Customer Reviews
Canon i80 Is it worth it? 
2006-07-27
We've used this printer a little over one year and loved it. Unfortunately, now it is plagued with problems. First of all the print head is extremely sensitive to drying out and is very difficult to impossible to clean using the printer's clean function or doing it manually. Canon offers a replacement head for $65. Next the ink cleaning reservoir with normal use will fill up in about a year. To replace it will cost $120 and is only available through Canon. The print does travel well which is its intended use, but for an everyday printer you might want to look elsewhere.
waste ink absorber 
2006-03-03
My original I80 was purchased in June of 2004. By January of 2005 it was replaced due to a print head malfunction. Cannon replaced such with a refurbished model. Here it is March of 2006 and an error message is preventing documents from printing. Error message - Waste ink absorber full, check page 60 or so of your manuals for a description which includes contacting Cannon customer care. Response from Cannon customer care - bring it to an Authorized Service Facilty, cost $50.00 or so for the part and to re-set the printer. Or purchase a new one through Cannon loyalty Program with the whopping "Thank You" discount of 10%. I applaud the transport convenience, the small ink cartridges, the compact design, the ability to print borderless pictures. Somehow or another I have difficulty with the "not mentioned" maintenance cost of $50.00, for an average user, waste ink absorber. For self serving purposes - does anyone have an idea what a waste ink absorber is? I'm going back to my old ink jet printer which over the last five years has never needed extra maintenance nor something to absorb wasted ink.
Canon i80 - Continuing A Tradition Of Fine Printers. 
2005-05-10
I've owned several Canon portable printers in the past, including the Canon BJC-70, the BJC-80, and two Apple StyleWriter 2200's (BJC-70 bearing the Apple logo). I've also owned several portable printers made by other companies, none really as satisfying as the Canon printers.
I'm now using the Canon i80 (HP zd7000 & Windows XP). This printer clearly evolved from those earlier Canon printers, improving in some ways and not in others. On the positive side, print quality and speed is roughly on par with many desktop printers within this price range. Canon has also greatly reduced, and perhaps even elininated, the problem of the ink jets drying and clogging between print jobs (on earlier BJC models, the ink jets would dry out if the printer wasn't used for a week or so). And, unlike the i70, this printer comes with the multi-voltage power supply needed by international travelers.
Other things have not improved. Like those earlier printers, the i80 suffers from paper feed problems, ranging from paper not feeding at all (unless forced), to multiple sheets of paper feeding at the same time, to paper not feeding straight. Of course, this is more pronounced with very thin or very thick paper (thick envelopes are especially troublesome, often only solved by sharply creasing the envelope edges before using). All this is more of a nuisance than a serious problem, so should not automatically rule out this printer from purchase consideration. It doesn't happen all the time, or even most of the time, and can be reduced with experience.
The price continues to be high, especially with accessories often included with other portable printers (cables, battery attachments, batteries, and so on). If on-site portable printing is truly needed, requiring the purchase of accessories, I would have to recommend another printer with built-in battery. However, if one only needs to easily move a printer between hotel rooms, business meetings, or offices, the performance and convenience of the i80 wins out.
Some things are a mixed bag. The case design of the i80 has improved over earlier Canon models. The paper holder/cover now completely covers the printer, protecting it from dirt/dust or while packed in a bag. However, at the same time, Canon switched that case from a neutral near-black to an oddball copper/tan color which doesn't match any computer I've ever seen. Of course, this doesn't really affect performance, but it is distractingly noticable.
Finally, some things have gotten worse compared to earlier models. The i80 does not properly print some web pages in Internet Explorer without an external plug-in (Easy Web Print), which adds another IE toolbar complete with bright red Canon logo and buttons not matching other toolbar icons. Without this plug-in, the right side of some web pages are cut off. Canon either needs to reduce the intrusiveness of this plug-in or integrate this capability into the print driver as other companies do (the three other printers I now own handle these same web pages properly without a plug-in). Luckily, printing everything else with the i80 is entirely painless.
In conclusion, all portable printers are a compromise offering portable convenience with some inconveniences. The Canon i80 is no exception. However, the inconveniences associated with the i80 are minor, easily outstripped by overall convenience and performance. As such, I can comfortably recommend this printer to any fellow road warrier.
This is a great little printer! 
2005-04-25
I would recommend this printer to anyone who is looking for the convenience of having a good quality printer for trips when there is a need to work in a hotel room. The printer is small and compact and actually performs better than expected; it prints remarkable fast. The only challenge I find is periodically more than one piece of paper comes through the printer at the same time.
Canon falls short with Apple user 2005-01-07
A dual-purpose printer for traveling, works almost to my satisfaction. Printing 4x6 snapshots for friends does not interface well with my Apple PowerBook G4 with OS X Panther, however. Photos are blurry, out of focus, flat with the Canon program. Photos printed using Apple's iPhoto are quite acceptable - even up to 8x10 in most cases. A workaround can be done with Photoshop Elements, but seems a bit unnecessary with a product from Canon. A pricey printer, but functions quite well in my experience, and fits my requirements as all-around printer where laser quality is not an issue.
3 years and going... 2007-09-26
As a graduate student, I wanted a portable printer to go with my laptop in order to do my research papers. This was in 2004. I read the reviews of several people having problems. I have had this printer for three years and the biggest problem has been that the paper jams if you insert too many at a time. (knock on wood) Other than that, I have had no problems and trust me, I have used this printer a LOT. I printed many a research paper using this little machine. I have printed nice pictures with it too. This is a great printer.
CHEAP Ink Cartridges 2007-09-08
In addition to all of the other "Kudos" awarded to this printer by the other reviewers, I want to add the following. While the price of "Genuine Canon" ink cartridges may (does) border on outright robbery, you DON'T have to buy them. Compatible cartridges are dirt cheap at places like "[...]". If you buy a refill kit from say, "[...]", you can refill your own for pennies each. I do, they are VERY easy to refill, work as good as new, and canon even gives you a "Reset Ink Level" option under the print driver "maintenance" section. YAY Canon -- DOWN for HP !!!!
good at first but then has lots of problems 2007-01-24
I travel a lot and have a lot of Canon equipment, so I thought this would be a good choice. Prints look good and it is super small. Unfortunately, I had to take it in for a full rebuild 3 times under warranty, and I really don't use it much at all. That might be part of the problem. The heads dry out really fast, and after a while, it doesn't even see the new ink cartridges. My cost per print runs about $3 because of the waisted ink. It has definitely NOT worked a lot more than it has worked. Prints that I made on the canon photo paper faded right away. In conclusion, I have 6 Epson printers, and they have problems as well, but nothing like the Canon. Not recommended.
Very disappointing and not sturdy at all 2006-10-09
I purchased the Canon I80 printer as I wanted a small portable unit for training and conference events. The unit has broken down multiple times, the heads dry out and get clogged all the time and every time I turn around something else goes wrong...I purchased the unit for $250 and have spent as much keeping it going and only used it 12 times. It has now failed again and they want another $240 to fix it. Really a waste of money. I would not buy this product again.
Printer Heads Dry Out 2006-08-24
I agree wholeheartedly with Mark Page-Botelho's review. This printer is not for regular use. I had the same problem with the black print head drying out. The available maintenence functions have not been helpful, and the Canon service reps advice similarly has lead to a lot of wasted time and frustration, along with a lot of wasted ink and paper from doing cleaning and testing repeatedly.
