Smart-phone & Tablet printing – why not?
Internet browsing is the most widely used application on tablets, and to a lesser extent on smart-phones, No one seems to want to print what they see. I have had a smart-phone for years. I am sorry to say I am also a tablet owner of a few weeks, I am trying unsuccessfully to wean myself off a net-book.
Only now do I want to print, The reason is quite simple, I just used to look up simple things like who stars in the film I am watching, news etc. Nothing you want to have a permanent copy of print but now I have the Tablet I use it to look up things for which I would have used the net-book or desktop.
The idea of printing had never crossed my mind before, because I had the facility with the net-book, I just accepted that tablets and smart-phones don’t print.
I was installing a new system at a client and I was asked if his iPad could print, after playing I admitted defeat and suggested either an app or a chat with the local Apple store. The simple answer from Apple is they only print with Apple printers, Quelle Suprise! (I think they are wrong, there must be an app).
Having time over Christmas and my techie son was home from University I returned to the problem and asked him, Simple he said, showing me his Windows phone but only directly to a wireless printer.
Consulting that font of knowledge – Bing (Google is so “last decade” and due to it’s large size it’s fast becoming a target of criticism like IBM and Microsoft). I discovered several apps that could do this with ease.
My chosen app was PrintHand. For two reasons, It prints with every printer I could throw at it and it prints with any connection. The other thing I like is that you can install the free version to see if it works for you, it wont print out anything but a test page but it does prove a point and once purchased you can use it on all your Android devices. It’s also availble on iOS, Windows Phone and Blackberry.
Like all Android devices it’s easy to buy and install but setting up? They have tried to make it as easy as possible. My first test was on our work network and the connection went. Phone-accesspoint-network-Ricoh printer. The Ricoh in our offices are the sort that come with a cabinet, thats all the spec you need to know, and that it costs a four figure sum – one of our best investments.
It found the printer but couldn’t find any drivers, so it asked if I would like to try a common one, it worked absolutely fine.
It can also be used with Bluetooth, USB, network, shared, and wireless printers, Its definitely worth the price tag of under £9. Just search the Google Play store and search for PrintHand. The icon is a blue ended printer with a hand print on the front.
You may have noticed I said I was sorry. I am sorry as now I own one but I still cant justify it and the more I use it the more I don’t need it, but more of that later in another blog.