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In light of new research about how smartphones and tablets are changing the way users print, Annodata is warning businesses to brace themselves for a surge in mobile printing.
Recent research conducted by IDC reveal that in spite of the business value that can be derived from mobile printing, a significant proportion of smartphone and tablet users are unable to print from their devices.
Roughly a third of smartphone users and tablet users want to be able to print from these devices but are unable to. In addition, 75 per cent of mobile users said the business value of mobile printing was similar to PC printing, and a further 15 per cent said that it was greater.
“The landscape for printing, scanning and document management is undergoing an important change. Enterprises of all sizes should recognise the increasing use of and taste for mobile printing – and the decreasing tolerance to its failure – and introduce user-friendly applications to reflect this obvious trend,” said Grant Howard, professional services technical manager at Annodata.
Howard believes this is ultimately about ensuring that print systems can keep up with other changes that are happening in the working environment: “Staff are finally starting to break free from their desktop computers with the help of smartphones and tablets, but too many find themselves having to go back to their computers to print documents.
“Devices no longer need to be physically attached by cables to printers and this is transforming access to print from multiple devices in multiple locations. The irony is that the switch to mobile-enabled printing is a relatively simple one, and is something that can be easily facilitated by a managed print provider.”
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