Apple has introduced a ‘print’ button onto iPads, iPhones and iPods to allow you to print directly to a printer from your iOS device. Unfortunately you need a special AirPrint enabled printer. Thankfully there is a free application called ‘AirPrint Activator’ that allows you to print to any printer, here’s where to get it and how to use it.
AIRPRINT
On your iPhone at the bottom of some apps is a ‘share’ button. If you click this button you get a menu of different ways to share the content, one of these options is ‘print’ as shown below.
Share Button
Print Button
When you press the ‘Print’ button you will be given an option to choose a printer, but unless you have a special AirPrint printer’ you will see no printers here at all. (I have a Canon IR5000, a Canon inkjet, a Xerox and a HP and none of them are AirPrint!)
If you don’t have an AirPrint printer there will be no printer here to select
AIRPRINT ON NON-AIRPRINT PRINTERS
If you want your non-airprint printer to appear then you can download the following free donationware application called ‘AirPrint Activator‘ ‘HandyPrint’ from netputing. It’s free for 14 days then it asks for a donation of the amount your choice.
You download it to a macintosh computer that’s attached to your printer, then it allows you to print via the computer to any printer via AirPrint. Your computer acts as a bridge between your iOS device and printer. Note you can’t print directly from an iPad to a non air-print printer, only via a computer.
Click here to go to the netputing page to find the latest version. It works on Mountain Lion and iOS6.
This will download a little application called ‘HandyPrint’.
You may then need to click on the ‘downloads’ button in the top right of Safari to find where it has been downloaded to.
Click on the ‘Show Downloads’ button to find it.
Now run HandyPrint by double clicking the HandyPrint application.
You should get a window that looks like the one below.
Press the slider to ‘Turn On’ AirPrint.
The Printer should now appear in your iPad or iPhone printing menu!
NOTE:
There is a PC version that I’ve found but it costs $20. You can download from here:
http://www.collobos.com Anyone found a free PC version?
My printer is a KODAK ESPOffice 6150 and can print wirelessly. The iphone 4S with 6.1 (10B142) and the PC is running Windows 7.
From what I have read so far I can download the App “Print n Share”. You have to open whatever you want to print through the app itself, then printer and pc needs to be on too. If other apps have an “open with” feature, you can use that to open whatever you would like to print in the Print n Share app to print it.
Is this correct and has it worked for others apart from Jenn Indiana who very kindly provided the info for PC printing.
What’s wrong, do you need a airprint computer or somthing??? When I search for printers it dosen’t come up with anything. I made sure it was connected to the same wifi, made sure it was on and even checked if my printer was fully working.
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It only workas on quadcore Macs not on dualcore
Works perfectly on my i-Pad but not on my i-Pod or i-Phone. Why?
I have an ipad 2. and a laptop. Both of them are in the same wifi. We have a wire printer it is not an airprint one. I tried to print from my laptop and it works. But when I tried to print from my ipad it doesn’t work. Whats the problem? Anyone can help me pls, Thank you.
Rona, what sort of laptop do you have? This method will work only on a Mac. If you have a Windows laptop, you will have to look for a different solution, if one exists.
If I connect my HP Officejet 7700 to my Airport Extreme WiFi router via USB, will I then be able to print to it directly, without any middleware? Comments appreciated – thanks!
I am assuming this cool trick only works if you have wifi connecting all your devices. Unfortunately the only Internet access we have at home is via out phones, which we then turn into mobile hotspots in order to get Internet on our home Mac, iPad, etc. any suggestions on an app that will allow me to print to my non-air Canon laser printer using only my iphone 5?
I am assuming this cool trick only works if you have wifi connecting all your devices. Unfortunately the only Internet access we have at home is via our iphones, which we then turn into mobile hotspots in order to get Internet on our home Mac, iPad, etc. any suggestions on an app that will allow me to print to my non-air Canon laser printer using only my iphone 5?
Annie,
you should be able to print from the iPhone, when the iPhone is in Hotspot mode, as it should be able to see the Mac and print to it.
When you are offline and want to print, you need a local hotspot, such as the Airport Express, or any cheap-o WiFi router. Doesn’t have to be the latest model, as it will just serve you to connect the iOS devices to the Mac. You should be able to get one on eBay for $10 or so.
In both situations, though, the Mac to which the printer is connected must be on in order for this really cool App to work.
Is there a PC version?
You would think Apple would do the obvious and get this sorted !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No wonder Samsung are getting ahead ?
Same with the picture capture and orientation
Bad Apple !
Samsung (android) is more limited than iOs-devises and you need to use googles webprint or hp eprint which ios can use too.
There is NO direct wireless printing but you can buy software to do that…
so easy thans
fingerprint has a trial version that worked for a pc but has a watermark untill you buy the pay version for 20