Summary: canon i860 printer
Comment: Purchased a i860 printer from Amazon a few days ago and could not be more pleased with the purchase.If you can read and count to ten you will have no problems with the soft ware or set up.The printing is fast and clear and copy from the web is easy to use.I have just printed a few color digital 8x10 prints using Kodak Soft Gloss and the results are as good if not better then from the photo lab I was using. If you are looking for a good printer in this price range I would look no further.
Customer Rating:
Summary: I'm impressed
Comment: I bought the i860 to replace an aging (and jamming) Canon 6000. As a professional editor, I needed a printer that would easily print out occasional long manuscripts (including colored edits) without the need for constant babysitting--in other words, fewer jams. As the owner of a new digital camera, I wanted a printer that would produce decent photos. And I had really appreciated the separate ink tanks in my old Canon printer. After reading the reviews, I decided this one for me, and I have been delighted. My manuscripts print out quickly and smoothly--and duplexing them is very easy. My photos are beautiful, rivaling photo-shop printouts. The printer is quiet and hardly ever jams (so far), and the ink seems to go a long way. My only regret is I had stocked up on ink tanks for the Canon 6000 right before it gave up the ghost, and this one uses different color tanks. No matter. The change is still worth it.
Customer Rating:
Summary: It keeps getting better
Comment: I had been really impressed with my friend's i850 and decided to get the i860. I cannot believe they could improve on the i850 but they did. The pictures are incredibly sharp and Canon has really easy to use software (which is just as important to me as the quality of the prints). I cannot imagine how anyone could be dissappointed with this product. I have had really bad luck with Epson printers. If you have a decent digital camera, you will not be able to tell the difference between prints with the Canon and photos from the drugstore photo lab.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Don't make the mistake I made
Comment: I got this printer based on the incredible ratings (average 5-star). Setup was very easy using the easy set up poster (do exactly as it tells you). With much excitement and anticipation, I printed 1, 2, 3, a total of 4 photos. The results were not good at all. I was SO disappointed, especially since everyone gave it rave reviews.
Then on a whim, I decided to use the software that came with it to print (easy print). I rarely do this, because I prefer the software that I have that allows for great edits. I decided to just print a couple of photos that looked great on the monitor, with the plan to start editing from that point.
Imagine my surprise when, in mere SECONDS, I got PERFECT photos, no editing NO TWEAKING of the printer's setting to use the optimum print features. Just straight photo printing using first canon, then hp 4x6 glossy photo paper.
Who would have thought that to get perfect pictures, absolutely NO TWEAKING IS NECESSARY. Hince, the title of my review, don't make the mistake I made by trying to be fancy. Just use the software that comes with it, select your photos, and print. INCREDIBLE!!!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Interesting Tips - Things your mother should have told you.
Comment: Quiet Mode - Doesn't just reduce noise. Will also slow the printer's operation a bit. Why would you want to do this, you may ask? I ran in draft mode and the printer was so fast it sucked the paper from the paper tray at an impressive speed ... so fast that it can feed the paper slightly askew and almost throw it across the room on eject. In "standard mode" plain paper printing can be so fast the ink hasn't completely dried. So ... it can sometimes be a good thing to slow this creature down a bit and Quiet Mode is the way to do it. I run that way all the time and life is good.
Ink Cartridges have no "stale date" - Don't make yourself crazy trying to read the dotted characters at the package bottom to read a date into it. They're lot numbers, not encoded dates. Unlike all HP cartridges and most Epson cartridges, Canon just doesn't date its ink. It "seems" that ink cartridges without self contained print heads have very long shelf lives since there are no internal jets to clog as the sealed cartridge ages. I will believe the Canon rep on this one since it makes sense, although I'm always more comfortable knowing the age of the ink. Like many of you I want a reserve of ink "at the ready" so I just buy from a retailer that always has a fresh supply like Best Buy, Staples, OfficeMax and probably Amazon.
The Nozzle Game - Don't let the salesman sell you a more expensive Canon (I860, I960) because it "has more nozzles". More nozzles doesn't mean anything in terms of printer resolution or precision. Each cartridge has a certain number of nozzles, no matter what printer it's used on. I believe Black has 320 and color 512 except yellow which has 256. The I560 holds 4 cartridges and if you do the math has 320+512+512+256=1600 nozzles. The I860 has an extra 256 nozzles but that's only because is can hold a 5th cartridge (black with 256 nozzles). Ditto with I960 which holds 6 cartridges at 512 nozzles each for a whopping 3000+ nozzles. So, consider the advantages of having more cartridges and the essence of these cartidges but don't be led to think that high nozzle counts means it prints better.
Warrantees and Print Heads - Just be aware that unlike HP printers the Canon I-Series has one installable print head which will likely determine the useful life of the printer. Since the cartridges do not have print heads they are less expensive, but they do not contribute to the useful life of the printer. I do know that the apparently simple and little print head is claimed by Canon to have a lot of electronics in it and is the most expensive component of the printer. So ... when it goes, the printer goes (costs around $70-$80). Canon expects their print heads to last 1-3 years, maybe more, and their $50 extended warranty covers it. I was tempted to buy the $30 extended warranty from Best Buy but was told the print head is a "consumable" and won't be replaced. So ... Buyer Beware on warrantees and expect to surrender your beloved Canon when the print head goes.
Enjoy your Canon and treat yourself to a new one every couple years or so. I'm very happy with my I560 and Canon support for this and my LiDE50 Scanner has been solid. (I pay for the phone call and in return they offer me courtesy, knowledge and they even speak English.)
-- Sam