Today’s printers strive for greater efficiency, productivity and security to keep up with the demands of today’s hybrid work environment.

On the contrary, printing is far from going out of fashion. Printing technology is evolving at the speed of changing requirements in (hybrid) work environments. This development primarily affects productivity, efficiency and safety. Finding which printer exactly suits your needs is often a difficult task. How do you choose the right printer in this diverse landscape?

The first important distinction is which target group the printer is intended for. Families, hybrid workers, small businesses: each printer has its own characteristics that can meet the needs of these different users. A printer in a small business quickly looks different than a printer for home use. In addition, there is another dimension, namely:, The home printer for professional purposes. Read: The home office.

Printing for SMEs

There is still a lot of printing going on in the offices of SMEs. Small self-employed people print an average of 500 pages per month, a quantity that not every printing company can support. “In such a professional environment, you talk about different expectations and requirements that a printer has to meet compared to a home printer. This is a completely different product,” says Tommy De Crom, Category Manager Print Benelux at HP. In addition, the number of users per printer also plays an important role. In a small business, this number increases quickly compared to a home printer, which in turn means different requirements for the printer.

Print shops must therefore not lag behind and must develop at the pace of users’ needs in order not to lose their added value. Therefore, manufacturers are responding strongly by starting from the needs of users. For example, HP recently launched a series of printers specifically designed for SMBs: HP OfficeJet Pro 9100, a business-ready printer with large printing capacity, fast and improved user interface, and seamless integration into any network.

Printing for home workers

The average home user prints around 50 to 100 pages per month, while for professional purposes it quickly increases to 200 or more pages per month. This requires a different type of printer. Hybrid workers who also need a printer at home want it to provide a simple, secure and reliable printing experience. Nowadays, printers work quite independently, meaning that in-depth IT knowledge is no longer required to get a printer up and running. “For example, there is the self-healing aspect, where the printer itself takes action if, for example, the device is no longer connected to the network,” says De Crom.

Additionally, productivity is an important aspect of a home printer for professional purposes. Employees who work from home and regularly print, such as contracts, presentations or reports, want the printing process to be quick and seamless. HP responds to this efficiency and productivity with the new HP OfficeJet Pro 8100 series, designed specifically for the hybrid workforce.

Security challenges

The different needs of users and hybrid workplaces also bring with them new challenges in terms of security. Although a printer may seem like a harmless device at first glance, once connected to a network it is a potential door that opens you up to malicious practices. Fortunately, there are modern locks for such doors, such as HP Wolf Security. “This security layer ensures that the level of security is maintained at an optimal level,” says De Crom.

There are different levels of this security badge, for example Wolf Security Pro. This includes an additional layer of security where users can only print with a QR code linked to a personal print job. There are different segments within Wolf Security’s offering: the higher in this segment, the higher the security.

Security, productivity and ease of use are therefore among the important aspects that a printer must have and which are interpreted differently by each type of user. The choice of a specific printer therefore largely depends on your personal and professional requirements.