My Canon MX870 printer does NOT allow duplex (2-sided) B&W printing or copying. The printer is listed as being able to print duplex and able to print B&W but if you try both, color ink is used. Single sided B&W works fine and only uses black ink.
When printing grayscale in duplex, or copying in B&W duplex, the printer forces the use of color inks to make black. If a color ink is out, you don't get black and can not use duplex. If there is color in the original, it is printed in color even though you asked for B&W. Doesn't this allows Canon to force you to use more ink than you should have to? To print black using color inks, takes Magenta, Cyan, and Yellow ink--up to 3 times the ink? A scam to force you to buy more ink? Seems like it to me!
So, it costs more to print or copy duplex B&W than it does to print single sided and use extra paper. That's because when printing or copying 2-sided (duplex), the printer forces you to use extra ink (3 color inks to get black) and ink is much more expensive than paper. So much for trying to save money on paper by printing duplex.
I contacted Canon customer support about this issue and they tried to tell me the printer had to use color to make black because it dries faster. Doesn't that sound like a bunch of baloney? Is there really a difference in drying time for color (dye based) ink over the B&W pigment ink? If there was, they could simply delay the second side of the print a few seconds to allow the ink to dry. I have never had a problem with ink smear printing single sided B&W. At a minimum, why not print the second side of the page with black ink? (That's what Canon tried to tell me it did. But it does not!) Next they tried to tell me the smaller dye based black ink tank was used for the first side of the page. Wrong again. Color ink is used for both sides of the page.
Doesn't this sound like a scam that allows Canon to gouge us in ink costs? If I select B&W duplex printing, shouldn't it print that way??
When printing grayscale in duplex, or copying in B&W duplex, the printer forces the use of color inks to make black. If a color ink is out, you don't get black and can not use duplex. If there is color in the original, it is printed in color even though you asked for B&W. Doesn't this allows Canon to force you to use more ink than you should have to? To print black using color inks, takes Magenta, Cyan, and Yellow ink--up to 3 times the ink? A scam to force you to buy more ink? Seems like it to me!
So, it costs more to print or copy duplex B&W than it does to print single sided and use extra paper. That's because when printing or copying 2-sided (duplex), the printer forces you to use extra ink (3 color inks to get black) and ink is much more expensive than paper. So much for trying to save money on paper by printing duplex.
I contacted Canon customer support about this issue and they tried to tell me the printer had to use color to make black because it dries faster. Doesn't that sound like a bunch of baloney? Is there really a difference in drying time for color (dye based) ink over the B&W pigment ink? If there was, they could simply delay the second side of the print a few seconds to allow the ink to dry. I have never had a problem with ink smear printing single sided B&W. At a minimum, why not print the second side of the page with black ink? (That's what Canon tried to tell me it did. But it does not!) Next they tried to tell me the smaller dye based black ink tank was used for the first side of the page. Wrong again. Color ink is used for both sides of the page.
Doesn't this sound like a scam that allows Canon to gouge us in ink costs? If I select B&W duplex printing, shouldn't it print that way??