Canon 4000 vs 4200

[herky1127]

I currently have an ip3000 i have been refilling for about three years. Was thinking of getting another Canon that uses the same carts. Couple of questions:

1. From what I have read, the 6000 and above do not have the pigment black cart. Is this correct? I am assuming the black 3e is primarily for text which is what I mainly use my printer for. Only print a few photos here and there. Would you recommend a 4000/5000 for mainly text use and occassional photo printing?

2. If I am refilling, any downsides to just getting a 4200? It costs less and no problem with availability. It would use different carts and I would have to bypass the void warranty business. I am assuming it would no longer give me a low ink warning. Is this correct? Is this true for the Epson r2xx series as well?

 

[ghwellsjr]

To answer the questions under part 1:

If you want to know what cartridges any particular Canon printer has, go to their website, search on the printer model number, and when it comes up, click on the button off to the right that says Product Information and then select What's in the Box. You can also select Supplies & Accessories to see if it will take any other cartridges.

The black 3e is for printing on plain paper, whether you're printing text, graphics or pictures. If you use photo paper of any kind, the 3e is not used. The iP4000 is just like your iP3000 with the addition of a dye black BCI-6 cartridge which is used on photo paper (never on plain paper).

If you want to get SLIGHTLY better photos than your iP3000 can produce, the iP4000 would be a good choice if you could find one. The only remaining Canon printer that uses the BCI-6 cartridges is the i9900 at $400 after rebate. It has 8 different color cartridges (including black) which most people think is overkill. It's main advantage is that it can print up to 13" wide.

 

[websnail]

Re: the iP4200.. Your guesswork is about right...

You have to accept the "warranty void" warning and then refill... but as you surmised you also lose your ink level monitoring so you need to regularly check the levels and top up.. For all that regular top ups to keep the sponge wet are recommended anyway as the sponge drying up tends to cause ink feed issues.