"Don't make the mistake of buying the Canon Pixma TS5150 thinking it uses 5 ink tanks! This model uses a pair of print head cartridges, the PG-540 and CL-541!"
Up to now, the TS-5000 series Canon printers have used 5 cartridges. But do not confuse the new Canon Pixma TS-5150 with the older TS-5050/5051/5052/5053 models. The new TS5150 uses 2 cartridges (PG540 / CL541), and the older TS5050 uses 5 cartridges (PGI-570 BK / CLI-571 BK/C/M/Y). So why is this important you may ask? Well, if you are eventually looking for cheap replacement cartridges, or refillable cartridges, then you must buy the older TS-5050/5051/5052/5053 models.
Looking at the printing resolutions, new and old both share the same 4800x1200dpi figures. The scanning resolutions are also identical at 2400x1200dpi. They both offer Wireless connectivity (WiFi / Apple AirPrint / Google Cloud Print). Both of them have a 100 page paper tray, a Colour flatbed scanner, SC / SDHC Memory card ports.
The comparable sizes of the boxes are (TS5150 425 x 315 x 147 mm (W x D x H)), and (TS5050 372 X 315 x 126 mm (W x D x H)). So the newer model is larger and will command more desk space.
The advantage of the new TS-5150 is that it has two paper feeds. A rear (100 sheet), and a front cassette (100 sheet), meaning that you could load photo paper into one, and ordinary plain paper in the other. This means that you could fit the new TS5150 under a shelf if you just used the front cassette, even though it is wider and higher than the TS5050 which only has a rear tray.
Print quality on the new Canon TS-5150 is excellent as it to be expected from most Canon printers. As we have already mentioned, it uses the PG-540 and CL-541 print cartridges with a built-on print head. The advantage to this is that you get a new print head each time you buy a cartridge, but this significantly increases the cost of replacement ink. You can refill the cartridges using a refill kit, but not everyone wants to do this. The big advantage of the older TS5050 / TS5051 was that compatible and refillable separate ink tanks for each colour are available to buy.
In summary, both printers offer a similar specification, except for the useful front paper cassette on the newer TS5150, however the new model is wider and higher. The older TS5050/TS5051/TS5052/TS5053 models use 5 individual ink tanks, and compatible and refillable versions are available.