HEWLETT-PACKARD Company unveils new digital products

Sales may be hampered by a dismal Christmas shopping season.
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- Hewlett-Packard Co. is introducing more than 100 new consumer gadgets today, from digital cameras to photo-quality desktop printers, in anticipation of what could be a grinchlike holiday shopping season.
CEO Carly Fiorina and other senior executives were to unveil the devices at a New York gala that HP called its largest product rollout ever. The focus is on photography, entertainment and home computing, including some all-new products and upgrades of HP's popular printers and other favorites.
The launch party comes as the Palo Alto-based tech giant pushes a marketing campaign centered on simplicity. The goal is to persuade consumers that HP products are easy and fun -- even for technophobes reluctant to dump their 35-milimeter cameras or part with their ancient ink-jet printers.
One product that exemplifies the new thrust, marketing vice president Chris Morgan said in a telephone interview, is HP's "all-in-one" line of printers. The devices, which debuted in June, deliver almost as much printing quality as professional photo labs and act as lightweight scanners and copiers -- without hogging precious desktop real estate.
The "simple" campaign is likely to become part of HP's advertising as the tech industry woos holiday shoppers -- many of whom may not be in a merry mood.
The 2002 holiday season was the worst in a decade for U.S. retailers. Shopping between Thanksgiving and Christmas plunged 11 percent to $113 billion from the same period in 2001, according to ShopperTrak.
Lingering fears about geopolitical instability and conflict in the Middle East and Africa, a flagging domestic economy and continued unemployment could mean equally dismal sales this year, economists warn.
Given those concerns, HP and rivals such as Sony, Dell and Apple Computer are eager to stoke enthusiasm for their gadgets -- even long before most consumers think about Christmas presents.
Apple launched a campaign in January geared toward consumers with "digital lifestyles" -- technophiles who use their Macs for creative pursuits such as digital art and amateur movie production. Apple's bundled suite of "iLife" software, as well as the sleek iPod music player, were the cornerstones of the computer maker's attempt to transform the computer into a center of recreation and creativity.