Editor's Pick: HP Workstations

Dear Desktop Engineering Reader:

HP had a bunch of interesting workstation introductions a short few weeks back. They were “coming soon” announcements, but they're shipping now. Today's Pick of the Week has a quick rundown for you.

The first up is the refreshed  Z workstation portfolio. Specifically, the HP Z840, Z640 and Z440 desktop Z workstations. They now all feature Intel's next generation multi-core Xeon E5 series processors, and can be equipped with the newest AMD FirePro and NVIDIA Quadro graphics accelerators. All sorts of additional memory and storage options are available. And there's lots of room and connectivity for expansion.

One interesting tidbit here is that they can also be outfitted with HP's new, second generation Z Turbo Drive G2. This SSD (solid-state drive) offers 1TB storage capacity, and HP says it has four times the read performance of traditional SSDs. The HP Z Turbo Drive G2 is also available with capacities of 256GB and 512GB.

Your takeaway here is that the Z workstations support faster memory speeds than the previous generations could and that they can support as many as 44 physical cores per workstation. That should make them suitable for a range of Big Data engineering applications. Base pricing ranges from about 1300 to 2400 bucks depending on the model.

Next is the new HP Z1 G3 All-in-One workstation. It's smaller and a lot lighter than earlier all-in-one generations. It tips the scales at 23.2 lbs. Cool features include its 23.6-in. diagonal anti-glare UHD (ultra high-definition) 4K display. You can power it with your choice of Intel Core  or Xeon processors, NVIDIA Quadro graphics and up to 64GB of RAM. It has lots of external connections, networking and supports Linux and Windows operating systems. Base pricing begins at a hair less than 1500 dollars.

You can learn more about HP's refreshed Z workstations, the second generation Z Turbo Drive G2 SSD and the new HP Z1 G3 All-in-One workstation from today's Pick of the Week write-up. Links are provided for each unit, so you can get to all the details you need.

Thanks, Pal. – Lockwood

Anthony J. Lockwood

Editor at Large, Desktop Engineering