vonb@iitmax.IIT.EDU (Robert Von Borstel) (08/29/90)
I was about to order a Deskjet+ from Elek-Tek, but was told they
were discontinued and the Deskjet Model 500 (2106A-HP) was the
replacement which would be arriving in early September.
There is no literature on it currently, and I was wondering what
the new model entails. I understand the ink is more 'permanent'
and there are more fonts. Any addtl info would be appreciated.
--
Robert Von Borstel / Illinois Institute of Technology - ACC | { for advert. }
10 West 31st Street, Chicago, Il 60616 (312) 567-5962 | { rate info }
INTERNET: vonb@iitmax.iit.edu BITNET: sysbvb@iitvax | { please call }richi@hpopd.HP.COM (Richard Jennings) (08/29/90)
I hope this doesn't count as using the net for advertising - after all, you did ask :-) > NEW PRINTER. The Vancouver Division introduced on August 27 the > HP DeskJet 500, which replaces the HP DeskJet PLUS and DeskJet > printers. Priced at $729 (U.S. list), it has a lower price than > the previous models and offers more fonts and better font spacing, > and water-resistant ink. The printer currently works with Microsoft > Windows 3.0; later this year HP expects to ship with it an > enhanced driver that allows Microsoft Windows 3.0 users to scale > fonts (change typeface sizes). Customers who buy the new printer > before this driver is introduced may obtain it at no charge when it > is available. Hope This Helps, richi.
mikef@hp-ptp.HP.COM (Mike_Forman) (08/29/90)
I just saw an internal announcement of the DeskJet 500. It offers more built in fonts, will later support scalable fonts (if I understand the literature properly), and does use a new ink cartridge that is water resistant. The price is $729, versus the $995 for the DeskJet Plus. The new ink cartridge will also be available for other DeskJet products in a few months. The model number for cartridges will not change, but a "New Formula" label will be attached. Older DeskJets can be upgraded to the 500 by returning to the factory at Corvallis, OR. The DeskJet upgrade is $225, and the DeskJet Plus upgrade is $175. This is all I can remember for now.....hope it helps. Mike Forman HP Workstation Group The above comments may, in fact, reflect the views of Hewlett-Packard, but I'm not sure.
joana@hp-vcd.HP.COM (Joan Armstrong) (08/30/90)
>I was about to order a Deskjet+ from Elek-Tek, but was told they >were discontinued and the Deskjet Model 500 (2106A-HP) was the >replacement which would be arriving in early September. > >There is no literature on it currently, and I was wondering what >the new model entails. I understand the ink is more 'permanent' >and there are more fonts. Any addtl info would be appreciated. The new waterproof ink is available for the entire Deskjet family. Some dealers have it now, and the only discernable difference is that it says "new ink" in a pink star on the box. The Deskjet 500's do indeed have more fonts, are faster, and will have a driver for Windows 3.0. I believe the intro date is sometime the first week in September. --Joan
aaronf@hpfcbig.SDE.HP.COM (Aaron Friesen) (08/30/90)
There are two new fonts and several new font cartridges. The thing I like the best is scalable fonts, with sizes big enough for banners. For owners of a DeskJet or DeskJet+, HP is offering an upgrade (I'm not sure how much it costs). Aaron ------------ Standard disclaimer... aaronf@hpfcsup.hp.com
jimr@hp-lsd.COS.HP.COM (Jim Rogers) (08/30/90)
The following is an excerpt from an announcement from HP Corporate PR
concerning the Deskjet Plus replacement:
NEW PRINTER. The Vancouver Division introduced on August 27 the
HP DeskJet 500, which replaces the HP DeskJet PLUS and DeskJet
printers. Priced at $729 (U.S. list), it has a lower price than
the previous models and offers more fonts and better font spacing,
and water-resistant ink. The printer currently works with Microsoft
Windows 3.0; later this year HP expects to ship with it an
enhanced driver that allows Microsoft Windows 3.0 users to scale
fonts (change typeface sizes). Customers who buy the new printer
before this driver is introduced may obtain it at no charge when it
is available.
Corporate Public Relations
Jim Rogers
Hewlett Packard Companyneff@hp-vcd.HP.COM (Dave Neff) (09/06/90)
The main new features of the DeskJet 500 are: 1. Support for kerned (negative side bearings) fonts. New font cartridges that only work on the 500 support this. Downloadable fonts can also support this feature. One net effect of this is that LaserJet fonts can be converted to DeskJet 500 fonts (using various 3rd party tools) and use the exact same spacing tables as used by the LaserJet fonts. Of course the font conversion utilities must be upgraded to support the new kerned font format (pretty easy really). The DeskJet 500 will support DeskJet and DeskJet+ RAM and font cartridges, but some new cartridges will only work on the DeskJet 500. The DeskJet+ emulation cartridges (Epson FX80 and IBM Pro Printer) will also work in the DeskJet 500. The DeskJet emulation cartridge will not. 2. Addition of a built in 12 pitch Letter Gothic and 12 point Times Roman font both upright and italic. The Times Roman is font is kerned and has the same spacing as the LaserJet Times Roman font (with a couple of exceptions due to character set differences). These additional fonts, along with the kerning feature is the main improvement and the main reasons DeskJet+ people should factor in when considering on whether or not to spend the $175 on an upgrade. 3. All the graphics enhancements of the DeskWriter were added to the DeskJet 500. The main ones are slightly faster decompression algorithms, mode 3 graphics (in many cases it results in much better data compression), and "smart" bidirectional graphics printing (decided on by the firmware when bidirectional printing will not degrade print quality). 4. Compound characters for kerned fonts will be correct. This is mainly an issue for European users that use various accent marks. Previously, the black of the character was centered over the black of the accent. In some cases (especially italic characters) this looked "wrong". Now the compound characters are intelligently aligned and look "right". 5. Remember, scaleable outline fonts are ONLY VIA A FUTURE WINDOWS DRIVER. The font scaling is done in the PC, not the printer. This scaleable outline font feature will also work with DeskJet+ and DeskJet, but the DeskJet 500 will have better performance due to the graphics printing enhancements (see #3 above). 6. Waterfast ink is being shipped with the DeskJet 500, but not in Europe (all the regulatory, licensing issues are not complete). This same new ink will work in all DeskJet/DeskWriter printers and should be appearing on dealers shelves fairly soon. As for the upgrade, the incremental improvements between a DeskJet+ and DeskJet 500 are not that large, so I suspect most people wont upgrade for $175. But the improvements between the DeskJet and DeskJet 500 are very great, and a $225 upgrade for these people is a very good deal (and its about time in my opinion). The DeskJet 500 is more than just "new fonts and firmware" relative to the DeskJet+. An upgrade does require a new electronics board, which is the major cost in an upgrade (hence the similarity in prices between the DeskJet upgrade and DeskJet+ upgrade). A DeskJet upgrade also requries a new motor, service station changes, and a new key panel overlay, so it costs more, but is a very reasonable cost in my opinion -- considering what it involves. In the past, it seemed unfortunate that we never had a DeskJet to DeskJet+ upgrade, but now that the DeskJet 500 is out, it is good that we didn't have people paying for a DeskJet to DeskJet+ upgrade and then paying again for a DeskJet+ to DeskJet 500 upgrade :-). Dave Neff neff@hpvcfs1.HP.COM