Virtual assistants like Google Assistant and Alexa have paved the way for smart homes. From switching on the lights and your TV to ordering your dinner, what was once science fiction is now an everyday reality.

Printers have kept up too with their own innovations. Our PIXMA printers now feature seamless connectivity to the Google Home and Amazon Echo smart speakers, letting you voice command your printer. If you’re considering investing in a smart speaker, or if you already own one, here are some ways to optimise these devices and make life easier with voice command printing.

 

Take ‘Handsfree’ to the Next Level

For the busiest of hands, voice command printing lets you go hands- and even computer-free. A library of ready-made templates lets parents entertain their kids with colouring pages or origami papers, while multitasking homemakers are able to print out their shopping lists* while they juggle other tasks around the house.

Your virtual assistants can take the stress out of last-minute printing too. Whether it’s a birthday that you’ve just remembered or that spontaneous vacation, print out a message card or a checklist for your packing guide.

Troubleshooting is a breeze as well. Ask your virtual assistant to check your printer’s status and it’ll inform you of any issues and even tell you if any ink cartridges need replacing!

*Shopping lists are only available for Amazon Alexa users.

 

A Voice for Everyone

We’ve all been there — trying to teach an elderly family member to use the remote or a computer. Thankfully, as technology advances, even the least savvy of parents or grandparents will soon be able to operate their printers on their own.

Simple phrases like “Ask Canon Printer to print out three notebook papers” make learning to use the printer more intuitive for seniors. Gradually, other tasks such as printing of checklist papers will also be a breeze for them.

Most importantly, these virtual personal assistants will be able to benefit users with physical disabilities as well. Voice commands allows them to save time, energy and any potential discomfort from manual operations. Rather than making the trip physically to the printer, users can activate maintenance on our printers**, letting them clean the print heads or check for clogged nozzles by printing a nozzle check pattern.

** TS8300, TS6300, TS5300 and G7000 series

 

Getting Started

Can't wait to get started? First, check if your printer is capable of voice command printing. Click here for a full list of compatible Canon PIXMA printers.

Amazon Echo

To setup voice command printing on Alexa-enabled devices install the Amazon Alexa app on your smartphone. From there, tap on “Canon Inkjet Printer Skills” from the menu, sign in with your CanonID and you’re all set — simply begin all your commands by calling out “Alexa”.

Google Home

Link your Google Home speakers to your smart printer through the Google Home app. Setup is as simple as using the starting phrase “Hey Google, talk to Canon Printer”. The app will prompt you to link your printer by signing in with your CanonID and you’re good to go!

To start you off, we’ve compiled a list of phrases to use with your virtual assistant:

Voice command	Function
Start Canon Printer (“Talk to Canon Printer” for Google Assistant users)	Activates your printers voice command feature
Ask Canon printer to print notebook paper	Prints out lined paper
Ask Canon printer to print a Number Place Puzzle	Prints out a Sudoku puzzle
Ask Canon printer to print a checklist	Prints out a list template
Ask Canon printer to print a colouring page for grown-ups/children	Prints out either an adult or children’s colouring page
Check the status of the printer (“Ask Canon printer to check the ink status” for Google Assistant users	Your voice assistant will report on any issues as well as your current ink levels and cartridges that need replacing, if any.

 

More with Smart Printers

Voice commands aren’t all our smart printers are capable of. Innovative and user-friendly features like the intelligent LED status bar in our PIXMA TS6300 and TS5300 series inform you of ink levels, print job status and error messages with just a glance. You can even troubleshoot errors or purchase ink refills on the spot by calling up a QR code on their LED displays.

Smart printing isn't just about voice control. For users without a smart speaker, online services like If This Then That (IFTTT) let you connect other commonly used virtual assistants like Siri or Microsoft Cortana to your printers with customisable scripts and phrases.

On mobile, our Canon Print Inkjet/SELPHY app lets you print, scan and edit documents directly from your mobile device. Users on-the-go can also stay connected to all their documents using the PIXMA Cloud Link, which lets you print files directly from your social media or cloud storage like Dropbox and Google Drive.

 

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Voice command printing is just one of the latest innovations in the increasingly feature-rich and interconnected smart printers of today. The unparalleled accessibility and ease of use they add to your smart printer makes them a worthy addition to any smart home.

For a list of virtual assistant compatible PIXMA printers, click here.

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Supported Canon PIXMA Printers

TS9500 series, TS9100 series, TS8300 series, TS8200 series, TS8100 series, TS8000 series, TS6300 series, TS5300 series, TS5100 series, TS5000 series, TS3300 series, TS3100 series, TS700 series, TS300 series, TR8500 series, TR4500 series

MG7700 series, MG3600 series, MG3000 series, MG2900 series, MX530 series, MX490 series, MB5400 series, MB5300 series, MB5100 series, MB5000 series

E4200 series, E3300 series, E480 series, E470 series, E460 series

G7000 series, G6000 series, G5000 series, G4010 series, G4000 series, G3010 series, G3000 series

iP110 series

iB4100 series, iB4000 series

PRO-1000 series, PRO-500 series

 

 

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