Canon Pixma Pro-1 on the cheap

[MCAsan]

The brown truck delivered our Pro-1 printer last night. The printer is an A3 printer that will handle paper up to 13x19. I downloaded the Mavericks driver from canon along with the latest firmware update. After setup I printed a test 11x14 image on Luster 13x19 paper. Great quality print for out of the box with no tweaking.

The printer lists for $999. If you get a box of paper with it, you can get a $200 rebate from Canon. That brings the cost to$799. I purchased mine on EBay as a new unused unit for $575 including shipping. The rebate had already been claimed but the unit was never used. From another EBay seller I got boxes of Pro-1 ink (12 cartridges) for $100 less than B&H or Adorama.

So don't let high list prices keep you from getting a high quality printer. Do a little creative shopping instead.

 

[phrehdd]

The brown truck delivered our Pro-1 printer last night. The printer is an A3 printer that will handle paper up to 13x19. I downloaded the Mavericks driver from canon along with the latest firmware update. After setup I printed a test 11x14 image on Luster 13x19 paper. Great quality print for out of the box with no tweaking.

The printer lists for $999. If you get a box of paper with it, you can get a $200 rebate from Canon. That brings the cost to$799. I purchased mine on EBay as a new unused unit for $575 including shipping. The rebate had already been claimed but the unit was never used. From another EBay seller I got boxes of Pro-1 ink (12 cartridges) for $100 less than B&H or Adorama.

So don't let high list prices keep you from getting a high quality printer. Do a little creative shopping instead.

Sounds like you did a bit of work and it paid off with your new printer. How does this printer compare to say the Epson counterparts and also, what size do the ink cartridges come in? I worked in the past with Epson large printers and the inks were costly as well as wasting a bit when the heads were cleaning or switching from photo black to matte black. I am hoping to start up again early 2014 and this Canon looked like a good starting point.

 

[MCAsan]

I can't compare to Epson as I have never owned one. From what I read about clogging, having to swap black inks and cleaning heads.....I would not want an Epson. I have never had an Canon clog, need to swap black inks, or do a cleaning print. Your mileage may vary.

The Pro-1 ink cartridges are 36ml each. I paid $250 per box. That works out to around $0.58 per ml. I could get 3rd party inks cheaper. But the last thing I want is to risk the printer or a print to 3rd party ink.

 

[Apple fanboy]

I had one of the small Epson A4 all in one printers and it was a nightmare. I don't do a great deal of printing (at home) and every time I went to use it I would have to clean the heads etc. Lots of wasted ink.

Bought a Cannon Pixmar MG6350 and couldn't be happier with it. Had it about 3 months and haven't had to clean or realign the heads once yet.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

Have a Canon Pixma Pro9000, and haven't has a single issue with it. Sometimes it's turned off for weeks, and it makes no difference. I have no idea how Canon figured how to keep the print head clean, but it does.

The one I have has 8 ink cartridges, which I buy at "amazon" for perhaps $15.00 each, or locally around $17.00. Luckily I only have to replace one or maybe two cartridges each time, since not all the amount of ink colors used is the same each time a photo is printed, unless it's the same photo over and over, of course

I didn't pay much for the printer since it was offered as a rebate from Canon when purchasing some of its cameras.

 

[tgara]

The only negative things I've heard about the Pro-1 is that it's really huge and heavy (about the size of a suitcase), the ink consumption can be high and the replacement tanks can be costly (due likely to the large volume). Everyone says the print quality is fantastic, though. Congrats on your purchase!

I've been using Epson printers for printing photos, but like someone posted above, I have to clean and realign the head before I use it if it has been turned off for an extended period of time. Mine is an R1900 which is a bit old, so maybe they've improved things. I would definitely consider one of the Canon printers, though.

 

[MCAsan]

Size is typical of an A3 printer. Weight is around 70 lbs. I hand-trucked the box in from UPS delivery truck, opened the box, and set the printer on the stand by myself. If you can not do that, get someone to help. Weight is not an ongoing issue, especially if you have a stand with wheels.

I purchased Canon ink on ebay and got it for $0.58 per ml. Not expensive at all for Canon pigment ink. I will not risk prints and printer with 3rd party ink. Ink consumption is on par with other pigment ink printers doing the same image on the same paper. What makes folks think there is higher usage is that during setup you are filling the tubes from the cartridges to the printhead. You only do that once...not every time you put in a new cartridge.

Can't wait to try some B&W prints on Moab Slickrock!!!!