MX860 all-in-one: worse than MX850/MP830

[panos]

The new MX860 is finally here and by the naming it seems that it will replace the MX850. Ive been waiting for this model to see if Canon would use its new line of smaller cartridges; although it would mostly surprise me if they didnt, I still wasnt completely certain because the new cartridges contain less ink and this the best MFC Canon offers in its class, aiming to small businesses and home offices: The heavy usage of such environments makes small cartridges inconvenient and expensive. So, perhaps Canon would still support the old cartridges on this one.

My hopes were false, but to my complete disappointment, this multifunctional not only use the new smaller cartridges but it is also an inferior machine, and I really didnt expect that. Not on their top multifunctional at least.

Please take a look at this official Canon comparison of MX860 vs MX850 and youll notice the following:

* The old MX850 is much faster to the new model. A borderless photo finishes in 21 seconds on MX850 vs 41 seconds on the MX860.
* The new MX860 cartridges yield 1/3 less pages compared to those of the MX850.
* No CD printing on the MX860! (mind you, the comparison is on the UK site)
* MX860 does not print on credit card sizes.
* MX860 does not support double-sided photo paper on the duplexer.
* Their flagship inkjet MFC is not quiet anymore; 43.5 db (distracting in my opinion) vs 33 db for the MX850. This is a major issue in offices.
* 1 watt less power on standby for the MX860 (finally an improvement) but when off, the MX850 will consume slightly less.

Personally, I dont get it. And I dont like it. Canon is taking steps backwards. I considered their MP750-780-830-850 to be the ultimate blend of features and, despite the introduction of chipped cartridges on the 830-850, steady improvements. This new multifunctional is really worse. Not just for its small and uneconomic cartridges, but in many other important areas such as speed and noise.

I literally dont get it --

- Is this a recession (less for less) printer?
- Is this some kind of trick or an error on Canons website?
- If this isnt an error, do they really expect people to buy it?

To answer my 3rd question, Ive searched the web for reviews on the iP4600 which was a similar case and I found the following:

PC Magazine: Slower than the last-generation printer it replaces. Full-page graphics tend to make plain paper curl.
(http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2333832,00.asp)

But they dont mention the ink cost.

PC Pro: So the printer itself is marginally quicker than the iP4500, but the flipside is that the price has risen a little, too. At 65 it's still a very affordable printer, though, and when you add in fact that the colour ink tanks are currently less than 8 each, it becomes a cheap printer to run, too - albeit a little dearer than its predecessor.
http://www.pcpro.co.uk/reviews/230157/canon-pixma-ip4600.html

Probably a paid review. The printer is not quicker (even according to Canon) and the ink tanks are less economic to the old ones. Or perhaps the reviewer does not understand the difference between cheap and economic.

PC World: photo quality and speed are pleasing [] inexpensive to buy and maintain.
http://www.pcworld.com/reviews/product/44096/review/pixma_ip4600_photo_printer.html

Nowhere do they mention it is slower and more expensive to maintain than the old model while offering the same quality.

I could find some truthful reviews in Amazon, but considering the average level of misinformation on the web, my 3rd question is answered. People will buy the MX860 after paid reviews appear on the net.

 

[websnail]

FWIW: You're mirroring the sentiments I've had about Canon for a year now... They've just lost the plot but they aren't alone... Epson printers appear to be making similar lower quality parts/build changes as well..

As for PCPro... After I saw a booklet they put out about printing and the fact that they ALWAYS pick Canon printers I've stopped trusting anything they say... Hand well and truly in the advertisers pockets...

 

[Trigger 37]

Websnail,... long time no see.... I've also seen some new Canon printers that are really built for the lowest possible cost and they have stripped out so many critical parts that these printers are just throw away items. I'm talking about the New BoXy MP210, MP310 MP460, (not the MP450) that Canon is giving away at stores and bundling them with Laptops.

To give you a quick list,... what if you took out the stainless steel shaft the carriage asm and printhead used to ride on and replaced it with a bumper and a peice of bent sheet metal as the guide for the Carriage asm.

How about taking the Purge unit, that used to do such a great job of keeping the head clean, and replace it with ---NOTHING,... just some parking pads like what HP did in all of its early printers.

How about you abandon the single color ink carts and go back the the sponged multicolor ink carts that you used in 1996.... Oh, and put 1/3 as much ink in them.

The realy funny thing about this is that even on Canon web site, their recommend market retail value is $25.00.

For me this may turn out to be good news. I have a lot of older Canon printers that I repair and sell and they still work great. They are getting more valuable day by day.

 

[ghwellsjr]

Trigger 37, thanks for the details. Did you find this out by doing your usual thing of ripping one of these printers apart or did you read about it somewhere?

 

[websnail]

Blimey Trigger... That's incredibly FUBAR... Can't say I'm overly surprised given that they're reacting the way they are..

As to the older models... I'm thinking my iP4200's are actually going to be worth a heap more now

... and yes long time no see... but we're expecting our first child now so that's likely to get worse

 

[Trigger 37]

Websnail, ghwellsjr,... I was given the first 2 by some friends in the area who only had them about a year and they both broke. The third unit I got when I purchased a new laptop for my self. I was shocked when I started to repair them as the outside designs are very traditional Canon and well made. However the insides has been designed for low cost. Everywhere you look something has been cost reduced. In my first post I was a little over the top in describing the purge unit, they in fact have a purge pump and motor. I was so discusted when I first worked on the purge unit I didn't look much farther. The entire design is made out of bits and pieces and there is on ONE assembly. It is clearly designed as a throw away printer since I don't expect that Canon will be keeping all these tiny parts. Must be great if you have 100 tiny little hands to put things together, and all you have to give them is a cup of rice and a saucer of soup.

I've attached a picture of the main carriage guide rail, which is nothing but the bent up metal from the main chassis backbone. If you are not after high speed or accurate line spacing or high resolution,... not a problem. Since HP is beating Canon over the head, but making $$$ by selling HP 95 ink cart for $25 when it only has 4ml of ink for each color, I guess Canon decided they had to play in that game. Someone must have said,.."Make it so cheap I can give it away and I'll make the money on the ink"

If you look close at the picture above, the carriage is far to the left and out of site. When it returns to the park position, it hits the white tab sticking up and as it continues on the entire sled is pulled up to merge with the bottom of the head by the time the carriage stops. About in the middle you will see the sheet metal rail the carriage rides on. It is only 1/4" high so you have to look close.

 

[websnail]

I think the expression is "Words fail me"...

Well, obviously Canon have decided to retain the cheap printer market with cheap printers... I suppose it was only a matter of time... Sad really.

 

[Trigger 37]

It is my hope that Canon will continue to produce excellent printers for the high end market. I don't care if they also have a line of competitive printers to offset HP,... but I really want them to keep making excellent top line stuff. What I consider to be some of the best printers that Canon has ever made are the i560, i960. i5000, MP730,MP530, MP7xx, MP830, iP6X00d. It is a good thing that I have a good supply of all of these printers.

 

[Marck]

Do any of you guys have any opinions on this PgR (Pigment Reaction) technology, that Canon introduced last year on its PIXMA MX7600 model?
http://www.usa.canon.com/app/html/2008_Meet_Developers/technology/index.html

As someone who prints a lot of newsletters - the plain paper aspect seems appealing.
Seems expensive though. Do you think this PgR technology is a big step forward, has it been a success, will it be offered on more models and come down in price? Any insight, thoughts?

 

[websnail]

From what I read of the pigment ink offerings from Canon the general consensus was that Canon had a long way to go to improve on quality amongst other things.

Might be worth looking back through to see some of the reviews on the MX7600... Of course they may well be experimenting further and improving but it's anyones guess at this point.