HP Announces Next-Generation Color Laser Printer with Affordable, Near-Photographic Color Output; New HP Color LaserJet 5 Printers Designed To Increase Office Color Use With Low Cost Per Page, Cost of Ownership.

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 11, 1996 -- Hewlett-Packard Company, the leader in the color laser printer market, today introduced its next-generation color laser printers, the HP Color LaserJet 5 and 5MP printers. The new printers provide near-photographic color print quality and a breakthrough in cost per color page. Now, for the first time, it is as affordable to produce a color page on the Color LaserJet 5 printers as it is to produce the same page on a monochrome laser printer.

The Color LaserJet 5 printers are created for corporate workgroups, where color printing is on the rise. According to Giga Information Group, a Norwell, Mass.-based research firm, all Fortune 1000 companies will have color printers on their networks within a year.

The Color LaserJet 5 printers are designed for everyday office color printing, which HP believes will continue to increase exponentially as users become more familiar with color laser technology and key requirements are met. Specifically, these requirements include strong price/performance, high print quality and a low cost of ownership/cost per page.

A recent study from IDC, a Framingham, Mass.-based research firm, found that the top barrier to color adoption in the office is the high cost of owning a color printer. According to HP research, the Color LaserJet 5 printers are the most affordable color laser printers to own and operate. (See HP Color LaserJet 5 printer "Cost of Ownership" fact sheet.)

A major factor in a printer's cost of ownership is its cost per page. To keep per-page costs low, HP has designed the Color LaserJet 5 printer to more efficiently place color toner on paper, resulting in a color page that can cost less than the same document printed on a monochrome laser printer. For example, a page containing 50 percent color coverage printed on a Color LaserJet 5 printer costs less than the same page printed on the HP LaserJet 4 Plus monochrome laser printer.

"HP believes that by making color printing as affordable as black and white printing, businesses will be able to use color every day without worry," said George Mulhern, marketing manager of HP's Color LaserJet and Consumables Division. "Users can now produce sharp, high-impact text and graphics and detailed, photorealistic images to give reports, proposals, memos and other business documents a competitive edge."

The Color LaserJet 5 and 5M printers feature Image Resolution Enhancement technology (Image REt) 1200, an HP-developed technology that delivers dramatic, 1200-dpi-equivalent image quality -- resulting in colorful graphics, sharp text and millions of solid colors.

The Color LaserJet 5 and 5M printers are expected to sell for about $5,995 and $7,395, respectively. Low cost per page and industry-leading network-printing capabilities make the Color LaserJet 5 and 5M printers ideal for workgroups requiring multiple copies of multiple-page documents with high-quality black and color printing.

Following are some of the features of the Color LaserJet 5 printers that enable everyday color printing.

o Low cost per page -- The Color LaserJet 5 printers

achieve a breakthrough cost per color page, often

making color laser printing more affordable than

monochrome laser printing:

-- At approximately 1.8 cents per page, a black-only

page (at 5 percent coverage) often costs less than

the same print produced on a monochrome laser

printer (average 2.5 cents).

-- An average color document containing 15 percent

color coverage costs as little as 5 cents per

page.

o Low cost of ownership -- In addition to a low cost per

page, HP research shows that the Color LaserJet 5

printers are less expensive to own and operate than any

other color laser on the market.

o Multiple original printing -- Users can print longer

documents and multiple original prints, or "mopies," of

documents. Features include a 30,000-page monthly duty

cycle; 3,000-page toner yield; and up to 500 sheets of

paper input capacity. The Color LaserJet 5 printers

also incorporate sophisticated internal monitoring

systems for consistent output over the lifetime of the

printer. The Color LaserJet 5 printers are unmatched

in reliability and require minimal user interaction.

o Easy to use -- ColorSmart technology makes it easy to

select optimal color settings. ColorSmart analyzes a

document, recognizing text, images and graphic elements

separately, then automatically adjusts the color

clarity, contrast and accuracy for the best-possible

results.

For easy printer installation, HP's Windows Printing

System installer automatically determines and loads the

appropriate drivers for the specific Windows

environment being used.

o Professional finish -- The Color LaserJet 5 printers

print color with a non-glossy, easy-to-read matte

finish for a professional appearance consistent with

today's laser-printed business documents.

Glossy paper is available for high-impact color output.

o Print permanence -- The Color LaserJet 5 printers

provide professional, colorfast color output that will

not smear, peel, melt, scrape off, fade over time,

flake or rub off onto other pages.

o Easy font management -- HP FontSmart font-management

software, which is new in the Color LaserJet 5

printers, provides an additional 65 outline fonts for a

total of 110 fonts. FontSmart software makes font

selection and management easy.

o Compatible -- The Color LaserJet 5 printers are

compatible with virtually all operating systems,

networks and computer systems. Unlike other color

laser printers, the Color LaserJet 5 and 5M printers

also can print full color in both PCL and Adobe

PostScript.

o Easy to share -- HP JetDirect network connectivity,

automatic-language switching and simultaneously active

ports make sharing the Color LaserJet 5 printers easy,

fast and convenient. HP JetAdmin printer-management

software makes the Color LaserJet 5 printers easy to

manage over a network. The Color LaserJet 5M printer

comes standard with JetDirect network connectivity and

supports virtually all network operating systems.

Because of its advanced networking features, the cost

of the printer can be spread across multiple users.

o Versatile media handling -- The Color LaserJet 5

printers support letter, A4 and legal-size plain paper,

glossy media and transparencies. The Color LaserJet 5

printers are the only color laser printers that support

11-inch by 17-inch black-and-white printing.

o Multipurpose operation -- The ability to print

black-only documents without sacrificing speed, cost

per page or laser-quality output makes the Color

LaserJet 5 printers ideal for users' various printing

needs.

AVAILABILITY/WARRANTY

The Color LaserJet 5 and 5M printers are available on March 18, 1996, through HP-authorized dealers and distributors worldwide. The HP Color LaserJet 5 and 5M printers come with a limited, one-year, next-day, on-site service warranty. Users can obtain additional two-year limited warranty coverage by purchasing HP SupportPack.

Product information is available by calling [phone]. Additional information and support are available through FAX HP FIRST at [phone]. FAX HP FIRST provides automated fax responses to commonly asked questions, helpful hints on getting started, driver information and application notes. An HP support technician can be reached at [phone].

HP is the world's leading supplier of hardcopy products that set the standard for technology, performance and reliability. HP's market-leading products include LaserJet and DeskJet printers, DesignJet large-format printers and plotters, ScanJet scanners, OfficeJet printer-fax-copiers, CopyJet color printer-copiers and HP FAX facsimile machines.

Hewlett-Packard Company is a leading global manufacturer of computing, communications and measurement products and services recognized for excellence in quality and support. HP has 105,200 employees and had revenue of $31.5 billion in its 1995 fiscal year. -0-

NOTE: Adobe, Adobe PostScript and Adobe Photoshop are trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated, which may be registered in certain jurisdictions.

Microsoft is a U.S. registered trademark of Microsoft Corp.

Windows is a U.S. trademark of Microsoft Corp. -0-

NOTE TO THE EDITOR: Sales information may be obtained by calling [phone], or at http://www.hp.com on the World Wide Web. Please do NOT use editor-contact or corporate telephone numbers for sales information.

Information in this release applies specifically to products available in North America. Product availability and specifications may vary in other markets.

If you choose to write about this product, fastest response to your readers' inquiries will be assured by mailing them to Hewlett-Packard Company, Direct Marketing Organization, P.O. Box 58059, MS511L-SJ, Santa Clara, Calif. 95051-8059.

CONTACT: Hewlett-Packard

Iris Fouser, 208/396-4959

e-mail: [e-mail]

or

Copithorne & Bellows for HP

Liz Powell, 408/654-5315

e-mail: [e-mail]