HP has updated its line of Latex hybrid printers with various productivity enhancements and expanded applications for latex printing on both rigid and roll media.

The R-series, introduced in 2018 with the launch of the R2000 at Fespa that year, complemented by the arrival of the smaller R1000 a few months later, is intended to ‘bring vibrant colours into the rigid printing world,’ according to HP. It also includes HP’s White Latex Ink, ‘a glossy, high-quality ‘true white’ that doesn’t yellow over time like traditional UV-based white ink.’

The 2020 portfolio includes the 2.5m R2000 Plus and 1.6m R1000 Plus, both of which offer roll-or sheet-feeding with 5- and 3l capacity ink cartridges respectively, both including white. The entry-level R1000 offers the same format, inks and capacities as the ‘Plus’ variant but supports sheet-fed feeding only as standard, with roll-feeding as an optional accessory. It is offered an an ‘attractive’ but unspecified price.

All models in the series benefit from a number of efficiency and productivity tweaks. These include expanded job queue management capabilities and automated software updates, while more efficient multi-sheet media loading and handling should help ‘significantly’ boost output. These upgrades will be available to existing R Series customers.

The new R Series models offer increased capabilities in applications such as custom short-run packaging, PoP corrugated displays and printed thermoforming. HP says these applications will benefit from fine details and saturated colour image quality on cardboard stock and ‘amazing’ HP Latex ink elongation capabilities when used for thermoformed printed parts.

‘With the new HP Latex R Printer series 2020 edition, large format print service providers will benefit from new levels of performance,’ said Guayente Sanmartin, general manager, HP Large Format Graphics Business. ‘They will also be able expand to fast–growing applications, such as short-run special packaging and printed thermoforming for which HP Latex inks technology delivers top quality performance.’