertank printers are comparable, if not, even favoring HP. Both printers offer similar 4800 x 1200 optimized dpi max resolutions when it comes to colored documents. With the EcoTank 4760, you get clear and legible documents with little issues like banding or streaking. Although not a photo printer per se, image printouts are of good quality even though color accuracy may be unremarkable for some.
HP’s Smart Tank 651, on the other hand, produces highly detailed colored printouts with more natural colors. Photos are sharp and vibrant with minimal graininess, too. If you’re planning to use one of these models for photo printouts, HP’s Smart Tank has the edge. For monochrome documents, texts are dark, well-structured, and legible, regardless of the font size.
Click here to read our Epson EcoTank 4700 vs 4760 vs 3760 comparison.
Features
Epson’s EcoTank 4760 and HP’s Smart Tank 651 are multifunction printers with plenty of smart features.
As all-in-one printers, both the Epson EcoTank 4760 and HP Smart Tank 651 have copying functions, fax capability, and support for wireless printing. Through their respective touch screens, most of these features can be easily managed, too. They also share many of the same connectivity features including USB and Wi-Fi direct. On the EcoTank 4760, ethernet is also available, while the Smart Tank offers faster dual-band Wi-Fi.
However, these Epson and HP inkjet printers are best known for their smart features. HP’s Smart Tank 651, for instance, enjoys a dependable companion HP Smart App. The downloadable software is available across most devices, too, whether it’s a smartphone, laptop, tablet computer, or desktop. With the HP Smart App, users can print, scan, copy, and even fax documents wirelessly. The program also allows users to carry out an array of actions, including checking ink levels, ordering supplies, or storing files in Cloud.
Epson’s EcoTank also comes with mobile printing solutions. However, its Epson iPrint app is not as sophisticated as HP’s Smart App just yet. The user interface isn’t as refined as HP’s even though you get more or less the same features. Fortunately, the EcoTank 4760 is compatible with other programs just like the HP Smart Tank 651. Both supertank printers work with Apple AirPrint, Google Cloud Print, Android printing, and Fire OS printing. And if you prefer hands-free operation, there is an option for voice-activated printing as well.
Running Costs
Both the Epson EcoTank 4760 and HP Smart Tank 651 boast low running costs
As expected, the Epson EcoTank 4760 and HP Smart Tank 651 have exceptional cost-per-print ratios. According to Epson, its printer has enough ink in the box for up to 7,500 black pages and 6,000 color pages. That translates to about 2-years worth of ink. It also amounts to just under 1 cent per color page and about 0.2 cents per monochrome page. Epson shares that users can save up to 90% when it comes to their replacement ink bottles, too.
HP’s Smart Tank 651 also revels in being a low-cost yet high-volume printer. Black ink bottles, for instance, come in at just $16.99 per bottle. Meanwhile, the cyan, magenta, and yellow inks cost $14.99 each. HP shares that the Smart Tank 561’s bottles yield 6,000 black pages and 8,000 color pages. In terms of cost per page, these numbers translate to 0.3 cents for monochrome printouts and 0.8 cents for color pages, well within Epson’s running costs, too.
Verdict
Get the Epson EcoTank if you need a fast printer. Opt for the HP Smart Tank if you like seamless mobile printing.
The biggest selling point of the Epson EcoTank and HP Smart Tank series is their low-running costs. It’s true even with their top-of-the-line supertank printers — the EcoTank 4760 and the Smart Tank 561. Both have comparable page yield and replacement ink costs. They also share many of the same smart and connectivity features.
However, the Epson EcoTank 4760 has the edge when it comes to print speeds. It also has a sleeker aesthetic compared to the HP Smart Tank 561. If you need a printer that looks good and prints fast for your home or small office, consider Epson’s offering instead.
On the other hand, the HP Smart Tank 561 is ideal for those who want seamless mobile printing solutions. HP’s Smart App is more intuitive than Epson’s iPrint. The Smart Tank 561 also delivers better-colored printouts than Epson’s EcoTank. If color-accurate photos and wireless printing are your priorities, consider the HP Smart Tank 561 instead.
FAQs
The HP Smart Tank is a series of bulk-ink printers designed for low-cost and high page yield printing. The “tank” refers to the ink system of these devices, which uses tanks instead of the traditional ink cartridge.
HP Smart Tank printers can print on plain paper, glossy and matte papers, photo papers, envelopes, and other specialty paper.
Yes, it does. The Epson EcoTank 4760 supports scanning to computer and to cloud.
The Epson EcoTank 4760 works with both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.
Last update on 2022-07-06 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API