Canon - which model?

[Smeagol]

Currently I have an Epson Stylus Colour 880 and have been very pleased with
it for some time but get a bit fed up with the constant head cleaning and
waste of ink to keep it printing well. Only ever used cheap compatible
cartridges which have always worked OK. Photo results also very good.
However, I am looking at the newer Canon models that have separate ink tanks
and great resolution. I do mostly b&w and colour document printing and
occasional photo printing up to A5 and very occasionally A4.

The models I have considered are the i550, i560, i850, i865, i860, and i960.
Obviously prices vary considerably and I don't want to go over the top. I
don't need direct CD printing which some offer. The i560 seems good value
for money (I am in the UK and see it at around £124 on the net).

I would appreciate a few recommendations from actual users, especially about
replacement cartridges, preferably the cheaper compatibles, and a good place
to obtain them and printer at a reasonable price.

Many thanks.

 

[DF]

I own the Canon i860 which is the same as the i865 without the CD printing
capabilities (European model does not infringe on US Patents for CD
printing) I can tell you I LOVE the quality of the Photos and the text is
crisp and it is FAST compared to others in its price range. If you are into
refilling your own inks then the canon is the easiest to refill. Original
OEM tanks are less expensive and you only need to replace the color that is
low. Two black inks, one pigmented and one dye based. This gives the
photos a good quality overall. US price is $150. Here is the link to Canon
http://www.usa.canon.com/html/conCprProductDetail.jsp?modelid=9387&item=9442&section=10213

 

[Don Davis]

Smeagol,
IMHO you might want to consider the i560. It can be purchased for $100 in
the US, so I'm sure it can be had for less than 150UKP. It is an up graded
i850 and performs as well and cheaper.
You will like either Canon you choose.I used to be an Epson die-hard
until I saw the new Canons.
Good Luck.
Don Davis

 

[Debbie]

I dito that. I have had my Canon i860 for about 2 months now and it
has not disappointment me. It amazes me at how it can print beautiful
photo pictures with just the 3 colors + photo black. I don't print
very often but it is there and ready to go whenever I am without all
the cleanings my Epson took. I'm still using the original cartridges
that came with it, but also have purchased compatible for when I need
them.

I will also include that I just through away a Canon S820 the I ruined
by refilling my own cartridges and they leaked into the printer. I
will not do that again. Some have no problems refilling. It's just
not for me so I get my compatible cartridges from ebay or other web
sites for a reasonable price.

Hope this helps,
Debbie

 

[Mark L]

The i560 and the i860 use the black pigment cartridges for text. The i560
produces VERY sharp text. I'm assuming the i860 does the same. "Grayscale"
mode only uses the black pigment cartridge so it's economical for text
printing.

The "photo" printers (e.g. i960) do not use the black pigment cartridge and
I'm guessing the text might be a little less sharp.

The i560 produces surprisingly good (very good) photos (using defaults) with
strong contrast. It appears that the black pigment cartridge is used to
improve contrast.

The i960 produces excellent photos (using defaults) which appear less
contrasty than the i560. I'm guessing the i860 is similar because it
includes an extra photo black cartridge to, apparently, be used instead of
the black pigment cartridge.

The photo differences between the i560 and the others appear to be more a
matter of taste. If you want some quick, inexpensive, disposable 4x6's to
pass around then I don't think you need to look any further than the i560.
I can't comment on how smooth the colors might be at larger sizes. I also
can't comment on the longevity of the photos. It appears that the
flourescent light tests cited by Canon (from Wilhelm) aren't very relavent
for typical (i.e. non-gallery/museum) use.

I'm not planning on using anything but Canon inks since they are already
quite reasonably priced compared to other printer vendors.

 

[Smeagol]

Just a word of thanks to everyone who commented here. What you had to say
pretty much followed my own thinking but it was all most helpful in making
my mind up.

I have eventually opted for the i560, due to my limited photo printing, from
Ebuyer who I use quite a lot. £115.14 for printer (inc. vat) and 60p (inc.
vat) for a usb cable. Total inc. delivery = £122.20. Quite a fair price I
think. Can't wait to try it out.

Again, many thanks to all.

 

[Larry]

Anyone know who owns this stupid patent that keeps screwing us?

Larry

 

[Larry]

Mark,

I'm not sure I understand when you say:

The "photo" printers (e.g. i960) do not use the black pigment cartridge and
I'm guessing the text might be a little less sharp.

My i950 uses the black cartridge all the time when I print text pages.

-Larry

 

[Ron Cohen]

The photo printers - s820, i950, i960 (the ones using BCI-6 tanks) do not
use a pigmented black. All the colors, including black are dye based. The
text from my s820 is pretty good, but not as sharp as with the other general
purpose Canon printers which use pigmented black.
--
Ron Cohen

Mark,

I'm not sure I understand when you say:


My i950 uses the black cartridge all the time when I print text pages.

-Larry

<snipped>

 

[John]

I can't comment on how smooth the colors might be at larger sizes. I also
can't comment on the longevity of the photos. It appears that the
flourescent light tests cited by Canon (from Wilhelm) aren't very relavent
for typical (i.e. non-gallery/museum) use.

The Wilhelm report did not specifically identify the 3rd party inks. Rather,
as a group Wilhelm liked the OEM inks better than th e3rd party inks. Also,
the Wilhelm report is probably out of date by now. don't put too much faith
in it.

I'm not planning on using anything but Canon inks since they are already
quite reasonably priced compared to other printer vendors.

When comparing cartridge prices, consider carefully the amount of ink in the
cartridge.

On a per ml basis, the BCI-3 and BCI-6 cartridges are close in price to some
HP cartridges, and much less expensive than some other HP cartridges.

3rd-part BCI3/BCI-6 tanks are cheaper yet.

 

[Buddy B]

cartridge

The 860 prints a black type while the 960 prints a not quite black.
For home purposes it probably doesn`t matter.

 

[Richard]

The Wilhelm report did not specifically identify the 3rd party inks. Rather,
as a group Wilhelm liked the OEM inks better than th e3rd party inks. Also,
the Wilhelm report is probably out of date by now. don't put too much faith
in it.


When comparing cartridge prices, consider carefully the amount of ink in the
cartridge.

On a per ml basis, the BCI-3 and BCI-6 cartridges are close in price to some
HP cartridges, and much less expensive than some other HP cartridges.

3rd-part BCI3/BCI-6 tanks are cheaper yet.

You must not be reading the same article as I. On the Wilhelm site,
the reference article was printed in September of 2003. That would
seem to make it reasonably current. As to not mentioning specific
inks, well, that is incorrect also. The brands tested were from:

1. Amazon Imaging
2. Carrot Ink
3. OA100 (PrintPal)
4. Rainbow logo (a white box with nothing on it except for a rainbow
logo)
5. Canon

As many on usenet have pointed out many times, you pay your money and
make a choice. The manufacturers ink cost more but items including:

1. color balance
2. Print longevity
3. head clogging

Are _ALWAYS_ better with the manufacturers own ink. If these items
are not as important to you as cost then, of course, that is certainly
your choice.

Of course YMMV but until someone presents _ACTUAL TEST DATA_ to refute
Wilhelm test data (not anecdotal evidence) then I will trust his site.