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HP Unveils Mini Workstation

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Re: HP Unveils Mini Workstation

#81

Post by mrpippy »

Leynos wrote: post #48
honkhonkpants wrote: post #22

Actually has a footprint larger than the Mac Pro which is only about 7" in diameter. This has a diameter of 12".

It'd definitely smaller than 12". That's the size of the SFF PC I have on my desk, and this thing, next to the coffee cup and mouse shown, is definitely not as large. The subtitle of the article states, "HP Z2 Mini delivers server-grade power in a 2.3 by 8.5 inch package".

Not including the external power supply. No pictures of that, but someone else said it was 135W which will not be small.

Re: HP Unveils Mini Workstation

#82

Post by intrasight »

I don't understand why they didn't use a Xeon e3-1545m, which is a 35-45 TDP part and has adequate graphics for the intended market.

If it doesn't support ECC, there's no benefit vs the Intel Skull Canyon.

I am in the market for a new dev machine, and I want Xeon and ECC. Just not enough good options currently (unless you build from scratch).

Re: HP Unveils Mini Workstation

#83

Post by digler999 »

andrewmcwatters wrote: post #15

Seeing stuff like this on HN brings excitement back into tech for me. New hardware and debatably a challenger to the Mac mini and Intel NUC? Very cool stuff.

Mac mini ? How come nobody has mentioned the mac pro[1] (aka the traschcan-shaped mac workstation) which is much more closely related to this

[1] http://www.apple.com/mac-pro/

Re: HP Unveils Mini Workstation

#84

Post by Matthias247 »

petepete wrote: post #9

So how much RAM could be stuffed in one of these? Edit: The Z2 Mini supports Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 processors, in addition to Xeon E3 processors. It also supports up to 32GB of DDR4 SO-DIMM memory, and the unit can be equipped with Nvidia Quadro M620 graphics with 2GB of memory. (from http://www.tomshardware.com/news/hp-z2-mini-g3-workstation,3... )

Any idea to which consumer card the Quadro M620 correlates? If it's something halfway decent then it might be a also a much better ultraportable gaming solution for some people than e.g. a NUC. However that also depends on if the Quadro drivers are suitable for gaming or not.

Re: HP Unveils Mini Workstation

#85

Post by nkurz »

Is there an obvious reason that they stick with traditional air cooling for this, rather than using liquid cooling? Here's an example of a compact system with liquid cooled CPU and graphics card built using off-the-shelf parts: http://blog.newegg.com/building-a-mini-itx-gaming-pc/

I'd think that at this small size, you'd need really high air velocity to make it work. Coupled with small fans, this generally means the system would be really noisy. Is liquid cooling still too expensive? Not reliable enough? Not actually an advantage for noise? Or do the expected purchasers just not care about excessive fan noise?

Re: HP Unveils Mini Workstation

#86

Post by Matthias247 »

gjem97 wrote: post #26
mi100hael wrote: post #18

Support for six displays out of the box is pretty cool. I'm glad manufacturers are finally supporting more than just one or two displays by default.

Was looking for info on multi-head support. Where did you see this? EDIT: ah, I see it now. Three dual DisplayPorts: http://store.hp.com/us/en/ContentView?storeId=10151&catalogI...

The pro version has 4 displayports was written on one site. But I guess that means that 6 displays can only be connected at a limited resolution (Full HD?). Wonder if could even drive a 4k screen on each displayport.

Re: HP Unveils Mini Workstation

#87

Post by Matthias247 »

daxorid wrote: post #45
ChuckMcM wrote: post #41

See also the Intel NUC thing: http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/nuc/nuc-kit-nuc6i7kyk... What really astonishes me though is how you can have these really nice machines and Apple doesn't bother to update the Mac mini. Seriously, an Apple version of this would be a nice desktop.

I have the Skullcanyon NUC, and this is not comparable. I've been waiting for someone to offer me ECC in a small form factor. This is the first time I've ever seen it.

Just interested: What's your use case for ECC? Do you intend to run a server on it and aim for highest stability?

Re: HP Unveils Mini Workstation

#88

Post by kogepathic »

mrpippy wrote: post #80
kogepathic wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It has to. 135W power supply for a device which is 8.5x8.5x2.3" There's no way that much heat is going to be quietly removed by those tiny fans. I'd love some high res photos of the inside so I could look up the data sheet of the fans in use. Considering HP servers ship with cooling ducts to direct airflow and this thing doesn't even seem to have them. I mean look at the CPU exhaust! From the photos it looks like the…

From the pictures it looks like the power supply is external

I'm not aware of PC manufacturers making a SFF PC with an internal power supply (look at the Dell Optiplex GX620, and Steam machine).

Pretty much any PC small enough to be VESA mountable will have an external power supply.

Apple has made the power supply on the Mac Mini internal since 2010, but previous models had an external power supply. I can't find exact numbers, but I'd be very surprised if the power supply in the current Mac Mini model is rated for more than 60 or 80W output.

But besides, it doesn't really matter if the power supply is internal or external, other than it would be a feat of engineering to fit a 135W power supply and a PC in such a small space. The fact is, that volume is quite small to fit the components and a heat sink which can handle a 60-80W TDP (CPU+GPU) without having a lot of airflow over it to keep temperatures under control.

Re: HP Unveils Mini Workstation

#89

Post by vetinari »

to3m wrote: post #76
wscott wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you have 6 displays on your desk, why does it matter that your computer is tiny? Maybe this is a nice portable gaming box...

If you've got enough displays, cable length can become a factor! This is much easier to solve if you've got your PC on your desk, and it's much easier to fit your PC on your desk if it's smaller rather than larger.

DisplayPort supports chaining (only two monitors, as master/slave, but hey, it's there).

Re: HP Unveils Mini Workstation

#90

Post by Bud »

xlayn wrote: post #61

HP Mac Mini. This is actually interesting, when Apple switched to max 16 Gb of ram on their PRO line, HP throws something with PRO graphics and Xeon.

Apples and oranges. Intel's mobile Skylake processors don't support more than 16GB of low-power RAM; Apple didn't have anything to do with that limitation.

This is a boxy desktop, not a mobile machine.

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