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One of the advantages Digitex has maintained within the print industry has always been a brand agnostic approach. Our roots are a client focused, service-first business, so what better way to offer the best possible service to our clients than to employ experienced service technicians trained to work with all the top brands. Twenty-years ago, service was our main focus and today, it still is. In 2017, HP began to enter the industry in a big way and that's why we have been sending our service technicians across the country to get up to speed on everything new HP is launching this year in the A3 copier space. Now that they're experts on the new HP gear, it's time to introduce it to you.

You may have noticed we have recently started talking a lot about HP. To be honest, I'm a little excited about this new partnership we are developing. HP has some brilliant products coming to market and they really want to make a splash this year. That's why you'll begin to see this new truck design rolling across the prairies! That copier featured on the left is the new HP LaserJet A3 with an external finisher. We have just started selling these units (and have some awesome deals on them too) while the middle and right units are wholly different beasts. That's the PageWide.

How do you handle change? Some people are absolutely mortified by the idea of change. "Fear of the unknown" "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" you've heard it all before, and you likely have your own opinions about changes in your own life. Sure, the copiers we work with today are amazing, dependable machines, but technology changes and you have to keep up with it before you're left behind. Caution is wise, but a fear of change can impact innovation. Where would we be today if new technologies weren't embraced? Sometimes the best way to approach change is to face it head-on. The managed print industry is a big part of our lives, and we are facing change right now too. As you can imagine, when sweeping change comes into your industry, lots of questions are asked. I would be lying if I said there wasn't a lot of skepticism and concern throughout Digitex and the wider print industry when it came to the announcement of the A3 PageWide. Many of the questions I have heard around the office come from our service-first perspective. We want to make sure any product we sell is going to be well-received by our customers, reliable, cost-effective, secure, up to our high standards and your high expectations. The good news is that I have received a lot of really positive answers to those questions.

A little about this new PageWide technology, just to explain why it's expected to be a game-changer. The current copier you have in your office is a laser printer that uses powdered toner. These laser printers are crisp, clear, reliable workhorses that have been an industry-standard technology for decades. Over the years, there have been advances in technology in these laser printers, but nothing that has really challenged the technology to evolve. The powdered toner can be admittedly expensive and there are a lot of moving parts needed to put that powder on paper. That's why we offer service and supply contracts, along with leasing and renting, to make that all affordable for your business. PageWide changes things up. You know those inkjet desktop printers, the ones that have the little ink cartridges? That technology is the great-grandfather of the PageWide. The ink cartridges are on a rail system and they move back and forth across the page, spraying ink on the page as it stutters out of the printer. You probably have one at home. PageWide takes the inkjet concept and turns it up to 11.

The A3 PageWide uses tens of thousands of inkjets on a stationary ink head, spraying the ink "page wide" instead of a little cartridge moving back and forth. The paper does all the moving, not the ink cartridge. Each one of the strips in this picture contains thousands of inkjets, all with redundant backup inkjets. If you were to look at it under high magnification, you would see thousands of little dots, each with its own circuit connecting them all together. We have one on display at our Red Deer office if you'd like to have a look. The print head itself is pretty high tech but other than that, the rest of the copier is much, much simpler than its laser cousin. No fuser, no waste toner, no powder, and a whole lot less moving parts. Once you have reduced the number of moving parts, you begin to open the possibility for a more reliable machine. Now, this isn't brand-new groundbreaking, untested stuff. HP has been using this technology in its A4 desktop units and the PageWide concept was originally developed for its large-format print technology. They have now adapted it to work within the A3 space, an area HP hasn't been involved in, until now. They're no strangers to print. Walk into any electronics department store and you'll see rows of HP printers. These new ones are just bigger, faster and more dependable than what they've been doing for decades. A leap forward for them becomes a leap forward for you.

Having said all of that, what does it mean for your business? Word on the street is this ink-based PageWide technology is considerably less expensive than laser in terms of consumables. HP claims your colour costs on the PageWide are up to 40% lower than laser. That's not a drop in the bucket. I love to hear stories of how Digitex has helped our clients save money, so right away that's a huge win. Also, HP is a technology company, with its roots in everything from desktop computing to enterprise servers, security is on their radar. One of the most overlooked pieces of network security (and hardest to protect) is endpoint security. These PageWide units have been built with security being top of mind. To drive that point home, head over to YouTube and search for "HP The Wolf" and Christian Slater will walk you through the finer points of endpoint security in the office environment.

Despite this new relationship with HP, Digitex is still brand agnostic. We have amazing partnerships with the existing brands in our portfolio and our consultative approach will always result in the most appropriate brand and product for your business. But HP is a new addition to that portfolio and they're doing some groundbreaking stuff that has us excited about the direction our industry is moving. I haven't even scratched the surface when it comes to the technology involved in the maintenance and upkeep of this new HP stuff, but I'll just say, it's impressive. So, as we continue to service, repair, maintain and sell our staple brands that you see in almost every office you enter, just know that there's a veteran on the street ready to make a splash. Digitex is in on the ground floor, building this new partnership to help provide YOU with the best service, the best products, from the best brands in the business.

If you'd like more information on HP's products, contact your Digitex Account Manager.

Andrew Johnson
Marketing Coordinator
marketing@digitex.ca