During an analyst and press event held at its HQ’s Customer Experience Center in Palo Alto, HP showcased new hardware and services providing a glimpse of the opportunity the company has to deliver increased ROI as it leans into providing added value from the data captured by the devices customers use.

What’s Significant

Two devices that were recently launched the HP Envy Move and the HP Spectre Foldable PC showed some thoughtful design innovation born our of customers needs and desires rather than engineering capability. While the HP Envy Move, portable all-in-one concept has been tried before, HP’s decision to include a battery that lasts just over 4 hours, a pouch to carry the keyboard, a retractable handle to carry the device, and an amazing sound to prioritize content consumption all wrapped into a $899 price point, is bound to give this product a real chance in the market.

The HP Spectre Forlable PC is far from being a mass-market device and the price tag of $5K might even stop some early adopters but it shows a lot of promise for this nascent category. More importantly, some of the design choices, show that HP has been focusing on delivering a product that can be as versatile as possible, so to better justify the $ investment. The device that runs Windows 11 can be used at an angle and either with the keyboard sitting completely on the bottom half of the screen mimicking a 12-inch clamshell laptop or with it sitting on the bottom half of the screen but pulled toward you, leaving half of the screen visible. This allows to use that part of the screen for specific functions using Windows’ Snap features like commands to navigate through a video call.

HP has an opportunity to deliver much more value by creating a stronger connection across its products especially when it comes to hybrid work and collaboration. The Managed Collaboration Services offering is the first attempt at generating revenue from the analytics coming from its devices. There is certainly an opportunity for HP to deliver added value through his service but execution and timeliness will be critical. Customers are making decisions about hybrid work right now and they have different options as far as where they can get the data they need to make such decision, from Windows on PCs, collaboration services such as Zoom, Teams and Webex and even services such as Cisco’s Smart Buildings.

As Microsoft doubles down on Copilot, PC OEMs will struggle to differentiate based on AI. During the event HP talked about local inferencing delivering lower latency, better privacy and tighter security. These are certainly great reasons to run AI on client but a point all vendors will make. And while, privacy and security matter a lot in a enterprise context, they are still not a purchase driver for most consumers, especially as they believe that AI is delivered through the cloud and not on device. HP will have to start educating customers in both business and consumers market as to the value of AI on the edge and this might need some level of alignment with both Microsoft and the silicon providers.

Sustainability was also on stage with the new Renew Solutions, a program that helps enterprises assess which products need to be retired, which can be refurbished and which can of employee would most benefit from that refurbished unit. This service will allow HP to help their customers reach their sustainability goals as well as position itself as a trusted partner.

While not an area that usually gets a lot of interest, large format printing showed a lot of exciting opportunity for HP as well the need to talk about this segment in more mainstream media and as as part of a digital transformation story that in my view has failed to get the attention it deserves.

The pandemic represented a tough moment for HP, mostly due to how it handled its supply shortages. This left the brand having to do some work to regain trust, thought leadership and share. While this event does not solve all HP’s problems it certainly helped showcase its innovation, its leaders and the sense of urgency to turn their business around.

What Was Announced

Managed Collaboration Services

• HP is introducing Managed Collaboration Services, a conference room as-a-service subscription for managing, operating, and optimizing video conference rooms.
• The service includes cutting-edge Poly and HP technology to enhance the conferencing experience and improve productivity.
• HP Managed Collaboration Services can gather insights about room occupancy, availability, and usage rates to optimize room utilization.
• Features will be added to proactively identify and resolve issues, such as automatically canceling room bookings for empty conference rooms or rebooking meetings in alternative rooms if equipment is not working.
• Employees encountering issues in conference rooms can press a help button to connect with a network operations service professional who can remotely assist with troubleshooting.
• HP is launching Workforce Central, a cloud-based dashboard that allows IT managers to discover, configure, monitor, and manage HP services and solutions in one place.
• Workforce Central provides insights into the usage of employee productivity gear and enables proactive issue resolution.
• Ubiquitous telemetry will be enabled across HP’s entire portfolio of PCs, Poly systems, and printers to provide essential insights into fleet performance.
• Workforce Central’s Proactive Insights tool will leverage AI and telemetry data to anticipate issues, provide recommendations, and support IT management and employee experience improvement.
• HP Protect and Trace with Wolf Connect is a cellular-based PC find, lock, and erase solution that addresses endpoint security vulnerabilities.
• The solution allows customers to track devices, remotely wipe data, render PCs useless, and track fleet assets for financial efficiency and sustainability.
• HP Wolf Protect and Trace offers peace of mind and is the only PC OEM offering this service.

Platform for Data Scientists

• HP announced the Z by HP AI Studio, a data science platform that enhances their workstation solution to connect data teams, tools, and compute.
• The AI Studio platform promotes collaboration among data scientists and AI developers worldwide, enabling them to create shared projects, connect to data, and invite collaborators easily.
• HP’s AI Studio software allows teams to deploy models at their discretion and scale workflows across local, edge, and cloud environments, providing flexibility and predictable development costs.
• Features of HP AI Studio include simplified collaboration management, rapid project setup, simplified team management, and predictable AI development costs.
• HP is collaborating with NVIDIA to offer dedicated workstation solutions with the NVIDIA AI Enterprise software platform.
• The collaboration aims to simplify the building and customization of private AI models.

Hybrid Work Collaboration Services

• HP is expanding their Poly conferencing innovations to large rooms and huddle rooms with high-performing cameras and powerful computing.
• The Poly Studio Bundle is purpose-built for the Zoom Rooms intelligent director feature, providing an inclusive virtual collaboration experience. It is an all-in-one bundled solution that will be available in November.
• The Poly Studio R30+ Bundle enables flexible meetings in smaller rooms by connecting with a single USB-C cable for audio and video collaboration experiences. It is expected to be available early next year.
• HP and Poly enable seamless experiences, such as connecting a Poly Bluetooth headset wirelessly to an HP PC for exceptional call quality.
• Bluetooth Direct from Poly will simplify hybrid work by supporting fast and simple pairing, in-call experiences, management, and analytics without the need for a Bluetooth adapter. It will be available in late Spring 2024.
• The Poly Video OS provides a unified experience across video conferencing devices, with features like automated camera framing modes and precise participant framing.
• Poly DirectorAI smart camera technology offers various framing modes for equitable hybrid meetings, and Poly DirectorAI Perimeter technology ensures accurate participant framing in glass-walled meeting rooms.

Consumer Hardware Foldable PC/All-in-One

• The Spectre Fold is a versatile device that seamlessly transitions between three form factors: laptop, tablet, and desktop.
• It is the world’s first foldable PC with a continuous 17-inch screen and a physical keyboard, eliminating the need for extra cables for charging.
• The Spectre Fold leverages Windows Snap and HP enhanced mode to quickly adapt and reconfigure the Windows layout, providing a flexible user experience.
• It is equipped with built-in AI for security, wellness, and gesture controls, offering features like walk away lock, wake on approach, auto screen dimming, and privacy alerts.
• The Spectre Fold includes HP Presence 2.0 for enhanced productivity and collaboration, with a 5MP camera and Intel Unison support for easy connectivity to mobile devices.
• Powered by a 12th Gen Intel Core i7 Processor on the Intel Evo platform, Intel Iris Xe Graphics, long battery life, Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, and ample storage.
• The device is built sustainability in mind, incorporating eco-friendly materials with high percentages of recycled content and water-based paint.
• The Envy Move features a clever design with a discrete handle for easy movement between rooms and a self-deploying kickstand that adapts to any flat surface.
• It has a built-in battery with up to 4 hours of battery life, ensuring uninterrupted work and play anywhere in and around the home.
• QHD display for a premium viewing experience and adaptive surround sound for immersive audio in any room.
• It offers productivity features with up to a 13th Gen Intel Core i5 processor, up to 16 GB of LPDDR5 memory, and up to 1 TB of storage.
• The Envy Move includes the HP Wide Vision 5MP camera for video chats and privacy features like an integrated shutter.
• It has AI-based wellness reminders for screentime and distance and automatically adjusts brightness based on the environment and time of day.

Device Refurbishment For Increased Sustainability

• HP is introducing its first-ever PC refurbishment program as part of its Renew Solutions suite of services.
• The program extends the life of devices, addressing a growing market segment and aiming to reduce the environmental footprint.
• HP has been internally redeploying devices for its own workforce, refurbishing close to 20,000 devices per year.
• Every HP-certified refurbished device undergoes a rigorous refurbishment process, including memory enhancements and storage expansions.
• The devices are extensively tested and inspected to ensure optimal performance and reliability.
• Customers receive support from the HP global support network for their refurbished devices.
• Refurbished devices have a lower carbon footprint compared to new devices, helping customers advance their sustainability goals.
• The program initially focuses on notebooks and will expand to include printers, collaboration equipment, and other hybrid solutions.

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