Customer Rating: 
Summary: This printer rocks!
Comment: Before I bought this printer I had a couple of HP printers through the years. Oh, the humanity! Don't get me wrong, Mr. Hewlett and Mr. Packard are probably upright citizens, but their printers are a curse from Lucifer and I'd sooner carve my documents into marble slabs with a toy hammer and chisel than buy another one of their printers. But enough about that. I bought the Canon i860 printer around Christmas 2003 and have been nothing but THRILLED with it. It prints speedily (once it gets all juiced up, which does take a couple of moments), prints incredible photographs, and I still haven't had to change any ink cartridges (almost 10 months later!). This is saying quite a lot since I've gone on several photograph printing sprees over the months. On top of all that, the printer looks cool. I will say that it seems a bit large for what it does, but It's nothing you'd have to build an addition onto the house for. How often you have to change ink cartridges is relative to how much you'll be printing, but I can say that these have lasted way longer than those garbage HP cartridges ever did. I'll update this review if anything stinky crops up with the i860, but all's great with it so far. Purchase this bad boy!
Customer Rating:
Summary: no USB cable
Comment: I just received my new i860, unpacked it to set it up and what to my surprise - no USB cable! So here I am with absolutely no way of using the thing.
I find it hard to believe that Canon would ship a printer that one cannot connect to their PC without going back to the store and buying a cable. I've heard of cheap products before but this takes the cake.
So I can't really rate this item because I can't connect it!
Customer Rating:
Summary: What an amazing printer, the best ever!
Comment: I was totally shocked when I first printed out the photo using the sample paper(Canon Photo Paper Pro) provided, I mean that I was really SHOCKED and was blowed away by the astonishing quality of photos came out of it! After using for a while, even using Canon Photo Paper Plus(Glossy), it gives great photos which can be compared with professional photo processing. I personally think the photo quality actually is even better than some professional photo labs. The photos are very vivid in color and well-balanced in contrast, true boaderless print. All I can say is that if you need a photo printer, get this one and you never regret!
I compared my photos with my friends' photos came out of Epson(using Epson high quality paper), HP($200 plus one, using HP high quality paper), definetely canon i860's photo beats them without a question. I don't say they are not good, but not good as this one.
However, i860 is picky on papers. I would stick with Canon paper, while I tried Kodak soft gloss regular paper(which is the cheapest one of Kodak papers and it looked cheap anyway), it didn't give promising results like using Canon photo paper plus(glossy). I don't even think to try other cheap generic papers.
Also ink usuage is remarkable, after printing about 100 pictures, I checked the ink, it still has about 4/5--3/5 left. Combined with the on sale Canon paper in Amazon.com, the cost per photo is close to professional processing labs but you got the convience and high quality photos at ease. I would recommend using genuine Canon inks for photo printing. They are a little more costy than other generic or compatible inks, but they provide the best quality for your photos and it's worth. Amazon.com sells these inks at reasonable price, about $45 a set, much cheaper than other stores. According to the some comments from the web, no other inks can match the quality of genuine inks which is true for all printers as for photo printing. Worst of all, generic or compatible inks prints usually would fade in color in a few days, not mentioning the printer head clogging problem.
Another nice thing is this printer is VERY QUIET, I even didn't know whether it's printing or not and the photo just came out smoothly. The 4x6 photo paper tray is indeed a handy device.
As for printing speed, it's not the fastest for photo printing but it's very fast for me. Text printing is very fast and quality is very impressive. Since it's using a different black ink tank for balck text, it's very economical to save inks.
Boundled Canon Easy-print software is a simple and nice program for photo printing, a good starting application with limited photo editing tools.
Printer set-up is easy and runs in few minutes. But it's a little hard to serve as a network printer. Driver is good and provide good interface and settings, easy to use and control the printer.
Overall, it's amazing that this outstanding i860 printer outputs such high quality photos and Canon sure is the leader in this field. I am very satisfied with this printer. There are some better printers around, but compared with price/quality, this one is the winner!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great Printer
Comment: Just purchased this printer to replace a Canon S820. This printer is FAST in B/W and Color and produces great color photos.
Had no problems getting it up and running. Have used canon printers for several years due to the ability to replace individual color inks. Would definately recommend this printer for someone looking for a nice photo quality printer for a great price.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent, all-rounded printer
Comment: Pros:
-----
Cheap to buy and run, Virtually Dotless Photo Prints, Fast and crisp text printing, Lasting Machine due to removable print heads.
Cons:
-----
Print fading, Loud paper loading, Occassionally Creases Cheap paper (doesn't jam), Occassional light cleaning
The Bottom Line
---------------
Despite the potential inconveniences, I definitely recommend the i860 as it provides a niche for those who want stunning photos and prints yet desires rock bottom price and affordability.
In depth review
---------------
All in all I am impressed with the speed, appearance, and quality of this printer. It's a bit bulky, but the exterior is quite attractive, being metallic silver on the top with white and gray on the sides and bottom. The expanding top loader and frontal tray feels a bit loosely attached, and needs a little coaxing to store and expand, but the plastic itself is sturdy.
The pictbridge is in front although the lack of an lcd makes direct from camera printing less intuitive. It comes with a relatively handy 4x6 photo tray that seems to do a good job directing the paper in a perfect manner.
It does NOT come with a usb cable necessary for printing from the computer. And for fans of the more expensive european/asian i865, this doesn't include the cd printing kit.
To make installing the printer trouble free you truly shouldread the step by step pictoral sheet as not everything is intuitive on the get go. The setup asks that you install the print head and so on, which is quite different from HPs and Epsons. Worthy to note is to hold the cartridges on the long ends NOT the sides when snapping off the orange tip so as not to spill the ink. After the printer is installed, it is powered off when you install the drivers so Windows does not autodetect until the drivers are ready. In the middle the software prompts you to turn on the printer and afterwards, the printer is ready to use.
Printing is alarming at first as the loading mechanism is quite loud. You may experience some strange cycle in the beginning that loops. The solution to this problem is to simply wait and not panic by shutting off the printer. I waited about 2 minutes (look at the clock, don't simply guess) and if your loop extends into 3, I would cancel the job through the software then try printing from another program. Remember not to use the native windows image viewer to print, as that caused problems for me. After some time it will start printing and working it's magic. From there on out, printing is fast, quiet (after the paper loading), dependable, and brilliant.
I have not yet tried the default draft setting, but using a 3rd party software to control the ink level (InkSaver) the economy prints are outstanding and speedy. The text is sharp and clear and there is visible dotting on the color pictures, but still a beauty for draft mode. Where this machine truly shines is on photo prints. Though it has a tendency to veer to the reds it is stunningly detailed and you cannot see the dots even on close inspection. After it's done, it has a habit of entering a quiet looping cycle that I speculate is a light head cleaning/realignment. While I feel this is a bit unnecessary I'll only complain if months later my ink levels drop at an alarming rate.
Paper is important for this printer, but vitally so for photo prints. For economy mode, I recommend a paper that is about 24lbs or heavier. My experience with using 20 lb copy paper is that it occassionally misfeeds then recorrects itself. A noteworhty trait of this printer is that it truly corrects jams before they happen. First the paper creases and looks like it's about to turn into an ugly jam that will make me worry about the hardware life. Then, with a cheerful snap, and a quick realignment, it starts printing dutifully like nothing ever happened. I'm not sure if this was intentional, but if so, I'm very impressed with this printer. It's better if no misfeeds ever happened, but admittedly people don't use the recommended inkjet paper and opt for cheaper copy paper that simply misfeeds more often in all printers (epson and hp included).
For photo prints you must make note of two papers:
Canon's own line
Epson glossy paper
I have heard good things about ilford, but other paper isn't recommended. I feel that since this printer isn't made for archival purposes that you can save by buying cheaper alternatives than the ilford and canon. Epson glossy is reputedly the cheapest and many have recommended it for beautiful borderless prints.
Aftercare of the printer is garnered from online readings and a bit of first hand inspection. First, Canon has a separate printhead you need to install, and I have heard you can purchase online from canon (ebay if you're willing) if you ever have a problem with the printhead. To avoid clogging, it's wise to print at least one photo print a day to minimize clogging. Also, after some time you'll run into the waste ink tank full notice. The fix for this can be found here.
http://www.neilslade.com/papers/inkjetstuff.html
These seem like inconveniences but throwing away 2 3 year old epsons, and having suffered heavy HP costs, canon's inconveniences are considerably better.
But most of all remember that your prints use dye based inks. What this means is that they are prone to fading unless they are kept framed and sealed. HP uses the same dye based process (not inks) but epson uses pigment and can back a longer print life than HP and Canon. However, Epson's archival printers are significantly more expensive to run, and have their own problems (mostly printhead related) so keep that in mind before rushing off to buy one.
Summary: This printer rocks!
Comment: Before I bought this printer I had a couple of HP printers through the years. Oh, the humanity! Don't get me wrong, Mr. Hewlett and Mr. Packard are probably upright citizens, but their printers are a curse from Lucifer and I'd sooner carve my documents into marble slabs with a toy hammer and chisel than buy another one of their printers. But enough about that. I bought the Canon i860 printer around Christmas 2003 and have been nothing but THRILLED with it. It prints speedily (once it gets all juiced up, which does take a couple of moments), prints incredible photographs, and I still haven't had to change any ink cartridges (almost 10 months later!). This is saying quite a lot since I've gone on several photograph printing sprees over the months. On top of all that, the printer looks cool. I will say that it seems a bit large for what it does, but It's nothing you'd have to build an addition onto the house for. How often you have to change ink cartridges is relative to how much you'll be printing, but I can say that these have lasted way longer than those garbage HP cartridges ever did. I'll update this review if anything stinky crops up with the i860, but all's great with it so far. Purchase this bad boy!
Customer Rating:
Summary: no USB cable
Comment: I just received my new i860, unpacked it to set it up and what to my surprise - no USB cable! So here I am with absolutely no way of using the thing.
I find it hard to believe that Canon would ship a printer that one cannot connect to their PC without going back to the store and buying a cable. I've heard of cheap products before but this takes the cake.
So I can't really rate this item because I can't connect it!
Customer Rating:
Summary: What an amazing printer, the best ever!
Comment: I was totally shocked when I first printed out the photo using the sample paper(Canon Photo Paper Pro) provided, I mean that I was really SHOCKED and was blowed away by the astonishing quality of photos came out of it! After using for a while, even using Canon Photo Paper Plus(Glossy), it gives great photos which can be compared with professional photo processing. I personally think the photo quality actually is even better than some professional photo labs. The photos are very vivid in color and well-balanced in contrast, true boaderless print. All I can say is that if you need a photo printer, get this one and you never regret!
I compared my photos with my friends' photos came out of Epson(using Epson high quality paper), HP($200 plus one, using HP high quality paper), definetely canon i860's photo beats them without a question. I don't say they are not good, but not good as this one.
However, i860 is picky on papers. I would stick with Canon paper, while I tried Kodak soft gloss regular paper(which is the cheapest one of Kodak papers and it looked cheap anyway), it didn't give promising results like using Canon photo paper plus(glossy). I don't even think to try other cheap generic papers.
Also ink usuage is remarkable, after printing about 100 pictures, I checked the ink, it still has about 4/5--3/5 left. Combined with the on sale Canon paper in Amazon.com, the cost per photo is close to professional processing labs but you got the convience and high quality photos at ease. I would recommend using genuine Canon inks for photo printing. They are a little more costy than other generic or compatible inks, but they provide the best quality for your photos and it's worth. Amazon.com sells these inks at reasonable price, about $45 a set, much cheaper than other stores. According to the some comments from the web, no other inks can match the quality of genuine inks which is true for all printers as for photo printing. Worst of all, generic or compatible inks prints usually would fade in color in a few days, not mentioning the printer head clogging problem.
Another nice thing is this printer is VERY QUIET, I even didn't know whether it's printing or not and the photo just came out smoothly. The 4x6 photo paper tray is indeed a handy device.
As for printing speed, it's not the fastest for photo printing but it's very fast for me. Text printing is very fast and quality is very impressive. Since it's using a different black ink tank for balck text, it's very economical to save inks.
Boundled Canon Easy-print software is a simple and nice program for photo printing, a good starting application with limited photo editing tools.
Printer set-up is easy and runs in few minutes. But it's a little hard to serve as a network printer. Driver is good and provide good interface and settings, easy to use and control the printer.
Overall, it's amazing that this outstanding i860 printer outputs such high quality photos and Canon sure is the leader in this field. I am very satisfied with this printer. There are some better printers around, but compared with price/quality, this one is the winner!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great Printer
Comment: Just purchased this printer to replace a Canon S820. This printer is FAST in B/W and Color and produces great color photos.
Had no problems getting it up and running. Have used canon printers for several years due to the ability to replace individual color inks. Would definately recommend this printer for someone looking for a nice photo quality printer for a great price.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent, all-rounded printer
Comment: Pros:
-----
Cheap to buy and run, Virtually Dotless Photo Prints, Fast and crisp text printing, Lasting Machine due to removable print heads.
Cons:
-----
Print fading, Loud paper loading, Occassionally Creases Cheap paper (doesn't jam), Occassional light cleaning
The Bottom Line
---------------
Despite the potential inconveniences, I definitely recommend the i860 as it provides a niche for those who want stunning photos and prints yet desires rock bottom price and affordability.
In depth review
---------------
All in all I am impressed with the speed, appearance, and quality of this printer. It's a bit bulky, but the exterior is quite attractive, being metallic silver on the top with white and gray on the sides and bottom. The expanding top loader and frontal tray feels a bit loosely attached, and needs a little coaxing to store and expand, but the plastic itself is sturdy.
The pictbridge is in front although the lack of an lcd makes direct from camera printing less intuitive. It comes with a relatively handy 4x6 photo tray that seems to do a good job directing the paper in a perfect manner.
It does NOT come with a usb cable necessary for printing from the computer. And for fans of the more expensive european/asian i865, this doesn't include the cd printing kit.
To make installing the printer trouble free you truly shouldread the step by step pictoral sheet as not everything is intuitive on the get go. The setup asks that you install the print head and so on, which is quite different from HPs and Epsons. Worthy to note is to hold the cartridges on the long ends NOT the sides when snapping off the orange tip so as not to spill the ink. After the printer is installed, it is powered off when you install the drivers so Windows does not autodetect until the drivers are ready. In the middle the software prompts you to turn on the printer and afterwards, the printer is ready to use.
Printing is alarming at first as the loading mechanism is quite loud. You may experience some strange cycle in the beginning that loops. The solution to this problem is to simply wait and not panic by shutting off the printer. I waited about 2 minutes (look at the clock, don't simply guess) and if your loop extends into 3, I would cancel the job through the software then try printing from another program. Remember not to use the native windows image viewer to print, as that caused problems for me. After some time it will start printing and working it's magic. From there on out, printing is fast, quiet (after the paper loading), dependable, and brilliant.
I have not yet tried the default draft setting, but using a 3rd party software to control the ink level (InkSaver) the economy prints are outstanding and speedy. The text is sharp and clear and there is visible dotting on the color pictures, but still a beauty for draft mode. Where this machine truly shines is on photo prints. Though it has a tendency to veer to the reds it is stunningly detailed and you cannot see the dots even on close inspection. After it's done, it has a habit of entering a quiet looping cycle that I speculate is a light head cleaning/realignment. While I feel this is a bit unnecessary I'll only complain if months later my ink levels drop at an alarming rate.
Paper is important for this printer, but vitally so for photo prints. For economy mode, I recommend a paper that is about 24lbs or heavier. My experience with using 20 lb copy paper is that it occassionally misfeeds then recorrects itself. A noteworhty trait of this printer is that it truly corrects jams before they happen. First the paper creases and looks like it's about to turn into an ugly jam that will make me worry about the hardware life. Then, with a cheerful snap, and a quick realignment, it starts printing dutifully like nothing ever happened. I'm not sure if this was intentional, but if so, I'm very impressed with this printer. It's better if no misfeeds ever happened, but admittedly people don't use the recommended inkjet paper and opt for cheaper copy paper that simply misfeeds more often in all printers (epson and hp included).
For photo prints you must make note of two papers:
Canon's own line
Epson glossy paper
I have heard good things about ilford, but other paper isn't recommended. I feel that since this printer isn't made for archival purposes that you can save by buying cheaper alternatives than the ilford and canon. Epson glossy is reputedly the cheapest and many have recommended it for beautiful borderless prints.
Aftercare of the printer is garnered from online readings and a bit of first hand inspection. First, Canon has a separate printhead you need to install, and I have heard you can purchase online from canon (ebay if you're willing) if you ever have a problem with the printhead. To avoid clogging, it's wise to print at least one photo print a day to minimize clogging. Also, after some time you'll run into the waste ink tank full notice. The fix for this can be found here.
http://www.neilslade.com/papers/inkjetstuff.html
These seem like inconveniences but throwing away 2 3 year old epsons, and having suffered heavy HP costs, canon's inconveniences are considerably better.
But most of all remember that your prints use dye based inks. What this means is that they are prone to fading unless they are kept framed and sealed. HP uses the same dye based process (not inks) but epson uses pigment and can back a longer print life than HP and Canon. However, Epson's archival printers are significantly more expensive to run, and have their own problems (mostly printhead related) so keep that in mind before rushing off to buy one.