HP Stops Selling Printers, Starts Selling Prints 346
An anonymous reader writes "HP has launched a new line of business printers but there's a big catch — you won't be able to buy one. For the first time in history, the company will make customers purchase printing services, rather than the product itself. At its biggest printer launch since the LaserJet in 1984, HP's new business-class Edgeline printers will only be available through a managed services contract. Pricing will be per page, depending on the quality of the printout. Edgeline technology is said to be so ink-efficient that if HP were to sell these printers, they would never match the money they make from consumables (cartridges etc) now."
Misleading Summary Title (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Misleading Summary Title (Score:5, Informative)
Re:How innovative (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Bad Headline (Score:4, Informative)
I'd like to see the profit point on printers. How many ink cartridges do I have to buy for them to make up the loss on the hardware? Do companies plan for that payback over time? What is their estimate on how long it takes?
Layne
Re:And this is.... (Score:3, Informative)
Capitalism is a system based on the base greed of men (and women). It's not "work hard and see reward"; it's "you want something, you work to get it".
Re:And this is.... (Score:2, Informative)
In communism the state owns everything. Therefore you own 0%, which is a much lower rate than under coporate capitalism.
In communism, one owner owns everything. We call this a monopoly. Under coporate capitalism, I can choose between several coporations to sell my soul to. Even better, I can choose to sell just parts of my soul to various coporations instead of being force to sell 100% of my soul to one state monopoly.
Re:What a pity (Score:3, Informative)
I don't mean to single you out, lots of people say printer cheaper than ink, but ink in new printers is usually 1/4 or 1/2 a store baught cartridge (check product numbers).
HP doing what Xerox has done for years, Woo! (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Misleading Summary Title (Score:5, Informative)
You do still get the print right away. The printer is physically present in your business but you pay a lease and pay for each page you print.
Re:That printer sounds like its based on the tech (Score:1, Informative)
Xerox Document Center already does this... (Score:3, Informative)
Re:That printer sounds like its based on the tech (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Wow... (Score:3, Informative)
The idea of leasing expensive things is nothing new. When Xerox made their first copiers, these were available only on a lease-service basis. IBM mainframes were not sold, but leased. Many businesses lease their equipment and buildings. Cost per page isn't the only consideration for many buisnesses. Leasing has tax advantages. Maybe some
So why is this worthy of an article on the main page here? Must be a slow news day.
Re:Misleading Summary Title (Score:5, Informative)
Did you RTFA? This is the technology we read on
"new Memjet technology can print 60 full-color pages per minute. Instead of having a print head that moves side to side like current inkjets, the print head spans the full width of the page."
From TFA:
"Edgeline uses a page-wide stationary print-head, decreasing wear and tear by removing contact with the paper."
Here's an amazing (unbelievable?) video of the Memjet printer in action [texyt.com]
I've been waiting for this ever since I heard of it: All the photographic quality of a inkjet with faster speeds than laser printers and saving ink to boot. Very disappointed we won't see it at home now, but it's only a matter of time before it filters down.
Re:That's why you don't buy HP (Score:3, Informative)
I don't think any other brand of printer can say the same.
Re:Ditch ink, get a laser. (Score:3, Informative)
Color lasers also tend to to be freakin huge, and noisy. My last inkjet went into the garbage can a couple months ago, when I picked up a Ricoh SP C410dn that works VERY well. At 100 pounds and 19wx25dx19h, it wants a dedicated table. I specifically avoided color lasers that work on the carousel system, where color prints are one fourth the speed of black and white. The quality of color output on modern color lasers is VERY good. I would term it "near photo quality." A good modern 6 color inkjet will still be better for photos however. Just avoid Epson, and their printheads that can't be cleaned without tearing the whole printer apart...
Re:HP's loss... (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Good riddance (Score:2, Informative)
What's the big deal, nothing new here (Score:3, Informative)
Re:-ING form of verbs! (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Bad Headline (Score:3, Informative)
You actually can get inkjets that don't cost a fortune in ink to run. The catch? You pay a bit more up-front (but you also get a much better quality of device than the $49 wallyworld inkjet special).
First thing to look for - separate CMYK cartridges, possibly with separately replaceable printheads. That alone will save a fortune over tri/quadcolor cartridges. I don't, however, recommend the ones that take more than four colors - very, very few people need that level of color accuracy, and they tend to cost more yet hold even less ink than the el cheapo tricolor ones.
Second, look for a printer that takes ink cartridge holding significantly more than 7ml. Most printers may take seemingly large ink tanks, but it has no correlation with the actual quantity of ink inside.
As one that meets both criteria that I can personally recommend (no, I don't work for HP or make anything off you buying one of these), the HP Business Inkjet 1200 line (C8154A). It costs $150 up front, but that includes a complete set of inks and printheads. Under normal use, you'll probably never need to replace the printheads; The inks hold 28ml for CMY and 69ml for black (although as usually, the set that comes with it only comes half full, but even those will last a decent time). And the cost the same as the pathetic 3-7ml and tricolor ink cartridges, for 4-9x as much ink. Oh, and it has a built-in duplexer at that price, too (it comes as a separate part, but I've never seen that printer sold without the duplexing unit)
As an aside, with all inkjet printers (especially those with printheads built into the ink cartridges), you can also improve printhead life (for those who seem to have trouble with that - Personally, I do not) by wasting a test page at least once a week (if you haven't used the printer otherwise), to keep them from getting clogged with dried ink. It sounds wasteful, but will cost you less in the long run.
Re:Bad Headline (Score:1, Informative)
I assume there'd be competition driving these scams out, but the patent system (i.e. government intervention in the free market) prevents competitors from offering good printers.
Re:So.... (Score:2, Informative)
Companies like these agreements because they don't have to worry about things like warranties running out or maintaining seperate service agreements with someone to come fix their printers when things inevitably break. It also works out nicely for tax purposes since the money spent is a straight cost rather than a purchase. The company also avoids being stuck with old equipment. Pretty much the same reasons that leasing computer assets is so popular.
Re:HP doing what Xerox has done for years, Woo! (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Misleading Summary Title (Score:5, Informative)
Why? Simple (Score:4, Informative)
Obviously this new line of HP junk has so much crap associated with it that it can't even fit on a DVD, so they have to sell it as a managed service since no ordinary IT user could possibly control this POS.
I can no longer recommend HP to anyone. Buy Epson, folks. HP is done. Put a fork in it.