We use a lot of paper. The average American uses 700 pounds of paper per year, and global consumption stands at around 210 million tons per year.
Since we're so reliant on paper (and we now live in a world powered by mobile technology), it's important to know how to print documents on the go.
There are many services available. In this article, I am going to explain what “cloud print” Here are some of the best apps you can use.
All of the apps and services I'm going to discuss use cloud printing technology.
Cloud printing refers to the process of sending a document from a device to a printer without the need to install drivers or manufacturer-specific software.
It is particularly useful when used in conjunction with mobile devices. Smartphones and tablets generally don't have a native print feature or can only print to a very limited selection of devices.
However, it is also useful if you are working on a laptop outside of your home or office. How to Share Your Printer with Anyone on the Internet How to Share Your Printer with Anyone on the Internet Windows 7's Homegroup feature makes sharing printers on your local network easy, but what if you want to share a printer over the Internet? Traditionally, this has been very complicated, involving print drivers, firewall rules... Read More If you urgently need to print something in a university, library, or other public setting, technology can be a lifesaver.
Here are eight apps and services for you to try.
Available at: Windows, Mac, Chromebook, Android, iOS.
Google Cloud Print is possibly the best known of all services. Google launched the service in 2010, and it quickly grew to become the market leader. The technology is easy to understand:when printed, the document is sent over the web to Google, which in turn sends it to the selected printer.
The biggest benefit of Google Cloud Print is its compatibility. Google allows you to print to any printer, no matter where you are, Google allows you to print to any printer, no matter where you are tired of printer connectivity issues. Would you like to be able to print to a non-wireless printer from anywhere, no matter where you are? Google Cloud Print is here to make your life easier. Read more . It works on almost all operating systems (desktop and mobile), will let you print from virtually any app, and doesn't require you to sign up for any additional services if you have a pre-existing Google account.
Some printers are sold with Google Cloud technology built in, but even if your printer is old, it will still work. And you don't need to work on privacy; Google will automatically delete your documents from its servers as soon as the print job is complete.
It is not without its drawbacks. The service requires you to manually add printers to your account. That means if you want to use a public printer and your network administrator hasn't enabled cloud printing, you're out of luck.
Use this app if: You want to quickly send documents to your home printer from anywhere in the world.
Available at: Windows, Mac, Android, iOS.
I briefly touched on PrinterShare when I explained how to share a home printer over your Wi-Fi network The 3 Easiest Ways to Share a Printer Over a Network The 3 Easiest Ways to Share a Printer Over a PC Network Over a local network. We explain how to configure this in Windows. We also show you alternative ways to share your printer. Read More
The app will allow you to print to any Wi-Fi connected printer. Since nearly all new printers now have Wi-Fi technology, it means you'll be able to print to a host of devices.
PrinterShare is free to download and use on both desktop and mobile. And it's easy to set up:the app will instantly add any of your cloud-connected personal printers to your account, and then search for nearby printers on your local network.
If you're using Android How to print from an Android phone or tablet How to print from an Android phone or tablet Want to print directly from your Android phone or tablet? Don't worry, the process is simple. Read More You can automatically print your call history, messages, calendar, pictures, Gmail emails, and contacts.
The biggest drawback is the cost. The Android app is $9.95 and the iOS version is $4.99. Still, it's a price worth paying if you print a lot on the go.
Use this app if: You regularly need to print on a variety of modern printers in different public places.
Available at: iOS.
PrinterPro has the same approach as PrinterShare, but specializes in iOS devices.
Install the app, and it will automatically search for printers connected to your local network. Interestingly, it will also let you print to any non-Wi-Fi compatible printer via USB if you install the desktop app on your Mac. There is no Windows version.
It works extremely well with the various native iOS apps. Once you've installed the app on your device, you can print directly from Documents, Clipboard, Contacts, Photos, Safari, Dropbox, and more.
The app also comes with many options to customize your print job. You can change the paper size, orientation, adjust the number of copies, choose how many pages to print per sheet, and scale the size of your document.
Use this app if: You are strongly integrated into the Apple ecosystem.
Available at: Windows, Mac, Android, iOS.
Moving away from personal solutions, Ezeep is one of the best options for small offices. The app will allow you to manage your entire office printing infrastructure directly from the cloud. That means no more installing software on every employee's device or worrying about drivers not working properly.
Users can send documents to their connected printers from anywhere in the world.
The service comes with a mobile app for Android and iOS. Applications have advanced printing options, such as multiple copies, duplex printing, page ranges, and “Print Later” options. You can also specify company-wide policies that individual users cannot change (for example, restrict all print jobs). black and white printing) or set policies on a user-by-user basis.
You can even add a payment option, forcing employees to pay for the pages they want to print.
Use this app if: You want to provide an easy-to-use solution for your small business.
Available at: Windows, iOS, Android, Windows Phone.
PrintJinni allows you to print to almost all popular manufacturers' models over a Wi-Fi connection. It will automatically scan your network for available devices.
It supports all Microsoft Office formats as well as PDF and JPEG. PNG support is only available in the iOS version of the app.
The app stands apart from its competitors' offerings thanks to its social media integrations. You can print photos and other content from Google+, Instagram, Facebook, Flickr, Picasa, Photobucket, Shutterfly, and Snapfish without saving the image directly to your phone.
Use this app if: You want to print a lot of content from your social media feeds.
As with Google Cloud Print, some printers are AirPrint-enabled, but the app works on older models as well. Once you've connected your printer to the app, simply tap Print from within any app, and you'll have a hard copy in seconds.
Unsurprisingly, the app only works on Apple devices.
Most printer manufacturers now offer their own cloud printing apps. Because they are manufacturer specific, they are easy to set up and work extremely efficiently.
Obviously, the big drawback is that they will only work with printers from the manufacturer's family of products. They are not useful for printing in public places.
Some printers are Bluetooth enabled. The concept hasn't been widely adopted by manufacturers, but where it's available, it's arguably the simplest method on this entire list. Just pair your desktop or mobile device with the printer, and you can print anything you want.
In this piece, I've covered five services in detail and suggested three other ideas for you to consider.
I'd be interested in learning how to print documents when you're on the road. Do you use one of the apps I covered? Have you found an alternative service that is even better? What are your perceived advantages and disadvantages of your service of choice?
You can get in touch with your suggestions and recommendations in the comments below.
