Description
The Canon RP-108 is a combined ink and paper pack for Canon’s SELPHY CP series compact photo printers. It contains 108 sheets of 4 x 6 inch postcard size paper and two color ink ribbons. Canon lists compatibility with the SELPHY CP910, CP820, CP1200, CP1300 and CP1500. This is a consumable, and it is the only thing that keeps a SELPHY printer working, so the first question is not whether it is good but whether it fits the printer you own.
How This Consumable Works
SELPHY CP printers do not use liquid ink cartridges. They use a ribbon that transfers color to specially coated paper, one pass at a time, which is why Canon sells the ribbon and the paper together as a set rather than separately. The ribbon and the paper are consumed in step: each sheet uses a defined section of ribbon, and when the paper runs out the ribbon is finished too. That is the reason for the pairing here, two ribbons to 108 sheets, and it is also why mixing a Canon ribbon with third party paper is a poor idea. The paper’s coating is part of the system.
The practical consequence for a buyer is that running cost per print is fixed and easy to calculate: one pack equals 108 prints, and there is no partial refill option. You cannot buy more paper and reuse a ribbon, or vice versa. Canon labels this the high capacity set; smaller packs exist in the same family for people who print occasionally.
Compatibility
Canon names five printers on this listing: SELPHY CP910, CP820, CP1200, CP1300 and CP1500. Those span several generations of the compact SELPHY line, which is unusually good continuity for a consumable and means an owner upgrading from an older SELPHY to a newer one can keep buying the same pack.
What the listing does not do is name every SELPHY model Canon has made. The SELPHY range has included other series with different consumables, and models outside the CP line named here should not be assumed compatible. Check the model number printed on your printer against the five listed above before ordering. Where the specification block on this page is concerned, the only useful entries are the model number RP-108, a listed weight of 1.4 pounds and package dimensions of 4.6 x 3.3 x 7.7 inches.
One categorization note worth flagging rather than fixing: this product is filed under inkjet ink cartridges both in the source listing data and on this site, and the sales rank data places it among inkjet printer paper. A ribbon and paper set for a SELPHY CP is neither of those things. If you arrived here looking for cartridges for a conventional inkjet, you want a different product entirely, and our ink tank printers category and inkjet ink cartridges category are the places to start.
What You Get and What You Print
The output size is 4 x 6 inches, postcard format. That is the standard small photo print size, and it is what SELPHY CP printers are built around. The paper in these packs carries perforated tabs at the edges that are removed after printing, which is how the printer feeds each sheet back and forth through the ribbon passes.
Canon does not quote a print resolution, a color gamut figure or an archival life rating on this listing, so this page claims none. What can be said is that the format is designed for immediate physical prints: events, parties, classrooms, scrapbooks, printing directly from a phone or camera at the point where the photo was taken. It is not designed as a substitute for a photo lab or for large format printing, and a conventional inkjet such as the Epson EcoTank ET-3760 covers document printing that a SELPHY cannot touch.
Highlights
- 108 sheets of 4 x 6 inch postcard size paper in one pack.
- Two color ink ribbons supplied, matched to the sheet count.
- Listed compatibility with SELPHY CP910, CP820, CP1200, CP1300 and CP1500.
- Fixed cost per print, since ribbon and paper are consumed together.
- Canon model number RP-108, listed as a current rather than discontinued product.
- Listed pack weight of 1.4 pounds.
Things To Consider
The first consideration is the one that catches people out: this pack contains no printer. If you do not own a SELPHY CP, buying this does nothing. That sounds obvious, and it is a common enough ordering mistake with combined ink and paper sets that it is worth stating plainly.
Second, storage. Photo paper and ribbons are sensitive to humidity and heat. A pack kept in a hot garage or a damp cupboard for a long period can produce prints with color shifts or feed problems, and once a pack is opened the paper should be kept in its wrapping between sessions. Canon does not state a shelf life on this listing.
Third, the fixed pairing means you cannot economize by buying cheaper paper. Third party consumables for ribbon based printers exist, and quality varies. Canon’s own set is the reference case and this listing is for the genuine article.
Fourth, understand what the format is not. A 4 x 6 print is small. If you want larger prints, or prints on varied media, this printer family is the wrong tool and no consumable choice changes that. For document and general purpose printing, an office machine such as the Epson WorkForce Pro WF-4820 is the appropriate category, and for text heavy work a monochrome laser with a high yield cartridge like the HP 206A costs far less per page.
Finally, this listing dates back to March 2011, which speaks to how long Canon has maintained the RP series consumable. That is reassuring for long term availability, but always check that the pack you are buying is the current revision and that the listed printer compatibility still covers your model.
Who Should Buy It, and Who Should Not
Buy the RP-108 if you own one of the five listed SELPHY CP printers and you print photographs regularly enough that the 108 sheet pack is better value than a smaller one. Buying the large pack up front makes sense before an event, a holiday or a school term, since running out mid session means the printer is simply unusable.
Do not buy it if you own a different printer family, if you print only a handful of photos a year and would be better served by a smaller pack, or if you were looking for conventional inkjet supplies. An Epson EcoTank ET-2720 is a very different proposition for general household printing, and it does not use anything like this consumable.