Do you own a Google Android phone? Did you know that you can print photos and documents from your smartphone no matter where you are? All you need is a compatible HP printer. With HP mobile printing for Android, you’re able to stay connected to your printer even if you’re halfway around the world. Let’s review how to print from an Android phone. Show
What’s mobile printing?With the very first home printers, you had to connect your device to your printer via a cable. Thankfully, those cavemen days of printing are long gone. Nowadays you can print wirelessly using the internet. There’s a difference, though, between wireless printing and mobile printing.
Mobile printing is a bit more complicated. How on earth can your phone communicate with your printer when you’re not in the same room or on the same WiFi network? Most HP printers enable you to do mobile printing on your Android device. You can do it from your iPhone, too, but that's a different article. There are 2 basic methods for mobile Android printing, depending on what type of printer you have and where you’re trying to print from. WiFi methodMost HP printers enable you to print from your Android device so long as your device is connected to the same WiFi network as your printer. Your device can send printing tasks to your printer via the shared network. Use WiFi to print from:
How to print from your Android phone using WiFi1. Connect your Android device and your printer to the same WiFi network 2. Download the HP Print Service Plugin on your Android device Visit this link on your Android device and tap the link to install the plugin. This will take you to the HP Print Service Plugin page on the Google Play Store. If you haven’t already installed the HP Print Service Plugin, tap the Install button to install it. 3. Use the drop-down menus to print When you’re running the app on your device, you’ll be able to Print, Share, or Export via drop-down menus. Tap the printer icon to print. Popular Android apps that support printing include:
How to print from your Android phone using WiFi DirectWhat if there’s no WiFi network that your printer and Android device can connect to? No problem! You can still print from your Android device by using WiFi Direct. Most HP printers built after 2014 are equipped with WiFi Direct. With WiFi Direct, you can connect your device to your printer using a printer-based wireless connection. Here’s how to use it: 1. Download the HP Print Service Plugin from the Google Play Store and install it on your device.2. Get the WiFi Direct printer name. Every HP printer with WiFi Direct has a unique name and password. You’ll need them to connect your device.For printers with a control panel display:
For printers with buttons only, use whichever method matches your printer configuration:
3. Use the apps to print
4. Select your printer
For printers with a control panel display:
For printers with buttons only:
5. Wait for connection and print
How to print from your phone using HP ePrintYou can use WiFi or WiFi Direct when you’re near your printer. But what if you’re away from it? Maybe you’re across town or even across the country and you need to print a work document in the office, or an important document for your family. That’s when you can use HP ePrint. HP ePrint is a mobile printing feature that’s available on many HP printers. Compatible printers are programmed with a unique email address, and they’ll print any photos or documents that you email to them from your Android device. Your Android device must have an internet connection, but it doesn’t need to be connected to the same network as your printer. In order to print from your Android device using HP ePrint, you’ve first got to have a compatible HP printer. Then follow these steps: 1. Find your printer’s email address First, find your printer’s email address and activate your printer’s web services. For printers with touch screen displays:
For printers with text-based displays:
If your printer doesn’t have a touch screen or text-based display, you’ll have to use the HP Smart app to print from your Android phone. We’ll go over HP Smart a little later. 2. Print a document or photo On your Android device, open the photo or document you want to print.
3. Print an email To print an email:
4. Print a webpage To print a webpage:
How to change your HP ePrint settingsYou might have noticed that HP ePrint doesn’t allow you to adjust your printing options. The HP ePrint default settings are:
However, some eligible HP printers will grant you additional printing options when you add your printer to HP Connected. HP Connected is a program that enables you to adjust your print settings for web-connected printers. Once you’ve added your printer, click My Printers to change the print settings. With HP Connected, you can also change your printer’s email address. Using the HP Smart app to print from your phoneHP Smart is an app that you can install on your Android phone or tablet, and it’s one of the easiest ways to do mobile printing. To use HP Smart:
If you have a wireless printer that has no touch screen or text-based display, tap Print Info Page to get your printer’s email address for HP ePrint. With HP Smart, you can now print photos from social media, the cloud, or your camera roll. You can scan files using your camera and share them with your email or cloud, and you can also order new ink for your printer. What are the best HP wireless printers?Do you need to print professional-quality color documents for your business? Or maybe you just want to print your favorite photos from your Android camera roll in high-resolution. If color printing is your priority, check out some of our wireless HP InkJet printers. These printers are equipped with one or more mobile printing features, like WiFi Direct and HP ePrint, and they’re able to produce spectacular color images. If you’re printing very lengthy text documents from your Android device, you might prefer to print from a laser printer. Laser printers are faster than inkjets and are built to handle large printing tasks. Our wireless HP LaserJet printers have built-in mobile printing capabilities so you’ll always be connected to the office no matter where you go. About the AuthorZach Cabading is a contributing writer for HP® Tech Takes. Zach is a content creation specialist based in Southern California, and creates a variety of content for the tech industry. How do I get my phone to connect to my wireless printer?On your mobile device, open the Wi-Fi network menu, and then select the option starting with DIRECT followed by your printer model. If prompted, enter the Wi-Fi Direct password, and then tap Join. Open the item you want to print, and then select the option to Print. Select AirPrint, if prompted.
Can Android phone print to wireless printer?Make sure your printer is turned on and the wireless feature (Bluetooth or WiFi) is enabled. 2. If WiFi, be sure your Android phone is connected to the same WiFi network as the printer.
How do I connect my Android to my wireless printer?Connecting from a Smart Device Using Wi-Fi Direct Connection (for Android Only). Tap Wi-Fi from the Settings screen on your smart device.. After enabling Wi-Fi, tap the following icon.. Select Advanced .. Select Wi-Fi Direct.. Select the printer's device name, and then connect using Wi-Fi Direct.. |