Printer stopped working - is it even worth trying to fix it or justbuy a new one?

It is a Canon MP450 about 2 1/2 years old. It just will not turn
on, I have done all of the
obvious checking of plugs etc. No disc for this as it is a plug and
play.

With the low prices of basic home printers these days is it even worth
getting someone out to
look at it?

stonej <stonej@mail.lib.msu.edu> wrote:
>It is a Canon MP450 about 2 1/2 years old. It just will not turn
>on, I have done all of the
>obvious checking of plugs etc. No disc for this as it is a plug and
>play.
>
>With the low prices of basic home printers these days is it even worth
>getting someone out to
>look at it?

No it isn't worth it. Likely problem is a failed power supply. The parts are
probably unavailable and even if they can be found the cost including labour
would exceed the cost of a new printer.
Tony
MS MVP Printing Image

On Sep 23, 5:15 pm, stonej <sto...@mail.lib.msu.edu> wrote:
> It is a Canon MP450 about 2 1/2 years old. It just will not turn
> on, I have done all of the
> obvious checking of plugs etc. No disc for this as it is a plug and
> play.
>
> With the low prices of basic home printers these days is it even worth
> getting someone out to
> look at it?

Is that printer actually that old?

There are some printers that are worth investing in because of some
feature they offer. If I had an ip4000 for instance, it would be
worth it to replace the head at $50 as it costs 2.5c/page to print
text, vs 3.2c on newer models.

Your printer, respectfully, isn't in that class.

It takes the PG-50 tank which has 16ml of ink, and about a 320 page
yield
$28.99, 1.81/ml, 9c/page

Models that start at $100 take the PG% 5 26ml tank, about a 500p yield
$15.99, 61cents/ml 3.2c/page

2000 pages on your printer black 5% yield will run about $180
2000 pages on a mp530 or mp830 will run about $64
Savings $116

It's cheaper to throw your printer off a bridge than continue using
it.

There are quite a few options starting at $100 that are far more
reasonable per page than the mp450.

It may be a bad fuse, or a bad plug connection. You probably have
little to lose by manipulating a few things and seeing if you can get
something going. As you stated, unfortunately, printers have become a
disposable commodity.

Art


If you are interested in issues surrounding e-waste,
I invite you to enter the discussion at my blog:

http://e-trashtalk.spaces.live.com/

stonej wrote:
> It is a Canon MP450 about 2 1/2 years old. It just will not turn
> on, I have done all of the
> obvious checking of plugs etc. No disc for this as it is a plug and
> play.
>
> With the low prices of basic home printers these days is it even worth
> getting someone out to
> look at it?

On Sep 24, 8:43 am, measekite <inkysti...@oem.com> wrote:

> It is better to take advantage of the new technology.

It's better to evaluate your options, and pick one based on your
needs.

You "could" buy a new sub-budget AIO, but if the running cost is going
to be 9c/page for the same ink, you're spending about $100 extra every
2000 pages.

If your needs are text, canon has not improved text for about 10
years.

IntergalacticExpandingPanda wrote:
> On Sep 24, 8:43 am, measekite <inkysti...@oem.com> wrote:
>
>> It is better to take advantage of the new technology.
>
> It's better to evaluate your options, and pick one based on your
> needs.
>
> You "could" buy a new sub-budget AIO, but if the running cost is going
> to be 9c/page for the same ink, you're spending about $100 extra every
> 2000 pages.
>
> If your needs are text, canon has not improved text for about 10
> years.
>
If the O.P.'s needs are light, used or refurbished rather than new is
another viable option. Of course, the risk must be assessed by the buyer
according to his comfort with assuming it, but good, used printers can
be had for a song on places like Ebay, Amazon, and Craig's List. There
wouldn't be a warranty on a used printer, but then Canon's warranty for
the printer he has now isn't doing anything for him, either. Factory
refurbs usually do have a warranty, but they're more expensive than used.

I haven't purchased a new printer in over 20 years, and I don't intend
to start any time soon. Like any other purchase you need to do your
research, but in this day and age that's simple survival.

TJ

Under other thread, I posted streaking problem on Canon i9900 printer.
I could not fix the problem. So I need a new inkjet printer..

The inkjet printer guru, Measekite, advised to choose the Canon Pro9000 or
Epson 2880.
If Epson fixed the cloggin problem, I might go for Epson printer.

Could someone advise me a reliable inkjet printer under $300?

Roman

On Sep 26, 9:03 am, "Roman King" <machocr...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> Under other thread, I posted streaking problem on Canon i9900 printer.
> I could not fix the problem. So I need a new inkjet printer..
>
> The inkjet printer guru, Measekite, advised to choose the Canon Pro9000 or
> Epson 2880.
> If Epson fixed the cloggin problem, I might go for Epson printer.
>
> Could someone advise me a reliable inkjet printer under $300?
>
> Roman

Firstly, Measekite isn't a printer guru. His experience base is
limited to the Canon ip4000 and an HP model.

You want an a3+ for under $300?

The only thing that comes to mind is the Epson Stylus Photo 1400.
It's $179 shipped as a referb from the Epson website.
http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/c...s&oid=63072161
$279 new from Newegg.com shipped.

As with all deals on the Epson clearance site, the value of the ink is
close to that of the value of the printer. $113.94 for the ink, $65
for the printer.

Inks on the 1400 are 11ml with a reported yield of 470pages letter @
5% yield for $18.99 each.

This represents a reduction in size from the Epson Stylus Pro 1280, a
single $30.00 tank contains 14 ml of each color and a 330p yield.
Black is 16ml @ page yield for $25.

Canon uses 13ml tanks, where IIRC the reported yield 280 pages @ 5% on
letter for $13.99 each.

It employs smaller drops than the Canon pixma pro9000, but the pixma
pro has two extra ink tanks, red and green. Given the choice, I'd go
with extra color vs smaller drops, but for the price I'd lean toward
the epson.
http://www.steves-digicams.com/2006_...n_pro9000.html

You can find some places with a $100 rebate on the pixma pro9000
http://canon.rebatestatus.com/config...=092908-102608

The real complain on the pixma pro is like the a4 models the max print
length is only 23-24inches. I would expect to be able to do 37 inches
as the max length to letter is a 1:2.8 ratio.

Far be it from me to advise against buying used inkjet printers, but one
major consideration beyond how well it prints (due to clogged heads, for
instance) but shipping an inkjet printer can be tricky, because the
waste ink is usually stored in some pads at the base of the printer and
if the printer is not left in the proper position during shipping, teh
ink can migrate and make a real mess, possibly even making it unrepairable.

My suggestion with used inkjet printers is to try to acquire them
locally, via thrift shops, local classifieds or swap and shop,
Craigslist or even Freecycle.

Art

If you are interested in issues surrounding e-waste,
I invite you to enter the discussion at my blog:

http://e-trashtalk.spaces.live.com/

TJ wrote:
> IntergalacticExpandingPanda wrote:
>> On Sep 24, 8:43 am, measekite <inkysti...@oem.com> wrote:
>>
>>> It is better to take advantage of the new technology.
>>
>> It's better to evaluate your options, and pick one based on your
>> needs.
>>
>> You "could" buy a new sub-budget AIO, but if the running cost is going
>> to be 9c/page for the same ink, you're spending about $100 extra every
>> 2000 pages.
>>
>> If your needs are text, canon has not improved text for about 10
>> years.
>>
> If the O.P.'s needs are light, used or refurbished rather than new is
> another viable option. Of course, the risk must be assessed by the buyer
> according to his comfort with assuming it, but good, used printers can
> be had for a song on places like Ebay, Amazon, and Craig's List. There
> wouldn't be a warranty on a used printer, but then Canon's warranty for
> the printer he has now isn't doing anything for him, either. Factory
> refurbs usually do have a warranty, but they're more expensive than used.
>
> I haven't purchased a new printer in over 20 years, and I don't intend
> to start any time soon. Like any other purchase you need to do your
> research, but in this day and age that's simple survival.
>
> TJ

Well, if your inkjet guru is Measekite, I'm not sure I can help you,
nor, I doubt can anyone else ;-)

Since i have Measekite's postings screen so I don;t get them unless they
are quoted, I'm not sure where the error may have been introduced, but
the Epson R2880 is a $800 printer. It is 13" wide, uses Ultrachrome
pigment inks including 3 densities of blacks (the K3 system) for gray
scale images. It has some similarities in features to the i9900. It
occasionally clogs, but the Ultrachrome inks are slow drying which
limits problems of that nature, and they have very good fade resistance.

Perhaps someone meant the R280, which is a lower end 6 color dye ink
printer. As lower end printers go, it is a good one. It has fairly low
clog potential (I rarely get reports of clogs regarding it). It ism
however, a very inexpensive printer (about $100 or less).

The Canon Pro9000 is an 8 color printer, using ChromaLife inks, which
are not as fade resistant as the Epson 2880 inks. But it sells for
about $500.

If you do not require very permanent inks, or want the larger gamma that
dye inks provide consider the Epson 1400. This s a wide carriage model
that will handle up to 13" and it is around $300, or for only $100 more
the R1900 is also available from Epson. A bit more clogging, but still
not bad, but many are unhappy with either gray scale or non-glossy
performance. Does use pigment colorant inks, and sells for about $400.

Prices are based upon list pricing, and you may get somewhat lower
prices retail.

No one has fully fixed the "clogging problem". All have improved on it.
Do keep in mind that Canon heads are only semi-permanent and will
usually fail withing 24 months of moderate use and cost a good portion
of a full printer replacement. Epson heads are permanent and most
unclogging, when required, can be done at home.

Art


If you are interested in issues surrounding e-waste,
I invite you to enter the discussion at my blog:

http://e-trashtalk.spaces.live.com/

Roman King wrote:
> Under other thread, I posted streaking problem on Canon i9900 printer.
> I could not fix the problem. So I need a new inkjet printer..
>
> The inkjet printer guru, Measekite, advised to choose the Canon Pro9000 or
> Epson 2880.
> If Epson fixed the cloggin problem, I might go for Epson printer.
>
> Could someone advise me a reliable inkjet printer under $300?
>
> Roman
>
>