HP Debuts Solutions to Accelerate Growing Digital Photo and Publishing Marketplace

COLOGNE, Germany - HP today announced the newest additions to its digital photography portfolio, designed to empower customers to do more with their digital assets across the printing ecosystem at retail, online or at home.

The technologies are being demonstrated in the HP booth in Hall 4.1 at Photokina 2008, one of the world’s largest photography tradeshows for consumers, professionals and retailers. Highlights include:

* The HP Designjet Z3200 Photo Printer – a professional photography solution that allows creative professionals and print service providers (PSPs) to produce gallery-quality black-and-white and color prints, photographs, art enlargements, digital designs and high-accuracy proofs. This new printer supports more than 50 Original HP large-format printing materials designed together with HP Vivera pigment inks, including the new HP Baryte Satin Art Paper.
* An extended HP Raster Image Processor (RIP) Certification Program to include the HP Designjet Z3200 Photo Printer. The program helps to align essential user performance expectations and the unique capabilities of the printer series for a wide range of large-format printing applications.
* The HP Indigo press 5500, HP’s best-selling digital press, has been enhanced with options to facilitate greater productivity, including an additional feeder, an in-line connection to the HP Indigo UV Coater and a kit for enabling printing on thicker media.
* European availability of recent additions to HP’s line of retail publishing solutions including the HP Photo Center PS3500, which incorporates the HP Photosmart ML1000 Minilab printer, the HP Photosmart PM2000e Microlab printer, and the HP Photosmart CL2000 Creative Printer. HP Retail Publishing Solutions help transform retailers’ traditional photo labs into publishing centers, which, in addition to prints, can produce rich digital media, including creative photo products and new forms of output.
* Expansion of HP’s portfolio of consumer-focused products that can be created and ordered in-store or at home through the online photo service Snapfish by HP, for retail pickup. This includes new additions to the Snapfish by HP photo collage collection, which turns treasured memories into the perfect gift for family and friends. Recently introduced in the United States and Europe, these new collage products include posters, prints, mugs and mouse pads.
* The HP Photosmart B8550 Photo Printer – a complete home printing solution featuring a new, affordable five-ink printing system that is ideal for producing large-format prints while maintaining the versatility of an everyday home printer.
* The HP Scanjet G3110 Photo Scanner – a scanning solution that makes it easy to preserve, share and archive photos, slides, negatives, documents and 3-D objects.

HP also highlighted customer and partner agreements for its home and large-format printing solutions, including:

* HP announced a partnership in July with department store Real, owned by METRO AG – one of Germany’s largest retailers – to provide self-service photo solutions in 300 of its stores across the country.
* Europe’s leading photo and telecom distributor, Swains International PLC, recently launched a new company – Retail Photo Solutions Ltd. – which will sell digital, dry retail publishing solutions from HP to the U.K. market.
* An exclusive agreement with custom book publisher Blurb to produce all of its offerings using HP Indigo presses. Standardization on the HP Indigo platform assures Blurb customers that their books will be fulfilled using the latest digital technology available.
* A collaboration between HP and Nikon to enable a simplified workflow in fine art reproduction with the Nikon D3 camera and the new HP Designjet Z3200 Photo Printer, using HP Artist Software technology.
* A combined offering from HP and Microsoft: beginning in 2009, HP will feature Windows® Live Photo Gallery and HP Creative Print Projects across the HP Photosmart and HP Deskjet consumer printing portfolios. This offering will allow users to print, share, organize and edit a wide array of creative print projects at home, such as photo books, collages, cards and calendars.

“The transition from analog to digital presents significant market opportunities for print service providers and creates opportunities for professional photographers and consumers to bring rich content to life,” said Michael Hoffmann, senior vice president, Graphics Solutions Business, HP. “Today’s announcements enhance HP’s portfolio of innovative digital photography solutions and services to enable this transformation of the photography industry and help customers create, access, manage and publish their content.”

More information regarding HP’s announcements at Photokina 2008 is available in an online press kit at www.hp.com/go/GSBfall08.

Source: HP