Canon BJC 85 Standard Inkjet Printer

Do you go on vacation, take your laptop to scout out restaurants and entertainment, then need to print out directions - or a discount coupon? Do you travel for work, and need to print out client copies, maps, or data? Are you a professional musician who needs to print out - at the JOB, yet! - a vocal part in another key, or a transposed alto sax part, because the sax player didn't pack their tenor sax, or the singer has *issues* with the original key? I've been in all 3 situations, and added to all the other things I need to carry, this little printer looks like it is going to start saving my sanity. It's smaller than a 1 1/2 dozen egg carton- not as thick - and prints decent copies. Ink tank is small - but it's easy to carry spares (not much bigger than a Zippo lighter). The electric pack weighs more than this does! You need to swap out the ink for color, and it does not handle many sheets at once - but your not at HOME, remember? I have even used it for the "second computer" station in my house - it's fine. You can get a scanner attachment for it as well, but I do not need that - got the big guy at home. This printer takes NORMAL paper - beware some of the portable printers that only use special thermal paper. Got mine for less than $40, used - I've spent money on things far less useful. Got to judge a music competition in 2 weeks - instead of hand-writing all those comments, I can load in the adjudication sheet, even drag in the stock comments ("Be sure to always use you best breath support.", etc.), add my specifics, and hit print - saving time AND writer's cramp, right there in the studio! If you already carry a laptop, I bet YOU will find great uses for this little cutie, too! Just remember - everything weighs *something*, so get yourself a nice rolling bag for all your stuff!

The Canon BJC 85 Inkjet Printer is a good light-weight portable printer. The ink cartridges are inexpensive, easy to insert. The biggest downfall I have is with the smaller black and color ink which are used in the bjc-11e cartridge head just don't last very long. I use the larger black cartridge Bjc-10 and basically use the printer for strictly a black only document printer. I also have A BJC-70, 2-BJC-80 Canon printers that work with the older Windows programs From Xp back.
Ihave been totally satisfied with this line of printers.

Unquestionably the best portable printer ever made. Rugged, ultra-dependable, lowest cost of ownership, and versatile! It can print with high capacity black-only, or full color, or morph into a sheet-fed scanner with a quick cartridge swap. Ink tanks are super easy to refill, just turn them over and drip ink onto the sponge. I travel worldwide, and the inks are available everywhere.
I bought this one to replace my 12-year-old still-working BJC-80 to get the BJC-85's USB capability.
Canon's BJCs are still the best, bar none. Canon's newer i-series don't have the high-capacity black-only and scanning capabilities. Worse, they scratch and crack easily, are heavier, and much less reliable.
This decade-old Canon BJC-85 printer still beats its newer brothers, and don't even think about HP junk.

This is a very durable unit and is good for those who do business on the run. Excellent print quality and no paper feed issues at all. And any ink will work in this unit with no problems and OEM cartridges are inexpensive as compared to the yield.

Now for the only drawback of this unit. The "waste ink" tank is very small and fills up quickly, and when it gets full, all functions of this printer cease. And the worst part is, it is not a consumer serviceable item. The repair MUST be done by a CANON authorized repair facility and I found that the labor is approximately $150 and the part is approximately $79, plus shipping. It costs more to fix it than it costs to buy a new one, and I think that is intentional and deceptive, and a way to FORCE the consumer to buy another unit!

For the reason above, I would never buy another Canon product, or any portable printer. There is no reason they cannot make this waste ink tank readily available and consumer serviceable. No reason at all.

Stay away from this one, and all portables if you are a heavy printer user.

I bought my first Canon BJC-85 about 3 years ago for it's portability. It delivered. I could work from my bed and print, hotel, car, etc. No limits. It's a great printer and a wonderful value for those on the go!