HP Revolutionizes Simple Printing, Powered by Apps & Personal Cloud

Hewlett-Packard has been relentless in its pursuit to revamp products like printers, as it introduces the HP Photosmart eStation-All-in-One. True to its name, this device can perform a multitude of tasks including printing, copying, scanning, faxing, emailing and even browsing through the net. Yes. You read it right—this new e-All-in-One is no ordinary printer as it has an attached tablet called Zeen, that lets you access Facebook or check your emails.

The New York Times fills in some of the details around Zeen: “The Zeen’s four gigabytes of internal memory hold roughly 100 apps, 35 of which come pre-loaded on the tablet. These include apps for MapQuest, Disney, Facebook and the Barnes and Noble bookstore, from which digital books, magazines and newspapers can be purchased and downloaded. Photos, videos, music and other files must be stored on an SD card in the Zeen’s SD card slot.”

HP is really moving forward in looping printers into connected devices. However, there are glitches identified with this newly launched eStation-All-in-One printer. The first is that it goes to sleep if already idle for 15 minutes. This saves energy and very environment-friendly. However, the email system is automatically turned off soon after the tablet sleeps. So, you might miss out printing a file should the system be in sleep mode.

Zeen is a great idea, no doubt. Its detachability makes it more handy and you can access certain apps while sitting. Now, the downside of this is that it does not encourage printing anymore. When you have an iPad-like device where you can view certain things anytime, the tablet may just bypass the utilization of the e-All-in-One. Moreover, you cannot copy in or place additional recipeints.

HP runs an exclusive relationship with Apple Inc. and this product is expected to work with your iPads, iPhones and iPod Touches. So, you can print directly through these devices which are equipped with AirPrint that is linked with the new e-All-in-One printer. Earlier today, HP was mentioned as one of the high-profiled partners of JiWire during the latter’s launch of the application Compass.