Canon i950 Ink and Paper

[GPR1]

Has anyone sourced any Canon ink for the i950 that's cheaper than the big office stores (approx. $13)?

Also, what papers have people had success with in terms of quality and longevity?

Thanks in advance.

[CyberDyneSystems]

I haven't done much ink shopping,.. but I have good luck with the Epson papers as well on the i950.

In particular the Heavyweight matte and premium glossy photo.

[GPR1]

Thanks, CDS. I'll give the Epson papers a try.

[CyberDyneSystems]

a few others have told me that the Kodak "Ultima" line is really good two,. but I myself have not tried the Ultima,.. I tried a much cheaper Kodak that I had laying around from my old HP 800 days,. and that was a complete disaster! :(

BUT!,. it was a really cheap box of paper,. like $15.00 for 100 sheets,. so it is definatley not the same as the Ultima.

Another one I have HEARD good things about but have no 1st hand experience is "Illford" but I don't know what particulkar type.

The Epson is a good deal though. A bit less pricey than the canon,. easier to find, and easier to find a variety of types. To my eyes the prints look just as good,. the only possiblity I think we may be sacrificing is the print longevity,.. assuming that Canon inks are desighned to last longer with Canon papers???

I will be trying an Epson Satin finish next,.. as I can't find any Canon brand in Satin.

[dadsgm]

Here in the midwest a bigbox store by the name of Meijer has the i950 ink for $11.96 each. if you or anyone you know happens to belong to Sams Club the ink can be ordered from their web site for $9.97 each.

I have tried various papers and found that Kodak Ultima will work in a pinch but I have settled on using only Canon Photo Pro and have never been disappointed. You can often find the Canon papers on special at CompUsa and Best Buy. CompUsa just had a sale which ended yesterday where photo paper was 50% off. The specials are out there you just have to be alert.

[GPR1]

Thanks for all the info. Digital is lots cheaper than my old Velvia, but I tend to play with a lot more pictures and make more prints. I'm not sure I'm saving money overall, but I'm having fun climbing the learning curve.

[msvirick]

The salesman at Staples told me if you use Canon ink and Canon paper, the print will last for 65 years. I did not see this mentioned anywhere in the documentation.
Is it just a hype?

[CyberDyneSystems]

I am unaware of Canon ever making that claim,. from memory I think Canon was more in the 25 year ballpark?
It sounds as if the Salesman may have the latest HP claim mixed up with Canon. Untill recently the only manufacturer that was claiming such duration was Epson,. but the latest HP now claims to exceed Epson.

Of course we won't really know for another 64 years or so! :D

[Longwatcher]

A couple of notes:
The best source for Canon ink for me has been thenerds.com, however, S+H is steep unless ordering a lot. Check out www.pricegrabber.com for finding some of the current lowest ink prices on-line.

At Thenerds.com the price is $9 per cartridge, but S+H adds about $6 for the first few cartridges goes up to about $16 for 6 and then S+H seems to stabilize so drops per cartridge. The best seems to be a batch order of 6 of each cartridge (They are also packaged that way). This may be a bit much though for some people.

I am a big fan of Kodak Ultima paper (at least the most recent batches).

Canon listed logevity for S9000 with Canon ink on Canon paper is 25 years, although you could flash freeze it and it will last much longer ;) Epson archival paper with archival ink (way expensive) will last the longest for consumer inkjet prints.

Just my opinion and experience,

[justme_dc]

GPR1 wrote:
Has anyone sourced any Canon ink for the i950 that's cheaper than the big office stores (approx. $13)?

Also, what papers have people had success with in terms of quality and longevity?

Thanks in advance.

How about $9.26 each everyday with no hassles and great customer service? Also the best price on canon paper!

http://www.canogacamera.com

I deal with these guys all the time! They are awesome. If you call, ask for josh and tell him D.C. sent you.

[Khena]

I know, it sound impossible, but I ordered some myself, and they shipped it, as promised. The price is still up.

Go to:

http://www.neximaging.com/product.asp?3=8034

Believe it or not, it's not a mistake. This is really what they sell it for!!!

Hope this helps.

Khena
http://www.excaliburphotography.com
http://khena.photopoints.com

[CyberDyneSystems]

They seem to sel the same cartridges for both 1.59 and 2.39?

I wonder what the difference is? Does one hold more ink?

Weird,. but dirt cheap. I might give it a try!

[Longwatcher]

Isn't this the "previously owned" cartridges as in refilled with who knows what kind of ink?

Caveat Emptor.

[Khena]

$2.39 is if you buy just one. $1.59 if you buy 3 of them at the same time.

So far so good for me. I print a lot of photos, and honestly, though it doesn't mention if they're previously owned, I don't care.

For that price, you can't beat it.l

[CyberDyneSystems]

When I tried to order I figured it out! :)

I went with the single cartridges for the first try...

I want to see if I can tell the difference,. but if it comes out o-kay I can assure you I will be stocking up. Thats all six colors for less than a single retail Canon color!!

[Longwatcher]

You guys let me know if they mess up you printers anytime in the next few months. If not I may have to try them out. I am also interested in the longevity of the ink they are using.

Thanks,

[new girl on the bloc]

updates on your findings please! i am interested in learning more about those inks, so appreciate what ya'll have found.

thanks:)

[openspace]

BEWARE of refilled cartridges! Oftentimes refill companies use water-based inks that will significantly reduce the life of your prints. Refill cartridge inks are much, much, much more prone to fading. Plus they void your warranty - and yes, Canon, Epson and HP can tell if you have been using refill cartridges even if you remove them before sending the printer or printhead in for service.

[iwatkins]

I'll only buy Canon genuine inks as I've tried "replacement" catridges in the past and have managed to destroy two HP DeskJets using them.

Now papers are a different matter. I'll try anything once.

Friend of mine works for a large mail order company here in the UK. He cannot get cheaper items but was nice enough to put together two sheets of every paper they do for me to test with.

In my totally unscientific test I simply printed the same image at the same size on all the different papers I had (nine in all).

Canon paper came close to top alongside the Epson papers but by far the best results I found were with the Olmec (ICI) range. Olmec's Matte finish paper gives wonderful output. The bonus is that they do the same paper at A3 size also and I now use that for everything now.

Cheers

Ian

[John_T]

This whole ink/paper longevity thing is beginning to annoy me. It has only relatively recently come up as a wider public issue and it appears that the marketeers have jumped on it as another sales scheme. Paper and ink is a multi-billion dollar business and Epson and HP are jumping on the bandwagon with this negative selling point. I don't believe all these projected claims, and I believe they can get away with it legally because one, nobody is gonna be around to sue them and statute of limitations.

We have heard very little from Canon on this subject, so I ask myself:

- Are they being conservative?

- Are they being more responsible than the others?

- Do they have anything to hide?

- Are they working on it?

[Tategoi]

Canon PhotoPro glossy is excellent. Just make sure you set your printer to maximum detail and turn off any colour management - most important.

In the Canon print dialogue box choose the correct paper and under Color options set Color correction to NONE - it makes a big difference.

Also set the Print Space to Same as Source.

A superb but very expensive paper is Hahnemuhle Photo Rag (188g is the best) - the tonal range is absolutely fantastic and when compared with the very best quality glossy photo paper the latter falls way, way behind.

I just love it and have never looked back since finding it. Your Canon printer will produce 100% fantastic results with it - try using Matt Photo Paper as the setting.

[clemjj]

I absolutely love the Canon Photo Pro paper in my i960. The Photo Paper Plus tends to fade when exposed to sunlight or indoor lighting. If you're going to frame and display your images, Photo Pro is the way to go. If you're putting the images in an album, Photo Paper Plus is less expensive and the image quality is nearly the same. Up until I got the 960, I used Ultima paper but found that it took a long time to dry and it looked "ink jety". The Photo Plus and Pro look like a dye sub printer. Every bit as good as the prints you make at CVS, or any of the photo chain stores.

[Longwatcher]

clemjj wrote:
Up until I got the 960, I used Ultima paper but found that it took a long time to dry and it looked "ink jety".

Just curious about something,
I use Kodak Ultima Satin and Gloss papers frequently and it takes no longer to dry then Canon paper (or at most a minute longer). I will admit to occasionally getting an Ink jetty feel to the glossy paper, but I have also gotten that with the Canon paper occasionally. My issue with the Canon paper is rapid fading of prints at my day-job office, something I have not seen with the Kodak paper.

How long ago did you get your last batch, are you using Canon Inks and what environment do you live in?

I am using recent paper (less then 6 months old), Canon Inks, and live in SE Virginia about 3 blocks from the James River/Atlantic Ocean boundary.

The only true issue I have had with Kodak paper is it did the worst in the harsh environment of my car's back window (the resin coating broke down and cracked, but the colors held out)

Just curious as why I have no problem with the paper, while some others do.

[maderito]

Tategoi wrote:
Canon PhotoPro glossy is excellent. Just make sure you set your printer to maximum detail and turn off any colour management - most important.

In the Canon print dialogue box choose the correct paper and under Color options set Color correction to NONE - it makes a big difference.

Also set the Print Space to Same as Source.


I have a Canon i950 printer.

I just followed Tategoi's suggestions with excellent results on re-printing some fall shots (lotsa saturated yellows/greens/reds). But I'm confused. These settings:

Source space: Document - Adobe RGB
Print space: Same as Source
Canon Printer: Media: Photo Paper Pro, Color Management: Manual -> Set -> Print type: None

imply no color management at all (unless setting the media type automatically invokes printer color management with Canon's own ICC profile).

If you set the printer's color management to "auto" - the results are definitely different and less accurate. Does "auto" mean that the printer is color managing with its own profiles -- and apparently not doing it well?

Can anyone explain this? It is frustrating working with the Canon printers - they produce beautiful colors, but there is very little documentation (from Canon or elsewhere) on the precise meaning of the various driver options.