HP announces new server line built on Nehalem
Hewlett Packard's Nehalem-related news today comes in the form of a new ProLiant G6 server line that features 11 products that are built on Intel's Xeon 5500 microprocessor, which was announced this morning at Intel headquarters.
Like its competitors, HP is highlighting its efforts to offer energy savings, increased performance through virtualization and a money-saving investment. But it's also pointing to its reputation as an innovator of technology, a trump card that HP is using to try to further differentiate itself from competitors like Cisco, Dell and IBM.
It says that some of its competitors - notably Dell - that have made recent server announcements are comparing themselves to the performance of HP's previous-generation products, which have now been given an upgrade.
Some of the features worth noting:
- HP's Sea of Sensors is a collection of 32 sensors that automatically track thermal activity - heat - across the server. When temperatures get too high, sensors can kick on fans and make other adjustments to reduce energy usage. What makes it better is the upgrade from all six fans kicking on at one time to a new system where only one kicks on - the one in proximity of the area that started heating up - thus reducing the amount of energy used for cooling.
- HP's Insight Control Environment (ICE) management console allows customers to control and monitor the server infrastructure on-site or remotely. The company says it reduces operational costs up to $48,000 for every 100 users.
- HP's Common Power Slot. A design feature that allows customers to swap different-sized power supplies using a common port. It allows users the flexibility to reduce power usage for a server that's under less demand than another. The company says customers can achieve 92 percent or better energy efficiency "in the majority of real-world configurations."
HP, recognizing that larger purchases are still viewed with a watchful eye in this economic time, is pushing more of its longtime financing options, including a program that allows customers to basically trade-in and upgrade. The company said the financial services unit has been around for some time but is now getting more attention, given the economic times.
Still, it's unclear whether companies will be willing to tap their credit or take on more debt for the investment. HP argues that the return on investment is now a shorter time - a matter of months - and that the savings in energy and increased efficiency will generate enough cost savings to make it worth it.