Understanding your wireless printing options
Printing wirelessly from a smartphone can be a game-changer for those who don’t have access to a computer but need to produce physical documents. There are two ways to print wirelessly from your smartphone:
- Direct Wi-Fi printing
- Cloud printing
Direct Wi-Fi printing from your smartphone to a printer
If you own a newer printer model, you may be able to connect your device directly via Wi-Fi. This process is straightforward:
- Toggle on Wi-Fi on both your printer and smartphone
- Go to your printer’s control panel and locate the Wi-Fi setup options.
- Select your Wi-Fi network from your printer’s Wi-Fi setup options
- Open a document you’d like to print on your smartphone and click the printer icon
- Choose your printer from the list of available printers, then confirm the number of copies you want to make
- Click the print button
Cloud printing with Google Cloud Print and other options
If your printer is not equipped for direct Wi-Fi printing, you can use Google Cloud Print or Apple AirPrint to print documents wirelessly. Google Cloud Print is compatible with all printers, and it lets you print to a remote printer via the internet.
To use Google Cloud Print, connect your printer to your Google Account. This should take only a few minutes.
- Open Google Chrome and navigate to chrome://devices/
- Connect your printer via Wi-Fi
- Click Add Printer and sign in to your Google Account to link your printer
Once you’re linked up, you can print photos and attachments wirelessly from your smartphone by using Google Cloud Print.
Printing photos wireless using photo-specific apps
You can also use photo-specific apps such as HP ePrint, Epson iPrint, and Canon’s PIXMA Cloud Link to print photos wirelessly. HP ePrint and Epson iPrint are compatible with most printers, but Canon PIXMA Cloud Link requires a Canon printer.
Once you download the app, secure the connection between your printer and your smartphone using the app instructions, then follow the steps to print the photo or document. It’s that simple.
The bottom line
As you can tell, printing wirelessly from your smartphone is not rocket science. You only need to understand your options, know your printer compatibility, and pick the one that best suits you. With wireless printing, you no longer need a computer to print documents, making the process less time-consuming and more convenient.
