Press Release: Canon PIXMA MP500 printer


Canon, a leader in photographic and imaging technology, announces the release of the Canon PIXMA MP500 3-In-1 photo centre for the advanced home user with a 1 picolitre 9600 x 2400 dpi FINE (Full-photolithography Inkjet Nozzle Engineering) print head. Incorporating renowned PIXMA design, the Canon MP500 is a complete mini photolab for the home user. It features approx. 51 second photolab quality 10 x 15cm borderless photo prints, 9600 x 2400 dpi, 1 picolitre, 5 ink photo printing, extensive connectivity including memory card slot, PictBridge, IrDA and optional Bluetooth for printing from compatible mobile phones and large 6.3cm colour LCD for image preview, enhancement and cropping.

ChromaLife100 - Quality that lasts
Other features are 1200 x 2400 dpi high resolution flatbed scanner, high speed document copier: 29cpm (mono) and 19cpm (colour) and DVD/CD printing, auto duplex printing, dual paper tray. For long lasting fade-resistant prints, the Canon MP500 features the new ChromaLife100 system. When used in conjunction with genuine Canon media, ChromaLife100 produces prints that resist fading for 100 years when stored in an album. Prints exposed unframed to the effects of the air resist fading for 10 years if printed on Photo Paper Pro (Canon PR-101).

Canon FINE technology - Speed and Quality
“With 1 picolitre quality and its extensive functionality, the Canon PIXMA MP500 represents excellent value at this price point,” said Mogens Jensen, Head of Canon Consumer Imaging, Europe. Canon's patented FINE semi-conductor manufacturing technique creates extraordinary print speeds by producing exceptionally long print heads with exceptionally high nozzle numbers and density. This gets more ink on the page in less time than is possible with traditional ink jet technology, delivering fast borderless photo prints up to A4 size. FINE also achieves virtually grain free photolab quality by delivering millions of microscopic 1 picolitre1 droplets each second with extremely high consistency and accuracy from 9 m diameter Micro-Nozzles. ContrastPLUS technology, a system that includes a dye-based black ink for sharper contrast, works in concert with FINE to generate exceptionally crisp, high contrast results. Document text results are sharpened with the addition of improved, high optical density pigment black ink. A USB 2.0 Hi-Speed interface eliminates data transfer bottlenecks to keep performance at maximum capacity.

Canon MP500 - Operated without PC
To support direct printing without a computer, the Canon MP500’s large 6.3cm colour LCD screen can be used to preview images and page layouts and preview image trimming or cropping. With direct printing possible from popular memory cards, PictBridge compliant digital cameras and digital video camera, as well as mobile phones via Bluetooth or IrDA, the Canon PIXMA MP500 printer is equipped with a range of built-in image enhancement features, so photographs can be improved without resorting to the PC. Red-eye Correction automatically detects and corrects red eyes caused by flash reflection, while the Face Brightener can distinguish and increase the brightness of faces when they are in shadow. Prints of low-resolution images, such as those taken on a camera phone, are optimized with the Smoothing function, softening jagged outlines and reducing JPEG block noise. Wireless printing from Bluetooth compatible camera phones and PDAs is available with the optional new super compact BU-20 Bluetooth adapter, which plugs into the printers’ PictBridge port.

MP500 - Sharper scanning and AE copying
The MP500 provides the user with 1200 dpi scanning. It features Multi Scan, which can scan up to 10 photos as multiple single images at a time, and automatically corrects tilted images. Scan to PDF creates PDFs from original documents without use of conversion software. PDF file pages are easily ordered and can be readily inserted into previously created PDF files. Featuring automatic OCR (Optical Character Recognition), text is embedded into the PDF file for convenient editing and searching. As well as the meeting the speed expected from any excellent copier, the Canon PIXMA MP500 features Auto Exposure (AE) copying, where the document is pre-scanned to give optimum results for text, photos and background. With 4-on-1 copying, four original documents can be copied onto one page.

Canon Photo paper - Advanced media handling
The Canon PIXMA MP500 incorporates Canon’s Advanced Media Handling system, with dual paper trays, so the printer can be loaded with plain paper and photo media simultaneously, as well as auto duplex printing and integrated DVD/CD printing. Canon’s competitive advantage in printer hardware technology is fully realised when genuine Canon photo grade media and inks are used. The diverse and growing range of Canon media, including the new affordable Glossy Photo Paper Everyday Use (Canon GP-501), is developed specifically to work in combination with Canon’s FINE ink jet print technology. Photo papers and media are available in a wide range of sizes (from credit card to A4), formats (including mini stickers) and finishes (from matt to semi-gloss to super-high gloss). They include double-sided photo paper (Canon PP-101D 13x18cm and Canon PP-101D A4) and the flagship Photo Paper Pro (Canon PR-101) for the highest grade, ultimate durability professional results.

Canon PIXMA MP500 - Ink efficiency
The printers’ individual ink tanks ensure that only those inks which run out need to be replaced. They feature LEDs that only light when the tanks are installed correctly. To provide ink level monitoring information during stand-alone use that would normally be displayed on the computer screen, LEDs flash slowly to warn when the tank runs low, and more rapidly to indicate when the cartridge is empty.

PIXMA printer software - MP Navigator 2.0 and Easy-WebPrint
MP Navigator 2.0 helps users get immediate optimum results with minimum fuss. Users simply select the required process and desired output. Version 2.0 features: improved PDF functionality; improved zoom window for scanned images; additional buttons and controls for greater usability; and options to scan from colour magazines or film. Easy-WebPrint (Windows only) sits on the Internet Explorer toolbar to simplify web page printing.

Canon PIXMA printer software - Easy to use
Easy-PhotoPrint provides three easy steps to printing photos, assisting with media selection, scaling and photo effects. CD-LabelPrint simplifies printing directly onto print-ready CD-R and DVDs. OmniPage SE is an Optical Character Recognition application that converts scanned text into characters for editing or storage as a searchable text file, and PhotoStudio is an image-editing program featuring automatic colour and tone enhancement, cloning, animated 3D text and over 40 special effects. The Canon MP500 printer is compatible with Windows 98/Me/2000/XP, and Mac OSX v10.2.4 or later.

Posted: Mon - August 22, 2005 at 08:57 AM          

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