Amidst the hubbub of press releases flying around the week of Printing United, HP sent out a press release with the somewhat long-winded title of: “HP Announces New High-Volume Inkjet Web Press, Product Enhancements, and Other Major Milestones.” It had a subhead: “Introducing the HP PageWide Web Press T485 HD with HP Brilliant Ink” which represented just one of the six announcements bundled up in this release. One of those bullets referenced announcements to another press, the T250HD. Since HP made a big announcement back in September with the release of the PageWide Advantage 2200 platform, it would be easy for the other T series upgrades to get lost in the shuffle. However, these announcements are important for HP’s customers as well as in demonstrating a commitment to HP’s stated strategy of investing across the portfolio. With the announcement of the Advantage platform just a month ago, it would not be surprising for T series customers to wonder if upgrades would continue to happen. The announcements today signal that HP is continuing to support both T-series platform, across widths even as the work to expand the new platform to support additional widths in the future.

A closer look at the upgrades

The HP PageWide Web Press T485 HD is an upgrade to the T400 series that adds HP’s Brilliant Ink and HP Optimizer, the upgraded priming solution introduced with the T250 HD. This provides a combination of speed and quality to better target offset than the previous models.   [caption id="attachment_5832" align="aligncenter" width="864"] HP PageWide Web Press T485 HD[/caption] In order to upgrade, customers will to replace printheads, ink and exhaust systems, and some may need to upgrade the dryer as well depending on the generation T400 series they have installed. Customers will gain a number of advantage by upgrading. First off is speed, the press can run at a top speed of 800 fpm/244 mpm. The 42 inch press width has been very successful for HP in the book market where the 800 fpm mono  will play well. Note that Performance Mode uses a single, large drop weight while Quality Mode takes full advantage of the HP High Definition Nozzle Architecture (HDNA) thermal inkjet printheads with 2400 nozzles per inch at reduced speed (500 fpm).  It’s also a work-horse of a press with a duty cycle of up to 170 million mono/color images per month (estimated using Performance Mode.) The addition of Brilliant Ink and Optimizer opens up a broader range of media compatibility including offset uncoated and coated with weights from 40 to 350 gsm. Of course papers vary substantially so careful testing is recommended at the outer weight ranges. In addition to simple compatibility, the new inkset delivers a wider color gamut that HP describes as “more vivid.” Brilliant inks also have the ability to deliver the same performance as the previous models, while using less ink to deliver that quality. HP is positioning the 485 HD as a more versatile press able to cross-over from books and direct mail into application segments that are more color intensive and demand expansive offset grade compatibility. The 42 inch inkjet palette opens up a lot of creative options for large-scale marketing collateral, magazines, catalogs, posters, and banners. The press will be commercially available by Q2 2023. [caption id="attachment_5439" align="aligncenter" width="630"] HP T250 HD with Brilliant Inks and Harris & Bruno UV and aqueous coater[/caption] The T250 HD had a soft launch in March of 2020 and has only been commercially available since mid 2020, so there are quite a few customers that still had that “new press smell” in their operations when the Advantage platform was announced. The platform does not have upgrade path from the T Series, so it was important for HP to have a quick follow up to demonstrate their commitment to the platform. Their press release emphasized, “The HP PageWide Web Press T250 HD remains an important part of the HP PageWide portfolio. HP continues improve it with enhanced productivity.” HP has enabled an 800 fpm/244 mpm mono mode that offers a 60 % improvement over previous mono speeds. While this upgrade opportunity is primarily aimed at the book market, it puts action behind HP’s promised commitment to their customer’s success.

Action is what matters

HP delivered the original PageWide T200 web press back in 2010. Two years later, they provided an upgrade path to the T230 with double the productivity. In 2016, they introduced the T240 HD with double the resolution and four years after that, the T250 HD further expanded the color gamut and media compatibility. From recent research we conducted with inkjet users, I can attest that many of the early versions of these presses are still in production, while many others have been upgraded. There is no question that it is much harder for an OEM to advance their technology while also maintaining an upgrade path so I always like to highlight the effort when I see it. If you want to learn about the other six bullets in HP’s press release, you can check it out here. We just don’t want you to miss the press part of the press release.