#Best printer 2018 for mac software#

If you can’t get your printer to work properly using software supplied with macOS, this will be your next option. Generally, most users find that printer support installed through macOS is the most reliable and compatible, but some prefer going straight to that supplied by the printer manufacturer instead.

#Best printer 2018 for mac install#

Install the printer manufacturer’s software Before installing that, select the printer in Printers & Scanners, and click on the – tool to remove it, and start again.ĥ. If you can’t get your printer to work, or key features appear unsupported, try using the manufacturer’s software instead. If your current installation does the job properly, then it’s done. You should also see printer-specific features when you progress to its Print dialog proper. One common test is to open Photos and ensure that it can print proper contact sheets. If you use apps with high-end printing support, such as Adobe CS, you’ll obviously want to check those out. With everything enabled and running, now’s the time to test that the printer and any other features work properly.

#Best printer 2018 for mac driver#

If that doesn’t do the trick, remove the printer and go to step 5 below to try the manufacturer’s driver instead. Select the one that you need and install it, then go back through this step in the process, and see if you get better support for your printer’s features.

#Best printer 2018 for mac drivers#

If they aren’t, or you’re not happy with them, Miles has kindly catalogued all the final versions of legacy drivers available from Apple in this article. Legacy drivers should be downloaded automatically. That should add any other supported features, in this case access to the peripheral as a scanner. If that’s the case, try installing the legacy driver next. The AirPrint driver may not support all your printer’s features, and in multi-function devices may only support printing not scanning or faxing. In the first instance, try with just AirPrint, which should work without any additional driver. The item listed below that is a legacy driver, which may have to be downloaded via Software Update, and installed in /Library/Printers. Select it there, and then look at the Use: popup menu below.Īll more modern printers, models released since about 2012, should now support AirPrint, and in most cases that should be your first choice.

#Best printer 2018 for mac mac#

Your Mac should then offer you the printer in the list of those available. Open the Printers & Scanners pane, which should now be empty.Ĭlick on the + tool at the far left to browse available printers. Despite its name, AirPrint doesn’t require a Wi-Fi connection, and can operate perfectly well over a wired ethernet connection, for example. This may mean configuring its Wi-Fi or other networking, or enabling AirPrint, perhaps: consult the printer documentation. Your printer will need to be connected properly to your Mac and ready to use before you start installing it on your Mac. Turn the printer on and follow the manufacturer’s instructions If you’re unsure what you can remove safely, don’t put it in the Trash, but move it to a folder in Documents for the time being, so you can replace it if necessary.Ģ. If you really want to be thorough, take a look in /Library/Printers too, but be a bit more cautious there as ist and some of the contents of the PPDs folder can be important. Check through /Applications and /Applications/Utilities, and uninstall or remove old printer software from there.

Open the Printers & Scanners pane, select any redundant printers listed there, and use the – tool to remove them. In all other cases, before you even turn the printer on, uninstall and remove all old printer support from the Mac. If the Mac you are going to install the printer on has never supported a printer, and hasn’t been migrated from a Mac which has, you won’t have any old printer support software, and can move straight on to step 2. All is not lost, though: follow these steps and you shouldn’t have to send that printer for recycling, or give it away. MacOS Mojave doesn’t make any great changes in printing, but printer support has become a bit more complex, as Apple has stopped updating its list of compatible printers, and appears to have also stopped updating the drivers it supplies for older printers, to focus support on AirPrint instead.