Wireless Printers?

[Max Hubrich]

Probably a dumb question, but can we use the newer, wireless printers (all in one) in the wireless mode, in our RV's without a router connected to a land line?

I use the Verizon air Card about 85% of the time (WiFi for the rest) for internet service.

These printers are "cool" and they could be located in a cubby hole away from the computer. If they can be used successfully, I would locate it under the steering wheel.

Can you "scan" material back to the computer via the 802 b,g,n functions. I have called HP and written questions to them about this and I give up-. Their service on the phone is terrible, lousy connections, a language barrier and poor knowledge of their products.

Thanks,

[Dr4Film]

My neighbor is using Sprint Internet with a sprint modem & router. He has a wireless all in one printer that is not connected to the router which he claims works great. For the life of me, I cannot remember the brand right now, I do know that he bought it for about $50 before the holidays through a pretty good promotion. If you are interested, I will ask him what the brand is. He has three different laptops communicating to the router and to the printer. His wife's, his daughter's and his laptop.

I have a HP PSC 2510 which I have had for some years now. I had it attached to a wireless router and it would work just OK. I think the HP drivers for that model weren't the greatest. However maybe the newer models are working better.

Dr4Film ----- Richard.

[Jim Stewart]

Yes, you can use a wireless all-in-one printer without a router. All functions will work except for the fax function which will work if hooked up to a fax line via either your cell or land line. I have also heard of people using the fax function without a phone line using a Magic Jac through the computer. To use the Magic Jac in the fax mode, you have to slow the fax transmission to the slowest speed.

Make sure in fact you do get a wireless printer and that if it requires a printer cable to install the printer in the wireless mode, that it either comes with, or you have the appropriate printer cable.

I have found that I do not need the fax function nor the scan function. I have a very good cell phone with a camera. I take a photo of what I want and e-mail it to myself then download it and save it as either a photo file (jpeg, etc.) or a PDF file. The print only printers are smaller, cheaper and more reliable than the all-in-ones.

[Max Hubrich]

Thanks Guys,

It sounds like I can do it with the Verizon card for internet access.

These printers are really cool and they are practically giving them away. I guess they make their money on the ink cartridges. Best Buy had a $129 Epson wireless, all in one, printer for $69.

I would still like to hear from someone who has one in use in an RV, using a Verizon, ATT, etc air card, without using a router in the system at all. The salesman at Best Buy said I would definitely need a router, especially to scan material back to the computer.

Thanks,

[Izzyblueye]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Max Hubrich Probably a dumb question, but can we use the newer, wireless printers (all in one) in the wireless mode, in our RV's without a router connected to a land line? I use the Verizon air Card about 85% of the time (WiFi for the rest) for internet service. These printers are "cool" and they could be located in a cubby hole away from the computer. If they can be used successfully, I would locate it under the steering wheel. Can you "scan" material back to the computer via the 802 b,g,n functions. I have called HP and written questions to them about this and I give up-. Their service on the phone is terrible, lousy connections, a language barrier and poor knowledge of their products. Thanks,

I sure can relate to your remarks on HP support service. it just doesn't exist. I dumped my HP printer for and Epson and have had great service.. The Epson all in one is a real performer. I do not use as a wireless system however.

[photoadjuster]

You can print to a wireless printer without a router.

My tow vehicle is a class C Forest River MB Cruiser. It is used as a mobile office as I travel around the country working insurance claims. I print every thing wireless without a router.

I have owned dozens of HP's and a few Epsons. The HP is the best choice for several reasons. The epsons will not stand up to the heavy duty use I require. Each day I print dozens of estimates and reports and 100's of photos in the MB Cruiser.

The ink cost is less with the HP's if you purchase a model that uses 4 separate ink cartidges rather than one black and one tri-color. The 4 separate cartidge models are sometimes labeled as business inkjets.

The HP has a wizard that walks you though the installation of a ad-hoc network which is required without a router. It also comes with very good written instructions.

With this ad hoc network I can work inside a home and then print to the MB Cruiser if I am closer than 150 feet.

[Max Hubrich]

Mike, Richard and Jim--

Thanks for the info, I sure appreciate it.

I'm off and running now for the smallest, multi-function, wireless, printer I can find. It will probably have the tri-color cartridges since I don't use it a whole lot.

My wife just found the USA daily crossword puzzle and we can print it off their web site for free- I guess we'll use it at least 5 times a week .

I'm glad to hear I can also use the "scan" function.

[Jim Stewart]

If you can find one, get one that will allow you to continue to print even if the color cartridges are low. It is a great feature for someone that seldom uses color. Then set your printer to print for gray scale only. This will save you a lot on ink costs over the life of the printer.

Also, if you do not need the fax, there are multi-function printer, copy and scan machines that do not have the fax function, they tend to have a little smaller footprint and are usually less expensive.

[JC2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Max Hubrich Thanks Guys, It sounds like I can do it with the Verizon card for internet access. These printers are really cool and they are practically giving them away. I guess they make their money on the ink cartridges. Best Buy had a $129 Epson wireless, all in one, printer for $69. I would still like to hear from someone who has one in use in an RV, using a Verizon, ATT, etc air card, without using a router in the system at all. The salesman at Best Buy said I would definitely need a router, especially to scan material back to the computer. Thanks,

If you haven't purchased one yet, check at Wally World. The recently had a LexMark wireless all-in-one printer for $49.00.

[figallegro]

Just went through this process for a friend today. He bought a wireless printer and a laptop. The laptop has no modem and uses Wifi. He is on dial-up at home and goes to Wifi hotspots for downloads. When I went to hook up the wireless printer through the HP wozard, it did not work and stated NETWORK NOT FOUND. I discovered that before you hook up the printer, you need to use the network search icon on the lower right of the task bar. It should pull up the printer's Wifi as the printer send out a radio signal. When you select the printer Wifi and then use the HP woizard, it should connect. As a note, every time you startup the computer, you need to reconnect to the printer Wifi by selecting it.
HP should have included connecting to the printer Wifi in the wizard process. Also, some wireless printers need to have the Wifi radio signal turned on using the touch screen menus. HP has them turned on automatically and you can tell if it is on when the blue light illuminates in front of the printer.
Tony

[Pigman]

We've had spotty luck with wireless printers and worse luck with HP. We even got a HP wireless print server to try to use with our HP printer (not the cheapest model) and after messing for a week, HP finally admitted that the printer wouldn't work with their own server. Go figure.

I finally settled on a Canon iP100 set up with a Bluetooth connection. The printer has a footprint of less than a sheet of paper, prints well and stores completely closed. The bluetooth connection required a USB plug in that protrudes about 1/2 inch from the computer and a small chip inside the printer. So far it's the best setup I've been able to come up with and it works with other bluetooth computers as well so no issues with DW's laptop.

John

[Max Hubrich]

Mike S and all,

Thanks for all the advice.

I ended up buying a Brother. I especially liked the compact style. The model I found was the MFC-495cw. It has the four seperate ink cartridges. It prints and scans wirelessly, beautifully! The price was certainly right also. With an online coupon it cost $89- total! I ordered it at 2PM last Friday and UPS rolled up to our rig with the printer at 5PM Monday. No sales tax and no freight costs.

Setting it up was another story. I spent 12 hours trying to get the Wi-Fi to work, got a terrible headache and finally called "Brother" for help. A lady in Memphis (thank god for that) had me up and running in 10 minutes. NO ROUTER required! I was following the printed instructions in the furnished "quick setup guide" and the "install CD". That was a big mistake. I didn't need an "Ad Hoc" network. It ended up being quite a simple process. I guess they get easier to install, and use, as new models come out.

Since I use the Verizon Air Card for the internet connection, it leaves the wireless 802.11b/g network dedicated to the printer- beautiful!! Just check that the wireless connection is on the "Brother" printer when getting ready to use the printer/scanner. Sometimes the Wi-Fi will, unknowingly to me, grab a close by "Hot Spot".
If you are using Wi-Fi for your internet connection, I guess you would have to download what you want to print out, onto your computer and then switch the Wi-Fi to the "Brother" to print it out and visa versa to scan something and then send it out over the Wi-Fi internet connection.

The unit goes into a "sleep" mode if not used for about 5 minutes, but springs into action when it gets the "print" command- Neat!

The print quality is beautiful. So far, I couldn't be happier.

[Max Hubrich]

This is an update--

I've used the new Brother printer in the AdHoc mode (no router required) everyday for the past several months. It's wonderful- I can "scan" back to the computer for transmitting documents into a folder and then on to wherever. I was going nuts for the price they want for ink cartridges- it has 4 color cartridges. They sell for almost $30 a piece (with tax) at places like Offices Depot, Staples. Forget it! I can buy 10 altogether, 4 black and 2 each of the other three colors, for $20 on line, made in China. They work great. the quality of copies is outstanding.

I find brother customer service also outstanding.

I ordered mine on a Thursday night and it was delivered by UPS on Monday morning- no taxes or shipping cost. It was on sale for $89 at that time. My neighbor at the time in Mississippi also ordered one- she loves hers too!

I used mine from inside the stick home to the RV in the second driveway, about 100ft, several times. Finally I got tired of running out to the RV and brought it into the house. I liked the small size of this unit and how streamlined it is.

As mentioned above, I find that everytime I shut down the computer and printer I must always Re-connect the wireless network to each other (computer to printer) on start up.

For under a hundred bucks you can't go wrong.

[inspectorudy]

Forget HP. I bought an All-in-one from Costco and it has been so unreliable and unpredictable. I have had to go to the HP help center, what a misnomer that is, and they had to take over my computer by remote and completely clean out everything to do with HP and re-install it to get mine to work. Everytime the computer is turned off the printer drops off line and has to be re-booted. It is not worth it to have such an undependable printer.