PRESS RELEASE

HP Launches New Large Format Printing Series with break-through colour management

The HP Designjet 30 and HP Designjet 130 provide anEnd to End Creative Workflow and Proofing Solution.

HP has added a break-through colour solution to its large format printing range designed for the graphics market. The HP Designjet 30 and HP Designjet 130 printer series produce accurate and consistent quality proofs for professional photographers, graphic design work and the pre press production stage. Both printers complete HP’s portfolio for professional quality graphic design printing by delivering consistent colour and long-lasting image quality.

"By providing solutions such as the HP Designjet 30 and HP Designjet 130, professional photographers, marketing and design professionals don’t need to worry about varying quality levels of printing proofs or sub standard colour accuracy. Instead, they can concentrate on innovative campaigns and making the most of their creativity," said Emilio Ghilardi, Senior Vice President of HP Commercial Imaging and Printing, EMEA.

The HP Designjet 30 and HP Designjet130 series offers exceptional photo image quality with 2400 dpi and provide an optimised driver with colour management capabilities that include RGB ICC profiles to easily performed monitor proofing. HP colour layering technology and the new durable dye-based inks produce a wide range of colours and smooth tonal transitions.

Both printers give predictable and consistent colours you can easily control and trust, using HP internal sensoring technology. They are the first Designjets to feature HP’s new CMYK Plus technology improving the CMYK workflow across different printer platforms and expanding the use of the printer gamut.

The HP Designjet 30 and 130 gives users the ability to print in large format from A6 to A3+ and A6 to A1+ respectively. The new printers increase the efficiency of printing work for approval, proofing or client sign-off with speeds of up to 4mpp for A3/B sizes in normal mode on HP Premium Plus Photo media.

The new durable dye-based inks of the HP Designjet 30 and HP Designjet130 series ensure that colours reach their stability in a short time producing reliable proofs. Six printheads and individual ink cartridges deliver an optimised ink consumption reducing the cost per print. To enable fade resistance seven new photo papers (HP Premium Plus Photo Gloss and Satin both available in A3+, A2+ and 24”-size rolls, HP Premium Plus Photo Matte A3+) and five new formulated inks (cyan 28cc, magenta 28cc, yellow 69cc, light cyan 69cc and light magenta 69cc) have been introduced which will give printed images a 75 year life-span on the HP Gloss media.

"One of the key issues faced by graphic designers today remains the inefficiencies, and low quality apparent in the proofing process. Colour accuracy and perfect reproduction from screen to output device are essential, thus allowing the designer to focus on the core competencies of design and creativity. In the design industry the highest precision in colour accuracy remains a prerequisite in supporting the graphics sector," explained Matt Marshall, Research Manager for Printing & Electronic Imaging at IDC.

The HP Designjet 30 and HP Designjet 130 represent a substantial step forward in improving the creative workflow process by ensuring the printing phase truly represents the creativity involved. The new printers give photographers the ability to print sharp, bright and fade resistant images. Graphic designers can benefit from the indirect time and cost savings highly consistent and accurate colour printing can offer. Shorter sign off periods and accurate proofs before print production enable designers and pre press production to confidently ensure customers get what they have been promised.

"Designers now have a total imaging and printing solution for the creative process available from HP," said Florian Suessl, Director of Technology at MetaDesign, an international design form with a strong tradition in high-end production. "It is encouraging to see HP’s focus on the graphic design industry and the benefits we as designers receive from this."

The HP Designjet 30 and HP Designjet130 series are to be launched at the HP press conference on February 10th in Barcelona. Both printers are available from May 2004.