Older Mac and software with new printer?

T

tifat

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Hi. I'm a BW film and darkroom guy (M4, 3.5f, F2, 12SWA) who has only occasionally messed with digital. I had a Ricoh but sold it several years ago when my HP 9whatever printer died. I picked up a Fuji x100t and really like the classic chrome jpegs but would like a printer. The problem is that my Mac is seven years old and so is the software. I have a 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo mac with OS 10.7.5, Aperture 3.1.1 and iPhoto '09 8.1.2. Would this work with one of the better Canon or Epson current generation printers (Surecolor P600, Pixma Pro100)? Thanks. Carl in Berkshire County Mass.
 
You're looking for backwards compatibility... and that's the opposite of what tends to occur (a Mac goes through an OS upgrade and peripherals become strangers).

I frankly don't know. I know my way around Macs, but not as much as I'd like... Maybe you have to find something like a generic driver (although, for a new printer it may be iffy), at websites like Gutenprint. Still... why don't you shop for slightly older versions of these printers and see if the drivers are available in that guten site I linked for you?

Take care and best of luck! :)
 
You can check Canon and Epson's website for driver and sw downloads to check compatibility. You can also update OSX for free, if you need to.
 
A seven-year-old Core 2 Duo Mac may not be able to run the latest OS X... Some are limited to the OS version you currently run 10.7.5.

For instance, late-2006 iMac 17" & 20", the 24" through Aug 07 are limited to 10.7.5, while any iMac introduced from mid-2007 onward is ok through the latest Yosemite.

Same for MacBook models up to the late-2008 aluminum; that one and later are ok with the latest OS X.

And the same for MacBook Pro models up to June 2007, after which they're ok with the latest OS X.
 
There may be hope. My iMac (purchased in Feb 2008) came with Leopard, and it's currently running Yosemite. Granted, I had to get additional RAM for it (I only had 1 GB, but now it has 4).

Try download Yosemite. If you have enough RAM, it may happen. If not, you may be able to upgrade to Leopard or Snow Leopard... or Lion at least... (which is, I think, 10.7).
 
Epson offers software drivers and utility software to run on OS X 10.7.x for the P600.

Just go to their website and click through the support section.

G
 
Thanks for the input. 10.7.5 is the last OS my mac will work with. The P600 seems to work with that OS but I can't upgrade to current photoshop or lightroom and use the printer plug-ins. Will the print drivers allow me to print out of Aperture or iPhoto? Carl
 
I would not upgrade from Snow Leopard if you don't have to. And I don't think you'll have to. I think the current Epson 3880 driver, for instance, works with Snow Leopard, but of course that printer has been around for a few years now. Printer drivers are not usually demanding of the very latest OS.
 
My imac is running 10.7.something and it works with my Epson 7800 and 9800 printers just fine.
 
tifat said:
Thanks for the input. 10.7.5 is the last OS my mac will work with. The P600 seems to work with that OS but I can't upgrade to current photoshop or lightroom and use the printer plug-ins. Will the print drivers allow me to print out of Aperture or iPhoto? Carl
Click to expand...

Yes. ......

G
 
Hi. Just reporting back that I got the printer (Canon Pro-100) and everything is working great. Thanks for the help. Carl
 
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