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Global personal computer (PC) manufacturer HP has announced the rebranding of its consumer and commercial PC portfolios in an effort to simplify and streamline its product offerings. The company has also introduced a new logo for its artificial intelligence (AI) computers.
Henceforth, HP’s consumer PCs will come with a prefix of ‘Omni’, while its commercial PCs will be named ‘Elite’, followed by signifiers representing their respective product categories, the company said.
HP has also unveiled a new Helix logo, which it said resembles the structure of deoxyribonucleic acid to show its commitment to advanced AI capabilities in next-gen AI PCs. The new next-gen AI PCs announced recently carry the new logo.
This also means that the earlier brands Pavilion, Envy, and Spectre will no longer be available from the brand. The new brands, according to the company spokesperson, will be available in India in a month’s time.
“It is not that the older brands will be removed immediately. They will remain in the market for some time,” said the spokesperson.
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The new branding makes HP’s products more streamlined and allows it to make it easier for consumers from a brand recall perspective. Now HP will have only two brands: Omni and Elite.
Consumer laptops will bear the prefix ‘OmniBook’, all-in-one desktops will be labelled ‘OmniStudio’, and traditional desktops will carry ‘OmniDesk’.
The new naming nomenclature, however, does not apply to gaming PCs that will continue to operate under the OMEN brand.
Similarly, HP’s commercial PC portfolio will now be called Elite, followed by the product category. For instance, the laptops will be called ‘EliteBook’, all-in-one will be labelled ‘EliteStudio’, and traditional desktops will be called ‘EliteDesk’.
“In today’s digital era, generic branding doesn’t work well. Catering to different consumer cohorts, like commercial or enterprise, requires separate branding, philosophy, and messaging. HP’s rebranding will help streamline its product offerings and aid in marketing,” said Faisal Kawoosa, co-founder and chief analyst at research firm Techarc.
HP added that each of its devices will now include a number in their name, ranging from 2 to 10 (with 10 represented by ‘X’). Odd numbers will denote consumer PCs, while even numbers will be assigned to commercial PCs.
The numbering system, the company said, will help customers quickly understand the hierarchy of the portfolio, with higher numbers indicating increased performance and advanced features.
According to Navkendar Singh, associate vice-president-data and analytics at IDC, the move is a step in the right direction for HP and will help the company in streamlining its operations.
“The rebranding is most likely an effort to introduce some freshness, especially given the buzz around AI PCs now. However, we do not see this having any major impact on HP’s shipment volume,” he said.
Regardless, analysts say that the new sub-brands will allow HP to build an ecosystem around its commercial and enterprise products.
“Omni and Elite will potentially now have their own ecosystems. We can, therefore, expect more product lines under these brands,” Kawoosa added.
