At a Glance
Expert’s Rating
Pros
- Prints quickly
- Excellent text and photo print quality
- Inexpensive to buy and run
Cons
- Mobile apps aren’t always intuitive
- Heavy and hard to move around
- Photos need glossy paper
Our Verdict
The Canon Pixma TS7450 is a great value all-in-one printer offering a wide range of features and high-quality results along with affordable running costs.
Best Prices Today: Canon Pixma TS7450
The Canon Pixma TS7450 is an inkjet all-in-one colour printer, scanner, and copier. Priced at under £100, it promises to do everything for a tidy price.
The ability to scan and print copies of documents simultaneously, as well as copy and print two sides of the same sheet, means it can be turned to a wide variety of purposes. The Canon Pixma TS7450 can print on A4 paper as well as A5, B5, and the ANSI Letter size, on standard plain paper and glossy photo paper.
On top of that, PixmaTS7450 printers can handle print requests over Wi-Fi from a variety of mobile apps, as well as macOS devices – it’s an AirPrint-compatible printer, so there’s no need to install any drivers. For other situations, there’s a USB port which supports PictBridge, so if you need to print directly from your laptop, or a compatible camera, you’ve got the option to go totally wired.
With the work-from-home life still the norm for many of us now, the need for a versatile does-it-all printer has never been greater. Let’s see if the Canon Pixma TS7450 fits the bill.
Note that this is the black colour exclusive to Argos but the Pixma TS7451 is the same printer in white and can be found elsewhere.
Design & Build
The Canon PIXMA TS7450 is a multi-functional device, but considering all it can do, it’s not a massive space hog – the printer measures 206 x 403 x 364mm. As you might expect, with everything crammed into such a small space means that the Canon Pixma TS7450 is pretty heavy, weighing 8.2kg. Space-efficient it may be, easy to reposition your desk it is not.
An Automatic Document Feeder (ADF) sits on the top – this can hold up to 35 pages of A4 at a time. Pushing this top section back reveals the scanner glass, which also accepts paper up to A4 size, reading things at a resolution of 1200 x 2400dpi. Behind this sits the rear paper feeder, which slides up and out of the printer, and can hold up to 100 sheets of plain A4 paper, or 20 sheets of photo paper.
At the base of the Canon Pixma TS750 is the main paper in-tray. This holds up to 100 sheets of plain A4, and is the paper tray you’ll be refilling the most if you’re mainly printing documents. Underneath this sits the middle section which you’ll want to pop open whenever you need to add new cartridges.
Set-up, Apps & Wireless Printing
On the front of the Canon Pixma TS7450 sits a tiny 1.44in OLED control panel, which lets you do the usual thinks like check for ink levels, run alignment tests, and the like.
You’ll also be staring at this control panel for a while during the set-up process. Once you’ve connected the Pixma TS7450 to the mains and clipped the new cartridges in, it’ll cycle through the main set-up process, which only takes a couple of minutes.
Once that’s done, you can then connect the Canon Pixma TS7450 to your home Wi-Fi network to get set up for wireless printing.
There are several ways you can do this, by using the WPS push button, the ‘easy wireless connect’ option which uses your phone’s Bluetooth to establish a connection between the printer and your router to enter your home network’s password on your phone’s screen. This is by far the easiest option.
As the OLED control panel isn’t touch-sensitive, entering network credentials manually means you have to cycle through each and every character with arrow keys when punching in your Wi-Fi password, as if you’re entering a high score on an old arcade machine. While creating a strong password is essential to keeping your home network safe, having to key in letters of different cases, numbers, special characters and so on can take… quite a long time.
Once that’s done, whichever way you do it, you’re now ready to print wirelessly from devices like a MacBook Pro – the Pixma TS7450 is compatible with Apple AirPrint, so there’s no need for you to install and drivers. Windows users can make use of the supplied CD-ROM, or download drivers from Canon’s site in order to do the same.
In terms of printing documents and pictures from your phone, you have a lot of firepower at your disposal with the Canon Pixma TS7450. Supported apps include the Canon Print Inkjet/Selphy app, Canon Easy-PhotoPrint Editor, and Canon Creative Park – all of which are available on iOS an Android.
You’ll mainly use the Canon Print Inkjet/Selphy apps for printing documents. There is a scanner feature, so you can take photos of documents on your phone and print them immediately, although it’s rudimentary – just use your phone’s main camera. You can print photos from Print Inkjet/Selphy, but in my experience, results are mixed and you don’t have a lot of customisation options.
For printing images, you’re far better off using the Canon Easy-PhotoPrint Editor app, which in addition to giving you greater control over photo print layouts, comes packed with useful templates and presets like passport photos, business cards, birthday and Valentine’s Day cards, and even CD labels, useful, if you’re making someone an old-school mix CD.
The Canon Creative Park app takes this even further, allowing you to print out fun things like wall stickers, origami buildings and animals, party decorations, and other fun things, though you’ll need to set up a Canon ID for this.
Generally speaking, these apps are all pretty simple to use, though the layouts are a bit bewildering at first, and there’s little that can be done in terms of actual photo editing. You might be better off tinkering with your snaps in a separate app first and it’s a little baffling that there isn’t just one app that does everything well.
Finally, Mopria for Android is also supported, so if you want to just quickly print something directly from your phone’s gallery, you can do that too.
Performance
Canon quotes an approximate print speed of 13ppm (pages per minute) for mono prints and 6.8ppm for colour images. Note that Canon is basing these figures on speeds with its own Photo Paper Plus Glossy II, and not bog standard A4 plain.
In my tests, I recorded a rate of 11.3ppm when printing 20 pages of black text on plain paper, which took 1 minute 46 seconds. Printing out a 20-page file with a combination of text and colour images took a little longer – 2 minutes 41 seconds, or a rate of 7.45ppm.
Printing a large colour image on a single page of A4 took just under a minute (58 seconds).
In the review sample I was sent, Canon included a pack of its own glossy GP-501 10x15cm (4x6in) photo paper. Individual bordered and borderless photos took between 20-30 seconds to print. This is reasonably skippy, and would more than suit most home users, and perhaps some small home-based businesses.
The quality of text and graphics on plain paper is very good, serifs are nice and crisp and there is very little bleeding. Photos printed on plain paper, on the other hand, do not look great – colours are very washed out and there’s obvious graining on the page.
Fortunately, photos printed on glossy paper look fantastic, with results accurately matching the original. Prized holiday snaps, iconic selfies, and passport photos will all look when printed on glossy photo paper – see the comparison below.
Running Costs
As you only have to buy two ink cartridges for the Canon Pixma TS7450 – black and colour – it’s easy to refill and replace what you want.
Prices for the standard cartridges, according to Canon’s site are £17.49 each for the PG-560 black ink and CL-561 colour ink cartridges. Both of these promise on average, 180 pages, which makes for a running cost of 9p per page.
However, you are far better off picking up some of the XL-sized cartridges. While these are more expensive at £24.49 and £19.99 respectively, the PG-560XL and CL-561XL promise 400 and 300 pages worth of black and colour ink, and are therefore represent a much lower running cost of 6p and 7p per page.
A pack of 100 10x15mm GP-501 glossy sheets will cost £9.99, while a pack of A4-sized GP-501 paper costs £22.99.
Price and availability
The Canon Pixma TS7450 is available in two colours, black (the TS7450) and white (the TS7451), with the same RRP of £79.99.
The Canon Pixma TS7450 is currently unavailable in the US.
It’s good value for money but we have a chart of the best printers if you’re not sure including the even cheaper Canon Pixma TS3350 MkII .
Verdict
The Canon Pixma TS7450 is a great value all-in-one printer. It’s easy to set up and use, has lots to offer buyers, though not without its snags, namely the mobile apps, which can be frustrating at times, though software updates should improve these.
Good print quality, versatility and reasonably low running costs make for a very attractive proposition.
Specs
Canon Pixma TS7450: Specs
- Colour Inkjet all-in-one printer, copier, scanner
- Ink type: Cartridges
- Print resolution: 4800 x 1200 dpi
- Scan resolution: 1200 x 2400 dpi
- Maximum paper size: A4
- Auto Document Feeder
- Dimensions: 206 x 403 x 364 mm (H x W x D)
- Weight 8.2kg
Best Prices Today: Canon Pixma TS7450
Printers might not be as exciting as a new smartphone but it’s likely we all need one at some point in our lives, even if it’s just occasionally. Whether you’re working from home or need an office printer for many people to use, we have reviewed and ranked ten of the best you can buy from tank system inkjets to large laser printers.
You might want to print a calendar, gig tickets, a boarding pass or some photos you’ve taken on your phone. Many printers are multi-function and therefore also handy for scanning and copying, too.
Whatever your needs, buying a new printer can be a confusing process. Not only do you have to worry about the upfront cost and whether it can print a good photo, but you’ve also got to consider print speeds, ongoing costs and a host of potential features.
It’s worth bearing in mind that the printer market moves slowly, and the latest printers aren’t always the best. Printer tech moves slowly so reviews might not be from this year or even the year before that but they stay on sale for a long time unlike phones or laptops .
Read on below our chart for more in-depth printer buying advice on things like whether to choose inkjet or laser.
Best printers 2023
1. Canon Pixma TS7450/1 – Best Overall
Pros
- Prints quickly
- Excellent quality
- Inexpensive to buy and run
Cons
- Mobile apps aren’t always intuitive
- Bulky design
- Photos need glossy paper
Printers are hard to even find in stock right now so a great value all-rounder from Canon at under £100 is worth snapping up, even though it is quite heavy.
This is a great value all-in-one printer that’s easy to set up and use. It’s also no slough with lots of features and versatile printing including documents and photos. Cheaper printers can be expensive to run but the TS7450 doesn’t even fall into this category.
The mobile apps are a little frustrating at times but print quality is good, although you’ll want to stick to proper glossy paper for photos. Note that the TS7451 is the same printer, only in white.
Read our full Canon Pixma TS7450 review
2. HP Envy Inspire 7220e – Best Compact Family Printer
Pros
- Attractive price
- Fast printing speeds
- 2-sided printing
- Good text and photo quality
Cons
- No ADF
- Can’t print on A4 glossy paper
Those looking for a compact and easy-to-use printer for the whole family might have just found it.
The Envy Inspire 7220e is an excellent all-rounder for those needing to regularly print text and photos at good speeds and affordable costs. The printer looks nice, has wide support for different wireless printing services and offers high-quality results.
It doesn’t have an automatic document feeder but that’s normal, so as long as you don’t need to print on A4 glossy paper, it’s a bit of a steal.
Read our full HP Envy Inspire 7220e review
3. Canon Pixma TS3350 MkII – Best Budget Printer
Pros
- Cheap
- High quality printing
- Connectivity
Cons
- Slow printing
- Expensive ink
If you’re looking for a cheap printer to handle day-to-day tasks then the TS3350 MkII (or TS3320 in the US) is an excellent choice.
This is not only affordable but offers great quality printing for a range of jobs, including colour images. This is even a copier and scanner too so you’re getting a lot for your money.
It’s quite slow so isn’t a workhorse and you’ll want to get XL cartridges to keep running costs down. For printing the occasional letter, boarding pass or family photo without breaking the bank it’s perfect.
Read our full Canon Pixma TS3350 MkII review
4. HP DeskJet Plus 4120 – Excellent Value Inkjet
Pros
- Very cheap
- Easy to use
- Good photo & graphics quality
Cons
- Average text quality
- Needs Instant Ink to keep running costs down
Those on a budget needing a printer for a mix of different tasks should consider the DeskJet Plus 4120 – known as the 4155 in the US.
It’s basic in style and design with things like a simple LCD display but keeps costs down, especially if you use HP’s Instant Ink subscription service.
Read our full HP DeskJet Plus 4120 review
5. Epson EcoTank ET-3850 – Best Ink Tank Printer
Pros
- Cost per page is very low
- Good print speed
- Excellent print quality
Cons
- Pigment black isn’t ideal for photos
- Lack duplex copying
- One year warranty
Anyone against traditional cartridges should consider this EcoTank model from Epson. The ET-3850 offers high-quality printing at decent speeds while keeping the cost down, even if you’re printing A4 colour pages on a regular basis.
It’s more expensive to buy the device itself than cartridge rivals but may well work out better value in the long run. And it has virtually the same specs as higher-end EcoTank models, including the PrecisionCore print head.
One of the main practical downsides is that it doesn’t offer duplex printing and Epson only offers a one year warranty or 50,000 pages – whichever comes first.
Read our full Epson EcoTank ET-3850 review
6. HP Smart Tank 7605 – Best Small Office Printer
Pros
- Fax function
- Dual-band WLAN
- Touch display
- Additional XL-BK ink bottle
Cons
- Limited USB host functions
- No real off switch
If you’re looking for a great all-rounder then the Smart Tank 7605 is a hot contender with its wide range of functions and large amount of ink included in the box – enough for up to 12,000 pages.
It’s highly suitable for home or small office use, even if there’s a slight overreliance on the HP Smart app. Still, it can wirelessly print, copy, scan and fax, plus has an automatic document feeder.
The compact printer looks stylish and has a 3in touchscreen, the tank system keeps costs low and print quality is good. There’s little more we could ask for at this price.
Read our full HP Smart Tank 7605 review
7. Epson EcoTank ET-18100 – Best Photo Printer
Pros
- Inexpensive photo prints
- Great print quality
- Mess-free ink refills
Cons
- No display
- No scanner / copier
- Expensive to buy
The ET-18100 has niche appeal because it’s been designed with a particular user in mind.
If you want to print a lot of photos at up to A3 sizes without breaking the bank, then you’re the target market. The printer itself is costly, but the ink tank design keeps running costs down.
The mess-free design is great and refill bottles are better for the environment, too. Print quality is excellent but as mentioned, you will need to print a lot of photos to justify this model.
With no display or copier/scanner functions, this isn’t an all-rounder.
Read our full Epson EcoTank ET-18100 review
8. HP Smart Tank 5105 – Best Value Ink Tank Printer
Pros
- Cheap running costs
- Borderless on A4, A5
- Ink tank sensors
- Affordable printer
Cons
- Flimsy
- Awkward paper path
- Only 50ml coloured inks included
- No display
It’s great to see HP taking on Epson at ink tank printers and the 5105 is a practical solution for any home or small office customer that would like to worry less about the cost of printing.
Normally there’s a high initial price for the printer with an ink tank model but HP offers good value here, even if the supplied colour bottles are only 50ml and the build quality is on the flimsy end of the scale.
There’s also no display and this isn’t the fastest printer around either, but the quality is good for a range of tasks including surprisingly vibrant photos, and you can print borderless on A4 and A5 sheets.
It’s not all singing, all dancing but if a value for money ink tank printer is what you need then the 5105 is worth a look.
Read our full HP Smart Tank 5105 review
9. Epson Ecotank ET-8500 – Best Value Photo Printer
Pros
- Very high print quality
- Top for greyscale photos
- Processes many types of material
- Very low cost per page despite 6 colours
Cons
- No real off switch
- High purchase price
If printing photos is your thing, then the EcoTank 8500 is an excellent choice as this printer is designed for the task, although it can do regular printing and scanning as well.
It’s a fairly expensive printer at first but if you’re planning to print a lot of images then it should work out as a good investment in the long term with reliability and print costs.
Importantly, print quality is excellent and you can print on a variety of materials including fine art paper. It’s also got a large 10cm screen and no less than three different paper feeds.
Read our full Epson Ecotank ET-8500 review
10. Brother DCP-L3510cdw – Best Laser Printer
Pros
- 2-sided printing
- Decent performance
Cons
- Single-sheet scanning
- No colour screen
- Running costs
If you don’t need to print photos on photo paper but instead need a printer primarily for documents then a laser is a great choice.
The Brother DCP-L3510cdw uses LEDs instead of a laser, but it’s very similar and can reliably handle lots of printing with crisp quality at a decent speed.
You’ll need more room for it than a typical inkjet printer but running costs over the long term are more affordable and with Brother’s EcoPro subscription you get the printer for just £1.20!
This model has a basic LCD screen but still has useful features including 2-sided printing, a single-sheet scanner and Wi-Fi, complete with AirPrint support.
Read our full Brother DCP-L3510cdw review
How to choose a printer
There’s no single printer that will suit everyone, so while the list below is ordered it’s best not to worry too much about the number beside it. We’ve mixed together home and business printers, multifunction, colour and mono.
Inkjet vs laser
Printers come in two main forms: inkjet or laser, with colour and mono flavours of each. Lasers tend to be more expensive to buy, but provide better quality output, particularly where lots of text is involved. And they can be faster. Notice we said ‘tend’ – lasers aren’t always best.
As a basic rule, if you need to print only text, and a lot of it, a mono laser printer will offer the crispest text output and the best combination of fast page-per-minute output and low ink costs. If you need to print photos, choose an inkjet printer. A dedicated photo printer with individual cartridges for each colour will suit those who print only photos.
If you’re working from home and need to print a lot, a laser printer is likely going to be a better option.
You can also read our more in-depth comparison of the pros and cons of each type of printer .
What are printer running costs?
When buying a printer, remember that the price you pay in the store is just the beginning. Be sure to consider the cost of replenishing toner and other consumables over the lifetime of the printer. This is particularly important if you print a lot. A set of toner cartridges can easily approach the cost of a colour laser printer.
Most manufacturers quote a ‘page yield’ estimate for their ink cartridges, which is the typical number of pages you can expect to print before the cartridge runs out of ink. You can use the page yield to calculate the average cost per page and you’d be surprised to find how much this can vary from one printer to another.
Of course, if output quality matters more to you than cost, scoot over to the other end of the cost spectrum where there are more specialised printers that use five or even six inks for printing photographs. Those additional inks can produce excellent results for your photo prints, but they add to the cost, sometimes pushing the cost for photos up to 10p or more per page.
Some brands offer a cartridge subscription service, like HP’s Instant Ink , to keep costs to a minimum.
What is a multifunction printer?
Most modern printers are multifunction ‘all-in-one’ devices that include a scanner too. This allows you to scan photos and other documents and convert them into digital files that you can store on your computer or share with friends or colleagues. You can also print copies of your scanned documents, allowing the printer to stand in for a photocopier too.
Some models even include a fax machine. If you require a scanner and a photocopier as well as a printer, you’ll save money by buying in all-in-one – but if a standalone printer suits your needs, you may be able to spend less.
What about print speed and features?
Speeds quoted by manufacturers are almost never matched by real-world performance. If you often need to print in a hurry, look for independent reviews when choosing your printer.
Other useful features to look out for include additional USB ports and memory card slots that will allow you to print photos direct from a camera.
High-capacity paper trays capable of holding hundreds of sheets of paper, or an automatic document feeder that can handle scanning and copying work while you go and do something more important, might be worth looking out for.
Double-sided printing is handy for halving your paper usage.
It’s also worth thinking about the bundled software that comes with your printer. Some printers include software that provides basic editing features, such as red-eye removal or adjusting the colour balance – some even allow you to perform simple editing tasks using controls on the printer itself.
Author: Chris Martin, Managing Editor, Tech Advisor
Tech Advisor Managing Editor Chris got his break as a reporter at infamous site The Inquirer and has been with us for more than 12 years. With a BA degree in Music Technology, audio is his specialism, but over the years he has reviewed all kinds of gadgets, from smartwatches to mesh Wi-Fi to coffee machines.
Recent stories by Chris Martin:
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