Canon Pixma MG7550
The Canon Pixma MG7550 is a great all-in-one photo printer/scanner/ copier that can also print direct to disc (CD, DVD, Blu-ray). It’s available in white, what Canon calls Burnt Orange (see below), as well as the usual printer black.
While being available in white as well as black might not mean much when choosing the best multifunction inkjet printer, the option is a welcome one. Plus, it’s a good-looking device that isn’t as bulky as many of its rivals.
The added disc-printing functionality is a bonus for printers, if you regularly make CDs or DVDs for work or pleasure. Printers that print on DVDs, CDs and Blu-ray discs are hard to come by, and Canon leads the field from a consumer printer point of view.
Performance
Let’s get right to the point. The MG7550 produces great photo prints, although its six inks can make it a little more expensive than some other inkjets. We think you’ll be happy with the results, though.
The colours are rich, and with a lack of graininess you can really see the sharp details. Tones and shading are well rendered, too. Some have found (or rather not found) a lack of detail in darker shadows, but this is not uncommon.
Print speeds don’t match Canon’s claimed 15 pages per minute (ppm) for mono and 10ppm for colour, though the reality is still respectable. It takes 20 seconds to turn on and print the first page, 16 seconds from standby, and just nine seconds when already up and running. Black text prints at 14.3ppm and an A4 photo takes less than two minutes to print.
Print costs aren’t the cheapest, but if you buy the high-yield XL-sized ink cartridges you’ll save money. The MG7550 comes with standard-sized ink cartridges as standard. Note that turning on and off the printer for multiple jobs will cost you money as the printer (like many) cleans its print heads when you do so.
The MG7550 uses six inks to achieve such results: C, M, Y, BK, PGBK (pigment black) and GY (grey). The black and grey inks allow clear contrasts, with deep and detailed blacks. You need change only the ink cartridge colour that runs out rather than them all, which should save money, though the printer won’t print any pages if one of the cartridges is empty – even if that colour is not required for the job.
When it came to scanning, we were impressed by the speed and quality for both text and photos. The same was true when it came to photocopying documents.
Design
With its sloped, rounded edges and glossy case the Pixma MG7550 is a great-looking printer – and we love the white and orange options. Online we found the orange model to be more expensive, but it looks wonderful. Our home environment favoured the white edition, and it’s excellent to have a choice of colour for a multifunction printer. On the front of the Canon is a large touch control, so you can quickly navigate the menus and preview images.
There are two paper trays (so can simultaneously handle photo- and plain paper): one holds 125 sheets of plain paper, while the other 20 photo blanks up to 13x18cm. A slot above takes a CD/DVD carrier, which is stored in a clip under the photo tray. Double-sided (duplex) printing is supported as standard.
The MG7550 has USB and ethernet (10/100) for wired connectivity to a home network, plus Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n). It’s compatible with Apple AirPrint and Google CloudPrint, and has its own Pixma Cloud Link that allows you to print photos from Facebook, Twitter and online photo albums, and print/scan documents to cloud services such as Google Drive, OneDrive and Dropbox.
On the front panel, inside the front cover, are twin SD and Memory Stick slots.
The MG7550 also has Near Field Communications (NFC), so you can print from compatible phones by holding the handset up to the printer. It can also be used to print from wireless cameras.
By using Canon’s Pixma Printing Solutions app for your smartphone or tablet, you can access cloud services, and check printer status, the manual or real-time ink levels over Wi-Fi.
Verdict
We’re big fans of the Canon Pixma MG7550 and recommend it for photo enthusiasts and people who sometimes need to print direct to disc. In fact, it’s a great generalpurpose multifunction printer that produces great photo prints, can print direct to CD/DVD and other printable discs, and also offers duplex (double-sided) printing, and a raft of wireless and cloud-based services. It is good looking, not overly bulky, and is available in both black and white, and a curious Burnt Orange.