Canon PIXMA iP5000 Photo Printer

by Canon

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 16 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B0002F9Y0A
• Item model number: 9615A001
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (54 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 14, 2004

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Printing professional quality photos from home has become a reality, thanks to easy-to-use photo printers like the Canon PIXMA ip5000. By combining five-color printing and a 1,856-nozzle print head that's capable of delivering superfine 1-picoliter ink droplets (up to 22 million droplets per inch), the ip5000 delivers stunningly accurate prints that should leave professional photo labs a little worried.

Color resolution is as high as 9,600 x 2,400 dpi, with black-and-white resolution of up to 600 x 600 dpi. Print speeds are as high as 25 ppm in black, 17 ppm in color, while a borderless 4-by-6-inch photo can take as little as 36 seconds. The same drive system responsible for the ip5000's improved print speeds also results in a low 34 dB(A) noise level. (All reported speeds are maximums. Actual speeds will vary.)

Precision Color Distribution Technology
Unlike other systems, nozzle configuration in Bubble Jet printers is simple, so it is easier to make them smaller and more dense. Using its superior semiconductor manufacturing technology, Canon has succeeded in developing an ultrahigh-precision, multinozzle print head. The problem of color inconsistency has been solved by positioning a mirror-image line of 128 nozzles (600 dpi pitch for each color) at a half-pitch offset from the existing line. This configuration also provides the added advantage of enabling high-resolution printing at 1,200 dpi.

Easy-PhotoPrint v3.0
While most photo-editing software applications will brighten the entire image, Easy-PhotoPrint 3.0 accurately detects the subject's face and adjusts the skin to the optimum tone. Brighten dark faces caused by bright backgrounds. Choose from one-click automatic to correct the entire image all at once, or manual to correct just a selected area.

Before

After

Easy-PhotoPrint 3.0 also lets you select and print any image on your PC, perfectly trim images, correct images using lab-quality retouching features, correct red-eye, smooth facial lines and skin tone, sharpen faces, remove blemishes, and print in a variety of sizes and layouts.

Along with a wide variety of plain and photo papers, the ip5000 also accepts envelopes and transparencies. The dual paper path allows you to print two-sided documents or simply store photo papers in one tray and plain paper in the other.

This printer can connect directly to select digital cameras. Learn more about PictBridge.

With its easy-to-use USB port, hooking up the printer to your computer is a snap, while a direct print port allows you to print directly from a PictBridge-compatible digital camera or DV camcorder, with or without your computer. The software bundle includes Easy-PhotoPrint and PhotoStitch. Compatible with both PC and Mac operating systems, the ip5000 comes backed with a one-year limited warranty on both parts and labor.

What's in the Box
PIXMA iP5000 photo printer, print head and ink tanks (BCI-3eBK black, BCI-6BK black, BCI-6C cyan, BCI-6M magenta, BCI-6Y yellow), power cord, easy setup instructions, documentation kit (Quick Start Guide, Registration Card), Setup Software and User's Guide on CD-ROM, Canon Photo Paper Pro for Borderless Printing (4-by-6 sample pack); USB cable not included

Product Description

Box includes PIXMA iP5000 Photo Printer, Print Head, Ink Tanks (BCI-3eBK & BCI-6BK Black, BCI-6C Cyan, BCI-6M Magenta and BCI-6Y Yellow), Power Cord, Documentation Kit, Borderless Photo Printing 4" x 6" Sample Pack, SofwareCD Dual paper path with built-in two-sided printing Direct photo printing from PictBridge compatible DV recorders and digital cameras Paper sizes accepted - Letter, Legal, Credit Card(2.13 x 3.39), 4 x 6, 5 x 7, U.S. #10 envelopes Noise Level - approx. 35 dB(A) in best quality mode Software Includes - Easy-PhotoPrint, Easy-WebPrint, PhotoRecord, Printer Drivers, Photo Application Guide & Electronic Registration Physical Dimensions(WxDxH) - 16.5 x 11.3 x 6.7 Weight - 11 lbs. Canon USA 1-Year Warranty and Toll-Free or Internet tech-support Compatible with a Windows PC and Macintosh computer using USB

See all Product Description

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

364 of 367 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Faster, cheaper, better!, October 8, 2004

By 

Thomas Jhou (Baltimore, MD) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Canon PIXMA iP5000 Photo Printer (Office Product)

I originally bought the Epson R200 because it was cheaper, but that printer guzzled ink like an SUV. So, I exchanged it for this printer, whose photos are just as good as the Epson (on glossy paper), with about 1/5 the ink costs. In the one year I had this printer (resulting in thousands of prints) the cheaper ink costs paid for themselves many times over.

One downside to the Canon is a tendency towards yellow tints (but you can adjust this). Also, the head-cleaning mechanism failed after a year of heavy use. By then I'd made thousands of prints, so I wasn't too upset, and in fact replaced the printer with an identical model.

The Pixma 5000's prints look stunningly great on glossy photo paper. They actually look better than the photo labs I've used, in my opinion. Contrast and color are great. Most 4-ink printers (as opposed to the 6-ink or 8-ink printers) suffer from "dithering", i.e. they give you tiny little dots instead of smooth colors, but the Canon has almost no visible dithering. The Canon's colors tend to be slightly yellow, but this can be adjusted in the print settings.

In photo quality, the Pixma 5000 beat every other 4-color Canon or Epson printer at my local store. Epson's "Durabright" printers pale in comparison, as do Canon's various all-in-one copier/scanner/printers.

However, photos on plain paper do not look good, and lack contrast and crispness. This is actually a problem with most inkjet printers, though the Epson R200 seems to do a better job with plain paper than the Canon, mainly because its black inks are somewhat darker. Printing on matte paper is also tricky - midtones come out too dark, so photos look dull and muddy unless you lighten the midtones in Photoshop.

The Pixma's small 1 picoliter droplets really help with text, which is crisper and sharper than the Epson R200. Text pages also print quite fast.

Best of all, the Canon is unusually efficient with ink. I got an impressive number of photos (over 250 glossy 4x6's) with each color cartridge, and almost 300 photos with the black cartridge. The Epson only gave me 50-60 photos per cartridge set. Not only do the Canon cartridges last longer, they are cheaper, and there are only 4 instead of 6 to buy. By my estimate, Canon ink costs 5-7 times less per page than Epson. In the long run this is a HUGE difference, and more than makes up for the slightly higher cost of the printer itself.

I have only one major gripe: After about 6 months of use, the printer's self-cleaning mechanism failed. This caused black streaks on the edge of prints. Cleaning the print head would help temporarily, but the streaks would return soon. After one year of heavy use, I had to replace the printer. But I definitely got my money's worth, and then some. Overall, this is still one of the best inkjet printers I've ever seen, combining high quality, low maintenance costs, and versatility with text and graphics.

82 of 87 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Utterly amazing!, September 30, 2004

By 

Sportynyc "sportynyc" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Canon PIXMA iP5000 Photo Printer (Office Product)

Photos printed on photo paper would be hard to distinguish between those that came from a lab. Text quality is better than the older s and i series printers, but not quite laser quality on plain paper.
Works best with Canon's photo paper, but have had pretty good results with other glossy paper like, sepom (not as glossy but waterproof!) and red river paper.

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Budget-friendly operating costs, February 9, 2005

By 

Nathaniel C. Moffat "Nat" (Bethesda, MD United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Canon PIXMA iP5000 Photo Printer (Office Product)

With all of the specifications to compare (e.g. pages per minute, dots per inch, number of different color cartridges), it is easy to forget cost of ownership. A year from now, that same stack of vacation and holiday pictures could cost you hundreds of dollars more with one brand compared to another.

Drop for drop, printer ink is probably the most expensive liquid you'll ever buy, and all printer companies want to lock you into buying their ink cartridges. Canon is no different in this regard, but by keeping cost of ink reasonable, customers who print a lot of pictures won't find they need a second mortgage to afford the ip5000.

Because printer companies "buy" market share by selling the printer at or below cost (This is basically how razor companies and video game console makers operate), they only profit from the consumables (ink cartridges, but also paper). This doesn't make them greedy any more than taking a loss on the front end made them altruistic. It does, however, make it important that you understand this: while many specs are pretty comparable, cost-per-picture varies very, very widely by manufacturer. Forewarned is forearmed.

Aside form the confidence of knowing that I could be spending a lot more for cartridges, my experience with the ip5000 has been nothing but positive.

The included CD and quick-start guide walk you through setup step-by-step. Consumer electronics companies are not always, ahem, known for clarity of user manuals or supporting material.

Text quality on plain paper is very good, though not quite up to the standard of either of the much more expensive laser printers I compared it to. In fairness, this is a photo printer first, but it will do a fine job on envelopes, presentations, and letters.

Photo quality, naturally, is highly dependent on paper. The only bad experience was accidentally using laser paper and having the ink smear. Use the right paper and whenever possible, use glossy paper stock for pictures.

The design is excellent. Not too many years ago, almost all printers were boxy, angular and downright homely. This shows how far printers have come. Its polished black finish is reflective (like a good auto paint job), offsetting the matte titanium-look trim around the edges. It manages to look smaller than it actually is and will not visually dominate a desk.

Overall, a very well executed printer. Recommended.