Ever feel bad for the little guy? The one that gets no respect but can still bring something to the table? Okay, probably not. But like some people who bring more value than is appreciated, the same goes for some portable color printers. This is the case with the Canon i70 portable printer. If you’re at all familiar with portable printers, then you have probably heard of the Canon Pixma iP90 and Canon Pixma iP100. When it comes to stats, features, and value, they’re pretty much the gold standards. The Canon i70 first started selling in 2003, so the technology is slightly outdated. That being the case, you might be wondering why it’s mentioned here. The answer to that is simple: affordability. The Pixma iP90 and Pixma iP100 both sell for just under $200 new. The i70, while for some reason listed at roughly the same price at some sites, can be found for lower than $150. The design of the i70 is good enough to save at least $50. Let’s go over some stats and features so you can judge for yourself whether it’s the right machine for you.
The Canon i70 Portable Printer is a color bubble-jet machine. It’s best suited for the home or a small office. Print resolution can reach as high as 600 x 600 dots per inch black and 4800 x 1200 dots per inch color. There are 704 print nozzles, which isn’t spectacular for a desktop, but good for a portable. When it comes to speed, the i70 can print up to 13 pages per minute black and 9 pages per minute color. A 4 x 6-inch borderless print will take 90 seconds. The 13/9 numbers aren’t bad, especially considering speed usually isn’t an important factor when you’re on the road. Most printing is done from a hotel room and/or prior to a presentation, not in the heat of the moment. The 4 x 6 borderless print speed number is not impressive, but once again, this probably won’t be of concern to the majority of users.
While direct printing is possible with the Canon i70, it can only be done if you’re using one of Canon’s select digital cameras. This machine was designed right before PictBridge became such a popular option, allowing people to print directly from almost all digital cameras and many mobile phones. This is definitely one area where the i70 lags. If you don’t own a compatible camera, you might want to spend the extra money and go with the Pixma iP90 or Pixma iP100. They’re both Pictbridge-compatible. They also have many other features, but for that information, you’re going to need to check out their specific reviews. There are too many too list here.
Getting back to the i70, as far as connectivity goes, it only supports USB. The USB cable is not included if you buy new, although it should be included if you buy refurbished or used. The i70 also has IrDA technology, meaning it doesn’t require any wires to print. It’s a quiet machine, easy to install, and PC and Mac-compatible. Its dimensions are 15 x 5.6 x 9.8 inches and it weighs 7 lbs. This is relatively large and heavy compared to the top portable color printers of today, but it was actually known as small and light back then. The only real negative for the i70 – aside from slightly outdated technology – is that there’s no paper catch. Where will the paper go? Nobody knows. Plan accordingly. Other than that, it’s a well-rounded machine.
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