HP Enhances Virtual PC Architecture with New Blade PC Based on AMD Athlon 64 Processor

Business Wire, Nov 7, 2005

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- HP (NYSE:HPQ)(Nasdaq:HPQ) today introduced a high-performance blade PC featuring AMD64 technology, adding increased performance, manageability and security to the company's virtual computing offering.

The new HP bc1500 blade PC, based on HP BladeSystem technology, is the latest addition to the HP Consolidated Client Infrastructure (CCI) solution, which can significantly reduce IT management costs. The solution also improves data security by limiting traditional desktop computing risks such as theft, viruses and lost data, while maintaining a high-quality, personalized desktop experience for end-users.

"Putting PC blades in the data center answered our requirements for better manageability and better security," said Kevin Thompson, manager, Workstation Operations, Sallie Mae. "CCI is a clean, straightforward solution that's much easier to manage than individual PCs. With the higher reliability of the centrally managed HP PC blades, the IT staff is spending much less time on PC management."

In fact, implementing HP CCI can lead to a potential 50 percent reduction in the total cost of ownership over the typical four-year lifecycle of traditional desktop PCs, according to company estimates.(1)

"We're seeing all the benefits that HP advertises for CCI - strong security, easy management and a low total cost of ownership," said Corie Smith, senior client computing specialist, Cinergy. "We're finding this to be a less expensive solution than traditional PCs because it's much easier to service and support. We also have much greater confidence that our data is secure because it never leaves the data center."

The industry-standard HP CCI solution consists of access devices at the user site, such as HP Compaq Thin Clients, through which users connect to dedicated HP blade PCs using secure log-ins. Users are dynamically allocated in one-to-one connections to an available blade PC, which retrieves their unique profiles from networked storage - all of which is located in a data center. This secure, centralized model helps reduce the complexities associated with managing distributed PCs and helps significantly enhance data security.

"With the new HP blade PC, we have used our BladeSystem expertise to lead the evolution of the commercial desktop PC," said Jeff Groudan, vice president of marketing, Business Desktop PC Business Unit, HP. "With our estimated annual growth in the thin client market of more than 69 percent and the powerful performance of the AMD-based blade PC, HP is in a great position to drive the market."

"With CCI, businesses are able to better secure, protect and manage their PCs, putting them one step ahead of common IT challenges," said Rob Enderle, principal analyst, The Enderle Group. "With CCI, HP has the broadest desktop portfolio of any vendor, with all platforms operating under a consistent set of management and security tools. This breadth showcases that HP is targeting their innovation efforts at improving those things most important to business customers."

Enhanced data security, management and performance

An integral part of the HP CCI solution, the HP bc1500 blade PC features an ultra-low power AMD Athlon(TM) 64 processor that delivers improved performance and the flexibility to easily transition from 32-bit to 64-bit(2) computing. With the new blade PC, customers gain faster application launch times, greater maximum memory and improved graphics while also positioning themselves for future virtualization technologies.

"AMD set out to deliver a blade PC processor based on customer needs for high performance with minimal power and cooling requirements. The low-power AMD Athlon 64 processor is a flexible solution for the HP bc1500 blade PC with excellent performance-per-watt, as well as increased system longevity enabled by simultaneous 32- and 64-bit computing," said Bob Brewer, corporate vice president, Desktop Division, Microprocessor Solutions Sector, AMD. "We believe in the value that the CCI solution delivers and are currently using it within our own organization."

HP CCI delivers the most blade PCs per square foot with one of the lowest power and cooling requirements in the industry.(3) The bc1500 blade PC consumes only a small fraction of the power of a traditional desktop PC. This enables businesses to consolidate and optimize computing and storage resources, which allows information to be readily accessed and monitored for regulatory compliance, as well as more easily backed up for disaster tolerance and business continuity.

Through Microsoft(R) Remote Desktop Connection software, HP CCI provides users with reliable performance through dedicated one-to-one connections to a HP bc1500 blade PC. This one-to-one relationship addresses porting and performance issues associated with shared computing resources that are commonly linked with server-based computing alternatives. In addition, HP continues to work closely with Microsoft to help ensure that customers receive complete hardware and software support.