Wide-Format Quarterly Oct 2015

Wide-Format supplement of The Recycler trade magazine
Wide-Format Quarterly
Issue 1 - October 2015
Issue 1 - October 2015
USA singer Britney Spears is highlighted on an electronic sign at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, Nevada (photo courtesy of Roger Bennett Photography)
Electronic signs are impacting
wide-format market
It happened with blacksmiths and manufacturers of typewriters. At some point the blacksmith heard the rattle of the Tin Lizzie, a changemaker.
And the 1980s advent of the computer has all but put an end to the typewriter, unless you are some of those stubborn enough to still try
to find a ribbon and peck away.
In a similar way, people in wide-format printing are watching
electronic signage. Such signs will not completely replace small
businesses’ wide-format advertising, but its growth will have an
impact on print signage.
Electronic advertising is becoming less expensive, more
prevalent and easier. It has actually been around a long time -
think of Times Square in New York City and Las Vegas hotels on
the strip - but has recently become more accessible to mainline
business customers. Its eye-catching advantage and ease of change
(a mouse-click versus a sign crew) has enhanced its attractiveness
for advertising. The Outdoor Advertising Association of America
reports that digital billboards remain the biggest drivers of revenue
growth, with 67 percent of the $5.33 billion (€4.8 billion) spent in
2014 in the out-of-home advertising market by the third quarter. The
association predicts the number of digital billboards in the USA
will expand at a rate of several hundred per year.
The electronic billboard market is in transit from liquidcrystal
displays (LCD) to light-emitting diode (LED) displays at
the current time. Most people have seen these in doctor’s offices
now. Quick-serve restaurants (fast-food) are continuing to show
the fastest growth in electronic signage, and restaurant menus
can change easily during the day.
These restaurant enterprises are joining veterans like
gasoline stations in posting specials and prices electronically. Video
billboards advertise everything from soft-drinks to cars, and are
beginning to scroll ads along four-lane highways and metro politan
areas. But think of a regional display-advertising network with
10-second advertisements on video loops. This sort of advertising
©2015 The Recycler www.therecycler.com Page 1

The Lamplighter Inn in Pittsburg, Kansas, uses this single-colour electronic display, courtesy of
Jayhawk Signs & Graphics, Pittsburg.
network of multiple signs can be found in Canada and Europe, with
the potential for advertisers to capture shoppers during a commute.
Brand awareness is enhanced by adding electronic signage at
the checkout. An electronic display may give those in a queue
something to view, and also display specials or coupons.
The advantage of print
The primary advantage of a print advertisement is its cost.
It is measured in dollars or euros instead of thousands of
dollars or euros. In addition, most businesses can afford signs,
banners and point-of-purchase displays. If they choose to do their
own, a wide-format printer is not out of reach for many small
businesses, governments or schools and universities. Most printers
now are moving toward easy printing by “drag-and-drop” interfaces,
user-controlled services and printer paper and ink loading. Most
do not need a production manager to run, and do not need
extensive IS knowledge. Many prints also don’t need a
reprographic shop, so cost and time for printing are controlled
by the users. Dramatic floor-graphic shots for a trade show
can be made with an inkjet printer and a widely-available kit
that can laminate the surface and the required skid-resistance.
Economy, ease, time of print and control over the print itself are all
hallmarks of small-business wide-format printing today.
The new interactive media
Today, static printing exists in a connected world. Twitter hashtags
and contacts, Facebook “likes” and all forms of internet interaction
are usually part of signage today. But there are some parts of interactivity
that cannot be accessed through static signs.
Tracking and interactivity are growing and expanding in the
electronic-display area. A store may ask a smartphone if the customer
wishes to interact as they go through a store. A Quick Response
(QR) code is available so the customer can scan and download
information and coupons from a website. A message can be
targeted by gender through cameras integrated into an electronic
display in a mall. Displays can give different messages to senior
citizens than to teens. If a store has a double-shipment of goods it
has to sell, it can change the price immediately.
Other technologies are emerging, including having security
systems study people-flow to strategically place signs, according to
the International Sign Association. Electronic displays will help to
more accurately target customers.
Rather than a scatter-gun approach for adver tising, digital
electronic signage can target an individual at a certain time of
day. And the interactivity of such signs is hatching a new type of
marketing that can operate in tandem with electronic signs.
Location-based marketing engages customers who opt-in by
delivering messages and promotions to customers according to
place and time, using mobile technology of the customer. The
billboard or signage may incorporate messages from customers
as part of the display. The services include provi ding coupons,
directions to the store or where goods are kept. In addition, the
retail store can track customers and information about them. For
younger generations engaged in social and mobile networking
every day, such trading isn’t as aversive now. The Location Based
Marketing Association says location-based services will reach $16.3
billion (€15 billion) in 2015. Leasing electronic digital signage may
be the most promising trend yet for attracting small business. Most
small-business owners do not have the IS/IT expertise and design
capability to manage electronic signage, or the IS/IT department
may be extended with other jobs.
Some electronic-sign providers offer technical expertise and
assistants as part of the package.
Electronic signs are present from high above to the street in Las Vegas (photo courtesy of
Roger Bennett Photography)
©2015 The Recycler www.therecycler.com Page 2

illboards usually include remote-scheduling software to change
content on either one, a group or a network of billboards all at
once. Some companies buy displays and have a company manage
the content.
Bringing down cost
A panorama of Las Vegas hotels shows different types of electronic signage
(photo courtesy of Roger Bennett Photography)
For geographically-dispersed electronic billboard solutions,
the package should include remote-scheduling to change content
on one digital billboard, a group of digital billboards, or the
entire network simultaneously. How ever, there are local and state
regulations for electronic signage in many locales. Some require
such electronic billboards be set a certain number of feet from
the highway or away from traffic signage and signals. Some have
colour restrictions and others regulate how often the display is
changed, whether it can flash and that it scrolls slowly. Electronic
Electronic signage is becoming less expensive as the technology
becomes more prevalent. For some small businesses, wide-format
signs will be the avenue of choice for their message. But there
are avenues for even such businesses to venture into the world of
electronic advertising.
Signs that cost over a million dollars several years ago have
decreased to one-fourth of that because of the advancement of
tech nology, including the changeover to LED technology. Last
year in Pittsburg, Kansas, one electronic sign provider priced
one-colour signs for about $16,000 (€14,528) for dynamic
display. For multi-colour, the cost was $28,000 to 30,000 (€25,424
to €27,241). Pixels make a difference. An LCD 12 square-metre
screen with 49,000 pixels will be cheaper than a 12 square-metre
LED screen with 120,000 pixels. Rental or lease is another option,
with operators averaging $14,000 (€12,874) per month in rent
compared with $1,000 to $2,000 (€919 to 1,839) per month for
traditional billboards, which serve only one advertiser, according
to an Inc. Magazine article, “Bright Lights, Big Impact,” by Sarah
Goldstein.
Some people expect more than partial replacement of traditional
signage is in the cards. “My view is that over time all signs, all
billboards, will go digital,” Magic Media’s CEO Jimmy
McAndrew is quoted as saying in the article by Goldstein.
Future of 3D printers secure on Earth and in space
The next revolution in printing has a lot of takers, from home entrepreneurs and experimenters to commercial and medical uses, to space
use. The future of the printers will even be more sci-fi. Experiments are being done to use materials readily available, even “out-there”
ultra-strong space age materials like thermoplastics and graphene.
Make no mistake - formidable issues exist for the printers. It’s
just too easy now to copy using 3D. A tornado of patent issues is
erupting not only among printer manufacturers, but also to protect
intellectual property of design. It will likely permeate courts in the
next decade.
But the innovation is legion. The 3D printer adapted with
foodstuffs also has a place in the kitchen making pizzas, cakes and
frostings. From home use to generate parts, to medical uses for
limb replacement, the uses for the versatile printers promise to also
revolutionise the mind-set we use.
Most of us use the part/order/delivery model. A defective part
on, let’s say, a sink tap usually means a trip to the hardware store,
finding the right tap, matching the part and bringing it home. But
what if you had a 3D printer that could process patent-approved
layouts for most of the home’s repairable parts? Or what if an
astronaut could do the same for his spaceship without having to
wait for an expensive, time-consuming delivery from home base?
The uses for such technology are almost endless.
Manufacturers such as HP have recently announced
entrance into the 3D area. And TAVCO, based in Pflugerville,
On the right is the Zero-G 3D printer by Made In Space sent to the International Space Station last autumn. To
the left is an electronics box that supplies power and stores data (Courtesy of Made In Space)
Texas, has moved into sales of 3D printers from 3D Systems from its
mainstream wide-format Canon/Océ sales operation. Kevin T.
Vaughan, Sales Manager for TAVCO, says the prime use is for
prototypes.
©2015 The Recycler www.therecycler.com Page 3

Mike Bunch, a home user of 3D printers, printed this pen display pen stand modeled after a
Samurai sword display (Courtesy of Mike Bunch)
“The continuing development of new 3D print materials
remains a driving force in 3D printing. As the materials get
better, users will be more able to print end-use, production parts.
As of now, with the exception of SLS and Direct Metal printers,
3D printing is constrained as a technology for prototypes. For the
time being TAVCO will remain on track offering solutions for both
conceptual and verification prototypes.”
Space uses got a boost recently when Made In Space, a
Silicon Valley company located in Moffett Field, California, had a
zero-gravity 3D printer recently tested successfully by astronauts at
the International Space Station. Another 3D printer on a SpaceX
launch later this year will allow for educational, experimental and
commercial use.
“With generative algorithms and ‘free complexity’, 3D printing
promises to revolutionise the design of structures and frames
that need to be light and strong,” said Brad Kohlenberg, Business
Development Engineer for Made In Space. “Medi cally, 3D printing
gives us the chance to make customised solutions for patients on
demand. Commercially, 3D printing factories will collapse supply
chains in ways we never thought possible, and our space printer is
a great demonstration of that last concept.”
A 3D printer in the home
In Silicon Valley, it is said that about one in three garages has a 3D
printer in it. It’s not unusual for the printers to be nestled in the
homes of entrepreneurs and experimenters elsewhere in the USA.
Market research company Gartner, in a 2013 report, said
consumer 3D printing, retail 3D printing, 3D bio-printing and
additive manufacturing will become mainstream within the next
five to 10 years. “3D printing suffers from a lot of hype, especially in
the home use area,” Kohlenberg noted. “I think we should prepare
for 3D printing to take some time before it is mature enough to be
in most homes - let alone all.”
Mike Bunch, Technical Project Manager for Cerner, based in
Kansas City, has two 3D printers at home, one he acquired through
a Kickstarter funding project. Like Kohlenberg, Bunch says that he
thinks the printers are at least three to five years away from wide
use in the home market.
“I come from two different directions. I’m a pretty technical
person and I’m not afraid to get in it myself, but I think from the
perspective of the Micro [3D printer] that I bought and the target
demographic, I think they’re a few years away from really being a
viable tool for the average home user.”
He does have useful projects for it. Since he shaves wet, he
needed a shave stand, so he printed a shave stand for his razor. He
also designs stands for his pens he turns from wood with the 3D
printer.
“I’m having a blast with that, too,” he added. Bunch’s boss has a
3D printer and is into trains and the Lego train sets. “He’s found a
few plans for connectors – things that are difficult to find – and if
you can’t find them, you’re expected to buy crossovers and things
like that.”
A company called Local Motors is sponsoring a contest for
designs for 3D printing a car (visit www.localmotors.com).
The Local Motors site warns it “could result in total automotive
disruption”. Innovative designs include a self-fuelled car called a
“Graphena,” using graphene, a super-strong material, mixed with
ABS plastic.
“The potential for that, for whatever car you want, is have it
designed to your specification. If something happens to it – say
you get in an accident and you wrinkle the front or the fenders –
you print off a new fender or a new front end and they print it at
a fraction of the cost of going to the dealer to have a new bumper
installed. Those are the things I see of great use in the commercial
space.”
Bunch sees the replicating uses, including in the space industry,
as valuable, as the space station could use a 3D printer to do some
fixes instead of having parts shipped up at great time and financial
expense. He also sees value for home use, including replacing parts.
“Once I jumped into it and started, I really enjoyed it. I enjoy
printing things and sharing with people. I like printing something
that’s useful, like my shaver stand.”
3D diversification
Vaughan says he personally doesn’t see many changes in the
printing technologies: “The big changes will continue to take place
regarding printing materials. I expect more effort to be given to multimaterial,
composite printers such as the 3D Systems ProJet 5500x.”
He also sees a huge level of oppor tunity in the medical
market: “This is mainly because of the mass-customisation that 3D
printing offers. The challenge for medical applications is all the
A shaving brush stand created by Mike Bunch is the first project he tried to create himself using the software
program Sketchup and his 3D printer (Courtesy of Mike Bunch)
©2015 The Recycler www.therecycler.com Page 4

The Cube third generation Personal 3D Printer is the first sub-$1000 consumer, plug-and- play 3D printer.
Released in September 2014 by 3D Systems, the Cube is sold by TAVCO(Courtesy of 3D Systems)
standards that have to be met. This gives tremendous potential to
companies that are willing to make the investment to service the
medical market. The downside is that medical printing will require
that type of specialisation.
“A general purpose service bureau probably will not be able
to provide the necessary items. I experienced this myself when t
alking with an orthodontist who is interested in using 3D printing
for dental lab work. It turns out that there are only four 3D Systems
dealers in the US who are authorised to sell the ProJet DP printers
that are specifically designed for dental applications.”
The future in space
US astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Samantha
Cristoforetti, who used the zero-gravity 3D printer in space,
have both talked very positively about their experiences with it,
Kohlenberg commented.
“Unfortunately judging its usefulness is a bit premature
as everything that has been printed so far has been ‘bagged
and tagged’ and returned to Earth for analysis. That being said,
speaking to other astronauts on Earth, they are all very excited that this
technology is coming to the space station.”
The next phase will be the launch of a second Made In Space
zero-gravity printer, the Additive Manufacturing Facility (AMF),
which is scheduled to be launched towards the end of 2015. Unlike
the first printer, which was a risk-reducing, technology demo, the
second printer will be the comme rcially-available printer.
Kohlenberg added: “What the printer really allows for is a
lowering of the barriers of entry to space. That means that students
who have never had the financial ability to play in space or have
access to space – now those schools and different organisations
have the money to pay for these print slots and using these print
slots, teach children about real space development and printing in
zero gravity and how you have to design things and structures in this
environment.”
Some of the advancements on 3D printing are dependent on
changing the mind-set for the use of materials and transporting
them.
One concept, ‘In-Situ Resource Utilisation’, uses native
materials as feedstock for the printer rather than transporting them
to a planet, asteroid or the moon. To that end, Made In Space has
used synthetic moon material in its printers.
“We were trying to create a process that used a very low
amount of power, so the process we used mixed the lunar material
with an organic binder and print from that,” Kohlenberg went on.
“With that process, we would still bring some of the material from
Earth, but it would still be a lot less than bringing all of it.” For the
Mars mission in the future, 3D printing offers the possibility of not
having to send all parts and materials beforehand or aboard the
space vehicle.
“It really changes the equation, because rather than sending
every spare part, every single tool and every single thing we need
just in case the first two break – we don’t have to do that anymore.
Instead of three rockets, you send one rocket that has enough
feedstock in it so it can just print what it needs to print. Maybe
it would have a recycler on board so that when you don’t need
something, you could just recycle that material and make
something new out of it. You don’t have to wait a year and a half to
bring up the material on a rocket.”
Use of thermoplastics instead of metals is another part of the
new use of materials, and Kohlenberg says all will reap rewards and
benefits from this kind conceptual change.
“We’re definitely on track to seeing that anything that needs
to be strong, but lightweight, will be designed differently five to 10
years from now, just because of the techniques we build now as it
relates to manufacturing.”
©2015 The Recycler www.therecycler.com Page 5

Mobile technology envisioned in 1940s
In Space Cadet, a 1948 science-fiction novel written by Robert Heinlein, a man receives a call from his father on a pocket phone. Heinlein was
followed by Arthur C. Clarke in 1958, envisioning a personal transceiver, “so small and compact that everyone carries one”.
Science-fiction author Phillip K. Dick also
envisioned exploitation by such technology.
In 1968, Dick wrote: “There will come a time
when it isn’t, ‘They’re spying on me through
my phone’ anymore. Eventually, it will be ‘My
phone is spying on me’ .”
In the late 1950s, the first experimental
models of handheld mobile phones began in
the USSR, when an engineer named Leonid
Kupriyanovich from Moscow presented
some experimental models, including one
lightweight one that fit into the palm of the
hand.
HERE ARE SOME OTHER PARTS OF
MOBILE-DEVICE HISTORY:
1949 – American Telephone and Telegraph
introduced MTS, or Mobile Telephone Service, to
a hundred USA towns by 1948. The calls had to
be set up manually by operators, and then the
user depressed a button to talk and released it
to listen. Only three customers could make calls
on three channels at any one time.
1952 – A-Netz launched as the first public
commercial mobile phone network in
Europe, with Norway’s OLT in 1966 manually
controlled.
1956 – The first automated mobile phone system
for vehicles launched in Sweden. The phones
were comprised of vacuum tubes and weighed
a little less than a pound (0.4 kilogrammes).
Mobile System B was introduced in 1962: a push-
button telephone using transistors and improved
signalling. An improved system called MTD
was launched in 1971, remaining open until
1983.
1958 – The USSR’s Altay national civil mobile
phone service was developed by the Voronezh
Science Research Institute of Communi cations
(VNIIS) and the State Specialised Project
Institute (GSPI), a motorist-based system.
In 1965, Leonid Kupriyanovich’s system was
presented at the Inforga-65 exhibition in
Moscow, with one line serving 15 customers,
but the USSR decided to use Altay. The Altay
service started in Moscow in 1963, and by 1970
was deployed in 30 cities across the USSR.
1959 – Great Britain’s Post Office Radiophone
Service was initiated in Manchester
in 1959, with a set-up through an operator
allowing contacting of any subscriber in Great
Britain. A private telephone company in
Brewster, Kansas, offered to the public
mobile telephone services in that local area of
northwest Kansas. Mysteriously, the system
went online briefly and was shut down.
1960s – Radio Common Carrier competed
with AT&T, using high-frequency radio.
If a device went from one area to another,
though, it often wouldn’t work. Used until the
1980s, RCC became obsolete with the advent of
cellular telephones.
1965 - Improved Mobile Telephone Service
was introduced in the USA by AT&T in 1965.
Demand quickly rendered the number of
channels and callers inadequate.
1966 - Bulgaria presented the pocket mobile
automatic, combined with a base station at an
international exhibition. A base station connected
to one telephone wire line could serve up to six
customers.
Late ’60s – Bell Labs proposed cells for mobile
phones for vehicles in 1947, but until the late
’60s, the technology did not exist. Phillip Porter,
a Bell Labs scientist, proposed cell towers use
directional antennas to reduce interference, and
increase channel reuse and the dial-and-send
method used by all cell phones so channel time
wouldn’t be wasted. Phones had to stay within
the coverage area.
1971 – Finland launched the ARP network in
1971, one of the first public commercial mobile
networks.
1973 - Martin Cooper, a Motorola researcher
and executive, produced a handheld
mobile phone. Cooper made the first call from
handheld subscriber equipment, calling Bell
Labs. It could only allow conversation for 30
minutes. Cooper’s boss, John F. Mitchell,
pushed Motorola development of wireless
com munication products small enough to use
anywhere, participating in the design of the
cellular phone.
1979 – The first 1G analogue cellular
networks were used in Tokyo, Japan, in 1979,
and another one was used in Nordic countries
in 1981.
1983 – In North America, the first analogue
system, Advanced Mobile Phone System - or
AMPS - took over 10 years to reach the market.
It was introduced in the Americas in October
1983, Israel in 1986, and Australia in 1987. The
bulky phone’s talk time was half an hour, and
it took 10 hours to charge. AMPS’ pioneering
technology helped drive mass-market usage
of cellular technology, but it was unencrypted
and easily vulnerable to eavesdropping with a
scanner, plus used a large amount of wirelessbandwidth
to support it The Digital AMPS
succeeded it in 1990, but most North American
carriers discontinued AMPS by 2008.
1990s - Digital transmission systems
emerged, with out-of-band phone-to-network
signalling. The Northern Europe and USA
standards competed. Mobile-phone use burgeoned,
as did prepaid mobile phones. In 1991,
Finland launched the first GSM network.
1992 – Text messaging was available on GSM
networks and SMS phones. It started to be
used widely in Japan and spread quickly to all
digital networks. Media content could be
accessed on 2G. Advertising came quickly.
Mobile payments were tried in 1998 in Finland
and Sweden. NTT DoCoMo in Japan introduced
the first full internet service on mobile phones
in 1999.
1992 - Wi-Fi was created, and wireless
network connections became possible.
1993 – “Simon” was introduced by IBM, and
is considered the world’s first smartphone. It
was a mobile phone, pager, fax machine, and
PDA all rolled into one, with a touchscreen,
calendar, address book, clock, calculator,
notepad and email. A PCMCIA 1.8 memory
card could be plugged into the phone for more
features.
1999 - Apple introduced Wi-Fi as an option
on iBook computers, named AirPort.
2001 - NTT DoCoMo in Japan’s Tokyo region
launches the first commercial 3G network,
which debuts sending information in “packets”.
Vodafone (now Softbank) followed. The Three/
Hutchison Group launched in Italy and the
UK, with eight commercial launches of 3G, six
more on WCDMA and two more on the EV-
DO standard in 2003. High connection speeds
with 3G allowed media streaming and wide use
of the internet.
2009 – The overwhelming aspects of internetcapable
mobile devices and streaming media
meant that at some point, this technology
would overwhelm 3G networks. This led to the
development of the WiMAX and LTE standards
for 4G, which eliminated circuit switching and
used an all-internet-protocol network.
2010s – Wi-Fi began to be embedded in 3G
devices, known as netbooks, to allow mobile
data services. Amazon Kindle and Barnes
& Noble’s Nook had it in 2010, and Apple
announced it would be embedding mobile
capability in iPads beginning in the fall of 2010.
©2015 The Recycler www.therecycler.com Page 6

Mobile printing fits a mobile world
Someone may find out they need to print some documents out at a remote location with a notebook computer. Or maybe printing with a
smartphone is the fastest and easiest way to get documents into someone else’s hands.
Whatever the reason, enabling mobile printing is becoming a
mainstay in traditional and all other areas of printing.
Manufacturers of printers are providing apps and devices that print
remotely to supply a mobile workforce that is constantly “on the
go”. Combined with the “cloud”, that ubiquitous storage platform,
mobile printing can manage and enable printing almost anywhere.
The “cloud” on-ramp to sharing and printing data is
scanning the possibly hundreds of documents to the cloud for sharing
using Dropbox or another cloud-enabled programme, then publishing
using ADrive, Google Docs or Amazon Web Services. Users log on
to the server, open it in PDF and use third-party print apps to print
locally using enabled large-format printers.
If using an iPad, for example, it can synchronise and copy the
list of documents. Pulling a file of a job in the AEC (Archi tectural,
Engineering and Construction) setting on an iPad, it can be
exported to a PDF with editing enabled. Changes can be made
on the computer tablet to synchronise with the annotations made
once back at the office. When the business person returns to the
office, using the app, he or she can print the updated file with Wi-Fi
directly to the printer.
Nowhere near the office?
Many office-supply “big box” stores will let you upload a document
to the cloud for printing, or print by mobile or from the cloud, and
pick up the job in person.
Using mobile efficiently
Epson’s iPrint can send documents and photos directly to
any email-enabled Epson printer or scan from a nearby
printer (photo courtesy of Epson)
With all the advances in mobile
tech nology (see Mobile tech nology
envisioned in 1940s), the use in
the printing industry efficiently
becomes paramount. Until 1992,
printing was by Ethernet, with Wi-
Fi printing beginning that year.
Now printing is enabled in the most
difficult of settings. For instance,
in the EC industry, often there are
hundreds of documents involved in
a project.
Say a subcontractor wants to
print out specs and drawings on his
part of a project, which may be one
of a number of drawings. All he has
is an iPhone, but he knows someone
with an HP latex printer near where
he is who says he can print to it. Using
the HP Latex Mobile Application
for smartphones, introduced by HP in 2014, he can print a weatherproof
copy of the design for his subcontract.
HP ePrint & Share, introduced in 2011, is capable of
printing to any HP printer that is email-enabled. In addition,
if the same subcontractor has questions, he or she can circle
notations, scan it in and send it back to the architect with photos
using HP ePrint and Share. It enables a truly collaborative project
as the result of HP working with Autodesk. People involved in the
project may use building information modelling (BIM) to keep
track of information from the various entities.
The HP Designjet T2500 36-inch PostScript eMultifunction printer is one of the web-enabled printers that
can be used with HP’s ePrint & Share app and mobile devices, and prints from the “cloud”
(photo courtesy of HP)
Or someone may notice a huge file sent to them on their
smartphone or tablet when they are in their car, or boarding a
plane. Maybe an office-supply store with a printer is near the car
or the landing site. A user with a mobile device has many options,
including ePrint & Share, but here are others:
• Epson iPrint lets your tablet or smartphone access files from
Box, DropBox, EverNote, Google Drive and Microsoft Sky-
Drive and print them from anywhere. There is also an option
to scan from a nearby Epson printer, then email or share your
files online.
• If you wish to print nearby, the Canon Mobile Printing app
also auto-detects wireless Canon/Océ devices and makes them
available. A user can manually enter the IP or DNS name of
the Canon device if the auto-detect feature does not discover a
Canon device.
• Google Cloud Print connects printers to the web if a
traveller wishes to print at their home or office, including HP
Designjet printers. Google Cloud Print works on a smartphone,
tablet, Chromebook, PC, and any other web-connected
device to print, and makes home and work printers available to
everyone a worker chooses. The app is noted for being brandindependent,
using a universal driver, and prints with older
and newer printers. The printer has to be connected to a Mac,
Windows or Linux PC that is turned on and connected to the
internet. A Gmail account is also necessary.
• Choose Google Play
if none of these are
suitable, and search
for a mobile app for a
particular model of
printer, or visit the iOS
app store. Apps can
also detect available
printers as you travel,
such as office-supply
stores.
The imagePROGRAF Print Utility app provides iPad users
with the ability to directly print PDF files to a compatible
imagePROGRAF large-format printer (photo courtesy of
Canon USA)
©2015 The Recycler www.therecycler.com Page 7

More mobile ahead
More and more OEMs are under pressure to develop software for
mobile printing as the mobile society grows. In the wide-format
market, companies such as Mutoh America have a ValueJet Status
Monitor for ValueJet printers. The app checks current job processes,
ink levels, printer statuses and notifications, and warns of low ink
levels.
“There are even mobile wide-format printers accepting Bitcoin
currency. Print 2 Media recently announced its printers would accept
online payment from Bitcoin. The firm, based in Liskeard, Cornwall,
UK, produces printers that do wide-format work such as signs, banners
and display stands. The demand for mobile devices is expected
to continue to grow, with eMarketer, a marketing research firm,
expecting a third of the world will be smartphone users by 2017. In
2010, the late Steve Jobs of Apple Computer predicted tablets would
eventually overtake PCs. With tablet growth and PCs declining,
Gartner Research expects 2015 to be the year that will happen.
Back in 2014, Google CEO Eric Schmidt was making predictions
and said: “The trend has been that mobile was winning, and it has
now won.”
Editor’s Note:
Neal McChristy is a freelance writer with 30 years of journalism experience
in magazine, newspaper and web-based work. He also has over 17 years’
experience as reporter and editor in the printing and imaging area. He can
be reached at freelance9@cox.net.
THE RECYCLER - ISSN 2045-2047 (Print)
THE RECYCLER TEAM
Editor & Publisher
David Connett - publisher@therecycler.com
Deputy Publisher
Stefanie Unland – s.unland@therecycler.com
Deputy Editor
William Roszczyk – w.roszczyk@therecycler.com
Journalist
Nicholas Dawson – n.dawson@therecycler.com
Designer
Ian Winter - production@therecycler.com
Publishing Consultant
Anthony Critchley – a.critchley@therecycler.com
THE SMALL PRINT
Articles may be photocopied for the private use of paid subscribers only. For other copying
or republication please contact The Recycler. The Recycler (ISSN 2045-2047 (Print)) is
published 12 times per year by David Connett. Copyright 1997 – 2014 by David Connett.
The editorial content does not reflect the opinions of the publisher or editorial team. The
Recycler is printed in the United Kingdom by Buxton Press Limited. The regular retail price
of The Recycler is £120 for 12 months (12 issues) worldwide, and is delivered free to your
home or office worldwide.
THE RECYCLER
Wittas House, Two Rivers,
Station Lane, Witney,
United Kingdom OX28 4BH
Phone: +44 (0) 1993 899 800
Fax: +44 (0) 1993 226 899
Email: info@therecycler.com
Website: www.therecycler.com
Bureau Office – Australia
Graham McCusker
Phone: +61 (0) 416 813 700
Email:
g.mccusker@therecycler.com
Bureau Office – Germany
Stefanie Unland
Phone: +49 (0) 2582 9910 701
Email: info@therecycler.com
Bureau Office – United States
Email: usa@therecycler.com
www.therecycler.com/contactus
©2015 The Recycler www.therecycler.com Page 8