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Best Printer and All-In-One Software

Heb1228

Heb1228

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Feb 3, 2004
2,217
1
Virginia Beach, VA
I'm looking for a new all-in-one. I have an Epson RX500 that did most things great (photo quality, scan quality, even slide scanning) but the middle roller broke when a small screw fell into the paper feeder so it doesn't hold the paper flat anymore during printing. Plus the software has gotten progressively worse (compatibility wise) with each new edition of OS X. It wasn't stellar to start with, but now its almost unusable. (Even trying to use twain drivers with photoshop.)

So here's what I need help with. I'm probably choosing between Epson or Canon (HP's software is unacceptably horrible, IMO). Does anyone want to chime in with your experience as far as the software that comes with the all in one devices? Has Epson improved? Is Canon's decent or will it drive me crazy too?

I expect the photo quality to be comparable, I'll be looking at models with 6-ink printing. The Canons seems to have lower cartridge prices, so I'm leaning slightly that direction now, but the software will probably make or break the deal. Any opinions?
 
I have the Canon MP830, and I love it. I've had it about 18 months. It's consistently in the top printers on PCMag, too. I did extensive research before I bought it. I couldn't say about the cartridge prices/lifetime, cause I haven't paid attention. The software is very good too and works well with Windows and Mac.
 
I have the cheap Canon Pixma MX300 and it's fine. The software is unobtrusive (I use Image Capture to scan, not any Canon software, and everything else is just OSX utilities with the Canon drivers). It's a lot less "in your face" than HP and seems to take Macs at least a little bit seriously.

The printer/AiO itself is absolutely massive but it was cheap and does the job. It was bought to replace an extremely temperamental HP which only worked when it was in the mood to, so it's a breath of fresh air after that.
 
I've got the Canon Pixma MP 620 and I love it. I have no issues with the software whatsoever. It print's great looking photo's, the only downside is that there's a slight delay in printing, it could be because I have it set up wirelessly with my time capsule. All I have is my power cord plugged into it, that's it.
 
I second the vote for the Canon MP830. It comes with Mac drivers and software that actually works, which is the first big plus. The second is that it has built-in duplex printing and batch scanning, and everything works really well. Print and scan quality are excellent. And did I mention that the Mac drivers work?
 
I ended up going for a Canon Pixma MP980. Went with that over the Epson mainly because of the price... after $100 rebate only came to about $130 from newegg. Here's been my experience so far:

Installation was pretty easy on my wife's Macbook. My powerbook wouldn't install the drivers. It doesn't seem like that was Canon's fault, however. Various manufacturers have had the same issue I was having, and a reinstall of OS X was required to get the printer driver to install. (Not too big of a deal since I've only done upgrade installs on this machine for the 6 years I've had it. This was the first archive and install I've had to do.)

After that, the printing worked great. I've been happy with the photo quality. I'd say its about 95-98% as good as the Epson RX500 it was replacing: not quite as good but close enough not to matter much. Scanning over the network is possible, but with a little additional run-around.

The software was one of my concerns at the beginning and at this point, I've been happier with the software that came with this machine than with my older machine, but we'll see if that continues over time and through multiple versions of the Mac OS.
 
Good to know you got a great printer.
I've heard that Epson RX680 has sensor or firmware issues from time to time.
 
The trouble with the Epson RX500 is that although it is cheap, the cartridges cost a fortune and last 2 minutes. :(
 
I'm trying to decide about which printer and scanner to get for my (yet to be ordered) new iMac. I've been looking at both separate devices and all-in-ones.

The two it's come down to are the Canon MP990 (or maybe the cheaper out-going MP980) or the Epson Stylus Photo TX710W (apparently PX in America). Both look like good buys, with the Epson being about half the price and a lower scanner resolution.

Does anybody have any new comments on these two from the extra six months since the last post? :)

Is the text quality good as well as photo quality?
 
MP830 and ink

I see a lot of people recommending the Canon MP830 here. I have one and yes it works well. But am I the only one who think this think sucks ink WAY too fast? I just changed all my ink cartridges a couple of months ago, I print only a few pages a month, mostly black text (which seems to always use all colors to fake black instead of just using the black ink) and I'm already running low on two colors.
 
freiheit said:
... I print only a few pages a month, mostly black text (which seems to always use all colors to fake black instead of just using the black ink)...
Click to expand...

Check the settings when you go to print. I don't know about the Canon drivers or Mac OS X, but my Epson printer under Mac OS 9 has options for printing either Colour or Black/White / grayscale ... although I can't say I've ever bothered to check if that actually uses only the black cartridge.
 
I would cast another vote for the MP830, though I believe it has been replaced by the MX860 and would suggest looking for current reviews of the new model.

This was my first Canon printer after several Epson all in one models, the last a 5300. I found the construction significantly more robust than the Epson's, the image and scanning quality good, and the ink prices roughly on a par (really annoying!) with my previous printers.
 
The latest issue of the UK magazine MacFormat that I've just bought here in New Zealand has a hald-page rview of the Canon PIXMA MP640 ...
Pros & Cons
+ Phenomenal feature package
+ Stellar print quality
+ Terrific value
- Setup could baffle newbies

Verdict
5 out of 5 stars, MacFormat Choice award
"Superb print quality and groaning with features; an excellent value multi-function device."
MacFormat Issue 215 (December 2009)​
They also list the older Canon PIXMA MP620 (4.5 out of 5 stars) in the Buyers' Guide section at the back as the top of their top three choices.
 
I just bought a Canon multi-function printer and it and the software it came with is very good. Not having any need for color prints, I went with the A4 only lasor/scanner/copier MF4010, the low end of the Satera line here in Japan. This is bound to have a similar but different model number overseas. Printing is fast! And good quality too. The scanner/copier is OK, pretty much standard fare but of course there is virtually no automation on this low cost model. The Scan Gear software available on the Canon Japan web site is very good, allowing for complete integration with the OS, where to save scans, what app to open them with, format conversion, etc. Actually so good it was a pleasant surprise.
The down side with Canon is the lack of support for older models when the OS gets updated. A friend's laser printer, only 4 years old and still basically very usable, became obsolete when he updated to a 2009 Mac Pro that runs Snow Leopard and Canon has not - and will not, according to a company rep. - updated the drivers for that model. This has happened to me, and many others, several times over the years, Canon's policy concerning software updates for models even 2 years old is horrible. Buyer beware. In my case, this printer is so cheap, I can consider it as a 3-year disposable unit. However, if you are considering a more substantial purchase, look into the driver issue before you lay down your hard-earned cash.
 
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