Canon PIXMA iP4700

This review is for the Canon Pixma IP4700.

Setup
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This printer comes inside a box which is heavily packaged and first off all you get the power cable. The cable is wrapped with this tie back but the problem is that when you unwind the cable you notice how it wants to try and curl back up again so you do need to try and straighten it out as soon as you can.
You receive the disc which has the drivers on ...
...front also is the big Canon logo name which kind of finishes off the printer design.

Specifications
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This printer is 43cm in width, 30cm in depth and 15.3cm in height. The good point to the printer is the size of the depth and width. With this being the size it is means you can easily find a place to store the printer and this is what you want from a printer, not something which is too big to store ... more

This review is for the Canon Pixma IP4700.

Setup
---------
This printer comes inside a box which is heavily packaged and first off all you get the power cable. The cable is wrapped with this tie back but the problem is that when you unwind the cable you notice how it wants to try and curl back up again so you do need to try and straighten it out as soon as you can.
You receive the disc which has the drivers on which you need to install on the computer otherwise you have no way of printing items off without it.

There is nothing else inside the box besides the cartridges which are easy to insert and use. The disc is good because it is so simple to install the items onto the computer and this takes about a minute to do.
You do not get a connection to the computer though so you do need to purchase one yourself and many websites and retail stores will have these for about £2.

Design
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This printer is very dull in many aspects of the design. The printer is designed with this solid black colour which makes the printer look cheap.
On top of the printer is the printer tray which you fold back when you want to insert the paper. On the right hand side at the front if the power button which is only signalled by the white picture next to it.

Underneath the power button is also the filter button. This helps you when you need to sort out any problems like paper jams. At the front also right at the very bottom is the USB connection which is there to plug into the computer in order to gain a signal to print between the two.

At the back of the printer is where the mains adapter goes in which is extremely handy indeed. Overall the printer design is kept very easy and makes it very stylish but the overall look of this black everywhere is quite frustrating.
On the front also is the big Canon logo name which kind of finishes off the printer design.

Specifications
--------------------
This printer is 43cm in width, 30cm in depth and 15.3cm in height. The good point to the printer is the size of the depth and width. With this being the size it is means you can easily find a place to store the printer and this is what you want from a printer, not something which is too big to store anywhere.

This printer is 5.7kg in weight which to me is a big issue. The printer although is a normal average size for a Pixma range printer it is much more bulky and very solid meaning the weight is a slight issue to watch out for.

This printer can print up to 9600 x 2400 dpi photos which is fantastic quality to have no matter who the printer is made by. This is one of the best rates the Pixma range has to offer and is evident from the print outs you receive.

On mono print this printer can print out 9 images per minute which is correct and extremely accurate. I have never had under this amount nor have I had over this amount. There estimate is spot on and although the number of prints on mono per minute could be better, it is top quality print outs you receive.

On a colour print you can receive 8 images per minute and this is exaggerated. I have never received 8 images per minute and at most receive about 6 and I think although you do get 6 images they are top quality but you do not get 8 per minute at all.
This printer can hold 150 sheets inside the printer tray which again is the best total a Pixma range printer can store. I never put this many inside the printer tray as no need for me to do that, but if you are printing out something important then it is definitely good news.

Printing
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When you want to print a document out on this printer there is this option which is available to help you save ink. When you have a black and white image or text document to print out you do have the ink cartridge contribute to some of the colour. I never knew this until recently but this printer lets you have an option of using just the black ink so it means that the text documents are not wasting the colour ink for you at the same time.

You do get this rather annoying but yet helpful menu box pop up each time you print and it actually tells you the level of ink in each cartridge which is nice and helps you remain informed as to when you might need a new one.
When I use the colour printing I find that without using glossy paper I struggle to find anything decent come out. This printer wants you to use only top of the range glossy paper. You need to have it quite thick as well otherwise the ink gets so wet it tends to bend the cheap and much thinner card you might use.

I find that when I am printing a document of ten pages which might be a big letter that usually all the pages are dry instantly as soon as I recover them from the printer tray. This is fantastic to have this sort of printing take place. The same happens with the colour images and you do not need to worry about the ink being smudged by a stray finger touching the image.

You can also print on the CDs you have which might be with music on which you have transferred from one Cd to another. Please do this in your own home as outside your home this is illegal.
Overall the printing is top quality at all times and is always dry quickly resulting in top images and no need to reprint.

Cartridges
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When you get the printer you are given two cartridges which is a good start and they last a fair amount of time. When you are printing images out like I do all the time with pets on them, you might imagine the colour ink to run out fairly quickly but this is not the case.
The best example would be me printing out a picture of a holiday scene and I pressed it to print 10 times accidentally and the ink levels I expected to reduce by half and yet it had reduced by just 8% and I found this sensational.

The black ink tends to have a big issue. They do last a considerable amount of time which is good but if you do not use them for a few weeks the black ink goes dry on the end of the cartridge so you have to take it out of the printer and rub the end of it with some tissue to try and make the ink surface to the top again. This is an issue because if the ink dries up to much you need a new cartridge altogether. They are around £18 each but they last a considerable amount of time.
Do not try to use cheaper alternatives as the printer rejects them.

Good Points
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The printer is so easy to setup it is fool proof. There is not a lot needed to get it all installed and that is saving you tones of convenience and time. The best part is when you have a printer which is so easy to set up you tend to notice the rest of the features are really easy to use as well.

I think the printer letting you aware of how much ink you’re using but also the amount of levels you have left in each cartridge to be a top quality service. This is a great feature as it means you know in advance when you need to repurchase a new cartridge for the printer. So this is a very good idea for them to have available for you to use.

I am someone who likes to save music by transferring the songs onto a clean CD. Now when I do this I am fed up of just writing random stuff down on the CD. This printer allowing you to print images onto the Disc itself makes for a fantastic printer. Imagine your image on a disc of music you have done yourself, it would look fantastic. I find this to be a very worthwhile feature for this printer, and extremely handy at the same time.

I think the printer with the size measurements is very good and I think this can be easy to store on a desk shelf or even just under a safe location as it means you’re not going to have this taking up to much room.

Bad Points
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A bad point from me would be the way you cannot use the refill systems you tend to have available for other printers. So you run out of ink you cannot sit there and have a new refill system which is going to save you a fortune in the long run. So this is a problem which is obviously going to be an issue when people come to a purchase decision.

I am not happy with the overall weight of this printer. I know there is more going on inside but there is a limit to some people on the weight of a printer. If you’re using a shelf under a desk you will see how the wood will tend to bend. If you have a metal desk then this is going to be not too bad for you, but if you’re using a wooden desk you might end up with a shelf bent and disfigured.

I find sometimes on the very rare occasions, if you are printing an image with a few black and white sections the image can have some problems. For example you have a black and a white cat sitting on a coloured chair. The chair would turn out in fine detail as would be the black colour of the cat. The white colour of the cat would seem to be a beige colour or a lighter yellow shade. So this is a problem which can occur and has happened before, although not all the time.

The prices of the cartridges are yet another problem with this printer. The price of a cartridge in my view should be fairly cheap so you continue to remain with the brand. However, I have to admit that the cartridge prices for this printer are really high and shouldn’t be.

Summary
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This printer around £100 to buy and I can see why it is this price, with the fantastic prints it can produce, the ability to print on to discs and also the other smaller features which are not commonly discussed.

I got mine for free as I do produce trials for various printers.
I would suggest if you want a good, durable, tough and kind of stylish printer then this would be a good one to buy. If you have a child who is doing constant assignments and homework on the computer then this device will last for ages.
Just remember the prices of cartridges and also the weight barrier, these could be key bits of information for when you make a purchasing decision.

Overall I would recommend this printer to anyone.
© Tink-er-bell
 

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