fantastic photo printer (Canon Pixma iP5000)

Member Name: pat1967

Product:	Canon Pixma iP5000
Date:	25/08/05 (490 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: quality printer producing outstanding results

Disadvantages: does not like cheap inks or photo paper

After buying a Sony digital camera 6 months ago, it soon became apparent that my old and dated Epson printer was not up to the job. The search began for a quality printer capable of producing A4 photo’s, but also being able to act as an everyday printer for letters, documents etc.

After a good look round and using all the usual research methods, it came down to a choice between an Epson and a Canon. I chose the Canon mainly because I had a few problems with blocked jets on my old Epson printer and Canon equipment always strikes me as being high quality product. Also I loved the sleek design of the Canon, the black box looks very cool!

The model I bought was the Canon PIXMA iP 5000. On unpacking the printer I was immediately impressed with the build quality. Set up was painless; this was due to the very clear instructions provided. I had no problems what so ever with installation of the drivers or the software. The print head and inks were also a doddle to install.

There are 5 ink cartridges to put in: cyan, magenta, yellow and two blacks ones; one black is used in photos and a extra large black one is used for document printing, which I think is a excellent idea. Now I could go into reams of technical stuff about dpi, speeds etc but it does not mean much to me! All I am concerned about is the quality output and to some degree the running costs.

The quality of photos is absolutely outstanding with good true colours, no blotching or any fuzziness and remarkable detail in the picture, it is just stunning and output is produced at reasonable speed and the noise is of a very acceptable level. The printer also produces letters and documents which are very crisp and with easily readable fonts.

The only drawback I have encounted is when I have used non-standard Canon inks and cheaper photo paper, the results are in my mind of far inferior quality and certainly not worth the cost saving, particularly as the printer does seem to go for ages before an ink cartridge needs replacing and because there are five you only generally need to replace one at a time.

Overall I think this is an exceptional printer producing quality results at a reasonable cost.

Summary: If you need a printer for everyday use, that can producing wonderful photos give this one a look!

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