Customer Reviews:
 Good value-priced printer September 1, 2010
Sue B. Honey (Tallahassee, FLA)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a good overall printer at a value-price. I still prefer my entry-level HP laserjet, but the Cannon gives me an affordable option when I want to print in color.
 Excellent Product August 31, 2010
BookBargainsandPreviews.com (New York)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I was in need of a new printer and wasn't sure which to pick. I had heard that Canon was a good name so I was happy to get this model. It worked really well and was easy to set up. I was impressed.
 An All-In-One Great for Everyday Use August 30, 2010
Paul Flanigan (West Sacramento, CA USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I have used an Epson for several years, being loyal to the brand, but have grown intolerant of the printing quality. No matter how much I calibrated the printer, I still go blue streaks everywhere for normal printing. Very frustrating.
The PIXMA MP280 has satisfied that need. It comes with a bunch of bells and whistles, but I was looking for something I would use every day to print, scan and copy, something to replace my Epson printer and Epson scanner (two separate components). This fit that need very well.
The price would lead you to believe that its quality is not very good. However, unless you're a photographer or graphic artist who requires really high resolution output onto really good paper, this is a fine addition to the office.
With that said, here are some notes:
First, you need to supply your own USB printer cable for this device. The printer does not come with one. Personally, I find this to be a huge miss. No manufacturer should assume that any customer has all the tools for the job. It's the same cable I use for my Epson, so I'm fine. This is such an easy way to make it easier on the end user. Therefore, this is a big miss.
SETUP AND INSTALLATION: I'm on a Mac, so setup was complete and I was printing in under 30 minutes. The manual says you need at least 20 minutes for software installation, but mine was installed in less than 10.
OUTPUT: Color printing was satisfactory. Nothing that I could hang on a wall (but I don't need it.) At standard printing, the color output was insanely slow - less than two pages per minute. If you use color printing at the "fast" selection, not much quality is sacrificed, and the printing came out to about four pages per minute. For black and white, the printing was again satisfactory, with about six pages per minute. As a note: In relation to the IPM, the problem with that measurement is that while we all print images, 99% of the time they are still on regular 8.5x11 paper. So the image could be nice, but the paper still has to come out. What I printed above were pdfs, and the color was SLOW.
COPYING: Very easy. One button for color or black and white with satisfactory output. The copier warming up takes longer than the copy itself - a total of about 30 seconds.
SCANNING: Again, satisfactory. The DPI is not very high, but this is an everyday scanner. Most of the customers would be people who want to share images on Facebook.
COLOR CARTRIDGES: One of the things I hated about my old Epson was that I had to change out color cartridges about once every two months. I have run several dozen color prints through this and it's now telling me that I need a color refill. Ugh. So I'm not thrilled that I may face the same situation with this one.
Overall, three stars. This is a solid printer for everyday use, and I like the compact size with the all-in-one features. The lack of a USB printer cable and the fact that it doesn't do a very good job with color ink consumption keep me from giving this really high marks. But this has a place in a home where it will see a lot of output, perhaps in a home with school-age children or home office.
A good all-in-one, worth the money.
Slow But With Some Good Features. A BASIC Printer. August 27, 2010
Ethan A. Winning (Walnut Creek, CA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Using a PC, total set up time was about 30 minutes from unpacking to printing the first page. But it started out badly:
There was no USB Printer Cord in box, so if I didn't have an extra around the house, I wouldn't have been able to hook this up to my computer. There should have been a note that this would not be in the box, not just an omission of what IS in the box.
Ink cartridge insertion was very easy. I must say, btw, that I have a Canon PIXMA 1P4700 Premium Inkjet Photo Printer, and can easily compare the two. Insertion of the cartridges on the 4700 was very simple as well which is why I was interested in its "baby brother" for just fast, easy, ordinary print.
Color output - satisfactory. This printer is made for everyday printing, not hanging museum-quality prints on the wall. Does a nice job. But printing color pages was outrageously slow - only about 2 pages per minute. Ugh. The 4700 prints 9600 x 2400 dpi. This MP280 does a max of 4800 x 1200 dpi which may be fine for 4x6 prints, but I print mostly 5x7 and 8x10. The MP280 didn't do well with larger prints and, judging from the way this one (too) is eating ink, this could be a very expensive process.
Speaking of ink, I continue to be disappointed by ALL manufacturers, but in this case by Canon for not making the cartridges of at least SOME of its printers interchangeable. In addition to buying for my primary 4700, now I have to spend up to $12 a cartridge for the MP280. However, I think that I will buy "after market" ink for this printer since my photographs will continue to be printed on the 4700.
The copying process was very easy - one button and you can get color or b/w copies. It takes about 15-20 seconds to make a copy, sometimes an eternity. (The actual printing is about 2 seconds. Waiting for the document to get in the queue is what takes forever.)
Scanning - good for everyday needs. If you're sending a picture over the internet, this works perfectly. If you're trying to recreate the Mona Lisa, this won't have the resolution capabilities. (At least, I couldn't see them)
It would be easy to say you get what you pay for here, since this is a $70 printer, but it's a little better than that. This combo doesn't take up much space, and performs nicely for everyday printing/copying/scanning needs. Compared with models out there that easily cost $200 or $300, I think this is worth what MOST people would do with it.
Do NOT buy this printer if your primary purpose is to print photographs. The resolution is less than satisfactory, and you're stuck with 4x6" prints. Yes, I know that you can print from HD movies using the software, but very few of you will do this or ever use the software. I would suggest that, if you want prints from video, get some high-end software made for the purpose and, if you're going that far, move up one or two notches in the Canon printer line.
Good Price for Multi-Functions August 22, 2010
Just Loves Books (Southern US)
2 out of 5 found this review helpful
I am by no means computer savvy, but I had no problem installing the software and setting up this printer. Ten minutes out of the box, and I was printing. The print quality is crisp, the time to print each page was average of most printers. I really liked the quick scan option. You can set up your scan preferences, where you want it saved, image correction, etc, and then just quick scan without having to go through all that again. It was easy to figure out how to do things without having to read the manual, which in included along with the software. I made some very good copies quickly. But where this printer really shines is in printing photos. They were very high quality prints. The buttons are large and easy to read, even for older eyes, so it's a good option for seniors. The warranty is 90 days, instead of the year offered on some Canon printers, but for this price, it's not a big concern. Overall, I think this is a great printer and I'm amazed at the price. If you need a good quality printer for home use, this is it.
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