Canon PIXMA MP480

I had an HP Photosmart 8150 that got put away in a box prior to a house move and got moved through another move before I realised that it hadn't been used for so long that it was unlikely to perform without major surgery.

However, being a little strapped for cash is not the right state to be in when looking for a decent printer that's capable of producing good quality photos.

To add to my problem, I needed a printer right now as I'd received a very important document by email that I had to print, sign, copy and email back so whatever I got had to scan too.

Hmmm.

Fell back on that old trusty Argos who have bailed me out on more than a few occasions in the past with truly unexpected bargains. I'd just bought a bed and some cabinets from them (just over £100) so had a £10 voucher too. All good. Even better was the fact that they showed the Canon PIXMA MP480 for £38.94. This seemed a steal to me, especially when considering that it has a pop up display and multi card reader so you can print without the computer being on (or even without a computer at all), a decent scanner and it's a copier too.

Out of the box and it's clear that this is a very attractive unit finished in a sort of off white and black, very smart. Not big either. Perhaps a smidgen off being as totally robust as I would like but I don't see it falling apart any time soon.

I do have a PC running Vista HP and the installation was simply a matter of running the supplied CD and connecting the power and (not supplied) USB cable.

The printer is quite effectively sealed against dust (the killer of many a printer) - you unfold the paper feeder at the back when you want to use it and close it up again afterwards. The 'wow' factor comes from seeing the unit open the output door all by itself when something is about to come out.

Results: normal text printing is plenty good enough for day to day correspondence, scanning is fast and extremely easy but the killer is the photo printing. All I can say is it's absolutely first rate, as good as a photo lab, great colour and pretty much dry as soon as comes out of the printer. Everyone that's seen the pictures has been extremely impressed.

I've seen many comments about high cost of ink and this is something to bear in mind with this type of printer as the cartridges are not available in 'compatible' format from other manufacturers but for an occasional user it really won't make much difference at all.

For a cost of under £40 this is a steal, if you've a voucher too then you've managed to steal it twice!