Canon PIXMA iP8720 + PGI-250 PGBK / CLI-251 CMY Combo Pack + 50 sheets Photo Paper Plus Glossy

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Printer is everything its supposed to be: reliable and great prints (Im a photographer, so Im pretty picky). Its reasonably fast and the wireless functions work great. No issues, its a solid large-format printer as it should be from Canon. HOWEVER, I did want to note that I bought this with the "ink kit" option that included a set of extra ink cartridges for an additional $55. DONT DO THIS. While the "extra" ink kit does indeed fit the 8720m it is MISSING two inks: the small black and the grey. Its my bad, really, I didnt look closely enough at the box listed on the page but sure enough, what you see is what you get: four and not six ink carts. I have notified Amazon that kit does not include the full correct set of carts (again, the ones included do work fine), so well see if they change it up. Just order the printer WITHOUT that kit until they get it figured out. The printer does come with a complete set of ink carts in the box so it was good to go as purchased and now I have a few spares, but not one of each as it were...

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UPDATE 12/22/18: Printer finally died - yet still HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! We printed a TON - thousands - of 4x6s, many hundred 13x19, and thousands more 5x7 to 11x14s. Qty 139, 251XL cartridges over the life of the printer with zero issues. The print head failed, which is replaceable, but we decided to purchase another IP 8270 system due to volume on our original. We also have a Pro-100, but after owning the 8720 for almost 4 years, save your money...there is no discernible quality difference and the 8270 takes up far less space and doesnt weight a ton. UPDATE 2/14/16: Weve printed nearly 1200 images since purchasing the printer in Feb 2014 (majority 11x14 & 13x19) and have worked out the cost per sq inch to $0.007 to $0.009. Therefore, ink cost (purchasing 251 XL ink solely from Amazon) per 13x19 is $1.79 to $2.21. Canon Luster paper has averaged $0.69 per 13x19 sheet, for a total ink & paper cost of $2.48 to $2.90 per 13x19. Add another dollar to that for equipment wear and tear and a 13x19 is, worst-case, under $4.00. For every 1 PGBK cartridge, we go through: 3 BK, 8 GY, 6 C, 7 M, and 12 Y. Pros : Excellent print quality, Affordable, Color Management, Easy to Use, Large-format, Low Cost Per Square Inch, Speed Average To Fast, Color ink water resistant on Canon photo papers. Cons: Plastic Paper Guides/Flaps. Best Uses: Prosumer AND Professional Prints Describe Yourself : Semi-pro Photographer Was this a gift? No (Purchased from B&H; Ink & Paper from Amazon) PRINTER PURPOSE: Showcase amateur nature & landscape photography in our own home, and sell prints in limited quantities locally. CAMERAS: Canon T1i; T5i; 70D, 7D MkII LENSES: Canon 100-400 II, 200 f/2.8 IS II, 10-22 & 17-85 EF-S, 50mm 1.4 & 1.8, 85mm 1.8, 400 f/2.8 Mk I. REVIEW: Overall, were very satisfied with this printer. We are a prosumer customer having owned numerous photo-quality HP printers/MFPs over the past 13 years. Speed is average to fast. Quality is excellent - although I suspect high-quality papers contribute a lot (the Canon photo papers mentioned below have been excellent). Ink droplets are very minute, the smallest Ive seen in any system Ive owned. Color blending is also excellent - see the example Bluebird picture. Grayscale images are also excellent - much better than HP systems only utilizing a single black cartridge. Interestingly enough, we ran water over the alignment page, where the black bled slightly; blue did not. We then ran water over both a full-color and grayscale image and neither bled at all, nor were streaks/issues apparent after the print dried. We did notice the images printed a bit warm; again, see the example photos. Although this is nice in many photos, it posed a problem when we tried to print pictures of fall foliage - easy to correct in Photoshop, however. B&W images printed slightly dark - but not so dark that detail was lost like other systems Ive owned. Two thoughts - One, the wireless was a bit of a hassle, but due to our set-up and print volume, we ultimately settled for USB connectivity. Second, lots of plastic like most products these days, which Im not opposed to if done appropriately. The chassis is strong and built well, but the extendable paper guides/flaps for holding sheets as they are fed and exit could be built better. With dust concerns and opening/closing the system, I wonder how long theyll last. UPDATE 2/14/16: After two years, no issues. PAPER TYPES TESTED: Canon Pro Platinum 8.5x11, Luster 13x19, Plus Gloss II 4x6. UPDATE 2/14/16: Just tried the Moab Slickrock 300 Metallic paper, and wow - its just like ordering Metallic prints from a photo lab. The paper is very, very sensitive and chips/scratches easily, but the quality is tremendous for DIY at home. Put the print behind glass after it has a day or two to breathe to protect it. 2018 Update - weve also put a few rolls of Epson canvas through the printer (then stretched the canvas ourselves) TIP - make sure the canvas is perfectly flat, no roll, at the edges or the print head rubs. But, if done carefully, it works, and the results are excellent! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004MT0RKS/ COMPUTER & POST-PROCESSING: Windows 7/8.1 (now Win 10) systems using USB, printing from both Photoshop & Lightroom CC. TESTING SCENARIO In general, we post-process lightly, attempting to retain a realistic photo and HDR only when required. After the Canon iP8720 arrived from B&H in Feb 2014, we printed a wide variety of color and grayscale shots that had been post-processed, on three types of Canon paper. PRODUCT PHOTOS were shot with a T1i, 10-22, no post-processing (see picture gallery/product photos gallery for our photos, located at top-most left side of page). PRINTED PHOTOS used to test the product were lightning in Florida (B&W); Flowers from Iowa; Badlands National Park, Fall colors from Iowa/Wisconsin, and mountain bluebird from Yellowstone National Park. Additional photos for testing, not shown, include Yosemite National Park, Death Valley National Park, and Grand Teton National Park.

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If you’re a photographer or graphic designer, do not buy this. I’ve looked everywhere for canon paper icc profiles. Canon says they’re included with the driver but I can not find them anywhere on my computer. After some research, others have had the same problem. Canon does not let you download them from their site. I’ve tried contacting customer support and no response. Without icc profiles, you cannot print accurate color. This is ridiculous. Never buying a canon printer again.

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Ive tried a lot of wide-format printers over the last year trying to find one that I was happy with. Canon and Epson make high-end wide-format photo printers which are expensive, but I need one appropriate for general use in an office setting, which means printing lots of graphics and the occasional photo. Three Ive tested in the last few months are the Epson Artisan 1430, Canon IP8720, and HP Officejet 7110. SETUP I intended to use the printer via a wireless connection. All three are easy to set up via WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup); just press a button on your router, then press a button on the printer and the connection is automatic. The HP printer setup guide stated that I would need to connect the printer via USB cable first, but this was incorrect. All three preformed flawlessly via wireless. INK SYSTEM The HP is the winner here in terms of ease-of-use. It uses the fewest ink tanks (four, vs. six for both the Canon and Epson), and to install the cartridges you simply click them in and click them out, sort of like using a ballpoint pen. There were no tabs to pull or caps to remove, as there are with the Epson and Canon cartridges. OUTPUT QUALITY Both the Canon and Epson had excellent photo-quality output. Even when using the "standard" quality setting I was able to get beautiful, vibrant prints on photo paper. If you compare the output side-by-side, the Canon may have a very slight edge in quality, but I really needed to take time and examine the prints closely to make this determination. The HP however wasnt up to the level of the Canon or Epson, probably in large part because it uses four ink cartridges vs. six for the other two. The HPs output looked dull and a bit washed out, even on the "best" quality setting. PRINTING ON MATTE PAPER Since Im using this in an office I do most printing on matte photo paper. Here is where the Canon was the big looser. In printing graphics and images that covered large areas of a page, the paper that came out of the Canon was wavy like bacon, even after waiting for the ink to fully dry, and even when printing on thick (60 lb.) matte photo paper. I dont know if the Canon printer puts down more ink than the other printers thereby soaking the page, or if the ink is more watery in consistency, but the finished product was unacceptable. The HP was the best in this department with only slight wrinkling in areas of heavy graphics. The Epson was somewhere between the HP and Canon, with some wrinkling, but still very acceptable on 32 lb. matte photo paper. PAPER HANDLING Both the Canon and Epson have rear-loading paper slots, while the HP uses a slide-out tray on the front of the printer underneath the output area. Consequently, the HP has a smaller footprint when loaded with paper. The rear-loading method should theoretically allow for better handling of thicker paper, but I had no problem using 60 lb. matte photo paper in the HP. SOFTWARE Software installation was about the same for all three printers. (I always forgo using the included CD and instead download the latest software directly from the manufacturers website.) When printing, the Canon and Epson both have a good number of custom controls in terms of color adjustments and custom paper sizes that were more than adequate for my needs. The HP had by far the worst software, offering very few options for color control and custom paper sizes. The HP software would also pop up a message for "free offers" every time I changed an ink cartridge; these were nothing more than advertisements. The Canon did have one annoying trait in its software. There is a setting to "avoid paper abrasion"; this basically increases the distance between the print head and the paper to avoid the print head coming in contact with the paper and causing scrape marks. I had to use this setting because of the paper wrinkling as described above. However, when you print a page with this setting enabled, the Canon software throws up a warning message EVERY TIME a page is about to print, and you need to click "OK" to dismiss the message before the page starts printing. This made it impossible to print multiple pages and walk away from the computer, because you needed to click "OK" before the next page would print. The Epson printer also has the paper-abrasion setting, but it does not throw up a warning message and simply prints what you ask it to. CONCLUSION All three printers have their strengths and weaknesses. For me the Epson Artisan 1430 was the easy winner. The output quality is fantastic, it didnt saturate the page with ink like the Canon, and the settings you have in the software are more than adequate. If I was printing only graphics where vibrant photo output didnt matter, I would choose the HP. It has the smallest footprint and is certainly the most uncomplicated of the three printers. It is also the least expensive of the three by a good margin. If I was printing mainly photos on heavy gloss photo paper, the Canon would be an enticing choice. It had a very slight edge in output quality over the Epson. However, the Epson has great output quality and has performed flawlessly in the several months Ive had it, and if I had to buy another general-use wide-format printer today it would be the Epson.

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I am a hobiest photographer and I also enjoy scrapbooking. I got tired of waiting for my pictures from various printing companies and decided it was time to bite the bullet and buy my own printer. I did my due diligence & research, finally deciding on the Pixma iP8720. I am so glad I did. The quality is fantastic, setup was easy, and connecting to my WiFi was simple. I do suggest that you go ahead and purchase photo paper when you buy the printer, because it only comes with a few sheets. Be sure to practice on regular copy paper first, its cheaper. I also bought extra ink from Amazon so I wouldnt be caught off guard if I ran out. Its cheaper on here too. I researched that as well. Make sure you have plenty room for the printer, as it isnt small. Ive had it 3 days and have printed 8x10, 5x7, 4x6 in color and B&W. It can run dark unless you check your settings. It just takes some fine tuning like any other photography software. I hope you love it as much as I do! Happy shooting!!

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I have had this printer for 2 years and getting it to print anything is a constant struggle. When it decides to work it prints great but that is a rare occurrence. The most persistent problem it has is that it will not recognize the paper. Printing the most straightforward document turns into a 20 minute process when you have to constantly load and unload the paper, hoping against hope that it will finally work. The other problem Ive had with it is that it doesnt recognize the ink. Even after replacing low ink it still says that the ink is low. It refuses to print in black and white if any of the color ink is low. This printer is completely unreliable and I am dumping it ASAP.

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I have been buying canon printers for years. This must be their worst printer ever made. Where do I start? The wireless connection is horribly unstable. My printer is located 1 foot from my wifi router. 70% of the time when I try to print the printer is not reachable, or it will print one page then become unreachable, or it can be reached from one device but not another. Net-net, it is near impossible to print something when you need it. What else? Oh, on most Canon printers, if the front panel is closed, when you print something, it gracefully opens the panel for you and prints. Not this one. You have to walk down to the printer and manually open the front panel for printing to commence. It has 5 ink colors (blue, cyan, yellow, black and grey). If you order a replacement ($47), it does not include the grey - that is a seperate order, and another $13! I have had mine for about 2 months and think we are going to have to throw in the garbage and start over once this ink pack runs out.

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WiFi setup was easy with WPS button on router. Never needed to use a USB cable. Just followed the quick start guide. Ink is super easy to install. You get 6 inks including grey. Printed three 8x10 using the included software and printer paper. Using the auto correct button on my photos brightened them and made the colors richer (gama). Canon glossy photo paper has the same feel of darkroom paper. The print even has that same heavy feel to it. The colors have that rich darkroom dye transfer process look. I guess in a sense it is a dye transfer. Ive had three other photo quality ($300-$600) printers since 1995 and was never satisfied with the results. Im glad the technology has finally caught up to the darkroom process. Never did like washing and drying prints anyway.

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Ive owned this printer for a couple of months now. Once the color settings are dialed in (decent printer software), photos are excellent. Im a retired advertising creative director. For display prints, a step up in price/resolution would be a waste in my opinion. Printing on Canon Luster Paper, which is surprisingly affordable on Amazon. On my Mac, the auto OFF/ON does not function. Not a big deal. It loses its connection to my computer sometimes, an easy push-button fix. Also, one must download the drivers and instructions. The packaged manual seems to have been designed for children. Decent customer support. Its large format. Measure your desk to make sure it fits. Photo is comparison to small Canon scanner and compact HP Laserjet.

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I purchased this printer on January 8th and have been trying to get it wireless ever since. I had an old canon printer that was connected via usb, so I had a cord to tether it. I have another canon printer that works wirelessly. I have never had a problem connecting anything else to my network. My router is older ( yet still free) from Verizon fios. There is no mechanical button to push to match hardware. It requires an encryption code to add on which quite frankly I like. But there is no way to input an encryption code here. So I hooked it up via usb. I emailed my self pictures from my kindle and got them to print. Oddly enough the kindle acknowledges my other canon printer (mg8120) which is inferior to this product in printing quality. I printed on both the 8120 and the 8720. The difference is quite noticeable. Much more streaking on the old printer but the photo is borderless. The 8720 photos are going to have to be cropped with a program because they print with borders and email data in the border. But the photo quality is much better. After some extra work I will have photos I would be proud to hang on my wall. I purchased this specifically because I wanted to be able to wirelessly print pictures from my laptop and kindle. I cannot do that. I couldnt down load a driver from canon because it is only available from google play and therefore I cannot download it to my kindle. Maybe to my laptop I havent tried. I also havent called customer support but will in the future . If something changes I will update my review. Do not buy this expecting to just print wirelessly with all your smart gear, it may not work. Really disappointed and pondering a return. Jan 23 update: So I said I would update and therefore I am. It seems the 10th time is the charm. I went to canons website and downloaded the software , yet again, from the website. Lo and behold I finally got a page that allowed me to input my WEP password. So my advice to anyone having the same problem I did, run the download from the website NOT the disc. First download for a wireless set up, when it says cant find wirelessly, stay on THAT page and click on set up via usb box ON THAT PAGE. Do not back up and start from scratch via usb as I did many times. The screen will tell you to plug in the cable, it will do some searching then ask for your router info and you can input your password. After hooking up to your network it will ask you to UNPLUG USB. You are in! I just printed a BEAUTIFUL picture directly from my kindle in 8x10, and I am happy as a clam.

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