There is a different procedure to things, whenever you are using Apple products. As an Apple consumer, you might know this already, but different doesn’t always mean complicated. Whether it’s using an Apple product on your own, using it with other online tools, or other physical tools, such as a printer, you can follow easy steps to accomplish whatever you are aiming for.
This article will address issues that are commonly faced while setting up or removing printers on Mac devices. You can learn how to uninstall printer on Mac easily through this guide. We will answer some commonly asked questions regarding Mac such as how to add or remove printers with different kinds of connectivity options etc. Let’s get started
How to Add a Printer on Mac?
Mac devices are great for use when you learn how to go about them because of their ease and convenience. A great thing about this is that you can connect the printer you are using to any Mac device whether it’s an iPhone, iPad, or MacBook. ‘Airprint’, is a great tool by Apple that streamlines the entire process without any need for other drivers to run them.
It is quite easy to develop and download pictures, documents, and anything else you want through Airprint. Usually, printers require a large or generally complicated procedure that needs you to download a driver and run it for a few steps before you can get to printing anything remotely usable. There is a good long list of modern printers that work efficiently with Airprint and print servers. It has a lot of cool features for you to take advantage of as well. Let’s look at individual connectivity options that different printer devices have and how they are different in terms of connectivity.
USB
USB printer options are the oldest version of printers as they require a wired connection to connect to a device. They were common also because they were able to connect with any device that had a USB slot. Make sure your software is updated before you connect the printer to your Mac, and go ahead with the following steps.
- Go to your settings, and check if you see an alert for a software update.
- If not, go within your ‘General’ settings option in the list of all the specific setting options.
- Below ‘About’, you’ll find easy software update information, which will either have a red notification for a new update or the last update you made.
- In either case, you will have a supporting system for your printing that makes it easy for you to add or learn how to uninstall printer on Mac.
- In case there is no update, your Mac will automatically know which driver to download for the particular printer you are using via the manufacturer manual.
- Make sure your printer is ready to be plugged in via USB after you check in on the Mac. Make sure there are no internal errors with the printer before you connect it, to not confuse errors with the printer with any connectivity issues on your Mac’s part.
- Connect the printer via the USB cable and check if it works without a driver, if not, you will receive a pop-up notification asking permission to install the one required.
Bluetooth
Bluetooth is another option that allows you to go wireless truly because you don’t need to use a USB cable to make the Bluetooth connection. Here’s how you can add the printer and use it on your Mac via Bluetooth, provided that your Mac has a Bluetooth-enabled adapter.
- In the ‘Apple menu’ go to ‘System preferences’ again and in the printer select ‘Bluetooth’
- You’ll find the option to pair it with your printer, considering you have already turned it’s Bluetooth on.
- Choose your device and select ‘Pair’
- If it’s not added already, go to the main menu, and in ‘Printers & Scanners’, go to ‘Add’
- Go to ‘Default’ and move on to adding your preferred printer device
WiFi
There is a remarkable option to use the internet to connect both your devices, the printer and the MacBook, ever since WiFi made things much easier for us. Now, there are many different types of printers available that don’t need a wired connection first to set up the WiFi connection, but a lot of printers do.
Thus, if your printer requires it to connect through WiFi, do that as the first step. When it’s done connecting you can follow the steps below.
- Whichever file you need printed, click on it and go to ‘Print’
- The options in the pop-up menu that appears will include your printer in use, make sure you took the necessary steps to have it connected via WiFi before
- Select the printer and choose the action, whether you want to print or scan
For those who are not aware of how to add the printer, just go to the ‘Apple menu’ on the main page, into ‘System Preferences’ > ‘Printers & Scanners’ > ‘Add’ (in case your printer device is not listed).
Remember that Airprint is good for using printers with Mac that are updated and have systems that don’t require you to download drivers necessarily. There are some older models of devices that automatically download the required drivers, in particular, printers when you are using them with Mac. This is because older Mac models did not work with driverless printing, as other kinds of systems do now as well. Therefore, make sure your device is upgraded to the most recent software before you connect the printer to your Mac system. It will ensure that if the new version of the software available to your Mac device has the ability to go driverless while printing, you will be saved from downloading an additional driver.
How to Remove a Printer on Mac?
Removing or uninstalling the printer from your Mac device is also just as easy if you know which way to take it. Whether you want to declutter your list of connected devices or just want more space for newer devices to connect, you can easily do so by removing one or more printers.
Again, there is a simple list of steps you can follow through.
- In the main ‘Apple menu’ go to ‘Systems and Preferences’ and onward to ‘Printers and Scanners’
- Here is the list of all previously and currently connected printers and scanners with respect to your Mac, select the one you want to remove
- Choose the option to ‘Remove’ and confirm the task
- You will need to select another default printer just in case the one you removed was the default printer before
That is how to uninstall printer on Mac easily, whether it’s just one device or more. There are ways in which Mac is different in terms of use than other systems, but different does not necessarily constitute as difficult, as elaborated above. Try the above methods to use a printer on Mac by adding or removing whenever you feel the need to.