AirPrint is a similar technology to Google’s Cloud Print and HP’s ePrint. It is Apple’s version of Wi-Fi printing and was premiered in 2010. This driverless and wireless printing requires a printer that is AirPrint enabled. Printing can also be done from any of Apple’s mobile devices including all models of the iPad, iPhones that are 3GS or later, and iPod Touch that are third generation or later. Printers that are not AirPrint-enabled can use AirPrint by downloading special software.

There are several brands of printers that are AirPrint-ready and they include:

Brother
Canon
Dell
Epson
Xerox
Gestetner
Hewlett Packard
Infotec
Lanier
Lenova
Lexmark
NRG
Ricoh
Samsung
Savin

To use AirPrint, you need one of the following devices with the latest version of iOS:

• iPad (all models)
• iPhone (3GS or later)
• iPod touch (3rd generation or later)

AirPrint is compatible with any version of Mac OS Printing/Fax, OS X Lion, and OS X Mountain Lion.

Pros:

• Once AirPrint is enabled; printing is simply selecting the file you want to print and then selecting the printer from which to print.
• It is built into iOS ( 4.2 and later ) so does not require additional software
• Printer selection is vast; there are about four hundred printers available on the market that are AirPrint-enabled

Cons:

• Certain printer functionality might not be accessible with AirPrint
• It is not possible to edit documents while in AirPrint. The document can only be selected then printed “as is”.
• AirPrint-enabled printers connected using Bluetooth or shared through a USB port of a Mac, PC, AirPort Base Station, or Time Capsule are NOT supported.
• Apple does not support any non-licensed products even if they support iOS printing. The printer and iOS device must be connected to the same Wi-Fi network.
• Most AirPrint compatible printers/MFP’s are inkjet, there are only a few laser models.

3rd Party Support

Netgear offers its Genie Application for both Mac OS X 10.6 or above and Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8 – which makes any printer AirPrint compatible so you can print from an iPad or iPhone, via a NETGEAR router. Visit the NetGear Genie page.