Canon i850 Color Bubble Jet

Liked the print quality, speed, separate ink tanks, 2 picoliter small droplets. Because print head failed prematurely, I have to give poor value and overall rating.

Used primarily for photo printing onto Canon photo paper, producing excellent results. Quiet operation.

My black ink just quit printing. Color printing is still fine. This is still the original ink cartridges that came with the printer, never refilled, no third party inks. Tried many cleanings, deep cleanings, soaking the head in hot water (lots of black ink comes out into the water), but no difference. Black ink tank is half full and I squeezed it until black ink is dripping out of it. After reading some reviews of the printer I think that the print head may be defective for black ink, since so many others have the same problem. Printer is just over 1 year, so outside of warranty.

Epson Stylus 1520 Canon BJC4000

emailed customer service and they responded next day with try soaking the head in alcohol.

Nice printer. Lacking some features I would like to see. The color managment in the print driver could be a little easier. I have grown accustomed to HPs print driver for their large format inkjets, so my preference is different. The color produced is good, but I am sure the gamut is better on the newer six-color printers.

Canons individual ink tanks mean that you can switch just one. Print heads are not part of tanks, so no aligning after a re-load. Borderless printing is easy and pain-free. Excellent prints on photo papers.

4 ink system

HP

N/A

I found the text and photo printing to be very good, when working properly. I've been using refill ink purchased at Costco (brand?) for about 10 refills on the black and 4 on the colors with original ink output quality. Suddenly, all text and many black test patterns that print when aligning nozzles, etc., stopped printing, but the colors are fine. Could it be that colors are sometimes mixed to create black, so some black patterns still output? Many deep cleaning cycles had no effect. I can understand that some of the nozzles could get clogged, but every last nozzle on the black portion of the printhead? A squirt of the head cleaner solution that came with the refill kit restored the black for three prints of the test pattern, then nothing. Another squirt did not restore the black. Installation of a brand new Canon ink tank had no effect. The printhead is available for purchase from a web vendor for $99, or from Canon for $60. "If the black is still missing, the print head will need to be replaced. The print head is available directly through our vendor. Our vendor may be reached by calling 732-521-7230, Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. through 8:00 p.m. ET. The part number is QY6-0042-000. Interestingly enough, on the Canon site Instant Answer Search for the i850, there is an answer specifically for black not printing (a known problem?) but not for color not printing. Is it an issue of third pary ink or does it happen as well for the OEM ink? Also, key words "ink tank refill", "Canon does not prohibit the use of third-party inks. The use of third-party inks does not invalidate the product's Limited Warranty. However, Canon's Limited Warranty does not cover damage caused to Canon's Bubble Jet products which is attributable to the use of third party parts or supplies, including inks. The Limited Warranty remains in force for its life once that particular damage has been properly repaired." Now I'm looking for another i850 for the cost of a printhead.

Very good results and fast. OEM ink not that expensive to justify the risk to clogging print head.

Black suddenly stopped printing using third party ink.

Lexmark. The cost of OEM ink tanks will break your budget, but you get a new print head with each tank. Third party refill ink either clogged print head or ink dripped from printhead until empty.

email response within one day. 4 minute wait on parts order line.

It is a excellent printer. But.... we bought two for the company and within 6-months and 1500 prints the printheads of both printers started giving problems. Canon says we used after market ink and therefore they will not replace the printheads. It is cheaper to through them away and buy new ones than buying new printheads

"Worked" well

Printhead is not the best of all--vendor's ink is very expensive

Canon i560s

I have found the i850 to be a great printer for color. It's fast and the color quality is the best I've seen for an inexpensive printer. Obviously, the color quality is better with photo print paper. With individual ink cartridges, consumables can be cheaper than with printers that use 1 black and 1 tri-color cartridge. Also, knockoff cartidges are available on ebay for as little as $2.35 each. BEWARE! some knockoffs are poor quality ink that dry slowly or will clog the printheads. Believe me...I've been there and have the t-shirt. I used a poor quality black cartridge that ruined the black nozzle on the printhead. I bought a used i850 for cheap as a way to get a replacement printhead. Why didn't I just buy a new printhead? Because you can't. No one sells them, even Canon. If your primary printing is black text, don't buy this printer! Black text is a bit fuzzy, even at the highest quality setting. If you want good black text, get a laser printer or a good HP inkjet.

Good color, better than similarly priced HP/Epson/or Lexmark. Fast!.

Black text is inferior to similarly priced HP injet units. Printhead set is removable, but you can't buy a replacement.

HP cp1160

far better than HP, but still leaves a lot to be desired.