The True Story 9 ways of Mobile PrintMe Printing Mobile & sets The the Enterprise: truth and 10 Dimensions your IT department of Compatibility free. The Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) transition brings many benefits to the enterprise. It increases employee mobility. It provides greater efficiency. It allows access to information and communication anytime from anywhere. However, it also causes some unexpected challenges for IT departments like printing on the go. As dependency on tablets, smartphones and laptops increases, so do expectations for how these mobile devices function in and out of the office. When it comes to printing, the pressure is on IT to solve the problem. And solve it soon. In the quest for an enterprise mobile printing solution, IT managers have seen it all. Stop-gap measures that work for some mobile devices but not others. Operating systems that don t sync up. Printers that connect one day but disappear from a user s tablet the next. It s enough to make one wonder: Is an all-in-one solution simply a figment of imagination? PrintMe Mobile is here to debunk the myths and deliver the solutions you re looking for.
Myth #1: Printing is fading fast. Truth. Whether a company is standardizing on tablets or employees are bringing in personal mobile devices, there are some common needs that arise. At the top of the list: Mobile printing. A recent report finds that printing is the most requested feature by employees regarding their mobile devices. So while there may be less printing compared to desktops, it is still an essential business function that must be addressed. TechNavio The feature that is requested the most in smartphones such as iphones and ipads is the print feature. In addition to smartphones, e-readers such as Kindle, Sony, and irex and netbooks and tablets with incorporated print features have led to an upsurge in mobile printing. 1
Myth #2: Mobile printing only works with ipads. Truth. While Apple s AirPrint works seamlessly for ios users on the same wireless subnet as the printer, a BYOD transition must also address Android, BlackBerry and Windows operating systems, as well as multiple subnets. That s where PrintMe Mobile comes in. It s the only enterprise solution that enables secure printing from any mobile device to any printer within the network. And unlike AirPrint, PrintMe Mobile allows employees to email documents directly to the printer and to securely release documents.
Myth #3: Mobile printing only works with new printers. Truth. An enterprise mobile printing solution must be printer agnostic. After all, most enterprise environments purchase printers from different manufacturers over several years or even decades. Mobile printing software must also integrate seamlessly into the existing corporate infrastructure. Enter PrintMe Mobile, which works with any network-connected printer old or new. Even better, PrintMe Mobile allows enterprises to mobile print-enable all of their existing fleet of printers regardless of manufacturer. All at once. And all with no additional printer hardware costs. 70% of organizations have experienced one or more accidental data breaches due to unsecured mobile printing, according to recent research. 2
Myth #4: Mobile printing isn t secure. Truth. Providing employees with secure Wi-Fi printing from inside and outside the firewall to printers located on the corporate network without changing current firewall settings is an important security consideration for enterprises. Consider it done. PrintMe Mobile delivers private cloud options so print jobs can be routed to a queue inside the firewall, with no upload to an external public cloud required. Plus, secure-release functionality allows users printing from their mobile device to release their print jobs when they are at the printer so sensitive documents stay safe.
Myth #5: Employees will need a lot of training. Truth. Mobile devices are designed for simplicity and ease of use. Mobile printing should be too. Users should be able to print without the inconvenience of opening the document inside another application. They should also be able to print various file formats not just Adobe PDF. With PrintMe Mobile, employees using ipads or iphones get immediate Wi-Fi printing for a wide range of file types, while Android and Windows laptop users simply download an app or driver for the same functionality. No complex training. No complicated settings. Just print.
Myth #6: The BYOD transition doesn t extend to guests. Truth. A mobile printing solution is nothing if not flexible. In companies that do not yet allow employee mobile devices on the corporate network, those who bring their own devices to the office expect the same level of efficiency as if they were. Guest printing is essential for these employees in addition to visitors, including contractors and consultants, who need to print. An optimal mobile printing solution allows guests to securely print onsite without IT granting protected network access or opening additional firewall ports. PrintMe Mobile rolls out the red carpet for guests by enabling Wi-Fi printing from outside the firewall to IT-authorized printers on the corporate network. Only 53% of companies currently allow users to connect their mobile devices to the corporate network. 3
Myth #7: The BYOD transition doesn t include laptops. Truth. Today s BYOD environment is not exclusive to tablets and smartphones employees often use personal or company-issued laptops. While file-print is the standard print functionality from laptops, employees that are away from their work area or at another company building or site are likely not to have print drivers loaded for nearby printers. In order to print, employees will need to call the IT helpdesk or incur productivity loss, as well as potential security risk, by asking co-workers to print from USB drives or forwarded emails. The solution? PrintMe Mobile s universal print driver that provides automatic printer discovery and Wi-Fi printing from Windows laptops to all PrintMe Mobile-enabled printers. IT can push the driver silently to laptops, keeping on-the-go workers productive and critical data secure. Better yet, employees with Mac laptops can use the Nearby Printers feature with PrintMe Mobile to automatically discover printers. Easy.
Myth #8: IT will lose control over printer access. Truth. Quite the opposite. PrintMe Mobile offers the ability to authenticate mobile users against Active Directory to secure printers from unauthorized use. The software allows IT to implement policies to manage access to printers within the company based on a user ID, providing control over which printers can be used and the types of printing options available (e.g., black/white or color) for each user or department. For IT, the management of a mobile printing solution must also be straightforward so they can focus their attention on other critical job functions. PrintMe Mobile supports IT s administrative needs with an intuitive central dashboard for configuring and managing the existing print infrastructure and enabling mobile printing across the entire printer fleet. Only 36% of organizations have either implemented a mobile printing solution or are searching for one. 4
Myth #9: There are simply too many variables to make this work simply. Truth. Yes, the enterprise landscape is vast and complex. One company may employ thousands of people using a variety of applications on a range of smartphones, tablets and laptops, and spread over several floors or even different buildings. But an enterprise mobile printing solution should handle all of this complexity. It should scale across hundreds of wireless subnets to any printer on the network. It should work seamlessly with any device and common file formats. It should enable IT managers to track and manage print jobs from mobile devices, integrating with job accounting software like Equitrac, PaperCut, Print Audit, Argos and Go Print. It should be like PrintMe Mobile, which does all of the above and more.
The Truth of the Matter Depending on your company s needs and situation, certain features will take priority over others for a mobile printing solution. Ultimately, it is important that you realize the full advantages of employee BYOD efficiency and productivity, without creating security risks or causing additional IT headaches. PrintMe Mobile is the only enterprise solution that enables secure printing from any mobile device to any printer. And it s the only solution that debunks all of these myths.
Try it FREE for 45 days. Here s the plain truth: PrintMe Mobile is easy to use, takes just minutes to deploy and the full version with unlimited printers, users and prints is yours to try free for 45 days. Learn more and start the full version trial: efi.com/printmemobile While you re there, read third-party reviews of PrintMe Mobile and what industry analysts have to say about mobile printing solutions. 1 Global Document Outsourcing Market 2012-2016, TechNavio, http://www.technavio.com/content/global-document-outsourcingmarket-2012-2016 2 The mobile print enterprise: How IT consumerization is driving anytime, anywhere printing. Quocirca Business and IT Analysis. January 2012. 3 BYOD Brings Security Risks for Companies. April 2, 2013. http://www.workforce.com/article/20130402/news02/130409994/ cloudy-judgment# 4 Incorporate Mobile into the Enterprise Print Strategy. Info-Tech Research Group, Inc. October 31, 2012 Contact us: Email: printmeinfo@efi.com Phone: 800-875-7117
Why EFI? EFI (www.efi.com) helps businesses worldwide bring their visions and goals to life with a scalable, digital product portfolio. Our powerful servers; controllers; RIPs; inkjet printers, and precise color and imaging solutions help companies increase their brand recognition and market reach on signs, buildings, bus wraps, graphic displays and more. Our business automation software helps companies work faster and more cost-effectively. Our office, enterprise and mobile cloud solutions help companies create, access, and communicate impactful information that can win them more business. 303 Velocity Way Foster City, CA 94404 800-875-7117 The EFI logo, Electronics For Imaging, and PrintMe are registered trademarks, and EFI and the PrintMe logo are trademarks of Electronics For Imaging, Inc. in the U.S. and/or certain other countries. All other terms and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners, and are hereby acknowledged. 2013 Electronics for Imaging www.efi.com