Canon PIXMA MP960 Ink Cartridges

Canon MP960 Printer Review

The Canon PIXMA MP960 is designed with primarily photo-centric features, but it also includes multifunction capabilities like scanning and copying that make it an efficient home printer. The MP960 has one of the quickest outputs of inkjet printers in its price range, printing a single 4x6-inch photo in as fast as 35 seconds and maximum speeds of up to 30 pages per minute for monochrome projects. While this device lacks office-centric elements like an automatic document feeder and a fax function, it can benefit buyers printing mostly photos with the occasion scan or copy job.

The MP960 bundles enough features to make it a home photo lab, including a large 3.5-inch color LCD screen for previewing photos and memory card slots for printing images directly from compatible camera cards like CompactFlash. Users will also be able to use the printer's LCD and control panel for red-eye correction, brightening a face or adjusting the contrast and color hue. According to expert tests, the unit can print photos with sharp detail and a resolution of 9400x600 dpi using color Canon MP960 printer ink. Monochrome projects also tested to print with precision and a decent resolution of 600x600 dpi using black PIXMA MP960 ink.

The unit's additional scan and copy functions offer basic features such as the option to create up to 99 duplicates from an original documents and a flatbed design that can handle A4-size media. The printer comes with two options for paper input, including a front cassette tray and a rear single-sheet paper feed, which users can select between using the Feed Switch button on the control panel.

The device uses 7 separate Canon MP960 ink cartridges, some of which are optional, that each have moderately low yields of only 280 pages for the color and black supplies and 450 for the photo color PIXMA MP960 printer ink, making it fit for light-duty use. Those looking to print monochrome documents more frequently can opt for the high-capacity black Canon MP960 ink cartridges that can last around 650 pages.

Considering its quick photo printing speeds and sharp color output, the MP960 is one of the tops picks in its class for users that want to print lab-quality images at home. While the addition of scan and copy capabilities are a nice perk, they are too basic to make this inkjet unit a full-fledged office machine.