As a rule of thumb, a higher model number in a printer line means more speed, better quality, more capability—and a higher price. Not so with the Canon Pixma iP6000D Photo Printer ($179.99 direct).
Priced $20 lower than the iP5000, the iP6000D is far slower for business applications and offers slightly lower output quality for text and graphics.
It's slightly faster for photos, however, and offers essentially the same photo quality. It also adds a 2.5-inch LCD for previewing photos before printing. All of this makes it a printer of interest mainly for those primarily concerned with printing photos.
The iP6000D is a touch bigger than the iP5000, at 7.7 by 16.9 by 12.3 inches (HWD) and 15.9 pounds, but the two share some features, including two 150-sheet paper trays, the ability to duplex, a USB 1.1 port for connecting to your computer, and a second USB port for connecting to a PictBridge camera. Unlike the iP5000, the iP6000D offers slots for most memory cards, the front-panel LCD, and a control panel to let you preview, edit, and print photos without a computer. Under the hood, the iP6000D uses six ink colors—cyan, yellow, magenta, black, light cyan, and light magenta, each in its own cartridge—compared with five for the iP5000.