Canon PIXMA TS6520
What We Like
- Automatic duplex prints two-sided schoolwork without flipping pages
- Crisp, vivid print quality for documents and photos
- Guided mobile app setup gets first print running in minutes
- Strong feature set for the price
- Compact footprint fits small desks and shelves
Worth Noting
- Cartridge costs can climb in households printing more than a few pages daily
- In larger home layouts the wireless link can drop mid-job on some routers
- Duplex
- Automatic
- Output
- Color
- Wireless
- Dual-band Wi-Fi, USB
- Cost Per Page
- Higher ink cost
Read the full review
Automatic duplexing anchors the TS6520 — two-sided worksheets and reports print without anyone flipping pages between sides, saving a meaningful stack of paper each school year. That convenience pairs with color output that keeps text sharp and legible for assignments while photos come through vivid enough for class projects and family snapshots. The 14 ppm monochrome pace finishes a five-page report in well under a minute, and switching on duplex adds no meaningful delay, so the printer keeps pace with a morning rush of worksheets and permission slips. Document text stays crisp at small sizes, which matters for two-column handouts.
Setup flows through a guided mobile app that pairs the printer over Wi-Fi and loads drivers without hunting the Canon site, so the first page lands in minutes rather than an afternoon of driver troubleshooting. The compact body slides onto a corner desk or shelf, and the dual-band wireless plus a USB port give real placement flexibility. For families printing a handful of pages daily, the two-cartridge hybrid keeps the sticker price low while still delivering the duplex and color features schoolwork leans on, which is why the value stacks up against pricier multi-feature models that bundle scanning extras beyond the daily worksheet routine.
On routers located across the house, the wireless connection can drop mid-job or leave the printer offline after sleep. The dual-band radio and USB port give a recovery path — moving the unit closer or plugging in a cable keeps the task moving, and a quick router restart restores the link without reinstalling drivers. In typical close setups the connection holds through full print runs, so the caveat shows up in larger layouts where the router sits in another room.
The TS6520 fits the budget-conscious family with steady, modest printing — daily worksheets, the occasional science poster, a party invitation. The auto duplex and color output cover that routine cleanly at a price below feature-laden all-in-ones. Households printing more than a few pages a day should weigh rising cartridge costs, and anyone needing consistent wireless in a sprawling house should expect occasional drops; the USB port covers that gap. Both boundaries sit well outside the light-to-moderate school-season use this printer is built for.
If the wireless link drops, moving the printer closer to the router or connecting via USB restores the job without reinstalling.
Bottom line: The TS6520 fits the budget-conscious household printing a few pages daily — automatic duplex and solid color output cover the school-year routine at a price that keeps occasional cartridge replacements manageable.
