Canon Pixma MX850 Office All-In-One Printer (2436B002) Reviews

• Very good, but the older Canon MP830 may be superior

  
  By A1ZG9WMHNMGY62 on 2008-03-18
  My brief observations seem to indicate that the MX850 really doesn't improve upon the MP830 in some important areas.
  
  I've owned the Canon MP830 for almost a year and and I just bought the Canon MX850 for a friend, so this is a direct user comparison. The 830 has been 100% reliable, producing excellent scans, prints, copies, and faxes. The MX850 is shorter in height, but otherwise just as bulky and heavy as the 830. Canon seems to be using a less robust scanner in the 850 than in the older MP830. Scans on the 830 are consistently over 4 times as fast: a 300 dpi 8.5x11" import scan into Photoshop CS3 took about 7 seconds with the 830 and about 33 seconds with the 850. The 830 wins in the noise category as well: it's roughly 60% quieter than the 850 when scanning. The 850 produces an annoying high pitched tone while the 830 has more of a low "murmer" sound. The 850, to be fair, will not be considered to be overly loud for most environments. With scanning, the color reproduction seems fairly close between the two machines, though I'm getting more color accuracy from the 830. Copies on the 830 produced more accurate colors, too: a copy of a TIME magazine cover on a matt photo paper (with settings set to "Matt Photo Paper" and "High") yielded extremely accurate reproductions of the original, while the the 850 veered too far toward the yellow end of the spectrum. Both produced excellent detail, though. Scans of dot-screen images were well rendered with the 830, while the 850 exhibited substantial moire effects.
  
  Not sure about energy consumption comparisons though the 850's scanner seems to be using a more compact, (newer technology?) low lumens light-producing element than the very bright 830, so it probably uses less power.
  
  Both machines will not disappoint, but with the advantage of my brief side-by-side comparison I'd recommend that you save $40 bucks and get the MP830. They both use the same ink cartridges. One last observation: the 850's LCD screen has a much higher pixel count, but that's only one small improvement amid the 830's superior traits.
  
  3/18/2008 - Update: I've learned that the MX850 is using "contact image sensor" technology (CIS) where as the MP830 is using the more common "charged-coupled devices" (CCD) technology. For those with an interest in the tech aspects I've included some info I found online:
  
  "Most of large format scanners in use today use CCD (charge-coupled devices) as the primary data capture element in their construction. Recently this position has started to be challenged by the lower cost CIS (contact image sensor) technologies, which have come mainly from the small flatbed scanner market. The traditional CCD or camera scanner is able to produce a very high number of colours from the scanned original and copes with folded documents reasonably well. These scanners tend to be preferred where the image to be scanned is either photographic or has extensive use of tones and shading. CIS scanners have the advantage in providing all the optics in a space of 20 mm or so, which in the CCD scanner equivalent would occupy more like 600 mm. The secondary advantage is that CIS scanners have no need for magnification, lenses or a rigid frame - a major saving in construction costs and weight. However, CIS scanners do not do so well when scanning very pale colours or photographs."
  
  
  
  

• Looks Good ... Questionable Quality Control

  
  By A1EUS809Q35VD2 on 2008-04-02
  Within 48 hours of receiving my printer, and having printed less than 50 sheets, I received a B200 Error. There is nothing in the printed documentation that refers to this error and the on-line manual doesn't have a search function. After looking through all the pages, I determined that they don't mention a B200 Error there either. With a multi-line LCD display, one would think that they might go so far as to give an explanation of what B200 Error means.
  After calls to several numbers (Tech Support doesn't open until 10:00am and I have a business to run) I was finally connected to Customer Service. The lady had no technical knowledge but was very helpful ... she phoned the engineering department who told her that the print head had failed. She is sending me a new print head overnight.
  Now, obviously from reading these reviews, I'm not the only one who has experienced this failure. I would not recommend this printer to anyone until Canon improves their quality control ... sending questionable products out the door to be 'field tested' is a very undesirable trait for a manufacturer.
  
  

• Another great product from Canon !!!

  
  By A32MWIIYSYZQUJ on 2008-03-09
  This printer is an upgrade to my Canon Pixma iP6000. The iP6000 is excellent for printing photos as well as all daily stuff. I was concerned that a multi-function printer would not print photo's as well. I was wrong!!!
  
  This multi-function printer is as good, maybe even a little better at photos than the iP6000 was. I have only had it a couple of days, so I have not tried everything out yet. Regular print quality is excellent. Copying is great. Scanning should come out just as good as copying, but I've yet to try it. Photo printing is excellent.
  
  If your looking at this just remember to consider its size. I don't think it's really any bigger than most other all-in-ones but it is bigger than my last printer.
  
  I went with the MX850 for 2 reasons. (1) Networking capability and (2) Canon technology. I am very pleased with my decision!!
  The set-up went without any problems at all. The first computer I hooked it up to is a desktop running XP home via USB. Installed perfectly.
  Next was a laptop running Vista via network. NOTE: As instructed by the instructions you must attach the USB cable to the FIRST computer that is being installed on the network before you connect it via the network. After it is completely installed you no longer need that USB connection. It will connect via the network. Yes, my laptop is connected wirelessly. It works great!!! For any additional computers on the network all you have to do is install the software and connect it via the network. NO USB required for all additional network computers. The installation software is very easy to understand. There are only 3 install options. (1) Install to computer via dedicated USB connection. (2) Install FIRST computer on a network (must use USB this ONE time only). (3) Install additional computers on network. Thats it...
  
  As I said it's only been a couple of days so I have yet to try everything out, but so far NO disappointments. It seems to be a very well built simple to use machine. Software seems to be running fine on XP and Vista. Not sure where the pricing will go on this unit but, Amazon dropped their price $45 only a couple days after I ordered it. I was happy at full retail, but at $235 you can't go wrong !!!
  
  The one thing I do recommend is to use Canon photo paper when printing photos. I found that I got the best results this way. That was on the iP6000, but I'm sure the MX850 will be the same way.
  
  Good luck with your purchase. Hope this helps a little.
  
  EDIT:
  It has been a few more days since original install.
  
  During set-up on another computer on the network it would not install. I called tech support for help. The problem was my computer NOT the printer. Tech support was great!!!!!! They walked me through step by step checking everything till we found the problem. Canon has their support in the US and they have a dedicated department for networking. It was actually a pleasure calling them for help. Usually I hate to call for support. You never know where the call is being routed. Very nice to know you can get quick easy help if needed.
  Also since I got a chance to play a little more with the printer I discovered how quick it is. I was happy with the iP6000 print speed, but the MX850 makes me realize how slow it was. I didn't time it, but it printed a 4x6 photo very quickly!! Another nice feature is the door where the paper comes out will open automatically when you print.
  
  So far no regrets!!! Don't be afraid to call tech support if needed. They are great!
  
  

• Good multi-function printer that leaves a few things to be desired

  
  By A3BN469UW5U848 on 2008-04-21
  We ordered this printer last Saturday nite and amazon had it delivered on Tuesday afternoon with free super-saver delivery. Thank you amazon.
  
  We are upgrading to this multi-function from a LexMark X6170, which served us quite well for 4 years. The Canon PIXMA MX850 is much heavier than the LexMark. If you've back problems, it might be worth asking the delivery guy to put it near to where you want it.
  
  Although the packaging for the printer is quite simple, there are way too many plastic tapes to be removed. This is probably because there are many moving parts and sub-parts for this printer. Luckily Canon has included a simple instruction sheet for assmebling the printer and it does help if you follow it right.
  
  NOTE: The packaging does not include a USB cable. We used the one from our old printer. The reason Canon does not include a USB cable is because this is a fully networked printer; that means all its functionalities can work over Ethernet. However, you do need the USB cable for initial setup.
  
  Network setup is a 2 step process. For the first PC, you need to have a USB cable connection and then you can connect via Ethernet. Subsequent PC's don't need USB for network configuration. My printer and first PC are connected to a Netgear Wireless Ethernet bridge, which also connects to my WiFi LAN. My second PC is a laptop is which connected to my WiFi LAN. Canon has included a separate Users guide for network setup which really helps.
  
  Print quality is quite good though not the same as a laser printer. Given that this printer supports dual side printing, using a good quality inkjet printing paper such as a 24lb, 115brightness will be worth it. There are 2 sources of paper feeds, a rear tray and a cassette. Both trays support all the same paper sizes, except for business cards which are available only on the rear tray. You can use either trays by pressing the "switch feed" button on the printer control panel or from their print software running on the PC. The print speed for one-sided printing is very fast, for both black and white as well as color printing. However, two-sided printing is quite slow. There is a noticeable pause between printing the two sides, and one would almost be tempted to pull the printout out of the output tray after printing one side.
  
  As a photo printer, I think the quality is acceptable. I'vent used it for any scenic/outdoor photo's. But it is ok for identity-card/passport photo's, which you need in a jiffy and don't consume too much ink. For other photo's, you are better off using Costco or Walgreens anyways.
  
  The MX850 supports dual sided scanning over the network. The Automatic Document Feeder(ADF) is supposed to hold 30-35 sheets, though it looks quite slim. The scan quality is good though not exceptional. Again dual sided scanning is much slower than single sided scanning, but with ADF you can move on to other tasks, while the MX850 goes about scanning. For multiple photo's on the flatbed, it will create separate jpeg files. However, if you scan two set of documents with a time lag in between, they will be scanned to the same pdf. However, their print software does allow you to delete individual pages from the pdf, which is useful if not all pages in your original document set are two-sided. You can also re-arrange the pages if they are not in the order you want them to be in, using the Canon software.
  
  The copying is the same as scanning followed by printing; so there is not much to write about it. I'vent tried FAXing yet.
  
  On the whole, I'm very satisfied with the printer although it has just been a few days of usage. The printer has good features and their software is feature rich too. My only peeves about the MX850 are that it does not support Linux. Also, it has these ghostly/spooky movements and noises that it will do, probably because the print-head is being reset, even if it is sitting idle for some time. It also seems to vibrate noticeably while printing; though not so much as to topple a cup of coffee. A stable printer stand/table would be much recommended. Since the printer seems to be from the same family as MP830, I also expect to be quite generous in consuming ink.
  
  All said and done, I would recommend this printer to anyone who is not a heavy user of print functionality. It will get small jobs done to more than your satisfaction.
  
  
  

• Breaks My Heart

  
  By A28QV6KGME3VN7 on 2008-05-05
  I returned it.
  
  I've been using computers for last 20 years and work in software development industry so don't be surprised when I tell you that this was the first Printer I bought in my life. I can call myself paperless person.
  
  Thus I wanted to buy the best in the market. I could have gone for color laser all-in-one but since I hardly use a printer and wanted to print some pics I went for InkJet. For InkJet you should not spend more than $150 but since this was my first I went over board.
  
  With all the features MX850 provides it definitely is second to none. Following are Pros and Cons
  
  Pros:
  - Definitely Fast Printing, both color and b/w
  - The documents looks like printed from laser printer with proper settings
  - Vivid and accurate Pictures printed
  - Fast Scanner and Copier
  - Separate document feeder, other than paper tray
  - The best feature Automatic Duplex printing and Scanning
  
  Cons:
  - Huge Size , you definitely need a separate desk or space.
  - No spooling memory for printing. It has memory for fax but not for spooling prints.
  - Very noisy, one more reason to put it some where far from your working desk. It will all of sudden start making noise while no request sent.
  - I was using it with my wireless router, since there is no spooling memory therefore it would loose information in the middle of printing thus will not print complete page or documents. Forget about sending large documents or Pics.
  - Scanner over Lan or Wireless is very poor
  
  
  Never got a chance to use Fax and printing pics from the Card Reader. I don't think I will ever be printing from the Card Reader I am not that lame.
  
  Now to answer your curiosity that why the hell this guys returned this printer. Well I already had ignored all the Cons and was still happy with my purchase but all of sudden on the fourth day after purchase I got "ERROR B-200" on its LCD display, which completely makes the machine paralyzed and you cannot use any thing of it. To my dismay this error was no where to be found on Manual or Canon's website. After going through a lot of private forums and blogs I found out that many of the users have reported this and have complained that Canon did not mention this any where. Not that the company doesn't know about it, it not only knows about it but also gave it an Error number. Although Canon did provide them prompt service to replace there printer.
  
  For me a company hiding such a major defect in their product is a total disloyalty to the customer.
  
  I am Canon fan no more and would not give my business to them.
  
  I went with Brother MFC-845. Not as fast as Canon, in fact mildly Slow in both printing and Scanning. But Great Picture Printing quality (much better than Canon) and with proper settings can get great laser quality document prints. Sleek and compact, internal wireless interface. And in last $100 less than Canon.
  
  
• Great Printer
  By A1BKKEWFMHS7XU on 2008-03-06
  Good quality printer with all that you want. Easy set up for network. They should have put the network stuff on the start up sheet instead of the USB part. The printer is promoted as networkable. However, the little book for Network Setup is well written. Controls and options are easy to understand. Nice that it has fax Distinctive Ring capabilites. That is really nice. Now I can use that service and not have to worry about missing direct faxes vs. e-Fax. Saves money. Also it manages paper very well. Good dust covers too. Beautiful color or black and white copies.
  
  
  
• Get this printer for your home/small business!!!
  By A3P3CN5X5YHFFJ on 2008-03-01
  Awesome product, packaging, construction, and design. I have owned Lemarks, Dells, and HP. Canon is hands down the nicest yet cost effective product I have purchased.
  
  Solid. It is has a pretty big footprint but great features. I run it on a Macbook and PC with no problems so far. I am hooking it to a Time Capsule and going to have scanning, fax, and printing all wireless!
  
  I looked at HP Officejet 7680 but the price and limited features just didn't sell. At $100 cheaper, this is a great product.
  
  
• GREAT PRINTER
  By A3JMLUZ89IIQWD on 2008-03-14
  I'VE ALWAYS HAD AN HP ALL IN ONE, ACTUALLY HP HAS BEEN MY PRODUCT OF CHOICE FOR ALL PURCHASES. BASED ON REVIEWS AND ALOT OF RESEARCHING I PURCHASED THE CANON MX850. I WAS NOT DISAPPOINTED. I'VE HAD IT FOR 2 DAYS PD 235.00 THAT'S A 50.00 SAVINGS FROM AMAZON. PRINTER IS QUIET AND FAST, FAX WORKS GREAT, VERY USER FRIENDLY. IT IS WIRELESS TO 2 OTHER COMPUTERS IN MY HOME. NETWORK WAS EASY TO SET UP BASED ON OTHER REVIEWERS ADVISE TO 1ST LOAD IT W/USB. I ALSO NEEDED THE FLATBED FEATURE FOR COPING BOOKS ETC. THE 5 INK TANKS SAVE $ AND IT'S CHEAPER THEN HP. I GAVE IT A 5 BECAUSE I HAVE USED MOST FEATURES AND I AM IMPRESSED. CANON'S GOT IT!
  
  
• Great product and value
  By A2EYJ027Y2O9MZ on 2008-04-08
  I was initially going to buy an HP all-in-one (L7580, L7680, or C7280) to replace my HP OfficeJet G85, which would not scan with Vista. I was not comfortable with the HP customer reviews, though, as they confirmed some of my own doubts from seeing the products in stores. I kept looking and came across the new Canon MX850 and decided this was what I had been looking for. This product is worth the full list price, so Amazon's discount and great shipping made it an even better value.
  
  I set up the MX850 on my home network, which includes a Linksys Wireless G router, a Vista laptop, and an XP desktop. The setup worked perfectly the first time, and all functions work flawlessly from both PCs. You use a cable connection from the MX850 to the router, but this is not a problem for my setup. I did not have to call tech support, but it appears from other reviews that it is excellent, and in English.
  
  Print speed is excellent, and the photo quality is also excellent. I printed some photos using the sample 4x6 paper that came with the printer, and they are as good as the same photos printed by the Kodak Gallery web site. I also like the included duplex (two-sided) printing, which is extra on many other products in this price range. The control panel is well designed and intuitive. The unit seems to be solid, durable, and well-constructed.
  
  There a few minor points for improvements. First, the Canon takes a little more overhead time than the HP OfficeJet to clean or check the print heads or ink tanks, so sometimes you wait a short while before it actually starts to print. Second, when you set up your printing specs on your PC, the specs are not communicated to the MX850, so you have to set them up there as well. For example, if you've been printing on regular paper and now you want to print photos, you have to set the paper size, paper type (glossy, etc.), and print quality on your PC and then also set them on the MX850. Third, the standard print quality for text is not quite as dark black as the HP OfficeJet, but you only notice it if they are side by side. Last, the setup process adds a ton of software to your PC, including eight new desktop icons, two system tray icons, and five new Canon folders in the start menu. None of these are real problems, just observations.
  
  Overall, I rate this as an excellent product for price, functionality, and construction. Buy it!
  
  
  
• Good with lots of features
  By A2WF58BAWLVI95 on 2008-04-23
  This is my first Canon printer. I have used HP exclusively for years and was very happy until my most recent. The features offered by the Canon at this price made me want to change. I've had the Canon now for almost 2 months.
  
  Pro
  Easy set up even on a network (though the details on how to set up the fax are well hidden)
  Print Quality
  Print speed
  Dual trays-dedicate one for envelopes or pics
  Easy set up and control over a network
  
  Con
  Its big, realize with the back feeder its going to be deep, but its big all the way around
  Slow start up-its suppose to be fast, but all my HP's were much faster at start than this is. It appears to go into a much deeper sleep. Hopefully saving more energy.
  Scan quality is just ok
  Software is somewhat confusing and does not appear well integrates. A lot of the setup is well hidden in the menus.
  
  The basic features are great (as good or better than HP), but menu and software is lacking. Price point for all the features makes this hard to beat. I haven't had it long enough to see how long the ink lasts, but hopefully will save some money with the individual tanks, though harder to find discounts on ink than HP ink. Amazon definitely has the best price on ink.
  
  
  
  
• Almost 5-Stars for the Canon MX850 AIO - April 22nd, 2008
  By A3AGQAXTX6VRJ3 on 2008-04-22
  This Canon MX850 All-In-One (AIO) powerhouse with a 5-color ink system, was made to order for any Small Office - Home Office Environments (SOHOE), is given a 4.5 Star Rating, based on the following objective points for an Ethernet AIO (printer, scanner, Super G3 Fax, copier with both Full-Duplex & ADF options). The MX850 AIO is the first Canon product for our office.
  We have 3 Mac's and 1 very lonely Windows XP box that are all networked to this AIO.
  
  First things to do upon opening the contents of the box:
  
  1. Should arrive very well-packed, but Check the contents for any damage, or missing items.
  2. Location: This is a large AIO printer, scanner, copier and fax machine, that requires an ample space, close to a wall outlet, phone jack & LAN router (for Networking purposes).
  3. Make sure that you have all the required Ethernet cables for your PC's and printer. This makes setting-up much easier. I bought the extra long ones (9 foot) for obvious reasons.
  4. Networked printer - Sharing this AIO is very easy simply by Selecting to `Share' it. Read more in the included Guides, 2 each.
  5. Software/Drivers: Go on-line and download & install any new Software/Driver Updates.
  6. However, before you install any software, first determine if you are connecting to a single PC via USB, or if you are going to be setting-up for Multiple Computers via it's built-in Ethernet or Bluetooth Connectivity. Follow the directions on the manual for a painless & easy Install.
  7. If just connecting up to a single PC via USB, then install CD Software + any Updates, connect your USB cable, follow the directions and you are done! If you are going to be Networking, read the next line.
  8. Important - Read the separate `Network Connectivity Guide' first, if you will be setting-up for Ethernet or Bluetooth connections, before installing any Software! The Network Connectivity Guide is pretty good in its directions, so run thru it first before beginning any operations.
  9. For Network set-up, Be patient, and don't rush!
  
  Menu - This is a `Menu-Driven machine', via a 2.5 Color TFT screen, which swivels up & down for your viewing pleasure. The Menu is dedicated to each option on the Front Control Board, so you can just Select any Option on the board and use the Menu to make any setting changes.
  Easy On The Eyes - Very bright, intuitive and easy to use.
  
  Exceptional Print Speed -- First thing you will notice is just how Fast it prints, and is not only Quiet while just sitting there Idling, but also with Printing or Coping too.
  Prints a standard full page in about 2 Seconds! We have 5 HP Printers, all the way from Multi-functions to portables and not one can deliver this kind of Speed and Quietness!
  The built-in Automatic Document Feeder (ADF) makes it easy to copy, scan or fax multiple documents without having to load them one at a time.
  *Recommend the Xerox paper from Costco.
  
  Photo/Graphics Resolution -- For Printing Photos or graphics in color, a High-Resolution of up to 9600 x 2400 color dpi. Our Standard has always been HP Printers simply because that have been more consistent, than any other printer manufacturers, in delivering Good to Excellent Detail, Sharpness and bright Colors or Sepia tones with a finished smooth, grain-free image prints.
  This Canon does produce some Impressive results!
  *Recommend Kodak > Kirkland, Glossy Photo paper(s) from Costco.
  
  View, Edit and Enhance Images -- You can use the 2.5" TFT screen to view & print images from your digital camera or CF cards, however, being `old school', I prefer to use my Image Editor, such as Apple's Aperture 2.0 & others, on my desktop, in order to `tweak' my images.
  * Recommended Image Editors for Mac: Aperture 2.0, Adobe Light, Photoshop Elements & Pixelmator.
  
  Five Ink Tanks -- The 5-color ink system means You only replace the Black or Color ink that runs out, rather than replacing a Whole multi-color tank containing unused ink. By replacing any unused ink tanks individually, you also reduce your printing costs.
  *Recommend Amazon or Costco for Ink Replacements, since you may order on-line and it's delivered to your front door, just like a pizza! Or you can take a chance with Office Max, who will `re-load' your inkwells at a significant reduced price. You just bring them in.
  
  2 Document Feeders - This Canon has two (2) document feeders, one in the back, and one underneath the output tray. I have printing paper in one and photo paper in the other and I can choose which one I am going to print to!
  
  Network Connectivity -- An Ethernet interface lets you connect to a home or office network, with connected computers sharing the use of this versatile machine.
  
  - Also Offers Bluetooth - I have not tried Bluetooth, although my new iMac has the latest version.
  
  Summary - I deducted a half-star (1/2) due to the fact that Canon has not updated the Software/Drivers for the Mac Leopard 10.5 OS as of April 2008. I had to use the CUPS version to get to work, however, not all the features are available to use. For me, with a New Leopard 24-inch Growling iMac Extreme,
  The Software/Drivers need to catch-up. As a side-note, all new Mac's arrived with multiple printer drivers on-board, so any printer will work, without `installing' any software. You just can't avail yourself to all the other printer options, especially on Ethernet.
  
  When previewing on-line, before I purchased it, I wasn't sure of the Aesthetic factor, since I was mostly interested in just the pure Performance parameters, however, it is very modernistic looking and the silver/black scheme sure beats the usual `grey or beige' boxes that we have.
  There is no disappointment here! Just another High-Quality Canon product, for under $300.
  
  
  
• A little tweaking gets you pretty good prints
  By A30TE8T82NTIF1 on 2008-04-26
  The Canon mx850 has some great features that very few printers have. I use the print and copy feature the most (actually I haven't even used the fax or scanner yet) and I love the fact that I can do double sided copies. The copies have been suitable for me at this point, but I haven't had to have a critical eye to judge them.
  
  At first, I was pretty disappointed with the printing aspect of the mx850. The text looked like it came from a poor inkjet, even at a "high" quality setting. My old printer, the HP Photosmart 1115 (I had it for 5 years) definitely printed better text, which I found odd since it had 5 year old technology. I was finally able to figure out how to get crisp clean text and better quality photos (I've been trying to print my marketing materials such as brochure/rack cards). In the Printer Settings, if you click on Media Type: Photo Paper Pro and then click on Print Quality Custom and then 'Set', set it to "1" being the highest. This made my rack cards look so much better than using any other media setting and quality setting. Actually, I went through each media type to see ifyou can set it at "1" quality, and I think the Photo Paper Pro was the only choice. Which means that Canon wants you to think that Photo Paper Pro is such a good quality paper that your prints look better, but really what's going on is that the printer won't print high quality prints unless you select that media type.
  
  So, I was going to give it 3 stars until I found the ability to do that. I can't judge the faxes and scanning aspects, but I won't use those as much and I don't have a high expectation of them. I just wanted a good printer and copier that can fax and scan.
  
  Hope this helps....
  
  
• Hello Canon, goodbye HP
  By A22FSW2UHIR2Y on 2008-03-26
  I'm extremely happy with this multifunction. I used to only buy HPs as I figured these were the only printers of high quality. Canon definitely beats HP in every respect. I'm glad I took a shot on it.
  
  The things I like about this multifunction are:
  
  1. It doesn't require bulky software: The software can be installed with minimal impact on your machine. It doesn't require bulky software or registry entries to allow it to run.
  
  2. It scans quickly and efficiently, as well as in duplex. I had always wanted to convert my office to paperless. This multifunction scans fairly quickly and allows you to set a stack of documents into the feeder without a consistent fear of paper jams.
  
  3. It quickly and easily removes canceled print jobs or paper jams. It doesn't make you wait a half hour while it figures out what it's going to do.
  
  4. It networks easily with a little network utility.
  
  So much more I can say about this machine, but needless to say, I will never buy another HP again. I'm onto Canons now.
  
  
• bad first impression
  By AGO31ON0SOT7H on 2008-03-15
  Love the specs, but mine came broken, got an error B200. Canon is shipping a new one, apparently they have a batch of problem printers...
  
  Lack of linux support is the other big disappointment
  
  
• Nice job Canon
  By A37TFC56GL315J on 2008-03-12
  I was ready to buy the HP C7280, but this really caught my eye. Great features, easy set up, and high resolution printing. I like the layout of the buttons, and network capability. I do wish the footprint was a bit smaller, but minor concern.
  
  I would recommend to anyone wanting a reliable, feature rich, AIO.
  
  
• I like it
  By A387ZFZXYVAFDL on 2008-03-26
  I've had this multifunction machine for one week now (waited to fully test before reviewing). The first thing you will notice is the esthetically pleasing design; it looks great in your office. I love the ADF feature and it works as well as you would expect for a small office machine but excellent for what I use it for (home use). I had no problems setting up and was printing sheets and pictures in about 15 min. (takes 13 min. to load software). The print quality may be a smidge rough for the perfectionist but was fully acceptable for home use (it really is not bad). Picture quality was superb, colors vivid, contrast great and very clear. I came from an HP all in one that produced very nice pictures but this beats it hands down. I sent and received one fax just to test and it worked fine, no problems (kind of nice feature). Copies and scanning were accomplished as well as my HP, colors and sharpness very nice. All in all I really like this new machine and would recommend it to anyone looking for a high end home or small office tool. I have no use for the network function therefore did not set up on my home router. By the way the duplex function works well and is also a great feature for the home office.
  
  
• Setup a challenge, but now working well with a Mac and Windows PC wirelessly
  By A28ZHDMWH1A67M on 2008-04-08
  My desired configuration was a Printer that could wirelessly interface for printing and scanning with a Dell Windows XP laptop, and a Mac Powerbook running Leopard. After reading the reviews I decided to give this printer a try. Because of the complexity of what I wanted the Canon instruction manual was not much help. I had an "g" Airport Express, so I could have hooked it up to the USB port - but while I could print, I could not remotely scan. And as I did not have a dedicated ethernet port where the printer would be stationed, I hooked it up to my network via a "HomePlug Powerline" wall connection. I already had a "Homeplug" powerline as part of my wireless router to run a Slingbox, so this was just a matter of adding this additional unit to my Powerline network. Initially, the Mac refused to "see" the printer so I could not add it via the System Preferences "Print & Fax". So I hauled the printer up to where the Mac was, and connected via ethernet cable directly to the wireless router. The Mac (also connected hardline to same wireless router) saw the printer right away with this configuration, and I was able to add it as a printer for my Mac. Then hauled it back to the remote location, hooked it up via Powerline, and presto the Mac saw the Printer. Apparently you have to hardline connect the printer to the router (or the Mac) for the initial Mac configuration, and after that you can put it in a remote location. Once that was complete adding the printer to the Windows machine went relatively easy. Again I hooked up the Windows machine directly with the printer for the initial setup, and later went back to the wireless router/Powerline configuration.
  
  Remote scanning must be done with the included Canon MP Navigator software. It crashed initially on the Mac running Leopard, but has since worked well. Printing is great, and exceeds my expectations. So far so good. Can't comment on remote Faxing as I don't have a telephone jack where the printer is.
  
  
• Good SOHO all-in-one for light to moderate use - needs some space though!
  By A38AJME9735FY on 2008-07-16
  This is the first printer I have bought in 7 years, after experience with a Lexmark Z32 (very old), and a HP Laserjet 6P. I have experience with numerous Xerox Document Centers and HP Color Lasers in my work environment. I found this with a $50 off list at Canon's US online store, and for about $200 (free shipping, NJ sales tax), in my opinion, the Canon MX850 all-in-one is an excellent buy.
  
  I have, thus far, used the Print, Scan, and Copy features (not a fax user, so cannot assess). I am extremely happy with the results. Outstanding print quality for a bubblejet printer and photo printing quality with pro paper is simply superlative. For photos I use a Canon EOS-20D 8.2MP camera and shoot at full resolution, so up to 8x10, the printer is fantastic - in my limited experience, it is at least as good as, or better than many Wal-mart and Costco print locations.
  
  For professional quality non-photo documents, I still prefer the Xerox Phaser 8650 (way out of my budget!) or high end HP Color laserjets, but for my home use, shared between 4 machines, this printer fills the need very nicely, thank you.
  
  The way it is set up in my home, the rear tray is a little hard to reach but the front load cassette comes in really handy. Using slightly heavier and brighter paper helps - I use a 98 bright, 24 lb and 28lb paper acid-free and lignin free paper, and results are very good. For photo printing, I prefer the Canon Photo Paper Pro over the Canon Photo Glossy II. Colors render crisply, the lines are clear and fine, and duplex printing is also reasonably quick.
  
  Network connectivity rules! It is connected by CAT-5 cable to my wireless router, and the 3 computers at home can print easily to the MX850.
  
  One strange thing about setting it up for network use - you MUST use a USB cable to initially set it up using one of the computers. Once that is done, you can connect it to the network and things work fine. I saw some reviews about difficulties with this step, but in my experience, I followed the user manual and in setting up 3 laptops and 1 desktop, I had no issues.
  
  What this also means, is, I can print wirelessly to this printer as long as my laptop is on our home network, connected by wire or wirelessly to my home router. So I don't know why a number of printers advertise wireless and add a little more to the price - I guess for users who don't use a wireless router at home or want to avoid cables.
  
  Scanning is okay, not terrific, but this has an Auto Document feeder helps scan a group of papers into any computer on the network. The fact that the printer lists the machines available and no machine based intervention or initiation is required is really useful to me. Also, the included software is very nice, and allows me to edit the scans, combine them into a PDF, and several other features. But one cautionary note - while scanning from the glass (called the "platen" on the MX850), the MX850 is a little noisy - not like my earlier HP Scanner.
  
  I am very impressed with the Copy capability as well. The auto document feeder and duplex (2 sided) copying bring near-office type capability to my home. Print quality is okay, and I like way the color copies render.
  
  Two other things I like about the Canon MX850 are 1) the card slots which include a larger Compact flash slot for my EOS 20D memory card - this allows simple cropping and printing directly from the card. 2) the card can be used even as a network drive, or a small backup device - that's pretty nice.
  
  Don't know much about the fax capability, I am not a heavy user, but pretty sure things will work well.
  
  Aesthetics - buttons are good, with good tactile feedback, and the user interface is good. The color LCD is excellent, and the machine, while a bit bulky (has a square, fairly large desk top footprint), the ADF folds down when not in use, the rear tray folds into the printer and the front document output tray ALSO closes when not in use - and automatically opens - I LOVE this feature. The card slots are hidden behind a small plastic door in front, and the Pictbridge (camera-direct printing) interface is on the front as well, in a small recessed port. Overall, wonderfully contained and prevents dust accumulation, even though the auto document feeder makes it a little large.
  
  Make no mistake, though: if you have a space constraint, this is NOT the multifunction for you. If you can sacrifice a few features like the Auto document feeder, you can get super compact printers (at a higher cost per page to print). This printer has a fairly low cost per page to print, and ink is rated to last a long time. Let's see - I have had this for only about 2 months.
  
  In summary - I highly recommend the Canon MX850 for anyone who needs a nice all-in-one (and has some space - it's a bit bulky), has multiple computers on a network that need to print to this printer (we have 4 and a router), needs to print high quality photos occasionally (we have 2 kids :) and has an occasional need to scan, fax and copy more than one double-sided document at a time.
  
  
• Great quality, and outstanding Mac support!
  By A3U41ZL33SS92P on 2008-07-31
  Canon is one of those companies that tends not to leave their Mac customers in the dark, but they really came through on the MX850.
  
  Right off the bat, the output is excellent. I'm hesitant to say you can't tell that it isn't coming off of a laser printer, but compared to the Canon 860 this is replacing (a decent printer in its own right) text looks incredibly sharp. Unless you're sending off a document to someone who is actually going to stare down your fonts, the quality is great for home and small to medium business users.
  
  The OS X installation was totally idiot-proof. Pop in the disc, hit "install", and reboot. When connected to a network, the printer automatically appears and sets itself up. There is a Canon Network Scan Utility that gets installed and resides in the toolbar, which is no more intrusive than the volume or Airport icons.
  
  As far as the driver itself goes, duplex printing and other options work flawlessly in any OS X application.
  
  The network scanning is a real pleasure to use. If you share this across multiple computers (Mac or Windows), you can pick a destination computer from a list on the LCD, drop your documents in to the autofeeder, and wait for everything to get kicked out to your computer as a PDF (or JPEG).
  
  The integrated card readers are also great. If you insert a card in to one of the slots, the printer appears as a CIFS file share (so it will show up in My Network Places on Windows or Shared in the OS X Finder) that anybody can browse to.
  
  To top it all off, the replacement ink is reasonably priced (and just about "cheap" if you buy multipacks on Amazon) and easy to find at any major retailer (if you can't wait for Amazon to ship).
  
  I'd buy this printer again in a heartbeat.
  
  
• A printer with issues
  By A27AXH665NE3AM on 2008-08-24
  I decided to replace my trusty Canon i960 and Epson Scanner with the nifty new Canon MX850 with thoughts of consolidation of space and getting newer, better technology. How wrong I was.
  
  First, the good news is that the built in duplex capability is great - my favourite feature actually even though it does slow down the printing considerably. The other great feature was simply the unified capabilities of what this machine can do with lots of features for a relatively low price.
  
  Now the not so great. The big disappointment for me was the scan quality and the included software. Both my documents and receipts that I scanned always required after-the-fact treatment to make them legible (possibly due to this not being a CCD based scanner) but the included software did not make it easy to crop and/or edit the images quickly before output. This really slowed down my workflow. Also, just getting to the scanner software is a convoluted series of clicks that should not be that difficult.
  
  The big show stopper was a "6A00" error that occured one day after 3 months of mild printing and after one successful 6 page print job. Based on a google search, it looked like the "purge unit" had a gooey buildup of ink and sure enough I looked and that was the case + a loose white pin that clearly belonged somewhere but was not in it's place. Apparently the gooey build-up caused the issue. Given that my other Canon was flawless for many years, I didn't have the time or patience to send my relatively new printer for servicing so this was really the final straw for me.
  
  I've gone back to my old trusty and reliable printer and scanner while this one will wait for repair and/or go to a charity. A disappointing experience.
  
  
• tough networking
  By A1X9AGDZZ60SDK on 2008-03-03
  nice printer only works with windoze or mac networks. Will not work on a linux ipp printer queue. Does color copy, memory card prints very well. Just won't work on linux yet. Cumbersome and proprietary software works only on windoze and mac. "Networking" doesn't mean it has a print server.
  
  
• Great AIO printer
  By A2MUWEV5VE4XG7 on 2008-03-27
  The Pixma MX850 replaced my 6 year old Canon MultiPass F50. What a difference in improvement! I work from home and need an all in one to print, copy, fax and sometimes scan. I did some research and was looking at the MP830 but decided to buy the newly announced MX850. I used already many of the features like duplex printing, color copies single and duplex and the fax. I tested a photo print with the included glossy II 4x6 paper and I am very happy with the quality. It is very fast. Duplex takes a bit longer as it has to pull back and turn the paper. However it saves some paper and makes my stacks smaller fro filing. I have the fax configured to pick up at a double ring tone. The setup was easy using some guidance with the one page instruction (for people who have no patience reading the whole manual). The color LCD shows clear structured menus and allows easy configuration. Also the included software and drivers are good quality and easy to understand. The cartridges have a coding chip and light up when inserted (I do not use third party ink as I did not make very good experience in the past. If you decide to buy such cartridges you most likely will need to transfer the chip to the other cartridge). The MX850 does a great job in printing all my different document types (emails, white papers, spec sheets, brochures, business cards, photos, webpages etc). I cannot judge yet the ink consumption. Ink levels are displayed in both LCD and status display on the PC. I have the printer connected using an USB cable. It has the capability to connect directly to the network which is not a current requirement for me. So far I have not found any negative issues.
  
  
• Great Multifuntion printer
  By A2EUMHR8OFFJ7R on 2008-04-05
  Strengths:
  Well made and well thought out features
  Double sided printing
  Outstanding Photo prints
  Scan multiple pages
  
  Weaknesses:
  Size a little too big - plan where you would put it before buying.
  Poor Support for Mac OS X Leopard - hope they will come up with a revised driver and support programs, just as they do for MS Windows
  
  
• A few problems.
  By A2KI0LAYW1AM7R on 2008-05-23
  I bought a MX310 and then had the pleasure of installing and configuring the MX850. I'm just going to highlight some important things.
  
  The MX850 was more convenient than the MX310. I like the full color LCD screen for easy fax configuration. I also like the native Cassette paper source.
  
  The documentation for printer installation and configuration is too vague. I was having an issue with Networking the printer between three different computers and when I kept looking at the book I wondered if they meant something other than what I initially understood. I finally got it to work the next day, but I can only theorize why it didn't work the first time.
  
  Problems that it shares with the MX310:
  
  The software installs itself in multiple folders in the start menu. Why can't it just create a single folder and put all the things that have to do with the printer in there? It doesn't do that; it installs, even the manual, in a different folder in the start menu. It was nice of Canon to add clutter to my start menu.
  
  Another is difficulty in receiving faxes. These printers have a hard time distinguishing a voice call from a fax call. Even on Telephone Priority, they answer voice calls with the fax and then hang up on the person when it notices no fax info. When receiving a fax, they mistake it for a voice call. I'm still trying to figure this out.
  
  
• Do not purchase this printer!!
  By A2E1WEGYEA01FE on 2008-07-23
  After only a few months of light use, constantly having trouble with printer recognizing ink cartridges. Worse of all, even if one of the six cartridges does not "register" properly with the printer, the printer is locked in an error mode and cannot print even in B & W. Do yourself a favor, look at one of the other brands!
  
  
• Great scan, shame about the tray
  By AAWHW1NQVW8O6 on 2008-08-19
  We purchased the Canon MX850 printer after our workhorse HP all-in-one died recently. We expected to just buy another HP, but decided to check the reviews at Consumer Reports and other sites. To our surprise, Canon printers were highly rated...better than the HPs in most cases. We narrowed our choice to the Canon MX850 but had problems finding it in the local big box electronic stores. We finally ordered it from Amazon.com...great price, free shipping and fast delivery. We've had the printer for about two months now, networked into our family network. It gets a daily workout of printing, scanning and faxing. It is a great printer and handles each task with ease. It is a snap to integrate the printer into a home network using the included network-setup software. Our only complaint: the front-loading paper tray seems to be an afterthought. It is flimsy, barely holds a third of a ream of paper and is difficult to access. Despite this, we definitely recommend the Canon MX850 for home or small office use.
  
  
• Software & User Interface are Great
  By A30125JQJCK7KF on 2008-07-16
  Like many people who have used printers for decades, I've used a lot of brands but have used many more HP printers than other brands. The problem with HP is that they make good machinery but their software and interfaces suck. To me, when I'm dealing with HP, it feels like I'm back to DOS or an early version of Windows. I've been working with computers as part of my job since 1980 and have used most of the brands of Windows & DOS, many versions of Apple's OS, and even a little UNIX/LINUX. So I have used a great many printers/scanners/etc.
  
  The Canon software feels much more Mac-like. And that's all I'll say about that. Mac users will know what I mean instantly. Better yet, the buttons, color display, and menu on the 850 itself are laid out well, very intuitive, and do the job very well. Overall, the software and hardware interfaces are way beyond what I expect for the price, way better than any HP equivalent, and probably at least as good as any other brand.
  
  The hardware itself? I have not found anything I don't like. I like having a front and rear tray for paper, the USB port on the front, the exit tray opening on it's own from a closed position when outputting paper, it's general quality, and it's heftiness. This is not light machine meant to wear out soon.
  
  Can't say how it is for consumables. But the output is at least as good as what I expect for a printer of this type. The bottom line for me, though, is that it does what it is supposed to and it is very easy to make it do that job, both from the computer and by using only the button interface.
  
  
• Reservations - 3.5 stars
  By A3UNGPHZFK4BKH on 2008-08-08
  I've had an HP 7310 for a few years prior to getting the Canon MX850. The MX looks great and works pretty well. However, I have a few reservations. The HP seems to have much better software; MX is very basic, not to mention, there is no fax capability via Mac (I have both Mac and PC). Even the PC software looks several generations older than the HP interface. Secondly, receiving faxes is more of a chore on the MX. On the HP, you can pick up the phone, any phone in the house, and the printer will recognize an incoming fax.
  
  On the Canon, you have to do it manually, or set the printer to pick up the line first, in order to distinguish between fax and voice, and both options require you to use a phone connected to the actual printer. This means that if a voice call is coming in, the printer picks up (auto fax answer mode); if it's not a fax, the printer itself will ring, and if I'm in the living room, I have to run to the phone in my office, the one connected to my printer, assuming I even hear my printer ring, in order to pick up the voice call. What a chore!
  
  Now, just to be fair, the HP is an inferior product, mechanically speaking. I was fortunate to have my HP break down under warranty; so they replaced it with a refurbished one. It wasn't long before the HP broke again (ADF issue). HP does not produce products with replaceable parts, not very green. Canon is built better but the software and the fax reception options are limiting.
  
  
• Great Home Office All-in-One for Mac or PC
  By A1S5DYJDCZ6NJZ on 2008-08-23
  Strengths: Outstanding text quality, built-in duplexing and automatic document feeder, two paper trays, Mac (Leopard) compatibility
  
  Weaknesses: Big and heavy, networking/sharing support could be improved, photo quality not fantastic
  
  I purchased the MX850 as a replacement for a similar HP Photosmart 3310 that I had been using for several years with my Mac and Windows PCs. I was generally satisfied with the HP; it included built-in wireless networking and had outstanding photo quality. After upgrading to OS X 10.5 Leopard, however, the HP model was rendered useless for anything other than basic printing on my iMac, even with drivers updated for Leopard. I was very happy, therefore, to find that Canon's MX850 works flawlessly with my iMac running Leopard.
  
  The first thing you notice about the MX850 is its size; it's considerably larger and heavier than my HP multifunction printer. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but you'll want to take note of the dimensions and make sure you have room for this device before purchasing. This is likely due to the added functionality Canon has squeezed into the device. It includes an auto duplexer, automatic document feeder, and two paper trays (one at bottom front and one on the back). If you frequently scan multi-page documents, print double-sided materials, or switch between two types/sources of paper, then this machine will undoubtedly prove very convenient.
  
  Printer output is very good, with a few caveats. Everyday printing is very speedy, and the text output of the MX850 is fantastic, giving some laser printers a run for their money. There is one caveat pertaining to duplex printing which causes duplex-printed text documents to appear dark gray instead of black. In order to reduce bleeding through on double-sided documents, the printer uses only colored inks (no black) for double-sided printing. If you prefer to print most of your documents using black ink only (which I would recommend in order to conserve the expensive colored inks), know that you won't be able to do so when printing in duplex mode. Unfortunately, the photo quality of the MX850 is not as outstanding as the text quality. It produces nice-looking (even frame-worthy) prints on photo paper, but you won't mistake them for professional prints. This is the one area where the Photosmart beats the MX850 hands-down.
  
  The other features of this device also work very well. Scan quality is very good, and the automatic document feeder makes it very easy to scan multiple-page documents. Fax capabilities are built in as well, and I was pleased to note the inclusion of speed dial and a standard telephone-style number pad for inputting numbers.
  
  The MX850 also includes network connectivity in the form of an ethernet port, but it would have been nice to see built-in WiFi networking included as well. Even though Canon includes fully-featured drivers for both Windows and Mac OS X, it's not possible to attach the device to a Mac and share it with Windows PCs (I was able to use Bonjour printer sharing and a generic driver to allow my Windows PCs to print to the device, but you don't have the ability to scan or to set or use any advanced device functions such as the duplexer or print quality settings).
  
  The MX850 is clearly designed with a home office environment in mind, as its advanced document-handling abilities and unexceptional photo quality suggest. If you're looking for a full-time photo printer, then you should look elsewhere; but if your scanning and printing needs routinely call for excellent text quality, convenient duplexing, scanning multipage documents, and the flexibility offered by two paper trays, then the MX850 will fit the bill perfectly.
  
  
  
  
• Awesome printer...
  By AZ4352XO4HH3M on 2008-09-24
  I think the Canon Pixma MX850 is great. There's a bit of a learning curve to figure out some of the features and somethings you may have to refer to the manual in order to use them until you familiarize yourself with the printer. I made sure I used all of the functions of this printer and everything works well. I'm really impressed with the speed in which all the functions are carried out and the print and scan quality. The Canon Pixma MX850 has a lot of positives but this product is not perfect so of course it has some negatives.
  
  Positives:
  - All the controls are in the front. You don't have to get up out of your chair to do anything. Everything is at your fingertips.
  - It's wireless. I've got my MacBook hooked up to this printer wirelessly, though it wasn't an easy setup. However, the Canon rep. I talked to was very helpful in walking me through the process. Once it was set up, documents print out flawlessly just as if it were connected to the printer via a USB connection. I also have my HP desktop computer hooked up via a wired network connection.
  - It takes most types of media cards so if you don't want to hook up your camera via USB cable and you would rather take out your media card and view and print your pictures that way, you can.
  - Prints quietly
  - The printer has a bright color LCD screen, which is especially useful when you put in your media card and you want to view or make any adjustments to your photos before you print them.
  - Fast 20-22 sec. 4x6 photo prints
  - Photos print out beautifully
  - Prints documents almost immediately, no long thinking or waiting time and they print out fast. One color documents print out fast even in the standard setting.
  - The text prints out clear and crisp. The ink dries fast so there isn't any smudging.
  - Auto two-sided printing(Duplex printing)
  - Comes with software that allows OCR(optical character recognition) meaning you can scan a document then the program will translate it into editable format. In other words, the document you scan in will become a text document that you can edit. Instead of having to type over a whole document, you can scan it and make changes to it once transformed into text format. This program is a part of the Canon Utilities bundle that is included with this printer. The bundle also contains other neat programs with a variety of features.
  - Too many other great features to numerous to name
  
  Negatives(a very short list):
  - The size. The Canon MX850, as has been said, is enormous and very heavy. This printer takes up quite a bit of space on my small desk. Though this wasn't a deal breaker for me, I do wish it was smaller. Canon really has to work on reducing the size of their all-in-ones.
  - I also don't like the fact that when I open the lids of the print, whether it's the scanner lid or the cover that you have to open to put in the ink, doesn't slam down softly or smoothly. I always feel like I'm slamming them down even though I'm not plus the lids are not exactly light either.
  
  Despite the size of the Canon MX850, it's very attractive looking and pretty easy to use. There are plenty of menu options for you to adjust the printer the way you want it to function. I even got it to work as a CD label printer by hooking up a a removable CD label tray. This can be purchased on the net. All in all, this is a fantastic printer with excellent features and I'm glad I decided to purchase it.
  
  
  

• Canon Photo Paper Plus Glossy II, 5 x 7 inches, 20 Sheets (2311B024)
• Canon Photo Paper Plus Glossy II, 4 x 6 inches, 100 Sheets (2311B023)
• Canon CLI-8M Magenta Ink Cartridge
• Canon CLI-8C Cyan Ink Cartridge
• Canon Matte Photo Paper, 8.5 x 11 Inches, 50 Sheets (7981A004)

• Canon PGI-5 BK 2-Pack Pigment Black Ink Tanks
• Canon CLI-8 4-Color Multipack Ink Tanks
• Tripp Lite U022-010 USB2.0 Certified Gold A/B Device Cable - 10ft
• Canon CLI-8 3 Pack C/M/Y Value Pack (0621B016)
• Belkin F3U133-10 Hi-Speed USB 2.0 Cable (10 Feet)