HP targets professionals with the A2+ size HP Designjet 90 Printer

On my recent trip to Dublin HP showed off their new range of printers which included the HP Designjet 90. This printer is in direct competition with the Epson Stylus Pro 4000 A2 printer, but priced more competitively with prices starting at £750.

The HP 90 is a A2+ format printer, (the HP 30 is A3+ and HP 130 is A1+), HP states that both of those printers will continue to be available. My gut instinct tells me that the HP 30 may fall by the wayside as soon as stocks are cleared, especially as the HP 8750 also offers A3+ printing, (keep an eye out for some reduced pricing on the HP 30 printer). The HP 90 is aimed at the professional photographer and designer and I am sure it will prove very popular. It's a pity that HP didn't include the photo-grey cartridge with this printer, many photographers still have a demand for quality monochrome printing, especially in the wedding and social photography sector. Once you have seen the monochrome output of the 7960, 8450 and 8750 printers then nothing else will do. However, having said that, the sample print I have here is totally neutral and if I hadn't seen it printed myself then I would not have believed this wasn't produced in a darkrrom.

The first print samples I have here look terrific, the pictures display vibrant colours and even the b/w prints look neutral. The new Vivera inks really show off their full capability with the HP 90 (and on the 8750). I will reserve my full opinion on the output until such time as I have had a chance to print some of my own test files (sample prints always look great, manufacturers choose them for that reason). HP have a wide selection of media available from matte and glossy to specialty media for photo and fine arts. I particularly like the HP Premium Plus Photo Satin, this looks and feels like a traditional photograph and with a life span of 82 years this print will be around far longer than I will.

I will do a full interactive review on this printer together with the 8750 as soon as HP supplies us with the review units.

The two print samples below are A4 sections of A3+ prints - must get a bigger scanner one of these days.

Monochrome is excellent	Viva - Vivera, colours on HP samples are stunning

High quality for professional photographers, graphic designers and pre-press production

BIRMINGHAM, UK, February 28, 2005 - HP has launched a new large format printer specifically designed for the graphics market. The HP Designjet 90 Printer produces consistently high quality results for professional photography, graphic design work and pre-press production. It is ideal for professionals who require high volume printing capabilities and advanced colour technologies to produce exceptional, fade resistant photo quality images.

"With the HP Designjet 90 Printer, customers don't need to worry about varying quality levels or sub-standard colour accuracy when printing proofs. Instead, they can concentrate solely on creativity," said Mark Ellis, LFP Business Manager of HP UK & Ireland.

This new addition to HP's graphics portfolio allows users to be more creative by increasing printing with output speeds of up to 4 minutes per page for A3+ sized glossy media¹.  With printing speeds of up to twice that of comparably priced printers, the HP Designjet 90 Printer provides high speed and high quality prints every time. In addition, the printer's efficient writing system along with cost effective supplies and low purchase price make good business sense.

The HP Designjet 90 Printer provides outstanding colour technology and superior performance especially for professional photographers who would prefer to print their works themselves. The HP Designjet 90 Printer uses a combination of six separate HP 85 and HP 84 Ink Cartridges to offer exceptional photo image quality, producing rich, accurate colours at up to 2400-dpi with 4 pl drop-size for minimal dot visibility. Fitted with a built-in colour sensor and using HP Vivera Inks² that provide 82 years³ of fade resistance, the HP Designjet 90 Printer can be relied upon to recreate the same image quality with every print time after time. Users can rest assured that the art they create will maintain its impact for years to come.

The HP Designet 90 Printer operates a 6-ink writing system which uses colour layering technology coupled with proprietary dye-based HP Vivera Inks to create smooth and continuous tones, excellent highlights, shadow detail and persuasive skin tones in a wide colour range.

Embedded HP Professional Color Technologies including Closed Loop Color calibration, CMYKplus, Black Point compensation and Professional Pantone emulation make the colour experience simple and straightforward.  Professional Pantone enables the HP Designjet 90 Printer to achieve more accurate Pantone colours using 6-ink colour combinations⁴.

The HP Designjet 90 Printer gives customers the ability to print in large format on a wide variety of different media types. HP has launched four new media sizes and one brand new media for use with the HP Designjet 90 Printer. These are:

• HP Proofing Semi-gloss and HP Proofing Matte Papers - ideal for graphic designers who want to produce full-bleed, colour accurate offset emulations
• HP Coated Paper - generates colour accurate everyday prints, working comps and design proofs
• HP Premium Plus Photo Satin - designed for professional photographers and graphic designers needing photo image quality prints
• HP Professional Semi-gloss Contract Proofing Paper - designed for graphic professionals expecting the best out of their media - from superior proofing performance, delivering exceptional colour gamut to printing proofs true to output of printing press

14 June, 2005