Philippine Overland Expedition: So drive the brave

According to an article entitled “So Fight the Brave,” which appeared in the Sunday Times Magazine on March 3, 1946, writer TD Agcaoili narrates that when General Guillermo Nakar was detained at Fort Santiago, he regularly used the thumbs-up gesture to signal that “everything was okay, keep your chin up, and keep on fighting” thus uplifting the spirit of the inmates.

General Nakar, Quezon is home not only to some of the most challenging terrains in the country, but its unpredictable weather can render the jungle trail unpassable in a blink of an eye.  An adventure through the jungles of General Nakar definitely isn’t one for the weak-hearted but for the resilient and brave, off-roaders and adventurers who will never give up until they cross the finish line.

Now on its 2nd year, the Philippine Overland Expedition (PHL-OX) 2024 is guaranteed to take extreme 4×4 racing and Overlanding to the next level, with the introduction of more challenging obstacles, the inclusion of international-spec 4×4 rigs, and the opportunity for non-competitors to experience General Nakar like never before. PHL-OX 2024 is truly an adventure for the brave.

Happening from February 19 to 25, 2024 in General Nakar, Quezon, and Dingalan, Aurora, the Petron Philippine Overland Expedition will not only include technical multi-stage segments designed to challenge each competitors’ driving and survival skills but will also include an expedition that will give camper participants the chance to traverse the very same jungle trail that the competition convoy will take to Dingalan, Aurora.

Participants may opt to join the Team Competition as a group comprised of three (3) rigs with six (6) competitors. But unlike in the maiden edition where competitor teams were required to use production vehicles with slight modifications, competitors can now include prototype and modified rigs provided a team has a minimum of 1 production vehicle and a maximum of one prototype vehicle.

Prototype rigs are heavily modified race rigs built to compete in highly technical 4×4 competitions. There are no restrictions in terms of the engine type and body structure for these types of vehicles, provided they adhere with the safety guidelines of the competition. Windshields, firewalls, and functioning electrical systems are musts. Modified rigs on the other hand are production units that have been customized in terms of body size and engine type while retaining the production look of the vehicle.

With regards to the Prototype and Modified category vehicles, special emphasis will be given to driver safety in addition to vehicle set up and capabilities, with rig specifications used in international 4×4 competitions to be followed.

For the Team Competition, similar to 2022, participating vehicles must have full recovery and river crossing capacity; hence winch and snorkels are required. Each team must also be self-reliant, bringing with them provisions such as food, water, power sources, as well as critical vehicle spare parts and supplies.

For PHL-OX 2024, the event will officially flag off from the General Nakar Municipal Hall in Quezon province, with each competitor team tasked to complete multiple timed stages (TS), en route to the final challenge in Dingalan, Aurora.

Timed stages are man-made and natural tracks designed to test each competitor’s off-road driving, navigation, and recovery skills.

The team with the fastest time to complete each TS will receive maximum points. Penalty points will be deducted should a competitor fail to adhere to certain safety guidelines such as not wearing of seatbelt while the vehicle is in motion, and not using gloves when winching.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

Similar to PHL-OX 2022, there will be a prize pot of P1,000,000 with the champion team taking home P500,000. The 2nd and 3rd placers will receive P200,000 and P100,000 respectively. Special Awards will also be given to select Competitor Teams and individual competitors for performance-related achievements during the competition.

PH OVERLAND EXPO

For camper participants of the PH OVERLAND EXPO, which takes place from Feb. 21 – Feb. 25, they have the option to elevate their PHLOX experience by joining as a full-time camper / spectator, tagging along the competition convoy from Campsite 1 in Masanga Point all the way to Campsite 2 in Dingalan, Aurora.

Full-time campers may opt to take NLEX to Dingalan, or via Machine Gun Hill trail to Umiray, General Nakar, the same route that will be taken by competitor teams. Those who wish to join the competition convoy will be required to submit their vehicle for inspection on Feb. 20th.

Campers also have the option to join the event as camper / spectator in either the Masanga Point or Dingalan campsite only.

PHL-OX 2024 is co-organized by MOTOTESTO OVERLAND EQUIPMENT PHILIPPINES and ALL TRACTION PERFORMANCE, and is made possible with the support of PETRON CORPORATION, MOTOLITE, ARB 4×4 PHILIPPINES, BUSHRANGER, and SECOND AIR.

HOW TO REGISTER

Be part of this epic adventure! Visit www.mototesto.com to register.

Schedule of events

Competition

DATE: February 20 to 25, 2024
FLAG OFF: General Nakar Municipal Hall, Quezon
CAMPSITES: Masanga Point, General Nakar and Dingalan, Aurora

Overland Jamboree
DATE: February 21 to 25, 2024
CAMPSITES: Masanga Point, General Nakar and Dingalan, Aurora

 

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Canon PIXMA G2010 review: Refillable and reliable

06/30/2021

Creating an effective work/study-from-home environment means you not only have to be comfortable but also have all the devices you may need within reach.

These days, we’re excited to fill our workspaces with all the latest and sophisticated tech but one of the staples of an effective home/study area would be the humble printer.

The Canon PIXMA G2010 is a high-volume, refillable tank printer that is looking to be a good choice for the everyday user and maybe even small business. Whether it’s for scanning reports from the office, copying worksheets for the kids, or even printing photos to keep, this device can handle plus its refillable ink tank can help you save money too.

Design

The Canon PIXMA G2010 is a pretty standard-looking printer. It’s an all-in-one device that also offers scanning and copying functions, weighs about 6 kilograms, and is mostly made of plastic.

The flatbed scanner is up on top with the paper feed just behind it. To the right of the scanner are the device’s buttons which include power, maintenance, number of copies, stop, color, and black and white buttons.

There’s also a small LCD screen that indicates the number of copies or pages to print.

Flipping the top half open reveals the printer’s ink tanks. Unlike traditional printers, the PIXMA G2010 uses a more cost-efficient integrated refillable ink tank system. Canon also offers spill-resistant containers for its ink so you’re sure to get every last drop into the printer.

On the right, you can see the ink tanks for color while on the left is the ink tank for black. Flipping the blue panels on either left or right side reveals the tanks’ openings for refilling. These are also transparent so it’s easy to see your ink levels are at a glance.

Performance

To get this printer working, I simply plugged it in. Using the supplied USB cable, my PC was able to instantly recognize and configure the PIXMA G2010. No added software download needed. Unfortunately, this printer isn’t supported on Apple computers.

Should you ever need drivers or apps, though, Canon supplies all of these on its website. And while the printer doesn’t need any additional program to run, I do suggest downloading the IJ Printer Assistant to have easier access to its maintenance tools.

I checked to see if the printer was recognized on different programs and everything seemed to be running smoothly. Canon claims the PIXMA G2010 can print 8 pages per minute for a standard black and white document and 5 pages per minute for colored.

Testing it out ourselves, we indeed were able to print 8 pages in just a minute. We found this to be true for word documents though as printing PDFs took much longer. Printing a full-page, borderless, color photo on A4 glossy photo paper took about 5 minutes.

The PIXMA G2010 accepts the standard paper sizes, envelopes, 5×5-inch prints, and business card sizes. It also offers custom sizes up to 215mm in width and 676mm in length and can handle up to pretty thick 250 GSM paper.

The printer offers up 4800 x 1200dpi for printing which basically means you should be able to achieve sharp and clean prints.

We were really pleased with how the photos we printed on photo paper came out. We used photos take with smartphones and SLRs and the prints came out quite faithful to the source. Colors were accurate and details remained sharp. We also didn’t notice any bleeding either whether from text or photos.

I had a lot of fun printing out photos from our trips because while it’s nice to look at them on the phone or computer, I still do really love having tangible prints to display.

One of our favorite things about the PIXMA G2010 are its integrated ink tanks. By forgoing the traditional cartridges, the printer offers a more cost-efficient option for ink because ink not only takes longer to finish but also doesn’t dry out.

With the tanks also visible, you’ll also easily be able to see whether you need to refill. Seeing the contents of the tank is a great visible reminder to map out when you need to buy refills. And that should be a while, too, because Canon says its ink bottles can last up to 7000 pages.

Scanning or copying were also straightforward tasks. Once you have your document on the flatbed, you can use the onboard buttons to start a color or monochrome copy and indicate how many you would like. Using the native Windows Scan app on my PC, we were also able to achieve clear document scans.

Scanning photos or highly colored documents though didn’t come out as neat but are still recognizable with a good amount of detail and color.

There’s no wireless or network option here, though, which means it will be tethered to a single computer. This makes the device most suitable and most effective for small offices with shared computers or single home users.

It also runs a bit loud especially when you’re cleaning the printer head so that may be an issue for some. We weren’t personally bothered by the noise even if we have a small workspace.

Overall, if we were to sum up the Canon PIXMA G2010 in one word, that word would be dependable. You’re getting a fast printer with good quality and are also saving money with its refillable ink tank system.

Creature Feature

In our reviews, The Modern Creatures aims to find special features in a device that makes it worth having – something that gives it an edge over its competitors. And for the Canon PIXMA G2010, it would have to be its refillable ink tank system.

What makes the Canon PIXMA G2010 a really great home office printer is that it’s pretty low maintenance. With its large ink tanks, you can fill them up and not worry about running out of ink for a  good while. Ink tanks also don’t dry up like some cartridges which means you’re getting the most out of your money with refills.

 

Final Thoughts

The Canon PIXMA G2010 is the printer you buy and forget about. But in a good way. If you’re like us, you won’t need to print all the time but when you do, you just want a no-fuss device that works. And that’s what this printer is. But you may also be asking who else is this printer for?

If you’re more worried about saving ink than having a network or wireless connection then this printer is the way to go. I can imagine this fitting very well in a home office or study where it’s easily accessible by many family members or co-workers.

And whether you’re a student or worker or just need a printer for the house, you’ll benefit from the fast speeds and quality color prints while keeping things light on the pocket with its money-saving ink tanks.

The Canon PIXMA G2010 is already available for PhP 7,595 a.

Get it here: Amazon US, Lazada PH, Shopee PH

 

 

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