Inkjet Wholesale News aims to provide updates on the latest significant occurrences in the field of printing. Whether it’s the launch of a new technology or volatility of market prices, we’ll be here to give you the lowdown on what happened, when it happened, and what it means!
2 Chromatic Red Ink Capable HP DesignJet Z-Series Printer Models Launched by OEM
In the last two months, we’ve reported on two separate product launches from HP Inc. as the newly split printing business specialist half of a company bids to put behind its financial woes. In the beginning of July, we reported on the launch of the HP Latex 560, HP Latex 570, and the HP Latex 1500. At the end of the same month, we wrote about the launch of the world’s smallest all-in-one printer in HP DeskJet 3700. This time out, HP has continued its product portfolio expansion further by adding two new printer models to the much appreciated HP DesignJet Z-series.
The new printer models added to the HP DesignJet Z-series are HP DesignJet Z5600 and the HP DesignJet Z2600. The Z5600 is the company’s 1117.6mm multi-roll printer while the Z2600 is 609.6mm high-impact graphics printer. Of all the devices categorised in the HP DesignJet Z-series, the Z2600 is considered to be the cheapest. The target audience for these new HP DesignJet Z-series printer models, according to the company, includes corporations, retailers, and copy shops with a special emphasis on GIS departments.
The most notable aspect of these new HP DesignJet Z-series printer models is that they boast of a six colour ink printing system. The Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) has added chromatic red ink into the printing system. The purpose of the chromatic red ink is to make sure that the output and colour quality remains crisp and vibrant without the printing costs going up for users. Typically, users get better output quality and colour vibrancy by utilising more ink. However, the addition of the chromatic red ink into the system makes getting greater colour vibrancy and better output quality possible while actually cutting operational costs.
In fact, the inclusion of the sixth ink means that these printer models of the HP DesignJet Z-series can cut costs by up to 20 percent. The OEM also categorically pointed out that the new HP DesignJet Z-series models will be ideal for high-impact Point of Purchase (PoP) signs and posters. Each of the new HP DesignJet Z-series printer models adds something new and unique to the much-lauded series.
For instance, the Z5600 has the potential to increase media loading efficiency of a printing service provider by no less than 75 percent. Furthermore, the fact that the printer uses quick-drying inks means that the printer also boasts of high speeds. In fact, as per OEM tests, the Z5600 is 39 percent faster than other printers in the same class. Water and fade resistance is also a special quality of this HP DesignJet Z-series printer model. The printer uses HP Vivid Photo inks which are pigment based and, hence, can produce technical drawings and maps capable of lasting up to two centuries. HP Vivid Photo inks are also used in the Z2600 and bring with them the same resistance qualities. However, the Z2600’s speciality is its economy.
Each of these postscript HP DesignJet Z-series printers uses HP’s Professional PANTONE colour emulation. This proprietary colour emulation combined with Adobe PostScript /PDF, HP-GL/2 ensures that these printers deliver improved colour reliability and better line accuracy. The printers are also built around HP Multi-Dimensional Smart Drop Placement Technology which makes colour tones much smoother.
Moreover, each of these new HP DesignJet Z-series printer models come with HP DesignJet Click printing software programme whose purpose is to allow one-click printing possible from a wide variety of sources and through a wide spectrum of file formats. For instance, the user will have the option to print with a PC or Mac over any file format including TIFF, JPEG, and PDF.
Declining Printing Department Revenue Takes HP Inc.’s Overall Revenues Down
In other news, HP Inc. has released its financial results for the third quarter of the current fiscal year. The financial results are highlighted by the on-going decline in the OEM’s revenue figures. However, even though the revenue figures are down, there are two positives to be taken from the financial results as well. The first is the fact that the rate of decline has dropped while the second is that the OEM has managed to improve its earnings and operating margins both in the third quarter. HP Inc. even returned some money to its shareholders through share repurchases and dividends.
If you read our report on HP Inc.’s Q2, FY2016-17 financial results, you’ll recall that they were also highlighted by revenue decline. Moreover, those results also showed a decline in operating margins from continued operations on the basis of Generally Accepted Accounting Practices (GAAP). Even the net earnings took a hit in that quarter.
In the third quarter, though, things are a little different. In Q3, fiscal 2016, HP Inc.’s GAAP net revenue went down by only four percent. It went from $12.4 billion in the third quarter of the last fiscal to $11.9 billion. On the other hand, the company’s GAAP operating margins from continuing operations rose by 1.3 points from 8.1 percent to come to rest at 9.4 percent. This translated into a rise in GAAP net earnings from continuing operations as well, which rose by 20 percent. The OEM’s GAAP net earnings in the previous fiscal’s third quarter were to the tune of $0.7 billion, while this fiscal they’re recorded at $0.8 billion.
In the third quarter of the current fiscal, HP Inc. also managed to return a hefty $269 million to shareholders. This is significantly lower than what HP Inc. managed to return to its shareholders in the previous quarter which was $518 million.
Even though, overall financial results of the OEM seem to be heading in the right direction, HP Inc. maybe a little concerned about the continuing shrinking of demand in the printing industry. The shrinkage of demand in the printing industry translated into the printing department of the company showing 14 percent drop in revenues. In all sub-segments of its printing department, HP Inc. showed significant drops including a drop of 10 percent in total hardware units – an aggregation of two percent drop in commercial hardware units and 14 percent drop in consumer hardware units. The industry’s razor business model of making money out of supplies seems to be slowly failing as well since HP Inc.’s supplies division’ revenue dropped by a considerable 18 percent.
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