Print.ITReseller
01732759725
28
business inkjets
HP, like Epson (see page 25), is
moving its business inkjet technology
further up the value chain, giving
resellers newopportunities toprofit
fromgrowingdemand for business
inkjets poweredbyHP PageWide
Technology.
It has just announced its first series
designed for enterprise customers, theHP
Officejet EnterpriseColorMFPX585 and
theHPOfficejet EnterpriseColor X555,
with colour print speeds of up to 70 pages
perminute in general officemode.
Suitable for workgroups of 5-15 people
printing up to 6,000 pages amonth,
the new printer andMFP have the same
advantages as consumer business inkjets
i.e. colour printing at twice the speed and
up to half the cost of laser devices, but
with the added benefit of enterprise-grade
security, fleetmanagement andmobile
printing options.
The devices feature the same user
interface as 12millionHP Enterprise
Laserjet printers and comewithHP Laserjet
FutureSmart firmware and theHPOpen
Extensibility Platform (OXP),which enables
solutions likeHPAccess Control andHP
Capture&Route to be accessed through the
device.Themultifunctional model is available
in a scan-optimisedHP Flow bundle
featuring a dual-head scanner and best-
in-class scanning features for faster,more
accurate scanning and document processing.
Stuart Swinton, categorymanager UK
& Ireland for HP Laserjet and Enterprise
Solutions, told
PrintIT Reseller
that he
expected themajority of Enterprise
OfficeJets to be deployed as part of a
managed print service.
Currently, 70% of
Enterprise LaserJets are supplied
under anMPS.
“These products’ sweet
spot is in themanaged print
services sector.They comewith
FutureSmart firmware andwill
behave in exactly the sameway
as other HP LaserJet products.
Thismeans theywill work
with secure print and access
control, or third party
solutions like Safecom,
that youmight deploy in
amanaged print environment.
That’s the key thing,”he said.
Swinton added that he expectedHP
partners to deploy HPOfficeJet Enterprise
products alongside laser devices in
balanced deployments offering a lower
cost per page.
“Amanaged print partner could deploy
anHP FlowM880A3 laser device in a print
room, say, and have distributedOfficejet
Enterprise products in the general office
where the cost per page to print in colour
is extremely low.You could have large
A3 Laserjets,with all the paper handling
capabilities and print volumes that you
would put through devices like that,
balancedwithOfficejet Enterprise
products dispersed throughout an
enterprise.
“The cost per page argument
with these devices is so compelling
thatMPS providerswill be able to
competewith copier resellerswith an
aggressive cost per page and deploy all the
Ink for theenterprise
HP says itsfirst enterpriseOfficeJets
will helpMPSproviders competeon
pricewith the copier channel
HP has also enhanced the capabilities
of its HPOfficejet Prodevices for small
businesses.ThenewHPOfficejet Pro8620
andHPOfficejet Pro8610 e-All-in-Ones
featureNFC tap-to-print functionality,
support for HPWeb Jetadminprinter
management and theHP FlowCM
Professional online contentmanagement
system. Prices start at £146.
In theUS, these devices are being
offeredwith the option of anHP Instant Ink
subscription, extending the company’s personal
MPS scheme to small businesses for the first
time. HP has yet to confirmwhether theywill be
eligible for Instant Ink in theUK.
HP Instant Ink is a newway for consumers
to buy printer ink that is claimed to bemore
convenient and up to 70% cheaper than ad hoc
consumables purchases. Consumerswho enrol
with the programme pay HP a fixedmonthly
subscription for a set number of pages and
automatic delivery of replacement cartridges.
There are three Instant Ink plans available:
Occasional Print (£1.99 permonth for up to
50 colour pages);Moderate Print (£3.49 per
month for up to 100 pages); and Frequent Print
(£7.99 amonth for up to 300 pages).
In theUK, Instant Ink is currently only
available to users of HP Envy 4500 andHP Envy
5530 consumer all-in-ones.
SOHObusiness inkjets
solutions theywould have done on a laser
printer,”he said.
In addition to a very low cost per
page – lower even than theOfficejet Pro
X– the devices have a spot/accent colour
mode that counts pageswith only a small
amount of colour, such as a logo or blue
hyperlink text, asmono clicks and charges
accordingly.
Swinton added:“There is a lot of
excitement among ourmanaged print
partners.They see it as an opportunity
to drive down the cost of print in the
enterprise.They are aware of the products,
they like them and they are already
positioning them in deals.”
This does notmean that Enterprise
Officejetswill replace laser devices entirely.
Despite great advances in ink technology,
including improvedwater-fastness,
Swinton said that inkjet devices could still
notmatch the vibrancy of colour lasers
when printing on plain paper.
“A laser printer essentiallymelts plastic
onto paper and the toner sits on top, so
you get a very glossy, colour-saturated
image.A lot of customers like that and
want that, perhaps for customer-facing
collateral like flyers and brochures. Ink,
because it is absorbed by the paper, has
more of amatte finish,”he said.
Laser printers also benefit from better
paper-handling capabilities, such as extra
trays, staple-stackers and bookletmakers,
and,with the larger devices, can handle
greater volumes.
TheHPOfficejet Enterprise
ColorMFPX585 andHPX555
cost the same as equivalent
colour lasers, £1,179-£1,649
for theMFP and £449-£729
for the single function printer.
/
officejetenterprisex
Currently,
70%of
Enterprise
LaserJets
are supplied
underMPS.
