Canon PIXMA MG6150 review

Released: September 2010
Print Resolution: 9600x2400dpi
Engine: Inkjet six-ink with minimum 1pl droplet
Ink refill cost: £58
Paper Cost: £10
Interface: USB 2.0, Bluetooth, ethernet, WiFi
www.canon.co.uk

Build Quality:
The high-gloss 'piano black' finish, touch of grey trim and white lights give the MG6150 a high-tech feel. The build quality is excellent, with robust paper trays, sturdy scanner lid and a nice, cushioned action when opening and closing the paper tray. What’s more, if you leave the output tray closed it opens automatically when you send a print, which is a nice touch. The LCD screen flips out from the top of the printer with a smooth action too, and boasts a large and clear 7.5cm display.

Easy of Use:
Set-up was hassle-free, taking around 30 minutes including installing the print head, inks cartridges and software, and once you are up and running the MG6150 is a joy to use. It boasts touch-sensitive controls, including a fancy scroll wheel as well as directional arrow keys for navigating the menus. All the controls are illuminated and feature light-guided operation that means only the buttons you actually need are lit up at any one time.

Features:
The MG6150 can be connected to a single computer via USB, or there’s ethernet and WiFi for connecting the printer to multiple computers over a network. You don’t need a computer at all though thanks to the PictBridge port that allows you to plug-in and print directly from your camera, or the memory card slots that accept a wide range of formats. Simply slot in your memory card and use the LCD screen and controls to browse images (JPEG only) and pick out those you want to print. There are editing options too, including cropping, changing aspect ratio between 3:2 or 16:9 or correcting for red-eye, and there’s a HD Movie Print mode to play back your movies, pause and print the frame you’re after. There’s also an auto duplexer for double-sided printing, printing directly onto a CD/DVD and a 4800dpi scanner. The scanner features both copy and scan functions, so it’s great for a quick photocopy or scanning photos, but if you want to scan negatives you’ll need the top of the range Canon MG8150. On the MG6150 the scanner lid can be raised, which is handy if you want to scan thick documents like books. You can scan and save to a file on either your computer or a memory card/USB device or create an email attachment. The LCD also displays how much ink remains in each cartridge, so there’s no excuse for running out.


Print Speed & Quality:
Canon’s FINE print technology and 1pl ink droplets help ensure prints are sharp, detailed and clear but to the naked eye it’s difficult to see much improvement over the competition. That said the prints are impressive, particularly in neutrality and colour accuracy thanks to the six inks and the addition of a grey ink, which minimises any nasty colour casts. Print times are also impressive with a borderless photo quality A4 print being turned out in just 2 minutes and 10 seconds.

Verdict:
Without doubt a stylish looking unit with lots of features and it delivers on performance too, with very fast print times and top-notch mono results. An excellent multifunction.
Build quality: 5      
Ease of use: 5     
Features: 5    
Print speed & quality: 5
Overall: 5/5