Canon Pixma iP3000 Photo Printer

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic
Review: Bought it to be a printer for documents and such, that said I was amazed at its photo quality printing.

Rating:
Summary: It's good.
Review: I bought this for x-mas when my old hp 812c died. The old 812c served well, but the ink cost a lot. That got me looking at the canon printers -- they cost much much less to operate than hp printers. It has 4 separate ink wells (black, yellow, red, blue), and they cost about $12 each. Tom's hardware did a cost comparison of Canon, Epson, and HP, and Canon blew the competition away in terms of cost. I always hated buying the $35 hp color cartridge and the $30 black. In fact, I started buying refill kits, but these kits cost more than brand new Canon cartridges. By the way, those refill kits aren't worth it -- they sometimes don't work as advertised, especially the color ones. The Canon cartridges don't include the print head -- that is a separate part that doesn't need replacing much (I hope). If the print head ever breaks, they are as easy to replace as is replacing an ink cartridge. I don't know what a new print head costs, though.

The ouput is nice -- so far I've printed text and photos, and they look really good. The printer is fast. I was shocked at the speed. I use a big laser printer at work, and I think the canon is just as fast or faster for text. Even the 4x6 photos I printed popped out in under a minute -- I didn't time it, but it was fast. But more importantly, the quality was excellent -- the photos were as good as I've seen.

The design is also very good. It allows paper to come in from the top or from a cartridge below (this is nice if you don't have much room above the printer). It will duplex (print on both sides), though I haven't tried it yet. When you're not using it, you can fold up the paper tray and compress the cartridge and it is very compact.

The driver for the printer is nice, with lots of options for printing. The included software isn't anything too fancy, but I found it to work really well for easily and quickly printing photos. It is really idiot proof software -- asks for the type of paper you are using, etc, so you shouldn't waste prints because of dumb stuff like that.

So, I am very pleased and recommend the printer highly. I will say, however, that when I bought it I got a defective printer (the black wouldn't print), so I took it back to office max and got another. The second one was fine. I don't know if that says anything about the quality of the machine, and I can't speak to the durability as I've only had it for a week. But with these things being so cheap, if you get 3 years out of it, you got a bargain as far as I'm concerned, and you'll probably want something newer and better by then anyway.

Rating:
Summary: The Perfect Companion for Your Canon Digital Camera
Review: I just picked up my iP3000 and this is light years ahead of my ancient HP 812C it replaced. I was amazed at the ease of use and installation even on XP(the hardest part was carefully removing the tabs from the ink cartridges!) and was up and running in minutes.

Although bigger in size than the 812C, it feels lighter to move around and the quality of the pictures (photo or not) makes up for it in big ways. The cost of the entire printer with 4 color tanks included was about the same price as replacing the black/color ones on the HP. No more wasted ink with the Canon as you only replace the cartridge that needs to be changed out. Dual feeding trays is a nice feature because you don't have to fumble around with paper sizes as much, just press a button and you can select to print from the top or bottom trays. Dual sided printing is a bonus, I don't use it very often, but its nice to know that its there.

The iP3000 partners up with my 3.2 MP Canon SD110 Digital Elph and they make a excellent team. The PictBridge integration between camera and printer lets you take a picture and have great quality photos all in under a minute (without a PC). All of the pictures I have taken so far are under the lowest resolution and came out better than if I paid Wal-Mart's Photo Center to do it...just makes me drool thinking about how they would of turned out if I had used the higher resolutions!

This one is a real keeper and would suggest it to anyone who is looking to get the most out of their Canon digital camera. The only thing I would suggest is to invest in a AC adapter kit because the battery seems to drain rather quick, although I haven't tested how many pictures I can print before its time to recharge (it came with only 5 sheets of 4x6 photo paper which is better than none; will update this once I get more sheets)

Rating:
Summary: Superb Value
Review: I previously reviewed this printer before taking delivery. That review covered my primary reasons for buying this printer which are listed below.

1- My previous experience with Canon printers was excellent. I'm still not sure why I bought an HP after my Canon was stolen.
2- User-replaceable print head. My HP is now in the garbage as the cost of having the print head replaced was ridiculously high.
3- 1 year warranty. HP only gave me 90 days and the printer lasted less than two years with very light use
4- Cost of ink cartridges is substantially less with Canon than with Epson or HP. Almost every review I've read mentioned this fact.
5- Canon includes a real set of ink cartridges. Not the chintzy starter cartridges that HP or Epson put in the box.

Using Amazon's $30 discount for opening a credit card account, the cost of the ip3000 was less than having the HP repaired..... or even replacing its cartridges.

Having received the printer a little over a week ago, I've put it through its paces and it's performed flawlessly. Setup took less than 15 minutes from the time I opened the box until I made my first print.

The included software works perfectly with Windows XP. However, I'm a bit perplexed as to why it can't locate (and therefore cannot print) .tif files. I've had to convert .tif files to .jpg in order for them to be recognized. Perhaps I've missed something in the owner's manual, but this is very strange.

The set-up guide, printed manual and on-screen support are all acceptably clear.

Not that it matters, but this is a really good-looking printer. Its looks remind me of expensive audio equipment. With the front panel closed, it's very attractive.

Speaking of the front panel; it feels pretty flimsy. It has to be open for the printer to operate and, due to space restrictions, I can't keep it open all the time. I wonder how well it's going to handle the opening and closing routine.

This is, obviously, not a high-end printer. It only takes 4 ink cartridges and can't produce the larger print sizes that can be generated by more expensive models.

However, I've compared prints made with the ip3000 to those from an Epson printer costing 5 times as much. The Epson takes 8 ink cartridges and prints up to (I believe) 13x19 inches.

To keep things equal, I printed only 4x6 and 8.5x11 using my leftover HP glossy paper. The file was from a 4000dpi scan of a properly exposed Kodachrome slide. Maybe someone else can see where the Epson is superior under those conditions. I can't.

Colors were pretty much identical and I actually preferred the skin tones produced by the Canon. Of course, if you need to print 13x19 this Canon model isn't going to do the job. However, if your needs as to print size are less demanding, it may suit you just fine.

Although I haven't kept a count, I've made a "lot" of prints since I got the Canon. The levels in the ink tanks have barely moved. My friend with the Epson admits that his printer sucks up ink at an alarming rate. So much so, that he's considering having his larger prints made by a local custom lab.

Bottom line? If you're looking for an inexpensive (to purchase and operate) photo printer that produces great prints with a minimum of effort, the Canon Pixma ip3000 should be seriously considered.


Rating:
Summary: Great Printer-Lots of Features
Review: I purchased the Canon PIXMA iP3000 for mostly non photo printing. I get my photos printed at one of the warehouse stores on regular photo paper for .19 cents each. The Canon ink is inexpensive, the printer prints both sides of the paper without removing the sheet, has great software and prints internet screens without cliping the right side of the page. The printed page is excellent. The print head can be replaced by the user. I got tired of expensive ink and clogged print heads requiring factory replacement. I am very pleased with this product.

Rating:
Summary: Don't throw them away!
Review: If the printhead on ANY printer clogs up, do NOT through it out. You can soak the printhead in about 1/8 to 1/4 inch of Windex Window Cleaner overnight, and they are as good as new. Sometimes it might take two nights. A clog can happen if when your very first start using refill inks, or let the printer set too long (Epson). Fixed several printers this way now that people WERE going to trash!
I do not buy anything but Canon now. The Windex trick works on the Canon printhead also.

Rating:
Summary: USA Models Have Disabled CD/DVD Printing Bay
Review: People are fed up with printer manufacturers having cartridges with sponges that don't refill well (Lexmark), or smart chips that prevent refills (Epson), not to mention HP's methods including "Expired Cartridge" messages, etc. If we don't, as consumers, vote "no" by not buying these printers and sending letters to CEO's we'll just get more of the same scamming. I was excited to read about Canon Pixma IP3000 & up models with separate ink-tanks & no smart chips. Examining all the Pixma models at a local store I noticed this extra pull down tray in the front-middle. After going home to look online, talking to Canon tech support and the local store meantime checking on it...it's a disabled/never will work CD/DVD printing bay. Yet the same models in Europe have a working CD/DVD print bay. Why did Canon USA leave the drop down tray there, only plugging the CD/DVD entry slot with an extra piece of plastic if it can never be functional or upgraded anyway? The USA price does not reflect the non-functional CD/DVD printing either. So I will (doubtedly) try to get a Euro model or wait for Canon to release USA models that are fully functional. I may end up temporarly buying the Epson R200 but I feel like I should be ashamed supporting Epson and their smart-chip scam. There is a chip resetter device (avg. $10 to $15) but I don't know if it works well yet. Forget Lexmark unless you have money to burn on cartridges. And there's concern about Epson printers wasting/spraying ink all over the inside (read all R200 reviews) that soon causes problems (dries solid/hard). The Canon has ink tanks with no smart chips, look easily refillable, and their print head underneath the ink tanks holder is also removable (i.e. replacable, but I don't know what that will cost. If other printers' print heads go you pretty much resort to trashing the printer). I believe some Canon models use up ink by frequently running it's own cleaning cycles but don't know if that applies to Pixma line also. If they are tanks that refill well than that is probably okay. It looks like the Pixma line is leading the way in printing and cartridge technology. Canon: Kudos for heading a little more environmetally responsible with the Pixmas obviously designed for long-term usage in mind but PLEASE get those CD/DVD printing trays functional soon!


Rating:
Summary: You Get So Much for the Price!
Review: So far this is the least expensive printer I have bought, but it has performed the best. I had only used HP or Lexmark, but found after a few performances, these printers would break down. I still cannot believe that for under $80, you can get a printer like the Canon iP3000. It prints photo-quality photos, is compact, and prints duplex (2-sided) so you can save on paper. The footprint is smaller than most printers because of its ingenious design - everything folds into itself. The best part, though, is the cartridges - the ink colors comes in their own individual cartridge so you don't have to replace the entire cartridge when one color runs out. The cartridges can be found for less than $10, too. Canon has listened to what consumers like us want- a printer that works, does not take up too much space, and is economical. It makes you wonder how other printer brands can charge so much for the printer and the ink cartridges.

Rating:
Summary: Great Buy in the price range
Review: the printer is great for the price. Set up was easy. Fast text printing and relatively fast for photos. Not a heavy printer user but I wanted good quality prints and bigger ink tanks. I uninstalled the software, as it was not that useful. It over crops on borderless and border prints for me. Got a great deal at Staples for $79.99. Target sells IP2000 for $79 with the two little ink containers that run out too soon (had S200 Canon with them before). Use the Canon Photo paper for best photo results. I don't have a Picbridge camera so can't comment on that feature.

Rating:
Summary: Great Printer with special secret
Review: This printer rocks, I use it to print up brochures for my business, the duplex printing is the best feature IMHO. Quality is super for what I need. Must print photos on canon paper only trust me it is not worth using other papers. My secret is how to get the ink costs even lower on one of the best prices per photo printers out there. inkconnection.com sells a kit that will allow you to add external ink tanks to your printer that will let you print full 8x10 photos at the highest quality setting for pennies worth of ink. Be sure to print on Canon paper for best results. The setup includes all 4 colors and each color is equal to (I think) 8 or so cartridges. The setup is super easy and best of all IT WORKS!!!!. Highly recommended if you purchase the ip3000.