TechSpotlight
HP empowers SMBs to ascend new pinnacle
Aims for more solid presence in Bangladesh
1. From Left: Herbert Koeck, VP, Commercial Printing, IPG, Adrian Koch, Senior VP, PSG and Dennis Mark, VP Marketing, SMB and TQS, PSG of HP Asia Pacific and Japan. 2. Multifunction printer LaserJet M2727. 3. Business notebooks unveiled at the event. 4. A mock CSI demonstration shows the desktop is not dead yet. 5. HP Compaq dc7800 ultra-slim Desktop PC. 6. The HP iPAQ 112 Classic Handheld. 7. Flash-based 64GB solid state drives. 8. HP LaserJet P1005 and 9. iPAQ Travel Companion.
The launch pad was set at the commercial hub of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon, as Hewlett Packard (HP) announced their latest portfolio of products and services specially designed for Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMBs) in Asia Pacific. At the launch event for "SMB World", the US-based global IT leader introduced new mobility, computing, imaging and printing products and solutions designed to ensure greater presence and cement leadership for the company in the high-growth SMB segment in the region. "HP looks highly upon the potential of IT products in the Asia-Pacific region and will target the SMB segment to drive up growth," said Adrian Koch, senior vice president of Personal System Group (PSG), HP Asia Pacific and Japan. Total IT spending by all enterprises in the region will reach US$210 billion in 2007, with SMBs contributing an US$134.4 billion, or 64 percent, of the total spending, Koch informed. HP has had product launchings before, but this time, the event focused on something different, supporting their products with services. At the 'SMB World' HP included 26 new offerings under its 'Total Care' programme. HP Total Care The 'Total Care' is HP's end-to-end portfolio of support, services, options and programmes. For the first time, the services are independent and not restricted to customers of HP products. The consumers now can choose, use, protect and translate personalised services for every stage of their product lifecycle. Providing services for the products isn't something new. HP has had services such as call centres before, but this time, the giant has expanded its 'Total Care' offerings, which include web guides for business desktop, notebook, server and storage; access to eBooks such as 'Total Care Success Story' and 'The Best of Smart Office Times' through its Total Care portal. Services include a PC health check utility with options for self-help as well as remote diagnostics. Most of the offerings under the Total Care are free, such as a 'help me choose' service. But there are some paid services, such as 'Email Filter'. HP forecasts that business e-mails will grow 25-30 percent through 2009 while 75 percent of corporate intellectual property is stored in emails, making them de facto business records. But then, 80 percent of viruses enter the system through emails. For secure and trusted protection of these vital data, HP, in partnership with Symantec, lets business customers point their emails (MX records) to the HP/Symantec servers, where spam and viruses are discarded, and clean mails are redirected back to the customer, for an annual fee of roughly $30 per user. Another service available is the notebook tracing, which allows tracing a stolen laptop by generating an automatic email from a registered laptop each time it goes online, listing the IP address and also allowing remote data destruction. Print 2.0 We often come across a problem while printing a web page. Most of the time the right-hand side of the pages gets cut off when printed. As the big chunk of the pages printed globally are from the internet, HP unveiled its new 'Print 2.0' strategy supported by new web-based printing tools and services, and an extended portfolio of printers and imaging products for SMBs. 'HP Smart Web Printing' software, bundled with new HP printers and a free downloadable for existing owners lets users avoid such printing problems, drag and drop selected sections of the pages to print and also lets them combine sections from multiple websites and print them in one page or convert them into PDF format. This service is also printer independent. Another service based on the 'Print 2.0' is a professional online design service offered through Logoworks, a company acquired by HP, where users can order logo and stationery design and there are also professional online templates, some free for download. HP introduced the 'Tabblo' print toolkit to enable web developers improve web print functionality. This software embedded on web servers enables print friendly functionality inside a web page. HP is also providing professional online marketing tools and templates, a free online design resource for SMBs. From a wide range of professional-looking templates, designed by famed Citibank logo designer Paula Scher, SMBs can self-design business stationeries like document headers and business cards. Products At the SMB World, HP also launched a spectrum of products for the SMB market. These included several PCs including the HP Compaq dc7800 ultra-slim Desktop PC and a workstation with 'dust guard' facilities which have been specially designed for the markets like India and Bangladesh, where dust inside the CPU is a big issue. Through the launch of these wide range of PCs, HP has proved that the desktop is not dead yet. A range of notebooks, including three sleek business notebooks (HP Compaq 6520s, 6720s and 2210b), starting from $649, were also introduced. HP also announced the availability of flash-based 64GB solid state drives for its high-end business notebooks. Five iPAQ handhelds from $299 to $599, including a Travel Companion with a 4.3"-widescreen display were also introduced. This is the largest range of HP iPAQs unveiled in the company's history. The 3G-enabled HP iPAQ 912 Business Manager and 612 Business Navigator delivers push email, voice and GPS navigation while the HP iPAQ 312 Travel Companion features a high definition 3D navigation system. Also launched were the smallest ever LaserJet, LaserJet P1005 and P1006, featuring HP's new chemically-grown Spherical Monochrome Toner technology for better quality and speed, fast 24ppm LaserJet HP P1505, a USB-to-network printshare device, a Multifunction printer -- LaserJet M2727 and a range of OfficeJet All-in-Ones with fax. On the sidelines During an exclusive interview with The Daily Star, Adrian Koch said, "We're working in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to get a more solid presence from a status point of view in terms of market development and other aspects". While talking about the products in growth markets, Adrian said, "As we clearly see the portables are moving rapidly, as the portable pricing came down, particularly in countries where education is a big thing, parents are buying portables for their teenage child, which helps them to be competitive in school. We see that move very strongly". While talking about the White Box Market or the clone PCs, Chin Teik, vice president, South East Asia & Taiwan, Personal Systems Group, HP Asia Pacific and Japan, said, "We see the White Box market in Bangladesh and other growth markets as an opportunity to reach out".
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