Canon PIXMA TR160: Specs, Features, Pros & Cons
This review measures the Canon PIXMA TR160 against the full 24-spec sheet we track for printers, comparing it like for like with the 50 other models in our database. It earns a VS Score of 26 out of 100 — the weighted result of every verified specification measured against the class average.
On the spec sheet it is strongest in connectivity and weakest in scanning & copying. Its clearest single advantage over the class average: a much lighter build — 2.04 kg vs 9.07 kg (avg). None of our retail partners currently lists the Canon PIXMA TR160, so availability may be limited; a missing price never affects the VS Score.
Category strengths
Where the Canon PIXMA TR160 beats the average
- A much lighter build ?2.04 kg vs 9.07 kg (avg)
- Has color printing ?
- A higher print resolution ?4,800 dpi vs 4,041.94 dpi (avg)
- Has Wi-Fi Direct ?
- Has Apple AirPrint ?
- Has Wi-Fi ?
Where the Canon PIXMA TR160 trails the average
- A much lower print speed (black) ?9 ppm vs 17.21 ppm (avg)
- No all-in-one ?
- A much lower input tray capacity ?50 sheets vs 182.02 sheets (avg)
- No automatic duplex printing ?
- A much lower print speed (color) ?5.5 ppm vs 12.51 ppm (avg)
- No automatic document feeder ?
- A much lower monthly duty cycle ?500 pages vs 19,346.15 pages (avg)
- No ethernet ?
- No touchscreen display ?
- No supertank / refillable ink ?
Editor’s note
The single most common mistake people make with the PIXMA TR160 is assuming it is an all-in-one. It is not. Canon's function list reads print, mobile printing and cloud link, and that is the whole machine — no scanner, no copier, no fax. If you need to capture a signed page as well as produce one, this is the wrong product and no amount of portability fixes that.
What it does uniquely well is fit in a bag. Closed, it is 12.7 x 7.3 x 2.6 inches and 4.5 lb, and it handles paper up to Legal from a 50-sheet rear tray. The 2025 refresh over the old TR150 is mostly about networks rather than printing: dual-band 2.4 and 5 GHz Wi-Fi with an access-point mode, WPA3 and TLS 1.3. That sounds like box copy until you have tried to get an older portable printer past a corporate IT policy.
Speeds are modest and honest — 9.0 ipm black and 5.5 ipm colour, both ISO figures rather than draft mode — and there is no automatic duplex at all.
The part that would make me hesitate is the ink. The cartridges hold 9.3 ml of black and 12.0 ml of colour, roughly a tenth of what a home all-in-one carries, and a twin pack runs about $60. There is no refillable tank option and no page subscription to soften it, so per-page cost sits at the bottom of the inkjet market.
Also budget properly: the LK-72 battery is $99.99 and not included, and a portable printer chained to a wall socket has rather given up its purpose. Call it $300 to do the job properly.
For field sales, inspections, or anyone who currently drives back to an office to print a contract, that is money well spent. As a household printer it would be a poor decision.
Specifications
Quality bars are generated automatically against 50 other printers.
Printing
Laser prints crisp text fast; inkjet handles photos and colour better.
Prints in colour, not just black and white.
Black-and-white pages per minute; higher is faster.
Colour pages per minute; higher is faster.
A higher dot density produces sharper prints.
Prints both sides of the page without manual flipping.
Refillable ink tanks cut the cost per page dramatically.
The maximum recommended pages per month.
Scanning & copying
Scans and copies as well as prints.
Feeds multi-page documents through the scanner unattended.
How many pages the document feeder holds at once.
Scans both sides of a page automatically.
Sends and receives faxes.
Paper handling
A larger tray needs refilling less often.
How many printed pages the output tray holds.
The largest paper format supported (e.g. Letter, Legal, A3).
Connectivity
Print wirelessly over the home network.
Connect devices directly without a router.
A wired network port for reliable office use.
A direct USB connection to a computer.
Print from iPhone, iPad and Mac without extra drivers.
Print and manage the printer from a phone app.
Design
An onboard touchscreen makes standalone tasks easier.
A lighter printer is easier to place and move.
How the VS Score works — and what it can’t tell you
Every measurable spec is scored against the average of all the printers we track: matching the class average scores 50, clearly beating it climbs towards 100, and each spec counts according to an editorial weight that reflects real-world impact — a battery-capacity gap moves the score far more than a colour-options list. The quality bars on the spec cards above show where this model sits inside the full range for its class, and the overall VS Score rolls every weighted result into one number.
Unknown values are never estimated. A spec this product doesn’t report simply drops out of its scoring — it isn’t penalised with a guess — but a thinner spec sheet does mean a score built on fewer data points, which is why completeness is disclosed under About this data.
Most importantly: a spec-sheet lead is not the same as a better product. Megapixels, gigahertz and benchmark points describe capacity, not experience — image processing, software optimisation, thermals, haptics and ergonomics decide how a device actually feels, and no table captures reliability or long-term support quality. Treat the VS Score as a structured summary of what can be measured, not a substitute for your own priorities.
About this data
- Specifications are compiled from each manufacturer’s official spec sheet, cross-checked against trusted specification databases, and normalised into one schema so identical things are compared identically.
- Specifications last verified August 21, 2026.
- Data completeness: 22 of the 24 specs in this category are verified (92%). Anything we could not verify is shown as Unknown — never estimated — and is excluded from the score.
- Prices and availability come from live retailer feeds via our shopping partners and refresh throughout the day; a missing price means no partner currently lists the product, not that it is discontinued.
- Want the full picture? Our editorial guidelines explain how we research products, weight the scores and stay independent.
- Spotted an error in a spec? Tell us and we will correct the sheet.
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The bottom line
The Canon PIXMA TR160 earns a VS Score of 26, trailing most of the 51 printers we compare here, at least on the spec sheet.
- Who it’s for
- People who print a handful of contracts, permits or forms a week away from an office — field sales, inspectors, agents, trade-show staff. It is one of very few printers that genuinely fits in a backpack and still takes Legal paper.
- Who should look elsewhere
- Anyone who needs to scan, copy or fax, because it does none of the three. Also wrong as a household or student printer: the tiny cartridges make regular printing expensive, and there is no automatic duplex.
- The trade-off that matters
- Portability paid for in consumables. The 9.3 ml and 12.0 ml cartridges are what let it be bag-sized, and they are also why the cost per page is among the worst in the category.
- The main alternative
- HP OfficeJet 250 Mobile All-in-One — the answer if you assumed the TR160 could scan, since it is a true portable all-in-one with a scanner and a battery included.
The VS Score is generated automatically from the weighted specifications above, measured against all other printers in our database. Treat it as a shortlisting guide — not a substitute for your own priorities.
