Canon Pixma PRO9500MkII Inkjet Photo Printer (3298B002)

by Canon

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 14 x 26 x 7.4 inches ; 33.4 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 41 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B001R4BTIK
• Item model number: 3298B002
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
  • #39 in Electronics > Computers & Add-Ons > Printers > Inkjet Printers
• Date first available at Amazon.com: March 2, 2009

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

It is said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The same can be said for works of art. When you take a photograph, you are capturing your artistic ideas through imagery. The time has come for you as a photographer to invigorate and expand your artistic spirit through printing. The best way to reach these extraordinary heights is to print, exhibit and preserve your works of art up to 13” x 19” with the Pro9500 Mark II Inkjet Photo Printer.

Canon Pro9500 MarkII Inkjet Photo Printer 4800 x 1200 maximum color dpi thanks to Canon Full-photolithography Inkjet Nozzle Engineering (FINE) Ambient Light Correction optimizes color output to match the specified lighting condition of the room you’re admiring your photos in.

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The revered 10-full color pigment LUCIA Ink system includes gray, black and matte black inks that collectively produce monochrome photographs of unrivaled quality when using the professional finish and texture of Canon Fine Art Photo Papers. These genuine Canon papers combined with LUCIA Inks provide phenomenal photo vividness and longevity. This power is fully utilized with the all-new Ambient Light Correction feature, improved functionality within Easy-PhotoPrint Pro plug-in software and two separate paper paths, including a front feeder for heavyweight paper types.

Terrific Resolution
This level of quality is achieved by 4800 x 1200 maximum color dpi thanks to Canon Full-photolithography Inkjet Nozzle Engineering (FINE) with a patented printhead firing ink droplets as small as 3pl. This delivers professional quality and detail for all of your photos.

High Performance Individual Ink System
This amazing 10-full color pigment LUCIA Ink system delivers unparalleled professional photo quality plus gray, black and matte black inks for professional Black & White photos.

Ambient Light Correction
Have professional quality in virtually any type of lit setting as this new technology optimizes color output to match the specified lighting condition of the room you’re admiring your photos in.

Ambient Light Correction
Have professional quality in virtually any type of lit setting as this new technology optimizes color output to match the specified lighting condition of the room you’re admiring your photos in.

Beautiful & Borderless
Whether you want stunning color prints or classic Black & White’s, print what you feel as a professional without borders up to 13” x 19”.

Auto Photo Fix
This built-in technology is perfect for your home photo lab as it automatically categorizes your images into one of five types - Portrait, Scenery, Night Scenery, Snapshot with Scenery, and Snapshot with Night Scenery - then applies optimal image correction. For instance, it will automatically brighten faces that are backlit and under-exposed, and correct color cast to help ensure more accurate skin tones to help you produce gorgeous images.

2 Way Paper Feeding
To add to your options, this feature lets you load photo papers in the back of the printer and thicker fine art papers in the front, so you’re always ready to print with the paper type you want.

USB 2.0 Hi-Speed
Plug the cable into your computer for a super-fast connection for your data transfers.

PictBridge: Don’t feel like using a computer? No problem
Thanks to a PictBridge connection you can also print photos directly from your compatible digital camera, DV camcorder or camera phone.

Product Description

The best way to reach these extraordinary heights is to print, exhibit and preserve your works of art up to 13” x 19” with the Pro9500 Mark II Inkjet Photo Printer. It has got terrific resolution, High performance individual-ink system, Ambient light correction, Auto Photo Fix and 2 way paper feeding.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

157 of 164 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Limitations for non glossy printing, November 25, 2009

By 

Dale Garman - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Canon Pixma PRO9500MkII Inkjet Photo Printer (3298B002) (Office Product)

I have used the Epson R1800 (and the smaller R800) for several years and when it wasn't clogged it printed beautiful prints. The heads finally just clogged up and I was forced to get another printer. I have used other Canon products for decades so biased toward their products. I thought the Canon would be better on the clogging, and I haven't had it long enough to judge that yet. So far I am somewhat disappointed with the printer. There are two limitations so far that are signficant for my use.

I'm more interested in matte papers and fine art papers, and really don't print glossy. Getting used to this printer has been somewhat frustrating. I had been using Epson Presentation Matte and getting really nice prints from a relatively inexpensive paper with good dark blacks and good shadow detail. Duplicating that with Canon has been a challenge. I haven't been able to determine yet if it's the profiles or the printer. My next step is to try custom profiles. I have tried several brands (Ilford, Moab, Harmon) and their suppled profiles and for some of them the blues have a purple cast, and the blacks and shadow detail are muddy. The Canon fine art paper is very nice and matches well with color, good deep blacks and shadow detail(see limitation in next paragraph). So I have yet to find an acceptable photo matte combination.

This printer has a maddening limiation for fine art papers. Canon has decide to disable the ability to print on either end of the paper (requires a 35mm margin on each of the long ends, about 1.3 inches) so you can't even print an 8x10 out of an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper. When I called Canon I got a run around and no sensible explanation except the engineers decided to disable the function of the printer and no workarounds. So while the image quality of the Canon fine art rag is very good, it is very expensive to use because of this limitation (which requires you to use a much large piece of paper to get the size print you expect because of all the wasted paper, 13x19 piece of paper to get an 8x10 ). I have since found other reviews mentioning this limitation, and I sure wish I had seen it before purchasing. I don't know if you can fool it with custom profiles.

In general it has required far more work to try to find paper combinations than I ever experienced with Epson where the profiles and papers just seemed to work. I'm still hopeful that I can find the right combination with some customer profiles, but right now the jury is out.

63 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars very good, January 31, 2011

By 

dm - See all my reviews

This review is from: Canon Pixma PRO9500MkII Inkjet Photo Printer (3298B002) (Office Product)

I'd say this printer is currently the best in it's class for print quality. Not by a lot, but it's noticeable if you look. I don't think you'd go wrong with a competing Epson, or the Canon 9000. The Canon is built a little better, and the [9500] prints are the best you can get this side of a larger printer (the Image ProGraphs are occasionally better, but not by much).

Addressing some of the "issues":

This is a professional/prosumer photo printer. Use decent paper, use profiles, and expect it to use a lot of ink. That's what it does. That's what they all do. 'Art' paper delivers fabulous results. If you're using Costco glossy paper, this isn't the printer for you. Don't use cheapo refill cartridges either-you're wasting your time and money if you do. If you're not [mostly] printing photos, this isn't the printer for you. Remember, the printer is just an ink delivery device. It's the ink and paper that you're looking at in the end-and that's what you're paying for in the end as well. ie: good paper and good ink are worthwhile.

Ink tanks are all similar size in this printer size range. Sort of imposed by the size of the printer. Higher capacity would probably add six or eight inches to the width of the printer. They have to fit somewhere. If you print a lot of larger format prints, it's probably worthwhile to move up to a 17" or 24" printer (which are much bigger, but also have larger ink tanks. Canon IPF 5100 is a fabulous printer).

Print speed isn't very fast. It's precise and slow, and it prints really well. Faster prints would require reduction in quality or bigger printheads (and a bigger printer).

Print quality is NOT dull. It's vibrant if you use compatible papers with ICC profiles, and print accordingly.

Yes, there's a 35mm border imposed on Fine Art Photo Rag. My understanding is that it's there so that the print heads and paper rollers can guarantee flatness and optimum head speed and things like that when it's laying down ink. You can get satisfactory results on it without the border if you profile it using a different paper setting. It's thick stuff though, so you need to make sure that the head height is appropriate as well.

The Canon 9000 is dye ink, the 9500 pigment ink. The 9500 has gray and matte black ink. The pigment ink is more archival. Dye inks do pretty well these days though. The 9000 is a lot cheaper. I figure because it has smaller heads, fewer ink tanks, and because it doesn't need to add in a 'mixer' for the ink (the 9500 shakes the ink to keep the pigment in suspension). The Epson purges ink like mad. One of the main reasons I moved to the Canon. The 9500 makes better prints too.

For most people's prints that I've seen, a $99 printer is all they need. Four to six colors seem to do it. Those are made of plastic, and are disposable after a couple of years. They do great prints for what they are. If you want mechanical and image quality, the 9500 is great printer. A few dollars a print in the end. Maybe 50-60 8x10's to break even over pro lab print costs?

If it sounds like you're the sort of person who's willing to pay for this quality, the 9500 mkII is certainly worth checking out. If you're not, try looking at the Canon ip4820 or the Epson Artisan-they're both nice enough printers, and they're a lot cheaper (and only letter size prints). Epson R3000, 2880, or 1900 are all worth a look if the Canon doesn't thrill you. (3000 has bigger ink tanks). Or, move up to a better printer. Canon IPF printers have a 12 color system, and they print really well. The HP Z3200 is a nice 24" printer too. Epson's print well, but do seem to waste a lot of ink in cleaning. Really, almost any photo printer made these days does a pretty good job. I find the Canon worthwhile to own, and I'm very happy with what it prints.

69 of 79 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My first BIG printer, July 3, 2009

By 

S. McMurphy "stmphoto" (Palm Springs, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Canon Pixma PRO9500MkII Inkjet Photo Printer (3298B002) (Office Product)

I have been looking at large photo printers for a while, and I heard that the 9500 mark II was due out in May. So, I decided to save my penies. I have had this printer for about 2 weeks or so. I cannot complaine at all!!
I did a decent amount of research on this product before I decided to drop the cash for it. Unfortunatly, reviews are few and far between. Everything I heard and saw about the printer was from Canon press releases or the Web site. Not exactly a non-biased pool of information. But non the less, I took the plunge and got it. I have not regreated it one bit!
It offers large 13x19 borderless printing, amazing color reproduction, and it can even adjust the color for the type of light the photo will be viewed under. Canon also offers a full range of fantastic photo paper. I enjoy the look and feel of the Canon Photo Rag. This paper though, does not support boarderless printing. Make sure you read the print on the paper. Ink does not seem to fly out of the tanks. I have printed about 20 or so prints, and I have only had to replace the matte black tank (I do a lot of night shooting and had a bit of a learning curve to understand my new printer. It might last longer depending on your style and experience).
Since this is my first real photo printer, I had a bit of learning to do when I first plugged it in. However, the included "electronic manuel" had all the information that I needed. I was soon printing fantastic large color and B&W prints.
The construction is solid. It is not a flimsy bit of plastic that will fall apart! Opperation is quiet and fast. I have not exactly timed how long it takes to print, but it is done with a 13x19 print in just a few min. It does have a large footprint. So be ready to have some desk space! Some papers are too thick to use the top loader, ie museum etching, so you will have to front feed them. The prints will come out the back of the printer. So depending on what you print on, you will need to have the back of your printer open and free of clutter.
Over all, this printer is amazing! I know Canon has gotten some heat over its performance on glossy paper. I do not normaly print on glossy paper and have not yet done so with this printer. But on the Photo Rag Paper the prints are amazing. And the print is the important thing. Photos are ment to be seen, and this printer does an amazing job creating a print. I would definatly recomend this printer!!