The Canon BJC-80 is a go-anywhere compact ink-jet printer that weighs just over 3 pounds. This handy little model produces nice quality output and is small enough to fit in your notebook case--with your notebook.
The BJC-80 prints at 720 x 360 dpi resolution and is rated at up to 4.5 ppm for black printing and 2 ppm with color. Despite the unit's tiny size, the case is well constructed, and all sensitive components are protected when the printer is folded up for traveling. The top cover flips up and backward to a 45-degree angle to act as the input tray; paper ejects from the front onto your desktop. This simple design is quite appropriate for a portable unit.
A small cover on the front of the printer flips down to allow access to the print cartridge. When you press the cartridge button, the cartridge moves to the center of the unit for removal. Separate color and black cartridges come with the printer. The color cartridge holds a tricolor ink tank rated at 80 pages at 5 percent coverage and a black-ink tank rated at 60 pages at 3.75 percent coverage. The black cartridge takes a higher-capacity black-ink tank rated at 170 pages at 5 percent coverage. These ink tanks run dry rather quickly, so you should keep spare ones handy.
For wireless printing from your notebook, the BJC-80 features a built in IrDA (infrared) port in addition to the standard parallel port. Canon offers a rechargeable nickel metal-hydride battery option that prints about 200 pages on each charge, as well as a scanning cartridge that turns the printer into a 360-dpi sheet-fed scanner.
We were impressed with the output quality of this diminutive ink jet. If you work on the road and need to do occasional printing, the BJC-80 can greatly simplify your life.
Pros:
- Compact portable design
- Built-in IrDA infrared interface
- Converts into sheet-fed scanner
Cons:
- Low-capacity ink cartridges
- Slow color printing performance
This review was originally written for the nonrefurbished product.
Amazon.com Product Description
The Canon BJC-80 features the latest Canon technology for portable performance without compromise. One feature is Drop Modulation Technology, which gives crisper black text and sharper, richer color at 720 x 360 dpi. You can even scan images and artwork on the road, because the BJC-80 can instantly become a high-quality color sheetfed scanner with the optional IS-12 Color Image Scanner Cartridge, a Canon exclusive. Your presentations and reports will look better than ever.
The BJC-80 can go anywhere you need to go with its compact, lightweight design. Using its standard IrDA interface, you can print from IrDA-equipped Windows 95 computers without a cable. You can even leave the power cord home--its optional rechargeable battery pack lets you print up to 200 pages.