Canon Pixma MG8250 multi-function inkjet printer-scanner

If you're going to pay almost 250 for an inkjet all-in-one printer, you're going to want something special. It'll obviously have to do the basics: print, copy, scan and upload photos, but it needs a few extras. Canon's Pixma MG8250 has these in abundance.

The understated frosted look is so much more attractive than the staid glossy black that is so prevalent in other printers. The whole of the scanner lid lights up with touch-sensitive buttons, which work well. Attached to the underside of the scanner lid is a removable, white backing pad, that reveals a transparency scanner for slides and negatives.

There are two paper trays, a 150-sheet cassette underneath and an angled tray of the same capacity at the back, so you can load plain and photo paper simultaneously. A supplied disc holder lets you print on to optical discs. The front cover opens automatically as an output tray.

The printer can connect via USB, Ethernet or wireless, but the latter is the most versatile, as it provides access to AirPrint, for wireless printing from iPads and iPhones, as well as Google Cloud Print for remote printing from any Internet-connected computer. There are also slots for Compact Flash, SD and Memory Stick cards. This means you should be able to print from most gadgets.

Canon claims print speeds of 12.5 pages per minute (ppm) for black and 9.3ppm for colour. Although we didn't reach these under test, we did see 9.9ppm and 4.6ppm, respectively, both of which are good for an inkjet. A colour copy took 22 seconds, which is fine, and a 15x10cm photo printed in 32 seconds, which is excellent.

You don't lose anything in quality, either, as the six inks, including an extra grey and a photo black, give superb, vibrant results on plain and photo paper. Few printers can match the Pixma MG8250 on print quality. Scanning, both from the flatbed and the transparency scanner, is sharp, with few artefacts, and is more than adequate for documents and archiving legacy photos.

There is only one set of cartridges that fit this printer. The page costs of 3.7p and 9.5p, for black and colour respectively, are a bit higher than some of the competition. It's also a shame there are no high-yield cartridges.