«I'm going to return mine this weekend.»
?? Do you actually have a problem with the performance of the printer you received? The color shift problem is very old news and has been extensively discussed by professionals and
in computer magazines. It is caused by atmospheric conditions and the ink used for photo printing. It can happen with any Epson (or Canon) photo-printer. As noted in the ZD article though, less than 1% of users have reported having the problem at all.
As far as it being refurbished, we haven't seen any refurbished units in the ones we've received but it wouldn't bother me if we had. Epson refurbished units come with the same warranty as new -- 1 year with an instant exchange program. You can't find better warranty service from any printer manufacturer.
Buy.com is featuring
the same printer for $160 this weekend so we're still going to wait for the final two orders from Office Max and see what happens.