Cheapest Canon A3 Printer

[wilko]

Would like some feedback on Canon A3 Printers. I'm not a pro photographer but have been using Canon printers way back to the ip3000 and before. Courted with Epson and Brother but Canon is my home.

Pro series would be overkill for my needs. Tried a Brother A3 printer but output was disappointing.

Looking at the IX6850 or IP8750. Anyone have any experience of either and which one is the best value? Reviews I have read don't point to a definite winner. The IX is cheaper, but why?

 

[websnail]

FWIW I have had a fair amount of feedback from camera club type users buying up IP8750 printers and using those.

... and while this is a [commercial msg] those coming to me (OctoInkjet) have been using our hybrid ink set based on the CLI-42 ver2 inks, with some apparently excellent results (with profiling)[/commercial]. I haven't got an iP8750 in to test the results directly so can't say more than ask around.

From what I've been hearing though, once people get their head out from behind the "but it's a 5 colour + pigment" idea, they are finding the iP8750 a good balanced budget version of the Pro-100.

 

[wilko]

Thanks for feeback but I am struggling to see what the IP8750 offers over the ix6850. The IP8750 has an extra grey cartridge which could possibly be a bonus for those who wish to print B&W photos. Apart from this, I can see no advantage in paying up to £100 more for the IP8750.
I have a couple of MG6250 printers which have the extra grey ink cartridge and haven't seen any adavantage in colour or B&W print outs compared to my my other 5 ink printers.

However, I don't use OEM carts or Canon paper so I can't speak for what professional photographers have found.

I use top quality Non OEM ink and good quality photo paper and I am very happy with the quality of print outs from my Canon printers. Really can't see any difference in quality print outs between my ip4500,ip4700, MG6250x2, IP7250x2 and newly acquired IX6850.

I've tried Epson and Brother printers in the past but Canon value and print quality stands out for me. I gave up on Epson because of PH blockages and difficulty in refilling at the time. ( Apologies to Epson Printer users if things have changed) My goal in trying to find the perfect printer led me to trying Brother printers and the purchase of two j4120DW printers. These are tanks which could potentially last forever. However continuous duplex printing ended up in numerous printer jams.

Brother photo print quality was far inferior to Canon printers and I experimented with filling Brother carts with Canon OCP ink and compared the output with Brother OEM carts. It was like chalk and cheese Canon ink was far superior,IMO.

However I cannot dis these Brother printers. They are well built and offer A3 printing at a cheap price. Most businesses don't need duplex printing but the only downside is that generic carts are fairly expensive compared to Canon.

Which is the best printer you can buy?

I have no experience of modern EPSON or HP printers but I have owned Canon printers way back to the IP3000 and before.

You don't have to pay loads for OEM carts. There are lots of non OEM carts available for all printers. Better still cheap refillable carts are available on EBAY which you can refill with quality ink from the likes of OCP or Octoinkjet on, this forum.

Refilling continues. Just not in the form it used to.

Love this forum. Supporting printing at reasonable prices.

 

[websnail]

Ultimately any selection is going to be dependent on your perspective so if you're happy enough with the CMYK type printer without any additional grey, etc... then no reason to switch. The key return is going to be if/when you spot any lack of gamut range or similar, but that assumes you ever will feel that's the case.

Keep us posted anyway... be interested to see if you still feel the same way in a year or so.

 

[wilko]

Thanks for replies. I'm a cheapskate and finally went for an ix6850 for £80 on Ebay. Love it already. After many years of refilling and printing from Canon printers (My experience of Epson and Brother printers would be nul points, but that's just my view and I have no facts to back up my experience)

A pro photographer has many factors to take into account when deciding on which printer to buy. Profiling is the key and if you want a top class photo, remember that your photographer has probably had to pay for Adobe Photoshop, quality ink and paper with less fade resistance.

From an amateur perspective, I humbly offer my own experience on ink refilling. Most mid range Canon printers produce excellent print outs but ink quality AND quality photo paper make such a difference. Ink starvation, IMO, is the real killer of printheads and refilling correctly isn't as easy as some think.

However, remember that even a couple of ink refills is still cheaper than purchasing OEM carts. The old refilling method really ended after the IP4500, IMO, but there are still ways to to circumvent the Canon restrictions.

My obsession with Canon printers has led me to hoard two MG6250 printers, one IP4500, one IP4700, one IP4300, Two IP7250s and an MP640 printer.

Am I alone in this Canon obsession or am I just another anorak? Just to set the record straight, I don't have any other obsessions apart from probably Leeds United AFC.

This is a fantastic group. I've learned so much and my views are only based on my own experiences.

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

Am I alone in this Canon obsession or am I just another anorak? Just to set the record straight, I don't have any other obsessions apart from probably Leeds United AFC.

There is a separate thread for people with a particular faible for printing - you are not alone
https://www.printerknowledge.com/threads/you-know-youre-a-printer-addict-when.1401/page-2#post-9746