Photo quality of ip4300 vs ip6700

[Lenny]

Hi, I did search the forums and got some input on comparing these two printers, but wondered if anyone had anything to add...

I'm looking for a info on comparisons of these two Canon printers, the ip4300 and ip6700. I would do it myself if I could find a store that had both functioning models to print from each, but no one does. They only seem to carry the 6700 if at all, and most just have a dummy shell on display. If anyone has tried both, I would greatly appreciate your impressions.

I'm not a Pro photographer, just the average home user who might print a few photos, as well as print web pages and price lists/documents for work. Up until now I have used Shutterfly to print all my photos due to my old HP 952C not being quite up to the task (the HP was great for web pages and text). I suppose I would entertain the thought of doing most of my printing at home if the prints were close to as good (quality and longevity) as a processor without costing a lot more.

My questions are:

1. Is the superiority difference in 6700 over the 4300 for photos (that the reviews seem to claim) greater than the possible superiority of the 4300 over the 6700 for text?. Is the better photo output from the 6700 enough to forget a lab and print everything (4X6) at home whereas the 4300 I would not consider that? And, is the text from the 4300 "close to Laser" quality as I've read, where the 6700 is just so so?Any thoughts?

2. How easy and effective is it to use the 6700's card reader and do necessary retouching on the screen? So far I've used my computer for that and I assume it's still the best for editing. Is the in-printer card reader and editing feature really worth the extra price of the 6700?

3. Does the 6700's screen make navigating the various printer option menus easier than using the computer?

4. Any other feature the 6700 has over the 4300 that was a must have, or just made it a nicer printer?

Thanks!

[4x4rock]

I have the 6600D which I think is the same as the 6700. It's a great printer.

I think the 4300 uses the old type of ink while the 6600 uses the new Chromalife.

I used to have the 950i, and eventhough prints from that printer were great, the ones from the 6600 are better.

The small LCD is nice to have and it's easy to use to move around in the menu, nothing really fancy. It can also be used to view the photo for cropping, etc... when you want to print with the CF card slot, which is a great feature if you have kids that just want to print it out instantly to show their friends or family members.

I got mine for $120 for almost 1.5 years ago during the last Canon tripple rebates and it's been running great.

[Lenny]

Thanks 4X4. Sounds like a great printer. Today I brought my CF card into Office Max and was able to print a photo from the 6700. I used Canon's semi-gloss Plus paper and the results were quite impressive (and easy to do with the screen and nav. controls). Unfortunately, they didn't have a 4300 to compare. That's my big question. From anyone who has used both, is there a big difference in photo quality between the two, enough to do all your photo printing from home? I've read the text and web page printing of the 4300 is faster and cleaner than the 6700, and if the photo printing isn't noticeably better, I think I'll go with the 4300 since I need an all-around printer. But, if the prints are a fair bit better (and my wife can print easily from the printer) and the text is only slightly worse, the 6700 might be worth the extra $$ (?) Just looking for a clear reason.

BTW, the 6700 uses the same ink carts as the 4300, except the 6700 uses an additional Photo Cyan and Photo Magenta in addition to the regular C,M,Y,B carts, where the 4300 uses the special pigment Black that the 6700does not (supposedly better for text).

How easy is it to print directly from the camera, ala Direct Print, on the 4300? That much easier than the 6700's cool screen/nav. buttons?

UPDATE: Consumer Reports just posted their review (for what it's worth) on the ip4300. They rated it at the top (and a Best Buy), ahead of the 6700. According to their review the photos from the 4300 were actually slightly better than the 6700! I have no idea whether they are a good source for printer reviews or not.