HP lowers cost of enhanced version of world's best-selling color laser printer; Industry leader makes color laser printing more affordable and easier to use.

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 31, 1997-- Hewlett-Packard Company today announced that it has significantly reduced the price of its color laser printer with the introduction of the Enhanced HP Color LaserJet 5/5M printers. The new printers replace the HP Color LaserJet 5 printer family, the world's most popular color laser printers, with printers that are priced 31 percent lower than their predecessors and offer faster photo printing (up to five-times-faster processing time) and new tools that make color easier to use.

The Enhanced Color LaserJet 5/5M printers make professional color printing more affordable than ever. The Enhanced Color LaserJet 5 and the Enhanced Color LaserJet 5M printers are expected to have a street price as low as $3,999 and $5,199 respectively. The new printers will offer the same 1,200-dpi-equivalent image print quality and reliability that have helped the original Color LaserJet 5 printer secure more than 67 percent of the U.S. color laser market, according to one public report (Computer Intelligence InfoCorp, August 1996).

"The lower price, combined with HP's already lowest cost of ownership, will make the Enhanced Color LaserJet 5 printers a remarkably inexpensive color laser-printing solution," said George J. Mulhern, marketing manager, HP's Color and Consumables Division. "HP is committed to bringing its customers the highest-quality printing solution at a price that makes color in the office accessible to everyone."

Already the industry leader in total cost of ownership, HP is making color even more affordable by lowering the price of the world's best-selling color laser-printer family. The Color LaserJet 5/5M printers produce color documents for as little as 5 cents per page and have the lowest cost of consumables of any color laser printer on the market (see Cost of Color backgrounder).

The Enhanced Color LaserJet 5/5M printers come with HP's CLJ5FR technology for improved print speeds for printing bit-mapped images such as photos and artwork found on the Internet. CLJ5FR is a driver and hardware enhancement that allows users working under PCL and in a Microsoft(R) Windows(R) 95 or NT 4.0 environment to print high-quality photos and other bit-mapped images up to five times faster than without the enhancement. With CLJ5FR, typical bit-mapped files such as photos, clip art and scanned images can be added to documents without significant performance loss.

The inclusion of an HP Color CD with the Enhanced Color LaserJet 5/5M printers also will help make the use of color simple and effective. The Color CD includes tips and tricks to make using color in business documents easier than ever. A description of tuning techniques and an interactive tutorial also will help users get the most out of color in their documents.

The Color CD also contains several software applications that can further simplify and amplify the use of color in business documents. Some of the software features included with the Color CD include the following: -0-

     --   HP Business Borders -- provides templates for creating
          brighter, more interesting business documents;

     --   HP Color Tools -- offers helpful tools for creating more
          advanced color documents;

     --   HP Color Swatch Utility Tools -- makes finding the
          perfect color scheme a snap;

     --   By Design (StreetwiseSoftware, Inc.) -- includes
          templates and clip art to enhance color documents;

     --   Microsoft Publisher -- users get a 60-day trial version
          of this popular desktop-publishing program; and

     --   Microsoft Internet Explorer -- a free copy of Microsoft
          Internet Explorer allows users to download colorful
          Internet sites.

-0- U.S. AVAILABILITY

The Enhanced Color LaserJet 5 printer and the Enhanced Color LaserJet 5M printer are available now through HP authorized resellers. Product information is available by calling 800/752-0900. Additional information and support are available through FAX HP FIRST at 800/333-1917. FAX HP FIRST provides automated fax responses to commonly asked questions, helpful hints on getting started, and driver information and application notes. An HP support technician can be reached at 208/323-2551.

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, ScanJet scanners, OfficeJet printer-fax-copiers and CopyJet color printer-copiers.

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 112,800 employees and had revenue of $38.4 billion in its 1996 fiscal year. -0-

Note to Editors: By Design is a product of StreetwiseSoftware, Inc. Microsoft is a U.S. registered trademark of Microsoft Corp. Windows is a U.S. registered trademark of Microsoft Corp.

Sales information may be obtained by calling 800/752-0900, 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 Company

Mark Armstrong, 208/396-4309

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or

Copithorne & Bellows for HP

Brad Lee Brenner, 408/988-2100

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