Welcome To The World Of CANON, Not CANNON:
          Ever since I got my first Canon printer, I have been hooked. I wanted a printer capable of high-res photo printing. So, I ended up with the Canon i860. It had a four by six photo chute that allowed me to print standard sized photos. The printing results were absolutely astonishing, in my opinion. However, I plan on getting the i9900, which has eight ink cartridges. And so my adventure with Canon begins. Today, I will be discussing the yellow ink cartridge. The Canon brand, that is, the one that you know will work with it.

About The Cartridge And Package:
          Possibly the best reason I have for wanting printers from the Canon line is the cartridges. They are clear, through and through. No more do you have to guess how much ink is left if an ink tank like you would with a black-shell HP cartridge. As I mention later on in this review, the clear walls of the cartridge come in handy if you plan on refilling them.
          The BCI-6x color tanks take on a seemingly flat profile. I guess it gives them the ability to fit all the colors into a smaller width in the printer. On the front is a 'springy' plastic tab that holds the cartridge in the printer firmly and allows for quick release when the time comes to change it. There is a label on the top that tells you what color tank it is [which is funny, considering that the thing is clear]. The label does come in handy when you go to buy another one, having the model number on it. You wouldn't want to accidentally buy a BCI-3eX cartridge, instead. On the inside of the cartridge, there are two compartments: half of the tank looks to be a spongy material, the other half is the ink reservoir. The ink goes from the reservoir into the spongy stuff before passing out of the cartridge into the bright, new world. I suppose this is to force the ink into a consistent, even flow.
          The intriguing fact about this yellow ink is that, while in the cartridge [and on the carpet], it is more of an orange color. Food coloring seems to have that attribute as well. Nothing important, really, but some people might notice this and think that they got the wrong ink color

Removing And Installing The Ink Cartridges:
          You may think that inserting and removing these types of cartridges is idiot-proof, but you'd be amazed. I know people who can turn this ever-so-simple task into a hard day's work. Once you have determined that an ink tank is empty, simply lift the 'hood' of the printer which will move the print head into view. Find out which tank needs replacing and just push in the 'springy tab' and it should pop up. Take it out, take it to Staples, get a new one, give the cashier the old one for a $3.15 coupon to use toward the new one, pay the man $8.91 and head back to the printer. Take the ink cartridge out of the box and vacuum wrap. Twist off the cap that sealed the bottom ink hole. Then just sit the new tank into the spot where the first one had once resided, slightly at an angle. Gently push down and it should pop into place to once again complete the set. And congratulations! You've done it.

My Printing Habits:
          The main determinants of how long this cartridge will last are: what you print, images or text, how much you print, and how dense you print [or the resolution at which you print]. About 90% of what I print consists of photos or images. I really don't print text that often, considering most of what I type ends up on Epinions. I usually print 4x6 photos on glossy high resolution photo paper. When I'm not using photo paper, I am probably using regular cheapo copy paper. So, from this review, you can get an idea of how these cartridges last from someone who prints photos rather than text. I almost always print with the highest possible resolution quality, using the most ink.

Longevity:
          With the way I print, you wouldn't expect the cartridge to last very long. Ironically, it seems to last for quite awhile, even with the heavy color printing I do. Unfortunately, I can't tell you how many pages I can print on one set of cartridges, or even a close approximation. That's one thing I wish I would keep count of, but don't.
          The type of paper you use can greatly impact the longevity of your ink, believe it or not. I used to use the cheap copy paper for most of my printing needs, but have learned that you can waste more ink by doing that. Higher quality printing paper are coated with thin layers of clay or other substances which hold more ink toward the surface of the paper, whereas copy paper would absorb it into the paper. Decent printing paper doesn't cost much more, either, about $2 or so more for a ream of five hundred.

A Healthy Diet To Increase Lifespan:
          When people print out web pages, whether for research or some other mediocre reason, it irritates me when they use a higher resolution than needed. If you aren't using something for a presentation, then just print it using the DRAFT [fast] setting, which will use about   the ink in comparison to the NORMAL mode. This estimate may differ between models and printer modes. As mentioned above, using a higher quality paper can hold more ink upon the surface without absorbing much ink into the paper. This means you can get similar resolutions as cheap copy paper, but with a lower ink usage.
          Below is a short list of ways to make to get the most out of your ink tanks:

① If you are just printing web pages to use as reference, highlight only what you need to print, so you don't waste ink on things like banners and unnecessary images. When you go to print, there should be an option to 'print selection'. Also, use the fastest print mode. You can copy and paste the text from several pages and throw them together in a word processor.

② Color ink can cost a lot. In the printer prefs, you can select to print with only black if color isn't really important for the doc.

③ Avoid turning the printer on and off all the time. Every time your printer turns on, a small amount of ink a used to clean the heads or whatnot.

④ Did you know that if you are printing a B/W job, and you do not set the prefs to black and white, you can still use up some of the color inks? For text documents, set your printer to black and white mode when you go to print.

How Much And Where?
          One of the best things about having individual tanks for each color is that you can replace one color only. With printers that use two tanks, one black and one tri-color, you had to replace all three colors when one ran out, not efficient. However, with the Canon BCI-6x inks, you can replace the individual colors when one runs out.
          Each color tank, excluding the blacks, runs about $12 at most retailers. I don't know about other retailers, but STAPLES offers a discount on multiple BCI-6x inks. When you buy more than one, not just the same color necessarily, they are only $11.00 for each one. I wouldn't try buying them on eBay, because most of the ink on there is usually low-quality, remanned and is likely to produce disappointing results. These cartridges can be picked up just about anywhere that sells ink, which includes, but is not limited to: STAPLES, Best Buy, Circuit City, CompUSA, Wal-Mart, Cartridge World, OfficeMAX, Office Depot, etc...
          If you don't live around, or are unable to travel to a retail store, you can send me $13.00 via PAYPAL to shippo522@yahoo.com and you will have it on your doorstep within 2 or 3 days [or Tuesday if paid on Thursday to Sunday]. USA, lower 48 states ONLY, no PO Boxes. Just leave the ink color you need in the PAYPAL info box on the payment page. I am always glad to help out those who read my reviews.












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That's it for the important stuff. The rest is for reference and other unimportant stuff for curious readers and is not entirely related to the product
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ReFilling:

                   WITHOUT Making A Mess....NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART!!

          I know, I know. I've heard it a million times from customers of mine at STAPLES, and I quote, "I hate paying this much for ink all the time, but I've tried those refill kits and they are nothing but a mess." True, possibly, if they don't know what the hell they're doing, that is. When done correctly, you can have astonishing results using those kits. So, I have made a procedural list below for those of you who wish to venture into the realm of the Do-It-Yourselfers.

                              *  If you do alot of photo printing and use
                              tons of ink, then I'd suggest getting inks
                              by the pint, aka, IN BULK! Just do your-
                              self a favor and get high-quality refill ink
                              bottles from a reputable source.   There
                              are sellers on eBay that offer just about
                              any color you'd need at great prices !!

① Assuming that you already took the cartridge out of the printer, preferably empty, I shall begin. When done properly, the process of refilling should not exceed three to five minutes. To start, you will need a few items to make the job happen, unless you bought the kit with everything in it. These items include: scotch tape, a sharp object to make a puncture in the plastic [scissors, awl], a mini hot glue gun, possibly a lint-free cloth or paper towel if not, stainable clothes, and a syringe to inject the ink.

② Now, we start. Get the glue gun cooking. Take a piece of scotch tape and tightly wrap it over the hole on the bottom, where the ink comes out. Make sure you block it completely to avoid dripping ink. I found out the hard way that these cartridges are vacuum sealed...if you puncture a hole in the top, what's left of the ink will rush out the bottom and doesn't seem to ever come out of the carpet.

③ If you peel off the sticker on the top, you may notice the little hole with a round plug in it. It is too much of a hassle to dig it out, and much easier to just make another hole. Using the sharp object, one tip of the scissors for me, twist in one spot to make a puncture no bigger than the tip of the syringe going in it. This is when the rest of the ink would flush out the hole in the bottom that you blocked. At this point, I'd suggest doing it over a table with a towel or other cloth to work over.

④ Using the syringe, inject the tip into the bottle of ink and fill it to no more than 15ml to 20ml or so. Insert the tip into your new hole in the cartridge and gently inject the ink, making sure you don't over fill it. You should definitely make sure the bottom hole is secured before doing this, or the ' messy ' thing will happen. When full, take the syringe out and put the rest back into the bottle. Clean any ink on and around the needle hole completely.

⑤ Now time for the glue gun. The hole in the top must be completely sealed and air-tight. Apply slight pressure to the cartridge to release a little bit of air before sealing to maintain decent vacuum sealage. Apply a SMALL dab of hot glue to the hole slide it across to cover the entire hole. During this process, DO NOT, and I do repeat, DO NOT squeeze the trigger at all. The small amount of glue oozing from the tip should be sufficient. You don't want the glue going inside the cartridge, just on the outside. The reason I say to use glue guns is for the simple fact that the glue can easily be peeled off in the future for another refilling.

⑥ Once you are sure that the hole you made is completely sealed, you can go ahead and remove the tape over the bottom. Some ink will run out, but don't worry. So do it over something that you don't mind staining. With the tape off, dab the bottom hole on the lint-free cloth to absorb the loose ink [use a paper towel if you must, but try not to get any lint stuck to the bottom where the ink comes out. Wipe off any mess on the outside of the tank and go ahead with the installation of the cartridge back into the printer. You may want to follow up with a deep head cleaning under the printer maintenance on the computer to get the ink flowing.

          * When done enough, you can have each cartridge done, without a single drop of ink lost, in about three minutes, especially if you have done it before with the same cartridge, as the hole is already punctured. There are several refill methods out there, and some may criticize this method, but you can''t please everyone, now can you?

                        Other Reviews Of Relation:

           CANON Photo Paper PLUS [50 Pack] Glossy 4x6








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^_^           Shippo225 © 2006 Ron Miller
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* Note: This review was dictated by voice, using Dragon NaturallySpeaking 7.0





Recommended: Yes