We’ve been mightily impressed with Canon’s large-format printers in the past. The Canon imagePROGRAF PRO-2600 and Canon imagePROGRAF PRO-4600 are the gods of pro-grade, roll-fed photo printing, and now they’re to be joined by 12 new disciples, to spread the word to other types of printing.
Before we get too carried away, it should be noted that the new imagePROGRAF printers run on five inks rather than the 12 inks of the ‘PRO’ series, so they’re not aiming for the ultimate in photographic fidelity. Instead, they’re geared to large-format graphics and design applications in the fields of architecture, engineering, construction, retail, education, and any other applications that need big, detailed prints and eye-catching posters.
Additions to the imagePROGRAF TM lineup comprise the TM-615, TM-610M, TM-610, TM-600, TM-510M, TM-510 and TM-500 models. All of them feature a newly developed matte black ink, formulated to enhance black density and enable rich fine lines and crisp detail, even in the fine print. Technical drawings will see the benefit, while vivid color reproduction is on hand for poster printing. Based on previous Canon 5-ink printers that we’ve reviewed, we can’t help but think that these new printers will make an excellent stab at photo printing as well.
In the TM range, the new TM-610M (36-inch roll printer) and TM-510M (24-inch roll printer) are the most versatile, as they’re the only two models that feature a built-in, large-format scanner. They have a flat-top design to ensure easy loading of large documents and artwork, and feature light sources on both sides of the image sensor, to reduce the appearance of wrinkles and creases. To ensure intuitive ease of use, there’s a 5-inch color touchscreen, common to many Canon multifunction copiers.
Moving on to the TX series lineup, the new models are the TX-4310 MFP Z36, TX-4300, TX-3310 MFP Z36, TX-3300 and TX-1300 MFP Z36. The ‘MFP’ products feature an integral large-format scanner, making them ‘multi-function printers’. The others in the range that lack this suffix are printer-only models, without scanners. Again, there are two sizes to choose from, for example the TX-4300 being a 44-inch roll printer and the TX-3300 accepting paper roll widths of up to 36 inches.
Designed as high-volume printers, all but the smaller TX-1300 MFP Z36 feature a newly developed basket, stacking outputted pages face down and aligning them. This makes it easy to lift your finished pile of large-format paperwork with the minimum of effort. And with no need to arrange, stack or align the sheets afterwards, you’re good to go. Other useful features include a Smart Roll Paper Set function. This automatically detects the paper type, estimates the amount of paper remaining on the roll, and begins feeding automatically. A secondary roll feeder is available as an optional extra, with automatic switching between different widths or types of paper.
The multi-function TX printers are all fitted with an oversized 15.6-inch monitor screen. The aim here to make scanning and copying as intuitive as possible, including the ability to make real-time edits for parameters like brightness, color rendition, skew correction and various others, without the need to rescan pages afterwards. Another neat trick is that the scanner and printer can work independently so, for example, you can scan paperwork while someone else is creating prints from their computer.
Price and availability of all 12 new imagePROGRAF models is available on Canon’s regional websites - but as an example, the TM-500 will cost £1,068 when it goes on sale in November.
