rfman's Full Review: Canon PIXMAâ„¢ iP6210D InkJet Photo Printer
We’ve all bought these budget printers before. You know the ones I mean. The printer with bundled cartridges costs less than the ink cartridges alone, so you just keep on buying printers instead of replacing the ink. Lexmark is notorious for making for selling this type of printer.
But when my 5-year-old Epson SP875DC finally printed it’s last print after a long and colorful life, I needed a replacement for proofs and small prints at Letter size and below (I already have a Canon i9900 for the big prints). I liked Canon, and the iP6210D was on sale at a few retailers for about half price (65$CAN). At that price, it’s deep in “budget printer” territory, with a set of replacement cartridges costing about 80$CAN. I figured I’d try one out to see how this inexpensive unit performed, and I’d just return it if it turned out to sub-par.
What you get in the box is pretty standard fare: printer, quick start guide, driver CD, power cord (Mac and Windows), sample 4x6 photo paper and two ink cartridges (Canon 51 Color and 52 Photo). There is no USB cable included. You can get these for a few dollars at computer stores. Don’t pay the big bucks the office supply chains will try to charge you for a cable.
Setup is a breeze, just install the driver, plug in the printer and install the ink cartridges. The printer does head alignment itself without any user intervention. The print heads are located on the ink cartridges themselves, so the risks of clogging are rather small.
The iP6210D features a memory card reader slot for printing directly off the files on your camera’s memory card. PictBridge printing is also supported directly from compatible digital cameras. The lack of an LCD screen on the iP6210D makes printing in this was a guess at best, and I’d stick with printing from a PC.
This printer is also obviously meant exclusively for photo printing and doesn’t have a dedicated black ink cartridge. When printing photos, black ink typically gets used at the same rate as other colors, so the black ink has been integrated in the photo ink cartridge. The Canon 51 had the common Cyan, Magenta and Yellow inks, while the 52 has Photo Cyan, Photo Magenta and Black. The system works well for photos, but the black ink will replete very quickly if the printer is used for documents, and can’t be replaced without wasting PM and PC ink.
The iP6210D uses Canon’s ChromaLife pigment-based inks, which boast a rated life of 100 years when stored in an album. I don’t put much faith in those numbers, it’s too hard to reproduce the specific conditions of testing for them to have much meaning. Some manufacturers rate their inks when displayed under glass, other in albums in the dark, and nothing is comparable. But it’s fait to say that I haven’t seem problem with fading in sunlight with the dye-based inks on my i9900, and the ChromaLife inks should be even better in this regard.
In true Canon tradition, print speed is fast, although not as much as the higher end models. Borderless 4x6 photos are printed in under a minute, with full-size Letter-size pints needing just over 2 minutes. The printer is not exceptionally quiet when printing, and it has a rather unique sound while operating. The best way to describe it is “plasticky”, as if the print carriage is sliding along plastic guides instead of metal. Only time will tell whether this is a sign of poor durability or not.
For a printer that sells at such a low price, print quality is truly impressive. Budget printers have really come a long way since I last shopped for one, and I truly wonder why home users would consider anything more expensive than this? I cannot tell the difference between a print from the iP6210D and the i9900. It’s that good. Color accuracy is in sync with my calibrated monitor, the blacks are deep and consistent and gradients are well-handled. Ink density is correct; the prints are saturated, but the ink isn’t laid on so thick that the paper curls. The bottom line is that I would not hesitate to sell a print made with the iP6210D. I have printed on Ilford Galerie Classic Pearl paper, Kodak Premium Inkjet paper and Kirkland Signature Glossy Photo Paper from Costco, all with equally impressive results.
Outstanding features
The iP6210D’s print quality is nothing short of stunning. I can’t see prints getting any better than this. While the more expensive models have nice added features, print quality isn’t going to get any better than this visibly.
If you can get the iP6210D on sale, the price is incredible. I figure they’re going to replace it with a newer model fairly soon and these are being cleared out.
Problem points
The iP6210D uses a 2-cartridge system for it’s 6 ink colors, so there’s a significant chance of wasting ink if your photos don’t use all colors equally.
Who should but this
This may just be the ideal printer for home users and families that want to print an occasional photo for framing or giving as a gift. For a very low price, you get a printer whose print quality rivals much more expensive models.
Who should avoid this
If you print many pictures per week, the iP6210D may not be the best solution for you. The ink cartridges aren’t very big and will run out quickly, and the print speed is only average.
In conclusion
The iP6210D is a terrific photo printer that performs much better than its price tag would lead to believe. When it comes to photo printers on a budget, this one’s hard to beat.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 62 Operating System: Windows and Macintosh
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