How to set up a new printer

In a world where everything is often just plug-n-play and smart enough to talk to or seamlessly talk to each other, printers are an oddity that can still be maddeningly fiddlesome to set up. Thankfully, some progress has been made over the decades and the process today is a little more tolerable than it was a decade ago. If you’ve just bought a new printer, here are some tips that’ll help you get it up and running as quickly as possible.

Follow the manufacturer’s instructions

The simplest and most important step you need to take is to follow the manufacturer’s instructions precisely. Depending on the printer model and its age, the installation process can be very finicky. For example, some printers require that you plug it in only after prompted by the driver installer to avoid Windows automatically downloading a conflicting driver.

Printers will come with instructions inside the box, and if not, search the web for the printer’s model number and installation instructions, and follow the instructions you find only on the manufacturer’s website.

Avoid Wi-Fi during first-time setup

Many printers today offer Wi-Fi setup and connectivity for simplifying printing, but we’d strongly recommend skipping this step when setting up the printer for the first time. The Wi-Fi setup process can be surprisingly obtuse and unintuitive on new printers and it’s just simpler to use a USB cable for initial setup. This will ensure that the printer drivers are installed correctly and that there are no issues with the printer itself.

Once that’s done, you can follow the manufacturer’s guide for setting up Wi-Fi on all your devices. Do note that the process is often easier on Mac than it is on Windows, thanks to services like Bonjour and simpler drivers, but skipping the driver installation process on Mac and using the pre-installed drivers might limit the printer’s functionality.

You can also search for “Printers & Scanners” to open the control panel page for managing printers. Make sure your device is showing up here. If it isn’t, reinstall the drivers.

Check that the drivers are installed correctly

If you’re using a USB printer, right-click on the Windows Start icon in the taskbar and open device manager. In the list that opens up, check for exclamation marks indicating a missing driver or unknown device. If the printer has been flagged in such fashion, you’ll need to re-install the printer drivers.

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You can also search for “Printers & Scanners” to open the control panel page for managing printers. Make sure your device is showing up here. If it isn’t, reinstall the drivers.

Print test pages

Once its shows up everywhere, open the printer management page by clicking on its list item in the printers and scanners page.

If you notice any issues, open the printer properties page and start a page alignment or print cleaning cycle as necessary. If the printed page is missing colours or is streaky, cleaning will help. If the text and/or other lines are misaligned, an alignment will help.

Congratulations! Your printer should be up and running now. If there are any issues, you can try uninstalling and reinstalling the drivers. If issues persist, you might want to contact the manufacturer or check for an updated installer on the manufacturer’s website.