Multifunction devices are a great concept for digital photo hobbyists with limited office space and restricted budgets, and very handy for home offices so it’s great to find some that do a great job when used for imaging tasks. Canon’s attractive and well-built PIXMA MP800 is designed with digital photographers in mind, so small-businesses looking for fax and network functionality will have to look elsewhere. As well as using Canon’s new ChromaLife 100 inks, it offers easy direct printing from compatible digital cameras, memory cards, mobile phones or film.
The PIXMA MP800 (470x490x240mm, 12kg) sits at the top of Canon’s consumer all-in-one printer line, offering computer-independent colour printing, colour copying and 48-bit colour scanning from virtually any source or device. The sleek black-and-silver unit integrates a 3.5-inch LCD preview screen, PictBridge, infrared, and memory card connectivity (CompactFlash, Micro Drive, Smart Media, SD, MMC, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, Magicgate Memory Stick), plus a Film Adapter Unit for direct scan-to-print from 35mm film, but there’s no built-in support for Bluetooth (optional), Wi-Fi or even a NIC. Surely next year we’ll start to see Bluetooth and Wi-Fi integrated in these types of devices as standard?
With its 5-colour FINE (Full-Photolithography Inkjet Nozzle Engineering) print head, the PIXMA MP800 (Best Current Price:
£215) uses more colour nozzles (3500 individual nozzles) than any other all-in-one printer to produce excellent quality borderless 6x4-inch photo prints less than 1 minute. In terms of specifications, it offers a maximum resolution of 9600x2400dpi using market-leading 1-picolitre droplet sizes. It’s also speedy at around 30cpm (mono) and 24cpm (colour), supports auto duplex and CD/DVD printing, and has a dual paper tray.
The printers’ individual ink tanks ensure that only those inks which run out need to be replaced. Another neat feature is that they feature LEDs that only light up when the tanks are installed correctly. You can monitor ink levels during stand-alone use without the use of the computer screen, as the LEDs flash slowly to warn when the tank runs low, and more rapidly to indicate when the cartridge is empty.
Another key strength of the PIXMA MP800 is its new ChromaLife100 system for long-lasting prints. When used in conjunction with Canon media, ChromaLife100 produces prints that resist fading for 100 years when stored in an album, according to Canon. Prints exposed unframed to the effects of the air should resist fading for 10 years if printed on Photo Paper Pro (Canon PR-101).
To support direct printing without a computer, the PIXMA MP800’s 3.5-inch colour LCD screen can be used to preview images and page layouts, print directly to DVD/CDs and preview image trimming or cropping. The device is also equipped with a range of built-in image enhancement features, so photographs can be improved without using your computer. For instance, Red-eye Correction automatically detects and corrects red eyes, while Face Brightener can distinguish and increase the brightness of faces when they are shadowed.
Prints of low-resolution images, such as those taken on a camera phone, are optimised with the image optimiser function, softening jagged outlines and reducing JPEG block noises. Also, a Photo/Film button exclusively for photo reprints has been added to the operation panel. With this button, reprints of photo prints and 35mm film can now be easily made without using a computer. It is also possible to apply image editing like Fading Correction and Face Brightener as well as trimming the image and copying onto the label of a DVD/CD.
Thanks to dual paper trays, the printer can be loaded with up 150 sheets of A4 plain paper and photo media simultaneously (the number of photo sheets depends on type and thickness). The diverse and growing range of Canon media, including the new Glossy Photo Paper Everyday Use Canon GP-501, is developed specifically to work in combination with Canon’s FINE ink jet print technology. Photo papers and media are available in a wide range of sizes (from credit card to A4), formats (including mini stickers) and finishes (from matt to semi-gloss to full gloss). They include double-sided photo paper (Canon PP-101D 5x7cm and Canon PP-101D A4) and the flagship Photo Paper Pro (Canon PR-101) for the highest grade results.
As well as scanning from film with the Film Adapter Unit, the PIXMA MP800 provides 2400x4800ppi scanning. It features Multi Scan, which can scan up to 10 photos as multiple single images at a time, and automatically corrects tilted images. With push scanning, you can send film or photos to your PC using only the control panel, while a scan to PDF function creates PDFs from original documents without use of conversion software.
PDF file pages can be easily added into previously created PDF files with the bundled MP Navigator software. Featuring automatic OCR (Optical Character Recognition), text is embedded into the PDF file for convenient searching. As well as the speed expected from any excellent copier, the Canon MP800 features Auto Exposure (AE) copying, where the document is pre-scanned to give optimum results for text, photos and background. With 4-on-1 copying, four original documents can be copied onto one page, and a new feature allows the PIXMA MP800 to copy directly onto DVD and CD.
Other software applications bundled with the all-in-one device include Canon’s Easy-WebPrint (Windows only), which sits on the Internet Explorer toolbar and helps to simplify Web page printing. ScanSoft’s OmniPage SE is an effective OCR application that converts scanned text into characters for editing or storage as a searchable text file, while Arcsoft’s PhotoStudio is a basic image-editing program featuring automatic colour and tone enhancement, cloning, animated 3D text and over 40 special effects. Lastly, CD-LabelPrint simplifies printing directly onto print-ready CD-R and DVDs.
Similar to most of Canon’s new crop of PIXMA printers, the PIXMA MP800 produces high quality results that better the self-serve photo booths in chemists and photography shops. Offering excellent connectivity features (as long as you don’t need networking) and fast high-quality colour printing, the PIMXA MP800 fits right into the home or small office environment. The unit's 3.5-inch LCD display is also bright, crisp and easy to read, and the ability to make prints from negatives, slides or old prints make the PIXMA MP800 and excellent all-rounder. The Pixma MP800 represents a significant step forward for Canon’s multifunction device range, and the price makes it even more desirable.
[8.5]
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Best Printer Pricing UK]
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Best Printer Pricing US]
