The Canon Pixma G3270 Wi-fi MegaTank All-in-One Printer is comparable in most methods to the Canon Pixma G2270, primarily matching it in every thing from its print pace to its paper capability to its small monochrome LCD. The important thing distinction, nevertheless, is that it provides Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct together with cell printing and scanning. Its $30-higher record value, at $229.99, is sufficiently small that if you should utilize both or each extras, it is the no-brainer alternative between the 2. The extras are additionally sufficient to make the G3270 get up significantly better to competitors just like the Brother MFC-J4335DW, our present Editors’ Alternative decide for a light-duty inkjet all-in-one printer for private or micro workplace use.
Low cost Ink Is the Prime Attraction
Organising the G3270 is simple. For my checks, I related it to our customary printer testbed PC by way of USB, however notice that even when you favor Wi-Fi, you will in all probability wish to hold the printer in simple attain. There’s just one enter tray, which implies you will should swap out or add paper if you should change from one kind or dimension to a different, as when printing an envelope. And the capability is restricted to solely 100 sheets of as much as legal-size pages, which signifies that when you print sufficient to take good benefit of the low working price, you will have so as to add paper pretty typically.
One other good cause to maintain the printer in your desk is that if you should print on either side of the web page, the G3270 provides solely handbook duplexing, not computerized. This implies it prints one aspect of a doc, then waits so that you can take away the pages from the output tray and reinsert them, with the driving force caring for printing the proper pages on the proper aspect of every sheet. The G3270 makes the handbook step easy, each by placing illustrated directions in your pc display screen exhibiting easy methods to take away and insert the pages, and by positioning the enter tray on the rear prime, the place it is easy to slide the pages in. However to maneuver the stack, you need to be in attain of the printer.
Paper dealing with for scanning is strictly entry-level. It is restricted to a letter-size flatbed, which implies you possibly can’t scan a full legal-size web page, and scanning requires placing every web page on the scanner manually, a serious chore if you should scan many multipage paperwork.
After all, low paper capacities and strictly flatbed scanning assist make the printer sufficiently small to be a cushty dimension for a desktop companion. It measures simply 7 by 16.4 by 13.3 inches (HWD) with trays closed, or 21.9 inches deep with the output tray open, and it weighs simply 13.2 kilos. Bodily setup is easy, however you should go to Canon’s web site to get the step-by-step directions for every thing from eradicating the packing supplies to putting in the driving force, with inserting the printheads and pouring ink from bottles into the printer in between. The setup skips taking you thru printhead alignment, which includes printing an alignment web page, then scanning it for an computerized adjustment, but it surely suggests that you just run it.
One minor setup challenge, which I’ve additionally seen with different Canon printers, is that the directions finish with an choice to go elsewhere on Canon’s web site “for extra data.” Select it, and you may see a web page regarding Canon’s Print Plan for ink. Simply ignore it. It isn’t related for tank printers.
Setup for cell printing and scanning can be simple. For my checks, I obtain Canon’s app to my Android telephone, related by way of Wi-Fi Direct, and was printing and scanning inside a couple of minutes of beginning. Printer menus allow you to present a QR code on the LCD for simple connection.
As already prompt, the G3270’s key power is its low working price. Sufficient ink is included with the printer for almost 6,000 mono textual content pages and seven,700 customary coloration pages. And for any ink you purchase past that, the fee per web page works out to 0.3 cent per mono textual content web page and 0.8 cent per customary coloration web page. Nevertheless, do not get too carried away with the low working price. The quantity that issues is the entire price of possession. The low ink price will lower your expenses general provided that you print sufficient for the financial savings in ink to make up for the upper preliminary price in contrast with an equal printer that has a decrease preliminary value and the next price per web page.
Remember additionally that, as with all tank printer, it is easy to search out different selections that price about the identical or much less that ship sooner print pace, higher paper dealing with, and extra options, however the next price per web page. Each the MFC-J4335DW talked about earlier and the HP OfficeJet Professional 8035e provide computerized duplex printing and computerized doc feeders (ADFs) for scanning, for instance. However the additional few cents for printing every web page signifies that you can wind up paying much more in the long term for these options.
Testing the Canon Pixma G3270: Entry-Stage Pace, Good-Sufficient High quality
On our efficiency checks, the G3270 was tied (inside every take a look at’s error vary) with the G2270, as anticipated, since each use the identical printer engine. Each have been the slowest (or tied for slowest) of all of the printers talked about right here.
For our full 12-page Microsoft Phrase file take a look at, the Brother printer had the quickest first web page out (FPO) time, however the 8035e tied it for the complete file, which interprets to the MFC-J4335DW being noticeably sooner between the 2 for textual content recordsdata of solely a web page or two, however the 8035e printing every web page sooner from web page 2 on, and catching up at about web page 12. It ought to be the sooner printer general for still-longer recordsdata, so when you print largely textual content and largely longer recordsdata, you could favor its pace benefit.
That mentioned, each the 8035e and MFC-J4335DW have been sooner than the Canon printers for each the Phrase file and for each file that included coloration graphics, with the 8035e notably sooner than the Canon printers general and the MFC-J4335DW the quickest of the 4 by far.
For 4-by-6-inch pictures, the G3270 averaged 53 seconds every.
The G3270’s output high quality is appropriate for an entry-level printer. Black textual content wasn’t as darkish as with laser-printed output, however all of the fonts that you just’d doubtless use in a enterprise doc have been well-formed sufficient to be simply readable at 5 factors, and most have been simply readable, regardless of barely ragged edges, at 4 factors. Of the 2 closely stylized fonts in our suite with thick strokes, the one which’s more durable to render nicely was simply readable at 12 factors. The opposite was simply readable at 8 factors.
Utilizing default settings for graphics on plain paper, some colours have been rather less vibrant than they need to be, one gradient confirmed minor posterization (shading altering instantly the place it ought to change regularly), and a few fills confirmed banding in darkish colours and darker shades in gradients. Nevertheless, skinny traces held properly—together with a one-pixel-wide line on a black background, and all of the graphics conveyed the data they have been meant to point out. Pictures have been on the excessive finish of drugstore high quality, utilizing the Normal high quality setting and the Canon’s matte picture paper.
On our ink smudge checks, black textual content on plain paper smudged barely from water, however stood as much as a highlighter with out smudging in any respect. Shade inks in graphics resisted smudging from water, however confirmed apparent water stains after drying.
Verdict: A Nice Alternative…If You Print Sufficient
The Canon Pixma G3270 provides entry-level pace and output high quality mixed with a low working price and assist for each Wi-Fi connections and cell printing and scanning. If you’d like extra printing and scanning functionality, and also you’re prepared to pay the next working price to get it, you could favor the HP 8035e or Brother MFC-J4335DW. Each characteristic computerized print duplexing and an ADF for scanning multipage paperwork, plus sooner printing and better paper capacities than the G3270 provides.
Between the 2, the 8035e has the higher-capacity tray. The MFC-J4335DW has the decrease price per web page and the sooner print pace general. It is also the one AIO talked about right here that provides a one-sheet bypass tray, making it simple to print an envelope or the like with out having to swap out the paper within the tray.
That mentioned, if you are able to do with out these additional options, and anticipate to print sufficient for the G3270’s low ink price to save cash in the long term, it is nicely price contemplating. Remember additionally that when you plan to attach by way of USB cable to at least one PC, and do not want cell printing, it can save you a bit of by getting the G2270, which provides the identical low working price and all the identical options besides Wi-Fi.
