Canon PIXMA G650: Setup, Drivers, Ink and Common Problems

Is the Canon PIXMA G650 right for you?

The G650 is a different kind of MegaTank: six dye inks including red and grey, tuned for photo printing rather than office documents, with bottle yields rated at thousands of 4x6 prints. It suits photographers, event businesses and families who print albums at home and were put off by cartridge costs. Document printing is slow and the dye black is not waterproof, so it is a poor choice as a general office printer. In the US it is sold as the G620.

Best for: Home photo printing in volume at bottle-ink prices

Setting up the Canon PIXMA G650

Fill all six tanks carefully in the colour order marked on the lid and let the long initial charge finish before testing. Join a 2.4 GHz network via the LCD or Canon PRINT, then install Easy-PhotoPrint Editor for borderless layouts. Always select the exact Canon photo paper type in the driver so the red and grey channels are used.

1. Unbox and prepare. Remove every piece of shipping tape and packing material, install the ink bottles (fill each tank to the upper line), and load paper in the tray.
2. Join your Wi-Fi. Keep the printer close to the router for setup. Most printers only connect to the 2.4GHz band, so if your router broadcasts one merged network name you may need to split the bands temporarily. See our Wi-Fi guide if it will not join.
3. Install the setup app. Use Canon's official app rather than a driver you found on a search result — third-party driver sites are the most common source of printer malware.
4. Add the printer. On Windows 11: Settings › Bluetooth & devices › Printers & scanners › Add device. On macOS: System Settings › Printers & Scanners › Add Printer.
5. Print a test page and run a scan if this is an all-in-one, so you find any problem now rather than when you are in a hurry.

Ink, toner and supplies

The Canon PIXMA G650 uses the following consumables. Match the number exactly when you buy: the same printer family often uses several different cartridge numbers by region.

• GI-53 BK / C / M / Y / R / GY (UK/EU)
• GI-23 bottles (US G620)
• MC-G02 maintenance cartridge

High-yield (XL) versions almost always cost less per page if you print regularly. On third-party ink and toner, read our honest assessment first, and note that some manufacturers push firmware that rejects non-original chips.

Full specifications