The £5,200 Designjet Z5400 PostScript ePrinter is aimed at copy shops that want to increase their print offering, without a large capital investment. 

The 44" (1.11m) device is suitable for large-format applications with high image quality such as posters, photos, canvases, backlit prints, indoor signs, point-of-sale posters, line drawings and maps.

It offers two-roll media, as well as sheet feed, with automatic switching features, which the manufacturer claims increases productivity by reducing time spent changing media and downtime between print jobs.

The device is capable of printing at 53sqm per hour and offers six HP Photo Inks with three different shades of black to produce colour and black-and-white images at a resolution of up to 2,400x1,200dpi.

HP's inbuilt Multi-Dimensional Smart Drop Placement Technology detects and corrects ink placement errors to increase efficiency and reduce waste.

The web-connected model incorporates automatic software updates, USB flash drive and email printing while HP's Instant Printing Pro software enables users to preview, crop and print PDF, Postscript, Tiff, Jpeg and HP-GL/2 files.

The HP Designjet Z-series of printers includes the Z6200, the Z5200 PostScript with eight inks, and the Z3200 and Z2100 photo printers with 12 inks and eight inks respectively.

HP Designjet marketing manager Colin Easton said the dual roll capabilities of the new device would be particularly beneficial for users. "From a copy shop perspective they are always flipping between different types of media such as glossy paper to vinyl," he said.

"Also the ability for clients to bring a USB stick with project details on it and print directly from that, really maximises ease."