Apple is releasing the beta version of its AirPrint wireless printing for iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch. AirPrint is a key component of Apple's iOS 4.2 software update.
Apple iOS developers, take note: The company is releasing the beta version
of its AirPrint wireless printing for iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch. AirPrint is
one of the key additions to the company's iOS 4.2 software update due in
November.
Apple claimed in a Sept. 15 press release that AirPrint will support a "wide
range of printers," including entry-level inkjets and office laser printers,
and work on devices including the iPad, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, and the iPod
Touch from the second generation forward. Hewlett-Packard printers will
apparently be the first to support AirPrint, with compatible devices to include
HP Photosmart, Officejet pro and LaserJet Pro series ePrint-enabled printers.
"AirPrint is Apple's powerful new printing architecture that matches the
simplicity of iOS-no setup, no configuration, no printer drivers and no
software to download," Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of
Worldwide Product Marketing,
wrote in a Sept.
15 statement. Apple device 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."
In addition to AirPrint, iOS 4.2 for the iPad will offer stronger security
and device-management capabilities, as well as Apple's new multiplayer-centric Game
Center application.
According
to the blog Apple Insider, itself quoting unnamed people familiar with the
matter, developers testing the iOS 4.2 beta must have the pre-release build of
Mac OS X 10.6.5, the next version of Apple's "Snow Leopard" operating system.
"The latest beta of Mac OS X 10.6.5 was delivered to developers this week with
no known issues," reads a Sept. 15 posting. "People familiar with the latest
version said it is known as build 1H542."
Apple
released its iOS 4.1 update for mobile devices Sept. 8. In addition to
fixing a handful of software bugs, the upgrade introduces Game
Center, iTunes TV show rentals and Ping
social-networking service to the iPhone and iPod Touch. Standard-issue iOS 4
features include multitasking, the iBooks e-reader, app folders, and the
ability to change the home-screen wallpaper.
During a Sept. 1 presentation in San
Francisco, Apple CEO
Steve Jobs claimed some 120 million devices currently run iOS, with 230,000 new
iOS activations per day. The new iOS updates seem explicitly designed to head
off competition from not only the regularly updated Google Android, but also
the upcoming Windows Phone 7. In addition, a number of other manufacturers are
planning tablet PCs that will likely include features such as multitasking and
printing.
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