Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer Review: The Home Photo Lab That Won’t Empty Your Wallet

For years, I’ve been on a frustrating journey familiar to many photographers and creative hobbyists. I’d spend hours capturing and editing the perfect shot, only to be let down by the final, physical print. The options were always a compromise. I could send my images to an online lab, crossing my fingers that their calibration matched mine, often receiving prints with disappointing colour shifts or a lack of sharpness. The alternative was printing at home, a path paved with eye-wateringly expensive ink cartridges that seemed to run dry after just a handful of A4 prints. The dream of having a reliable, cost-effective home photo lab—one that could produce gallery-worthy prints without demanding a second mortgage for ink—felt perpetually out of reach. This dilemma isn’t just an inconvenience; it’s a barrier to creativity, forcing us to be precious about what we print and stifling the joy of seeing our digital work come to life.

What to Consider Before Buying a Dedicated Photo Printer

A specialist photo printer, often found within the broader All-In-One Printers category, is more than just an item; it’s a key solution for anyone serious about the quality and permanence of their printed images. It solves the core problems of cost, control, and consistency that plague both third-party printing services and standard office printers. The main benefit is gaining complete control over the creative process, from shutter click to the final print, ensuring the colours and details you painstakingly edited are faithfully reproduced on paper. This is especially true for models like the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer, which are designed specifically for this purpose, prioritizing colour accuracy and low running costs over superfluous office functions like scanning or faxing.

The ideal customer for this type of product is someone facing the challenges I described: the semi-professional photographer selling prints, the dedicated hobbyist creating family albums, or the graphic artist needing accurate proofs. If you print photos frequently and in high volume, a refillable ink tank system will represent a massive long-term saving. However, it might not be suitable for those who primarily need to print, scan, and copy text documents at high speed. For that user, a laser printer or a traditional office-focused all-in-one would be a more practical, albeit less photographically capable, alternative. Similarly, if you only print a single photo every few months, the upfront investment in a specialist printer might be hard to justify.

Before investing, consider these crucial points in detail:

• Dimensions & Space: While many modern photo printers are reasonably compact, they still require a dedicated, stable surface. Consider not just the printer’s footprint (44.5 x 34 cm for the G550) but also the clearance needed for the rear paper feed and the front output tray. You’ll need easy access to the front to monitor and refill the ink tanks.
• Capacity/Performance: For a photo printer, performance isn’t about raw speed (pages per minute), but about print quality and ink efficiency. Look at the maximum print resolution (DPI) and, most importantly, the ink system. A printer with more than the standard four inks, like the six-dye system in the G550, will produce superior colour gradients and detail. The page yield from a set of inks is the single most important metric for determining long-term running costs.
• Materials & Durability: Most consumer printers are housed in plastic, but the quality can vary. Look for a sturdy chassis that doesn’t feel flimsy. More importantly, check for user-replaceable components like the print head and maintenance tank. This is a sign of a printer designed for a longer service life and heavy use, as it allows you to perform basic repairs yourself without a costly service call.
• Ease of Use & Maintenance: A printer should facilitate your work, not become a chore. Features like front-facing ink tanks with clear windows make monitoring levels simple. Look for mess-free refilling systems with keyed bottles to prevent mistakes. Wireless connectivity and a robust mobile app are also essential for a modern workflow, allowing you to print directly from your phone or tablet with ease.

Keeping these factors in mind, the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer stands out in several areas, particularly in its performance and long-term value. You can explore its detailed specifications and features here.

While the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer is an excellent choice for its intended purpose, it’s always wise to see how it stacks up against the competition. For a broader look at all the top models that blend different features, we highly recommend checking out our complete, in-depth guide:

First Impressions and Key Features of the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer

Unboxing the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer is a straightforward affair. The unit is securely packed, and the initial setup process is guided by clear, simple instructions. My first impression is of a dense, purpose-built machine. It’s relatively compact for what it does, with a sleek black finish that feels understated and professional. The build is primarily a high-quality plastic, but it feels solid and well-constructed, with no creaks or flimsy panels. What immediately catches the eye are the large, transparent ink tanks built into the front of the unit, a design choice that is both aesthetically pleasing and eminently practical for checking ink levels at a glance.

Compared to cartridge-based printers I’ve used, the initial setup involves filling these tanks from the included ink bottles, a process I was initially apprehensive about but found to be surprisingly clean and simple thanks to the keyed, non-squeeze bottle design. The one element that feels slightly dated is the 2-line monochrome LCD. As one user aptly described it, it’s a “nasty little un-backlit” display. It’s functional for basic status checks, but it feels like a component borrowed from a lower-tier model. Thankfully, almost all setup and configuration can be handled through the excellent computer software or the Canon PRINT mobile app, rendering the small screen largely redundant in day-to-day use.

A Deep Dive into the Canon PIXMA G550’s Real-World Performance

A spec sheet can only tell you so much. To truly understand a product, you have to live with it, push its limits, and integrate it into your workflow. After spending considerable time with the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer, putting it through its paces with a wide range of images on various paper types, I’ve developed a comprehensive view of where it excels and where its trade-offs lie. This is a specialist’s tool, and its performance should be judged on its primary mission: producing stunning, low-cost photographs.

The Six-Ink System: A Game-Changer for Colour Accuracy and Depth

The heart of any photo printer is its ink system, and this is where the G550 truly shines. Moving beyond the standard four-colour CMYK setup, Canon has equipped this printer with a six-dye ink configuration. The two additional colours are Red and Grey. This isn’t just a marketing gimmick; their inclusion has a profound and tangible impact on print quality. The dedicated Red ink dramatically expands the colour gamut, producing incredibly vibrant and rich reds, oranges, and pinks. We noticed this immediately when printing sunset landscapes and portraits, where skin tones appeared far more natural and lifelike, free from the magenta cast that can plague lesser printers.

The Grey ink is arguably even more transformative. It provides superior control over tonality, resulting in breathtaking black and white prints with deep, rich blacks and smooth gradations through the greyscale. For colour photos, it enhances contrast and adds depth, preventing colour shifts when printing on different types of media, from glossy to matte. We tested this by printing the same high-contrast colour image on Canon’s Pro Luster and Matte photo papers. The results were remarkably consistent, holding their saturation and detail across both surfaces. As one user confirmed, it handles heavier stock like 230gsm matte paper beautifully, producing prints “of good enough quality that I can sell” them. With a maximum resolution of 4800 x 1200 DPI, the fine details are rendered with startling clarity, creating prints that truly rival professional lab quality.

The MegaTank Economy: Printing Thousands, Not Hundreds, of Photos

This is the printer’s headline feature and the solution to the financial pain of cartridge-based printing. The “MegaTank” system replaces tiny, expensive cartridges with large, refillable internal reservoirs. A single set of the included GI-53 ink bottles is rated to produce a staggering 3,800 4×6-inch photo prints. To put that in perspective, a standard set of XL cartridges for a comparable printer might yield 300-400 photos, if you’re lucky. The cost-per-print on the G550 is measured in pennies, not pounds. This completely changes the psychology of printing. You no longer have to hesitate before printing a large batch of photos or a full-bleed A4 image, liberating your creativity from budget constraints.

The refilling process itself is brilliantly engineered. Having dealt with messy third-party refill kits in the past, I was prepared for the worst. However, Canon’s system is foolproof. Each bottle’s nozzle is uniquely keyed to only fit the corresponding tank colour, making it impossible to fill the wrong one. The bottles don’t require squeezing; you simply place them upside down on the port, and they automatically drain until the tank is full, stopping without overflowing. It’s a clean, quick, and effortless process. This incredible ink efficiency was validated by a user who noted, “I have done quite a few high-quality prints & the ink has barely gone down.” The value proposition is immense, and for anyone who prints photos regularly, the long-term savings offered by the MegaTank system are undeniable.

Setup, Connectivity, and Day-to-Day Use

Getting the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer up and running is remarkably simple, a sentiment echoed by a self-described “technofob” user who found it easy. After the initial ink filling and print head alignment, connecting it to our Wi-Fi network via the Canon PRINT app on a smartphone was a breeze. This app is the central hub for the printer, allowing you to print photos directly from your device, check ink levels, and perform maintenance tasks. The printer also supports Apple AirPrint and Mopria for Android, ensuring seamless integration with almost any mobile device. For traditionalists, a high-speed USB port provides a stable, wired connection to a PC or laptop.

In daily use, the printer is quiet and reliable. However, its major trade-off is speed. At just 3.9 images per minute, it is decidedly slow. A borderless 4×6 print takes about 47 seconds, while a full A4 photo can take several minutes depending on the quality settings. This is not the printer for quickly churning out documents. It’s a machine that encourages a more deliberate, considered approach to printing, where the ultimate quality of the output is the priority, not the speed at which it’s delivered. As mentioned, the onboard 2-line LCD is a weak point. It’s functional for displaying basic status messages like “Printing” or “Paper Jam,” but navigating menus on it is tedious. Thankfully, the comprehensive driver software on the PC and the mobile app handle all the heavy lifting, making interaction with the tiny screen a rare necessity.

Designed for Longevity: User-Replaceable Maintenance

A standout feature that speaks to Canon’s understanding of the high-volume user is the inclusion of a user-replaceable print head and maintenance tank. In most consumer-grade inkjet printers, these are permanent components. When the print head clogs irreparably or the maintenance tank (which collects waste ink from cleaning cycles) fills up, the printer often becomes an expensive paperweight, destined for a service centre or the landfill. On the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer, both of these critical parts can be easily purchased and swapped out by the user in minutes. This is a massive advantage, effectively extending the printer’s operational lifespan indefinitely and ensuring that downtime is kept to an absolute minimum. It’s a professional-grade feature in a consumer-priced product, reinforcing the idea that this printer is a long-term investment for serious photo enthusiasts.

What Other Users Are Saying

Our positive experience with the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer is strongly supported by feedback from other owners. The consensus is that this printer delivers on its core promises of quality and economy. One user, who uses the printer for their art business, praised its ability to handle “230 gm Matt photo paper well” and produce prints of a high enough standard to sell commercially. This same user, who identified as a “technofob,” found the setup process to be easy, which is a significant endorsement of its user-friendly design.

The most commonly cited benefit is, without a doubt, the ink efficiency. The sentiment that “the ink has barely gone down” after numerous high-quality prints is a recurring theme. However, the feedback is also balanced. The most frequent criticism is directed at the “nasty little un-backlit 2 line LCD display,” which is widely seen as a cost-cutting measure. Another user noted that the printer is best used in a “digital darkroom” context, reinforcing our assessment that it is a specialist photo printer, not a general-purpose machine. This user feedback confirms that the G550 excels at its intended function but makes deliberate compromises in other areas.

How the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer Compares to the Alternatives

While the G550 is a master of its craft, it exists in a crowded market. It’s crucial to understand how it stacks up against other popular models, especially those that offer a different set of features for different types of users.

1. Epson WorkForce Pro WF-4830 4-in-1 Printer Duplex ADF

The Epson WorkForce Pro WF-4830 is a completely different beast. It’s a true office workhorse designed for productivity. With rapid print speeds (25ppm black, 12ppm colour), an automatic document feeder (ADF), duplex printing, scanning, copying, and even faxing capabilities, it’s built to handle the demands of a busy home office. However, it uses a traditional four-colour cartridge system, meaning its photo quality, while good, cannot compete with the nuance and colour gamut of the Canon’s six-dye system. The running costs will also be significantly higher for photo printing. You should choose the Epson if your primary need is fast document handling and all-in-one versatility, with photo printing being a secondary, occasional task.

2. HP OfficeJet 250 Mobile All-in-One Printer

The HP OfficeJet 250 targets a highly specific niche: portability. This compact, battery-powered all-in-one is designed for professionals who need to print, scan, and copy on the go—think real estate agents, claims adjusters, or consultants working from a car or hotel room. Its main selling point is its ability to operate anywhere, untethered from a power outlet. While impressive for its size, it makes significant compromises. Its print speed is modest, it uses small, expensive tri-colour cartridges, and its photo quality is basic at best. This is the right choice only if absolute portability is your number one priority, far outweighing print quality and running costs.

3. HP DeskJet 2820e All-in-One Printer Wireless

The HP DeskJet 2820e represents the budget, entry-level option for casual home users. It’s typically very affordable upfront and provides basic print, scan, and copy functions in a simple package. Its main drawback is its reliance on expensive ink cartridges, which makes it costly for anything more than very light, infrequent use. While it can print photos, the quality from its basic ink system is suitable for snapshots but lacks the professional finish of the Canon G550. This printer is best for students or families who need an occasional homework assignment or boarding pass printed, and for whom the upfront cost is the most critical factor.

The Final Verdict on the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer

After extensive testing, our conclusion is clear: the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer is an outstanding, highly specialised machine that brilliantly achieves its primary goal. It is, without question, one of the best choices on the market for any photographer, artist, or hobbyist who wants to produce a high volume of exceptional quality photo prints at an incredibly low cost. The six-dye ink system delivers a level of colour accuracy and vibrancy that is simply a class above typical four-colour printers, and the MegaTank system fundamentally solves the long-standing problem of expensive ink.

The trade-offs—namely, the slow print speed and the dated LCD screen—are conscious design choices that prioritise print quality and long-term value above all else. This is not the right printer for a busy office or for someone who needs a versatile scanner and copier. But for its target audience, those who live and breathe photography and value the final printed image, the G550 is a revelation. It empowers creativity by removing the financial barrier to printing, turning the dream of a productive, affordable home photo lab into a reality.

If you’ve decided the Canon PIXMA G550 Photo Printer is the right fit for your creative projects, you can check its current price and purchase it here.