Epson TM-m30III setup guide: from unboxing to first receipt

This guide takes a new TM-m30III from the box to its first receipt. It is written for our model C31CK50112 and covers paper exit direction, cables, paper loading, the test print and connecting a PC, a tablet or your network.

Before you start

Know which TM-m30III you have

C31CK50112 is Epson's TM-m30III (112): Standard Model, Black, EU. It connects by USB-B (computer), USB-C (tablet), USB-A (accessories) and Ethernet, and has a drawer kick connector for a cash drawer.

It has no built-in Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. Wi-Fi works with Epson's optional OT-WL06 wireless LAN unit. Bluetooth is only available on the separate Wi-Fi + Bluetooth model. The product name and model number are on a label at the back, under the printer covers.

Check the box

Epson lists these items: the printer, 58 mm width roll paper guides (on some models already fitted), a roll of paper for the operation check, the AC adapter, the AC cable and the manuals. A USB cable is not on the list. Remove all tape and packing material, and contact us if anything is damaged or missing.

Choose a good spot

Use a flat, stable, dust-free surface with nothing trapped under the printer, where it can't move when a cash drawer opens. Epson specifies 5–45 °C and 10–90 % relative humidity without condensation.

Video: Epson

Choose top or front paper exit

The printer ships with the paper coming out of the top. For an under-counter shelf, switch to front exit by refitting the rear and bottom covers. Decide before you connect cables.

1. Remove the cable slot cover, then the rear cover, then the bottom cover.
2. For front exit, attach the rear cover first, aligning its catches, and then the bottom cover. For top exit, attach the bottom cover first and then the rear cover.

With front exit, turn on Batch rotate print (Upside Down) in Epson TM Utility (iOS/Android) or TM-m30III Utility (Windows). Receipts then read the right way up as they come out. For wall mounting, Epson offers the optional Wall Hanging Bracket Set OT-WH30.

Connect the cables and power

All connectors sit at the lower rear of the printer, behind the covers you removed in the previous step.

1. Make sure the printer is switched off.
2. Connect your interface cable: USB-B (4) for a PC, Ethernet (6) for your network, or USB-C (2) for a tablet. Insert plugs straight.
3. If you use a cash drawer, press its modular cable into the drawer kick connector (7) until it clicks. Our cash drawer guide explains how to open it from the driver or your POS app.
4. Connect the AC cable to the AC adapter, then the adapter's DC cable to the power supply connector (5).
5. Lead the cables out through one of the four slots: rear centre, left, right or bottom.
6. Refit the covers and plug the AC cable into a wall socket.

The USB-A port is for Epson accessories such as the OT-WL06 wireless LAN unit, a DM-D30 or DM-D70 customer display, or a barcode scanner. An unsupported device or a USB hub makes the Error LED flash for about five seconds.

Load the paper roll

1. Press the cover open lever and open the roll paper cover.
2. Remove the old roll or empty core, if there is one.
3. Pull the paper's leading edge to take up any slack, and check that the roll isn't squashed or deformed.
4. Drop the roll into the paper compartment so that it unrolls in the direction shown in Epson's loading diagram.
5. Pull out a little paper and close the cover. When the printer is on, it cuts the paper automatically.

Thermal paper only darkens on its coated side. If your first receipt comes out blank, the roll is the wrong way round: turn it over and reload it.

The printer takes 80 mm rolls (79.5 ± 0.5 mm wide) up to 83 mm in diameter, 48–80 µm thick. The Paper LED lights when about 24 mm of roll diameter is left.

For 58 mm paper, see our 58 mm paper guide. Once you have printed on 58 mm paper, you can't go back to 80 mm.

Switch on and print a test

Hold the power button until the Power LED lights, then release it. The Error LED goes out when the printer is ready. To switch off, hold the power button until the Power LED flashes. Don't unplug the printer while it is still flashing.

Self-test

1. Close the roll paper cover and switch the printer off.
2. Hold Feed while you switch the printer on, and keep holding it until printing starts.
3. The printer prints its current settings and a "Continuing self-test" guidance, and the Paper LED flashes. Press Feed briefly.
4. A test pattern prints and ends with "*** completed ***". The printer is then ready.

Status sheet

The status sheet lists the interface settings, including the printer's IP address.

1. With the printer on, open the roll paper cover.
2. Hold Feed for at least one second, until the Paper LED flashes, then release it.
3. Close the cover. A guidance sheet starting with "Next Action" prints.
4. Press Feed briefly as many times as the number printed next to the sheet you want, then hold it for at least one second.

You can also hold the status sheet button under the bottom cover for three seconds, with the roll paper cover closed.

Connect your computer, tablet or network

Windows PC over USB

Connect the USB cable, start the computer, then switch the printer on. Install the Epson Advanced Printer Driver as shown in Install the Epson receipt printer driver on Windows and print a test page.

Network over Ethernet

The printer gets its IP address from your router (DHCP), or uses 192.168.192.168 if there is no DHCP server, and prints the address once it has one. The Ethernet LED turns steady when the connection is ready. Type the IP address into a browser on the same network to open Web Config, the printer's built-in settings page. To print from Windows with the Epson Advanced Printer Driver over the network, give the printer a fixed IP address; Epson's driver doesn't work with addresses from DHCP.

Secure Printing can be switched off in Web Config under Advanced Settings › Print › Secure Printing. Epson does not recommend this: it allows unencrypted communication and is only an option on a secure, managed network.

Tablet over USB-C

Connect the tablet to the USB-C port with its original cable or a certified one (MFi-certified for Lightning). The printer charges the tablet with up to 18 W and exchanges data over the same cable, though not every tablet charges this way. With Network Tethering switched on for your tablet's operating system in Epson TM Utility, a tablet connected by USB uses the printer's wired network connection instead of Wi-Fi. Wait about 40 seconds after switching the printer on before you print over USB-C.

Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi needs the optional OT-WL06 wireless LAN unit. See Connect the TM-m30III to Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.

Using Loyverse POS? See our Loyverse setup guide. Problems? Try the TM-m30III troubleshooting guide.