Canon Pixma MP610

The Canon PIXMA MP610 Photo All-In-One Printer is the perfect Jack-of-All-Trades for your small business or home office. For only $199 you can print, copy and scan from your PC, mobile phone or PDA all with one attractive device. Canon has improved the FINE technology print head with a next-generation 4,608 precision nozzle print head that places precise droplets as small as one picoliter. Print at high resolution, up to 9600 x 2400 dpi, for crisp, detailed prints on a wide variety of high quality Canon photo papers. And the four dye-based inks plus a pigment-based black ink (5 total ink cartridges) deliver life-like photos and laser-quality text for your documents. Apparently there have been major Improvements in print speed technology since I bought my multifunction printer several years ago. Canon states the MP610 can output a 4 x 6-inch photo lab quality print in as little as 21 seconds. It's no slouch copying documents either as it copies black & white pages at 31 copies per minute (as fast as 1.9 seconds per page) and color documents at 24 cpm (as fast as 2.5 seconds per page). The MP610 can also automatically duplex to produce double-sided documents or photos. Since the MP610 has two standard paper trays, you can load one tray with plain paper and one with photo paper, so you won't have to change paper for different print projects. As a scanner, the high resolution Contact Image Sensor (CIS) functions at an optical resolution of 4800 x 9600 dpi (interpolated to 19,200 x 19,200 dpi) with accurate 48-bit internal color depth handling original as large as 8.5" x 11.7". And you can make reprints or enlargements directly from prints without using a computer. When used with many Canon dSLRs, the PIXMA MP610 supports "Canon-to-Canon Direct Advantage" custom printing functions. The Canon-to-Canon connection allows you to perform minor edits, print shooting information directly on a print, or print a contact sheet directly from the camera without using a computer. The MP610 also supports wireless printing from infrared (IrDA) enabled cell phones and Bluetooth-equipped devices. Using the built in card slots, you can print directly from many memory cards. Compatible with Windows (Vista and XP/2000) and Mac platforms (Mac OS X v.10.2.8 to 10.4.x), the MP610 comes bundled with a CD-ROM including the printer driver, MP Navigator EX, Setup Software & User's Guide, Easy-PhotoPrint EX and ScanSoft OmniPage SE.

Multifunction photo printer, flatbed scanner and color copier

Direct print from memory cards and PictBridge compatible cameras

PictBridge Direct USB printing from most modern digicams

5-color photo ink system, individually replaceable ink tanks

New Easy-Scroll Wheel makes menu operation easier

Dual paper paths with top and bottom trays, auto paper switching

Two-sided printing with built-in duplexer

High-resolution flatbed up to 4800 dpi optical resolution

Scan documents to Adobe pdf or convert to text with OCR software

Microscopic 1-picoliter ink drops produce detailed photos

Borderless printing in 4 x 6", 5 x 7" and letter sizes

2.5-inch high-res color LCD for preview and editing

Auto-Image Fix function

USB 2.0 high-speed interface (Windows XP, 2000 or Mac OS X)

Infrared wireless JPEG printing from compatible cell phones

Bluetooth wireless adapter available

Dual Color Gamut Processing technology optimizes quality based on the type of original The MSRP of the Canon PIXMA MP610 is $199. Please see our Buy Box below for current pricing at various online vendors. In the box you will find PIXMA MP610 Photo All-In-One Printer, Easy Setup Instructions, Quick Start Guide, Setup Software & User's Guide CD-ROM, 5 Ink Tanks: PGI-5 Pigment Black, Black, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Power Cord, Print Head and Sample Media (8.5" x 11" - 5 sheets).

The MP610 sports a modern black and silver finish that will look great next to your computer. Measuring 15.3" (W) x 17.7" (D) x 7.4" (H), this A-I-O device is moderate in size for a multifunction printer. If you're only using the bottom tray the printer can sit flush to the wall. Setup is a breeze thanks to the included Easy Setup Instructions. First you install the print head and then the 5 ink tanks.Then install the driver from CD and connect a USB cable between your computer and the printer. Installation on a Windows Vista machine went well - after I figured out a enigmatic "Inner Door Open" error message. Even so, it took about fifteen minutes to unpack and setup the MP610 and another 15 minutes as the printer did it's automatic self calibration.

I love that the MP610 has two paper sources; a top sheet loader and an internal tray in the bottom. The lower tray is ideal for photo paper as it kept safe inside of the printer and protected against dust and dirt. The table below shows page sizes that can be used and in which tray they can be loaded.

You can load different media in each tray and select which you need with either the printer driver or the Control panel. If both the top and bottom trays are loaded with plain paper, the MP610 can automatically switch between them when one runs out of paper. The built-in duplexer is a big plus on a printer of this price. This feature can reduce the amount of paper you use and allows you to create your own "ready to be stapled" photo albums, newsletters, product catalogs, etc.

The 2.5-inch color LCD can be tilted to different angles so it's easy to see whether you're standing up or sitting down. The LCD lets you select the unit's main functions, change settings and browse through images on memory cards. You can preview, edit and select images easily with the LCD and control panel.

The MP610 has a nicely organized control panel. Beginning in the upper right we can see the power button, below that are the Rear Tray (top) / Cassette (bottom) indicator lights and the paper feed switch. The "double arrow" icon is the NAVI button used to display the on-screen guide. Below that is the HOME button that returns you to the main menu. The large 4-way selector helps you sort through the menus screens. The OK button in the center confirms selections. Inside the 4-way selector is the Easy-Scroll Wheel that you rotate to select the unit's main functions. To the left of the Easy-Scroll Wheel is a small Back button. To the right of the Easy-Scroll Wheel are + & - buttons used to specify the number of copies or prints you require. Continuing to the right the Black button (top) or Color button (bottom) are to start copying, scanning or printing. And finally on the far right, the Stop/Reset button cancels a print job in progress.

Located behind a swinging door are the memory card slots. The MP610 can read from SD Memory, SDHC, MultiMediaCard, miniSD, RS-MMC, microSD, CompactFlash and Microdrive, Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO, Memory Stick Duo, Memory Stick PRO Duo and xD-Picture cards.Cards will the slots will appear as removable drives on your computer.

Under the lid you'll find the flatbed scanner. The top is adjustable to accommodate anything from a single piece of paper to a large book on the scanner bed. High-resolution Contact Image Sensor technology scans up to 4800 x 9600 dpi with 48-bit internal color depth. There is no auto document feeder on this model, it handles one sheet at a time. Scanned documents can converted to a text file using the Scansoft OmniPage OCR software or saved as PDF files using the 'Scan-to-PDF' function.

PictBridge port used for direct printing from most modern digital cameras and camcorders. This port also supports a USB connection to a computer and an optional Bluetooth adapter (BU-20). To the right of the PictBridge port is an infrared receiver which allows the MP610 to communicate with compatible cell phones and PDAs.

When the camera and printer are connected through PictBridge, the camera's LCD is used to select the images and options for your print job. Usually it's as simple as selecting the photo and pressing the camera's OK button. (Shown here are PictBridge menu screens on a Canon Digital Rebel dSLR).