Customer Reviews

Canon MultiPass MP390 Multifunction

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

First off, if you're in the market for a printer, you can't go wrong with a Canon. Canon printers consistently beat out the competition in independent tests for print quality. Their items are elegant, well designed, and most importantly, ink is affordable.

We all know the razor and blade scheme: sell the printer below cost and make it up with pricey cartridges. Canon, however, saves you a lot of money by including the print head with the printer and not on each cartridge. Because of this, genuine Canon cartridges can be had for around $12, while 3rd party cartridges, which many claim work just as well, can be found for as low as $2.

If you've already decided on a Canon multifunction, lets see which model is right for you. Canon's current market list is as follows:

MP130 - New model, and the most affordable yet.
Copy/Print/Scan
18ppm black, 13ppm color
2 ink tanks
No auto sheet feeder!
Card slots

MP390 - Has a fax, About half the cost of the MP7xx's.
Copy/Print/SCan/Fax
18ppm black, 12 ppm color
2 ink tanks
card slots

MP750 - Older model - exactly the same as mp780 but no fax.
Copy/Print/Scan
25ppm black, 17 ppm color
5 ink tanks
Built in Duplexing

MP760 - New Model - geared towards photo enthusiasts.
Copy/Print/Scan + Special Photo Features
25ppm black, 17 ppm color
5 ink tanks
No auto sheet feeder!
Built in Duplexing
*Unique photo features:
2.5 inch lcd screen
Built in film adapter for 35mm slides or negatives
can print directly from negatives
Card slots

MP780 - Does it all except for the mp760 photo features.
Copy/Print/Scan/Fax
25ppm black, 17 ppm color
5 ink tanks
Built in Duplexing

Now, let's look more closely at some key differences between these models:

*Fax: The first thing you should do is decide if you need a fax or not. If you do, you should choose between the MP780 or the MP390. If not, don't rule those two out just yet, they may have have other features you can't live without.

*Note: There is NO auto fax/telephone switching on these models if you wish to use the same line for faxes and voice calls.

*Number of ink tanks: The next important thing you should look at is whether you want to be able to replace each color individually or not. The MP750, MP760 and MP780 all have 5 individual ink tanks (photo black, black, cyan, yellow, magenta), while the MP130 and MP390 have only 2 (black and tricolor). The cost of each cartridge is about the same, but you will waste some leftover ink by throwing out the MP130 or MP390's color cartridge when just one color runs out.

*Photo printing: If you're planning on printing a lot of photos, you should probably go with an mp7xx. These have a superior print head, as well as the 5 separate ink tanks. The MP760 is especially noteable with all the features Canon has added specifically for photos. These come at a price however, as the MP760 does not share the auto sheet feeder of its MP750 and MP780 cousins, or the fax of the 780.

*However - If you plan on printing directly from memory cards, beware! The mp750 and mp780 do not have card slots! The 2 cheaper models and the mp760 do.

*Auto sheet feeder: The mp130 and mp760 do NOT have an auto sheet feeder. All 3 of the others do. An auto sheet feeder is very useful when doing a lot of scanning or faxing.

*Duplexing: The mp7xx models each have built in duplexing.

*Size: The mp7xx models weigh around 30 pounds and are quite big. The MP390 is a smaller, and weighs 18 pounds. The mp130 has a tiny footprint for a multifunction printer, and weighs 14 pounds.

Some features that all of Canon's current MFPs share:

*Copying: Each of these models has a copy function, and all have the same resolution (600x600 black, 1200x1200 color).
*USB 2.0 connection
*Pictbridge direct photo printing support
*All 5 models are great looking and will complement almost any decor.

My recommendations:

If you want a great price on an excellent printer and don't need a fax: MP130

If price is an issue but you still need a fax: MP390

If you can afford an MP700 series and don't need a fax, card slots, or the MP760's photo features: MP750

If you need its exclusive photo features (but no fax or auto sheet feeder): MP760

If you can afford an MP700 series and need a fax (but no card slots and none of the MP760s photo features): MP780

This is my third Canon color inkjet. All have been great and I'd highly recommend Canon in general for inkjets. The MP390 is no exception -- a great machine for the price.

In a nutshell, the positives are:

- Reasonable print speed once it gets going, although it hems and haws a bit with each new document doing what seem to be a bunch of internal calibrations.

- Excellent print quality -- tested it with color photos at full size and it's very good.

- Very slick design... small footprint on the desk and looks good too.

- Great Canon software and utilities for printing and other tasks

If you're willing to pay a little more though, I'd go with the MP730, which I also have. The additional advantages are:
- Page feeder in addition to the flatbed -- great for multipage faxes and/or copies
- Faster
- Individually replaceable color ink cartridges vs all colors in one combined cartridge (saves money by only replacing the one that ran out).

The universal downside of inkjets, and this is a downside of inkjets generally, not the Canon specifically, is that ink is expensive and runs out faster than you think. Over the course of a couple years owning it, the cost of ink will likely far outpace the cost of the printer itself.

I was looking at HP and Epson multifunction printers and was almost ready to buy when I saw a review for the MP390 at the PC Magazine website. They gave it pretty good ratings, but complained that it doesn't have a sheet feeder for the scanner and the ink tanks are small. For personal use, these are not a problem because my printing and scanning needs are not that high. The output is very good to excellent. This unit has it all (except a picture preview screen), something that the HP and Epson units don't have for the same money. Because of all of the features, there are many buttons and options to confuse you, but the documentation is pretty good. The quick start guide is excellent. My only problem is my computer. I have an older computer and my USB ports are PCI cards. I have a USB 2.0 card, but my computer is not fast enough for that. A Pentium/Celeron 566 MHz or greater is needed. Fortunately, Canon allows the MP390 to work with USB 1.1. Once I put in a USB 1.1 card, the printer installed correctly and it has run smoothly since then.

I have just recieved this printer and started to put it through its paces. I paid a low price of $139.99.(can even be found cheaper but with shipping elsewhere) Excellent little machine I have had no problems yet worth mentioning that would detract from my rating. I dont even have the usb 2.0 on my computer but its still compatable with the 1.1 and is still fast for my purposes.

As for the ink issue, yes the tanks are small but very inexpensive compared to larger tanks. You can find the black for about $7.00 here at Amazon and $17.00 for the color, at this price you can stock up on them and not worry. Comnpare it to the multi tank system were you have to buy four tanks which cost about $12 for each color and you can see its just about the same or better. Very easy to install so this is a non issue as well. I highly recommend this printer. Great time to buy the price has just been lowered at many online sites. Amazon is a great place to purchase. Dependable service. :)

My last MF printer was the Brother MFC-7150C. Fed up with its high ink cost and defective printhead problems (read more about its bad reviews on this site), I decided to shop for a new MF printer. After reading about its highly praised review in PC Magazine, I bought this machine about a week ago. Here're what I've found so far:

Pros: Great photo printing quality (can't tell the difference with the ones done at the drug stores). Text printing is very laser-like quality. Scan/Copy/Fax functions are very easy and simple to operate. Great software bundles. Great price (paid about $100 for it after $30 instant discount from Amazon Card). Canon customer support was very patient and professional (see my problem below).

Cons: Canon only supports certain Adaptec USB 2.0 card/hub. Won't work with my SYBA USB 2.0 adapter (had to use my USB 1.0 that came with my old DELL PC which is fine with me). Small Ink cartridges which may run out faster (but the costs are so low, as compared to HP or Lexmark, to be a big factor here).

BTW, Amazon was great for refunding my shipping charge after my order wasn't delivered on time (2-day shipping order).

Overall, a great shopping experience with Amazon and a great product from Canon. A very satisfied customer.

1. Phone Printing: I compared it with a Canon I900D on Canon's Phone Plus Grossy papers. The details are indistinguishable. Although, colors from I900D seem more natural and vivid.But we need to be aware of that I9000D is a photo-dedicated machine. It has 6 color cartridges. By itself, MP390 generates superb phone printing quality. Photo Index Sheet helps a lot when you print stuff directly from a camera or a merory card. It is fun as well.

2. Document Printing: It is quite fast, especially in B&W mode. Generally, I don't like the idea of color-printing documents through a ink jet.

3. Scanning: With the included software it scans as good as other hith qulity Canon's scanners. You choose the data density. It can be very close to original stuff when you set it high. I , particularly like the idea you can convert documents to text files. Awesome!

4. Fax: You can have some many different personal settings when you fax. You can also set this machine with your phone or answer machine in many ways. If you don't have a seperate phone line dedicated to fax, then carefully choose the right mode,MP390 will not mess up your incoming phone calls. The Super G3 is supposed to be very fast. I haven't had chance to test it yet.

Overall, this is a good-looking machine with all the purposes you need for SOHO. The document handling is rather slow since there is not document feeder. Almost everything is done on the flat glass. But, hey,for me , it is a personal machine. I can live with that. This machine would be nicer if there was Canon' Think Tank device in it, i.e. individual color cartridges.

Every now and then you buy something which is so good at what it does it makes you smile every time you look at it - the Canon MP390 Multipass is that kind of product.

Being completely ignorant about printers, I agonized over which one to get. I imagine quite a few people are bewildered by the choice out there. I was all set to get an HP, until I read a number of reviews about software installation problems, expensive ink refills and poor customer support (not meaning to pick on HP but take a look at the reviews - they speak for themselves).

Then I stumbled upon the Canon MP390 Multipass - it has positive reviews on just about every electronics website you choose to look at. It has all the features you could want from a low-volume, home business all-in-one machine and is so intuitive to use, that once you've stepped through the excellent setup card (if only instructions with everything you buy were so clear) and installed the drivers from the installation CD, you're ready to go.

Pros:
- High quality color and black & white printing
- Printing speed is reasonably quick
- Photo printing (quality isn't perfect, but good enough for casual use - I'm still learning how to get the best out of it)
- Easy to use Fax
- Even easier to use photocopying
- Good resolution Scanner (easy to use, of course)
- Very comprehensive manual written in clear English
- Ink Refills are much cheaper than other brands (about $7 for black refill)
- Feels sturdy and looks great
- Print quality is customizable
- So easy to use I want to laugh everytime I turn it on!
- It was very quick to set up (I'm on Windows XP)
- Great price

Cons:
- It can only scan, copy or fax one sheet at a time - no problem if you're a low-volume user, but if you want high-volume use, you'll get frustrated
- As with most printers out there, you have to buy a USB cable in order to hook it up to your machine. These only cost $10, but why manufacturers don't include these in the box, I just don't know...
- It's a touch on the loud side (but there is a quiet mode - and friends who know better tell me it's no louder than any other inkjet out there)

One thing I should mention is that the sanning software lets you save your scanned documents as a pdf document. And since Adobe Acrobat pdf reader is free for anyone to download from the Adobe website, it means you can send your scanned documents to anyone and they'll be able to read them. Absolutely brilliant.

Overall, if you're looking for a well made, easy to use printer/scanner/fax/copier combo and don't have huge volume requirements, then look no further. This is the first Canon product I've bought but it certainly won't be the last.

This is a good printer, but the ink cartridges are very small. At the standard setting, I needed a new ink cartridge after having printed less than 150 pages. That's pretty bad. On the other hand, the cartridges are inexpensive, so it may be that in the long run the overall cost of the printer comes out to be the same as other printers. Of course, you would have to keep accurate records and be able to compare with other printers to determine this (which I haven't)... In the end, the fact is that because I am a high volume user, I will have to buy lots of ink and change the cartridges often. Other than that, I have no complaints.

UPDATE: Just like so many others, my printer worked great for several months, before the black print head gave out just before the warranty period. So I called Canon and had them send me a replacement, which they did. To my surprise, the replacement printer's black print head was shot too! I've given up trying to replace this printer. Thankfully, I bought the printer on my Gold American Express card, which doubles the manufacturer's warranty. I'm hoping to get my money back through that program.

FIRST FEW MONTHS OF USE: I love this guy. It's a little bigger than I pictured it, but look at all the things it does! It scans, it prints, it faxes, and even photocopies! I have only used it for a little over a month, so I can't comment on the ink tanks. An interesting fact -- to fax out documents, you need to scan them one at a time. This can be good or bad. Good, because you can fax pages from a book without photocopying first. Bad, because if you are sending a 15 or 20 page fax, you need to scan each of them individually first.

Overall, a good product. I recommend it.

This multifunction printer was simple and quick to install.
I have a HP product which this replaced. The HP was one continuous problem and the refill cartridges werevery expensive. The canon has much smaller cartridges but they cost less. If you search the web you can get the replacements for about $2.00 each. That makes this printer very cost effective.
And believe me you give up no quality.

I had so much trouble with the HP I tried their tech support line and too my amazement I reached a Technician in 4 mi.