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HP expects printer market to ramp up
As offices have reopened and workers have returned, the printer has been one of the key tools they have missed during the pandemic
HP expects trading conditions to continue to improve for its printer channel as demand picks up and customers seek out sustainable products.
The vendor has cut the ribbon on its LaserJet Managed E700/E800 series of printers, which ticks boxes on both the sustainability front with the design and energy consumption, and with security being covered to remove fears of network vulnerabilities.
The multifunction printers are being pitched as a solution that meets hybrid working needs. Features include the ability to edit documents before printing at the final stage as something that will increase productivity.
The products are also made from more than 59% recycled plastic and HP has a toner recycling scheme that has saved tens of thousands from being thrown into landfill.
As offices have reopened, the ability to print has been one of the things that employees have missed, according to research, which has given HP more evidence that it is following the right strategy. According to the vendor’s findings, 57% of people said they had missed having access to a printer, and a similar percentage had pined for a scanner.
Neil MacDonald, UK & Ireland channel director at HP, said that after a difficult time during the pandemic, life was improving for printer partners.
“We are excited by these new products and we are excited by the fact that more people are returning to the office,” he said. “While that is happening, we are anticipating a ramp-up. Our channel partners are critical to our business and we are to them, so we are really excited about what this will mean in terms of driving growth into the channel.”
MacDonald added that as well as having the technology to support hybrid workers, it was crucial to have a strong sustainability story.
“We are addressing sustainability,” he said. “This is a strategy that transcends our entire portfolio and we are very focused around how we do it. Even small things, like how we have shipped that stock product in a component format, so that we can actually condense them and get more desktops on a pallet versus if they were already pre-built.
“We haven’t shipped a single PC or PC-related product this year that hasn’t got an element of sustainable material within it – and that sits across our entire portfolio.”
Product features
- HP’s E800/E700 series should provide the channel with a solid proposition that can be put in front of customers.
- On the security front, the devices include Memory Shield, which helps detect malicious attacks and automatically self-heals. It monitors the execution flow of the printer firmware to help detect and prevent potential zero-day attacks.
- It is still important to talk about pages per minute and on that front, the devices offer 70ppm and 300ipm duplex scan speed.
