Lyra Research's new report, The HP Officejet Pro K550: A Look at SPT in the Office, investigates how HP is attempting to forever change the office printing landscape with its Officejet Pro K550, which features HP's new Scalable Printing Technology (SPT). The K550 rivals laser printers and other business ink jets in speed, quality, and price. The 31-page report examines the K550's strengths and weaknesses and provides hardware and software vendors with detailed information regarding new HP printers and consumables that their products will be competing against in office environments.
Charlie Brewer, managing editor of Lyra's industry-leading newsletter, The Hard Copy Supplies Journal, explains the advantages and disadvantages of the Officejet Pro K550's innovative SPT architecture. "By using separate ink tanks and print heads, HP is able to market simple, low-cost ink tanks that are inexpensive to manufacture. The downside for HP is that ink tanks that are less technically challenging make it easier for third-party manufacturers to go to market with compatible products in less time. In the past, these firms had few opportunities to compete with HP's consumables because the print heads in the integrated cartridges were loaded with intellectual property."
According to the new report, the Officejet Pro K550 can compete with monochrome print speeds that color laser machines deliver. At 37 ppm in draft mode, the K550 is at least 6 ppm faster than all color lasers priced under $500. The Brother HL-2700 is its closest competitor at 31 ppm, but the K550 sells for $200 less than the HL-2700. The Xerox Phaser 6120 and Konica Minolta magicolor 2400W print at 20 ppm in black and are priced $200 and $100 higher, respectively, than the HP ink jet.
The Officejet Pro K550's price and print speed are attractive, but will that be enough to overcome the resistance to ink jet printers in the office? The K550 may offer speeds that outperform those of color lasers, but it lacks the robust feature sets that office users require. The HP Officejet Pro K550: A Look at SPT in the Office contains incisive analysis of this innovative new printer technology and answers the following questions:
· Will the K550 penetrate the office market?
· What is the level of resistance to ink jet printers in the office?
· How does the K550 compare against other office machines?
· Can HP migrate LaserJet users to ink jet technology?
· Will HP's $1.4 billion investment pay off?
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