Canon Pixma MP190 Photo All-in-One Inkjet Printer Review

At $69.99, the Cannon Pixma MP190 is on the lower end of low-cost all-in-one printers. And while it's not the fastest out there, it's well suited for printing photos and scanning bulky items.

Pixma MP190 Design

There is no media card slot and no LCD on the MP190, so you have to use your computer to view and edit your pictures. Its footprint of 17.5 x 13.1 inches does take up some space. The Quick Start feature makes the MP190 ready to go in about 12 seconds--6 seconds quicker than the next-fastest printer we've reviewed recently, theHP Photosmart C4480.

Performance

Aside from its startup time, the MP190 is generally slower than other all-in-ones. It printed black-and-white documents at 19 pages per minute (ppm) and color pages at 15 ppm; copies were adequate. A 4 x 6-inch color photo printed in about 30 seconds, and it turned out excellent, though not as good as with the Epson Workforce 500 (which printed the photo in 26 seconds). Set to the highest setting, the same photo printed out in 70 seconds and was close to lab quality.

Conveniently, the scanner features a springloaded Z-Lid expansion top, which automatically adjusts for bulky items like thick books. Ink is on the expensive side ($19.99 for black and $24.99 for color). One nice bonus: Canon's Creative Park Web site has free projects, including paper crafts, greeting cards, and more, and also provides smart photo tips.

Canon Pixma MP190 Verdict

If your top priorities are printing photos and keeping to a small budget, this printer will serve you well. If you can't live without a built-in screen, you might want to consider the Pixma MP480, which, for $99.99, features a 1.8-inch LCD and a memory card slot.