HP Brings Apps to the Printer

HP wants you to print extra, which is not accurately surprising given the company’s money-making ink and toner business. Fortunately, it has launched an HP App Studio with some very useful printer software that very well may convince you to click that print button more often. The downside? The apps only work with the very cool Printer Support Photosmart Premium with TouchSmart Web all-in-one printer, which is available starting this week.

HP announced the printer, which connects to your computer and to the Web via Wi-Fi, in late June with a cast of app partners that included USA Today, Google, Fandango, Coupons.com, DreamWorks Animation, Nickelodeon, Web Sudoku, and Weathernews. These buddies worked with HP to create apps that facilitate you to efficiently and easily print maps, Web pages, movie tickets, coupons, photo albums, and more.

Today HP officially opened its App Studio, and announced new partnerships with Disney.com and DisneyFamily.com for pallor pages and craft projects; CNET.com for well-laid-out printing of technology invention reviews; CBS News for text versions of the TV program 60 Minutes; and the photo-sharing site Flickr for photo printing.

The apps are free of charge and are formed by select developers working in concert with HP , hp printer repair is more easy than dell printer repair . The company says it will provide a Software Developer Kit (SDK) in early 2010 that will open up creation of apps to a wider variety of developers.

While the apps only work with the Photosmart Premium with TouchSmart Web, anyone can visit the App Studio to check out the apps and rate how useful you think they may be — even if you can’t use them. It’s an interesting look at the future of home printing.