Apple announced on Thursday the launch of a wireless printing feature for its mobile products, allowing owners of iPhones, iPads and iPods to print directly to compatible printers over Wi-Fi networks.
Apple said that AirPrint wireless printing would be made available in November and would work with iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad and iPod Touch’s third generation or later.
“AirPrint automatically finds printers on local networks and can print text, photos and graphics to them wirelessly over Wi-Fi without the need to install drivers or download software,” according to Apple.
AirPrint will be included in the release of an updated operating system, iOS4.2, which will allow Apple fans better multi-tasking capabilities and improved integration with YouTube and Apple’s Facetime video chat feature.
Hewlett-Packard’s line of ePrint-enabled printers will be the first to support AirPrint.
“AirPrint matches the simplicity of iOS — no set up, no configuration, no printer drivers and no software to download,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice-president of Worldwide Product Marketing.
“iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch users can simply tap to print their documents or photos wirelessly to an HP ePrint printer or to a printer shared on a Mac or PC.”
“Making it easy for our customers to print anytime, anywhere, is a key priority for HP,” said Vyomesh Joshi, HP’s executive vice-president for imaging and printing. “iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch customers are going to love how easy it is to print using our new range of ePrint printers.”
