Canon Press Release 09/07/04

Amstelveen, The Netherlands, 9 July, 2004: Canon, a leader in photographic and imaging technology, today unveils a bold new look for its new PIXMA range, with the launch of two 4800 x 1200 dpi personal photo/document printers. With 2 picolitre droplet performance from FINE (Full-photolithography Inkjet Nozzle Engineering) technology print heads, both printers are capable of producing glossy borderless photo prints direct from contemporary digital still and digital video cameras.

The PIXMA iP4000 and PIXMA iP3000 both feature convention-defying designs to match their 2 picolitre photolab quality and respected 25 ppm / 22 ppm performance. Radical designs reflect Canon’s recognition of the increasing preference amongst customers for products that excel in both aesthetics and functionality. A lustrous high quality grey finish completes sleek, clean lines of the integrated shells, giving the printers a futuristic look.

“PIXMA represents a clear departure from conventional desk top devices,” said Mogens Jensen, Head of Canon Consumer Imaging Europe. “With their cleverly integrated functionality and their superb, striking designs, these two printers can be placed anywhere in the living or working environment and fit right in.”

Personal photolab
In a process called FINE, Canon has adapted its own silicon chip manufacturing technology to create print heads with the tolerance and precision similar to that of integrated circuits. FINE print heads now feature in all PIXMA printers, Micro-Nozzles deliver microscopic droplets with unrivalled speed, reliability, consistency and accuracy, which cannot be achieved by traditional ink jet print heads that are assembled from multiple parts.

The vendor independent PictBridge standard is supported for direct cable connection photo printing with any compatible digital camera or digital video camera, without the need for a PC. Borderless photos print in credit card, 4? x 6?, 5? x 7?, and A4 formats.

Powerful software completes the printers photolab capabilities ? EasyPhotoPrint and Photorecord give the user a fast, powerful route to creating individual prints, albums and more.

Beyond photolab quality
The iP4000 goes beyond traditional photolab quality, achieving exceptionally crisp, high contrast photo prints with Canon?s pioneering ContrastPLUS technology ? a five tank ink system that includes an additional dye-based black ink for sharper contrast. The introduction of the extra ink will appeal to exacting users looking for the next level in printing lab-quality photographs, as well as users requiring crisp text documents from conventional pigment black ink.

Faster than ever
FINE print heads get more ink onto the page in less time for remarkably fast print times. The iP3000 and iP4000 are significantly faster than other printers in their class: both printers achieve fast borderless 4? x 6? photo printing in just 36 seconds and are capable of printing a full A4 colour document in only 26 seconds. The iP3000 prints at 22 ppm (mono) / 15 ppm (colour), while the iP4000 prints at 25 ppm (mono) / 17 ppm (colour).

Single Ink technology
Both printers feature Canon?s ?Transparent? single ink system, where each ink is stored in an individually replaceable tank. An economical feature that minimizes waste, only the ink that is exhausted needs to be replaced. Users are warned with a pop up window on their computer when a particular colour is running low and the printer will not start to print a page if there is insufficient ink to finish.

Locational freedom
One of the key design objectives of PIXMA is to maximise flexibility of location. As well as being furnished with a style and finish appropriate for the home environment, PIXMA printers are the only devices on the market that include both the traditional sheet feeder (‘J’ pass) paper path and a cassette (‘U’ turn path), allowing the printer to be stored and operated on a shelf or in other areas where space is at a premium. Dual paper trays also permit the printers to be loaded with plain paper and photo print media simultaneously, so both documents and photos can be printed without the need for stopping and changing paper. Dual paper trays, auto duplex printing and CD-R/DVD printing functions are now completely integrated without compromising the printer?s clean lines ? a first in printer design.

New photo media
Canon?s new media extends the creative and practical applications of the printers:

- Double sided photo paper (Photo Paper Plus Double Sided PP-101D) in A4 and 5? x 7? sizes. As well as standard packs, this media is available as a kit (Photo Album Kit PAK-101) which includes a high quality hardback album cover to make photo albums, scrapbooks and personal books
- Credit card size glossy media (Glossy Photo Paper GP-401) ? ideal for printing wallet photographs and name cards
- Photo stickers (Photo Stickers PS-101) ? sheets of 16 small photo stickers, for fun and practical purposes

Easy photo and web printing
Both printers are bundled with the following software packages:
Easy-PhotoPrint ? provides three easy steps to printing photos. Assisting with options such as media selection and scaling, it includes features such as Face Sharpening for out-of-focus face correction, Red Eye Correction and Digital Face Smoothing to reduce the appearance of wrinkles.

Easy-WebPrint ? sits on the Explorer toolbar and takes the frustration out of web page printing, saving time, ink and paper by correctly scaling output to print one-page-per-sheet, preventing the common problem of having the right-hand side of web pages cut off.

CD-LabelPrint ? for easy creation and printing on print ready CD or DVD media.

Compatibility
The iP3000 is compatible with Windows 98/Me/2000/XP.
The inclusion of a parallel port on the iP4000 gives additional support for Windows 95 and Windows NT.
Both printers are compatible with Macintosh OS 9.x and OSX v10.2.1 or later.