Canon i80 Portable Printer and Windows 8

[BSquared18]

Hello,

I recently bought a new HP laptop computer with Windows 8. I have a Canon i80 portable color printer I would like to use with it. The printer works well with another laptop that has Windows Vista.

I turned on the new laptop, plugged the i80 into an available USB jack, and turned the printer on.

In the Control Panel --> Hardware and Sound --> View Devices and Printers there now is an icon labeled "i80."

When I right click on the icon, click on Properties from the drop down menu, and click on the Hardware tab, "Device Status" says the device is working properly.

I should mention that on the Devices and Printers screen, the i80 is listed under a cateogry labeled "Unspecified," instead of in the category labeled "Printers." I tried dragging and dropping the icon from one category to the other, but it would not stick.

And when I open Kingsoft Writer (an MS Word look-alike), the i80 does not appear on the printer list.

I saw a suggestion elsewhere on the Internet that I should uninstall the drivers and reinstall them. However, for this printer I have not found any drivers for Windows 8. Windows installed the printer (or whatever) without asking for drivers. In Vista, it also did not require drivers and works fine.

Any suggestion?

Bill

[MarkII]

Hi BSquared18,

Drivers for Windows 8 are not available for this model. While considering the desire to provide the best possible support for Canon's current products, Canon must make decisions on which products to support when new operating systems are introduced. These decisions are generally based on the age of the product and the number of product estimated to be still in use.

Since your device is not supported under the current operating system, you are eligible for Canon's Loyalty Program. This option allows you a one-time opportunity to purchase a new or refurbished product that uses Canon’s next generation technology and carries a limited manufacturer’s warranty. To help you get up and running quickly, we also offer free ground shipping (if the order is completed by 4:00 PM EST). If you would like to take part in this option, please call our Sales Department at (800)OK-CANON (800-652-2666) seven days a week, 8am to Midnight.

[BSquared18]

I got it working fine.

Bill

[infinitysa]

Bill, 

What did you do to get it to work?

[BSquared18]

Sorry, but I don't recall. I use it only with my laptop and that only when traveling, which I haven't done since buying the printer.

I noticed in my Canon i80 folder that I have a Windows 7 driver. I may have installed that, and it may have done the job. The driver file is named aomwin110ea23us.exe, in case you want to try googling it. Whatever worked, I recall it didn't take a lot of time or effort, or I would have remembered it better.

Lately, the issue has been more one of getting all the colors to work. But that's another story. Of course, a common problem when you don't use a printer a lot.

Bill

[infinitysa]

I got mine to work.  For some reason, the second time I plugged it in, it worked.  I can't explain why. 

As for the colors not working, try cleaning the print head with rubbing alcohol on a q-tip.  It has worked for me. 

[BSquared18]

Re: "try cleaning the print head with rubbing alcohol on a q-tip."

Yes, I've used that method with other printers--sometimes it worked and sometimes not. Printers seem to have a mind of their own.

For the i80, I found two or three YouTube videos where they showed how to remove the printhead from the printer and rinse it with warm water. I tried that. It seemed to get the head clean, but there were still problems--with the colors but not the black cartridge.

I even replaced the print cartridges with new ones, but still problems with the colors.

Since I use the printer only when traveling for things where color isn't important, I can print in grayscale, as long as the black ink keeps working.

Printers can be a headache, especially when they are not used regularly. I've been trying to run test copies every once in awhile, but apparently I didn't do it often enough.

Bill

[fredj6400]

I had a very difficult time getting my heads cleaned to the point where they would work properly.  I talked to a service person and they indicated that I would have to replace the heads and the cost was prohibitive, so, being as I had nothing to lose at this point, I decided to try a "last resort" approach and put it in an oven at the lowest temperature setting for about 1/2 hour and BINGO - got it working!

(obviously one has to be very carefull that the oven does not get hot enough to melt plastic)