Canon’s New Printer Range

: Canon’s new PIXMA inkjet printers promise a ‘revolution in printing’ – plus a smart new look – for home and office users.
Featuring a new printer head technology, known as FINE (Full-photolithography Inkjet Nozzle Engineering) the PIXMA range uses a new ink ejection system that separates and ejects the ink droplets precisely and consistently onto the page, thereby producing clearer, more detailed prints. The new print head is also significantly faster. The new printers have a more ‘squared off’ look than Canon’s current Bubble Jet printers and introduce some exciting new features.
Top of the current line-up is the PIXMA iP4000 (RRP $299) an A4 printer with an output resolution of 4800 x 1200 dpi plus 2 picolitre FINE dots.

Capable of printing a 10 x 15 cm borderless photo print in approximately 36 seconds, this model features Canon’s ContrastPLUS 5-colour individual tank ink system with a dedicated photo black tank for improved image contrast. It also has an automatic duplex unit for double-sided printing and a dual paper path, which consists of the regular auto sheet feeder plus a front-loading paper cassette, which allows easy switching between plain and photo paper. The iP3000 (RRP $249) has similar specifications to the iP4000 but uses four ink tanks and its printing speed is slightly slower. Both these models come with direct CD/DVD printing facilities.
The iP2000 (RRP $179) uses two ink tanks (BCI-24Bk and BCI-24C) to deliver prints with 2 picolitre droplets and 4800 x 1200 dpi resolution. It can produce a 10 x 15 cm borderless photo print in approximately 50 seconds and supports borderless printing on all popular paper sizes up to A4. Like the iP4000 and iP3000 models, it features dual paper feeders. The iP1500 (RRP $129) has a single paper feeder but also delivers high-quality prints with 2 picolitre droplets and 4800 x 1200 dpi resolution. Slightly slower than the iP2000, it can produce a 10 x 15 cm photo print in just under one minute.

The entry-level iP1000 model (RRP $89) features 5 picolitre FINE technology and up to 4800 x 1200 dpi resolution. It can print borderless photos up to 12.7 x 17.8 cm in size and will produce a 10 x 15 cm photo print in 55 seconds.

The new PIXMA printers are all PictBridge and Bubble Jet Direct compatible and all are supplied with Canon’s comprehensive software suite and drivers for Windows and Mac PCs. They are due for release in September and October and details will be posted on the Canon website (www.canon.com.au) shortly before the release date.