HP targets China with low-cost PC
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SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) - Personal computer stocks were relatively quiet Friday as the sector focused more attention on China where Hewlett-Packard introduced a new, low-priced PC.
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The so-called "$100 laptop" has moved one step closer to reality, with 2,500 units set to ship later this month to eight developing nations. If the small test proves successful, mass production of the units would begin.
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New lineup of low-cost PCs includes with some multimedia capabilities.
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HP is offering a 16GB drive with its dc7800 PC, which it said will greatly reduce the computer's energy consumption, start-up time and application load and execute much faster when disk access is needed.
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Dell rarely misses an opportunity to remind chief rival Hewlett-Packard (HPQ ) which outfit is king of low-cost PCs. On Dec. 6, one day before HP&#39;s semiannual meeting with analysts and investors, Dell (DELL
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One-Laptop-Per-Child's XO has inspired a new class of low-cost laptop and highlighted the need for computing resources in developing nations.
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Hewlett-Packard Co. HPQ.N will be  under pressure to sell its personal computer business after  IBM's decision to sell its PC operations to China's top PC  manufacturer, but analysts said the No. 2 computer maker would  hold on to its $25 billion PC division for now.
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InfoWorld - In an effort to push mobility into thin clients, Hewlett-Packard is adding a laptop with minimal storage and wireless networking features to its lineup.
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HP and Red Hat have announced a new low-cost Linux desktop bundle for small and medium businesses in Australia.
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Notebook PC makers are stretching the boundaries of light-weight and low-cost computing.
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(InfoWorld) - Hewlett-Packard Co. is sticking with processors from Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) in a new family of blade PCs designed to compete with offerings from IBM Corp. HP announced its BladeSystem bc2000 and bc2500 products on Monday, promising to reduce IT management costs and improve data security for corporate buyers by replacing traditional desktop and notebook PCs. Specialist blade manufacturers like ClearCube Technology Inc. and Wyse Technology Inc. also compete in this segment, as vendors see growing demand from businesses that struggle to balance security and compliance regulations with an increasingly dispersed and outsourced workforce. The new BladeSystems are the desktop version of HP's range of remote computing products. They fit between a blade server arrangement for workers with light computing needs and a blade workstation system for engineers and stock traders. In all three models, the user connects to a remote processor and data storage by accessing the office network with a desk-based access device such as a thin client. Since the main computing resources are located in a single, controlled data center, the corporate IT department can cut management costs by making hardware repairs and applying software patches remotely instead of visiting numerous workers at their desks. HP is selling the bc2000 for US$1,000 per unit when a company buys 10 of the machines. Although that is up to twice the price of a traditional desktop, the IT department can pay off the difference in 12 months of operation, said Tate Davis, CCI product manager for HP's consolidated client infrastructure group. IBM is chasing that same market with its HC10 blade and a TC10 thin client from its partner Devon IT Inc., both launched in May. IBM also targets midrange business users, but uses an Intel Corp. Core 2 Duo processor, 8G bytes of memory and 60G bytes of storage. In contrast, HP upgraded its previous blade PC -- the BladeSystem bc1500 -- by increasing the storage from 40G bytes to 80G bytes, the memory from 512M bytes to 1G byte, and the processor from an AMD Athlon 64 1500-series chip to Athlon 64 2100-series (for the bc2000) or dual-core Athlon 64 X2 (for the bc2500). The extra power meets user demands for a blade PC capable of running Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Vista Business edition and its fast graphics handling, Davis said. "Customers say 'If we're going to do thousands of units for a wholesale desktop replacement, we need this thing to support Vista, we need a graphics look and feel equivalent to a desktop PC, and we need a little more processing power than the bc1500, our previous generation,'" Davis said. The bc1500 ran Windows XP Professional. HP says that power allows the bc2000 to outperform other blade computing designs, since it accesses those new processors over a dedicated link instead of through a "time-share" network where multiple users tap into a single blade computer. "The IT department is being asked to do more than keep the trains running on time," Davis said. "They also have to help the end user comply with disaster continuity and recovery, handle outsourcing and offshore jobs, and maintain high security and compliance with the data." The bc2000 is shipping now, with the bc2500 to follow by late July. Pricing for the bc2500 has not yet been announced. Â
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In an effort to push mobility into thin clients, Hewlett-Packard is adding a laptop with minimal storage and wireless networking features to its lineup.The HP Compaq 6720T Mobile Thin Client has 1GB of internal flash storage and will be more of a terminal than a full-blown PC, with data storage and system management handled from a remote server, the company said Thursday. The laptop boots off Windows XP Embedded OS in the flash module.Because data isn&#39;t stored on the laptop, there is less risk of a company losing data, said Thai Nguyen, HP worldwide product marketing manager for thin clients. The thin-client laptop is also managed from a server, diminishing management challenges such as issuing software updates, Nguyen said.Along with better security and easier system management, thin-client architecture uses less power than traditional PCs, said Klaus Besier, vice president for thin clients at HP. The thin-client laptop does not have a fan or moving parts such as a hard drive.The product is targeted at vertical industries such as health care and insurance, Nguyen said.Weighing 5.4 pounds (2.45 kilograms), the laptop is powered by an Intel Celeron M processor. It includes 802.11a/b/g wireless networking, wired networking, integrated graphics, three USB ports and two PC Card slots. It includes a DVD-ROM drive and stereo speakers.The laptop comes with terminal software, including HP Session Allocation Manager, which establishes a secure network connection to remote servers.Priced starting at $725, the 6720t thin client will be available in North America and Japan later this month.Users may not be inclined toward the HP thin-client laptop, said analyst Roger Kay, founder and president of Endpoint Technologies Associates. Terminal users such as financial brokers prefer powerful thin clients that support multiple monitors, and mobile workers want something like Research in Motion&#39;s BlackBerry, he said.The biggest problem with the HP thin client could be its lack of mobility. &quot;You don&#39;t want a situation where you can&#39;t use it unless you are connected,&quot; Kay said. With minimal storage and no network connection, it would be useless on an airplane, for example.HP could be experimenting or demonstrating the laptop as a new concept to the thin-client market and as a predecessor to future HP products, Kay suggested. &quot;It&#39;s an odd product. It won&#39;t be all that successful,&quot; Kay said.However, the thin-client laptop isn&#39;t aimed at &quot;mobile warriors&quot; who spend a lot of time on the road, said Tad Bodeman, director blade PC and thin client solutions at HP. &quot;We&#39;re not trying to replace every laptop PC,&quot; he said.The laptop works better in environments like hospitals, where nurses walk around with laptops on carts wirelessly pulling patient data from a central server, he said, adding that it may also be useful within an office environment. The laptop minimizes the risk of data loss related to theft and gives corporations a device that is low in cost to support and maintain.Bodeman declined to comment about HP&#39;s plans for future thin-client products.HP competes with IBM and ClearCube Technology in the thin-client hardware and software space.
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Hewlett-Packard Co  on  Wednesday launched a line of powerful new computers aimed  squarely at gamers, in the company's latest step to court a  small-but-influential audience.
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Pay less for the very best HP wants to give the poor, huddled masses of telecommunications companies in developing countries a chance to buy its very best gear. So, the vendor today rolled out the NonStop NS3000AC server - a more moderately priced, always on system.â¦
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China's largest maker of PCs is one of the potential buyers, newspaper says.
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By MAY WONG    SAN JOSE, Calif.  -- Hewlett-Packard Co...
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(InfoWorld) - Hewlett-Packard and itsÂ Watergate re-enactmentÂ now own the tech scandal headlines, but during the summer our attention focused on other alleged malfeasance, by the company with the normally shiny image: Apple Computer. A British newspaper claimed that one of Apple's contract manufacturers in China, Foxconn, owned by Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., wasÂ mistreating its workers, through low pay, long hours, and poor living conditions. What went unreported from this saga was that we so rarely see headlines that contain the words "Apple" and "China." Microsoft, Intel, GoogleÂ -- their ongoing conflicts with the Chinese government and the Chinese consumer are bread and butter for business and technology reporters in China. But Apple? In Beijing, the best evidence that Apple exists is an iPod billboard that faces one of the city's main arteries, and advertising during televised English soccer matches. There are quite a few iPods peeking out of people's pockets, but when it comes to which laptops are being tapped upon at Starbucks, it's HP, it's Dell, it's Sony, but except for foreigners, no Apple. The fact is, when it comes to China, Apple as a computer manufacturer and retailer is nowhere. The simple reason for this is that Apple is asking too much of Chinese consumers. The biggest factor is price. Service, quality, prestige, satisfaction -- these are extremely secondary concerns to the Chinese consumer. People bringing home $400-$600 per month are considered middle class in this country. They can afford to buy computers, and for them, price is the singular issue. An Apple machine in China costs between double and four times as much as a competing Wintel box. The computer whiz kid down the street can build you a generic box with a pirated copy of XP for about $400. An entry-level Lenovo computer probably costs about 20 to 25 percent more, followed by foreign name brands. Apple is at least double the no-name box. So, one month's salary to give your kid a computer and access to the Internet, or two months'? What would you choose? The second reason is availability of software. In China, if you're using Apple and you need software, you have to buy the legitimate product. For Apple, that means that their system is rejected, except by high-end graphic designers and die-hards. The cost of ownership of an Apple machine plus legit software to run on it is just too high for most people to consider. Third is service. Until recently, having your machine break down was the thing that every Apple user in China prayed to avoid. Repairs are much more accessible now, but still there are only one or two authorized service centers in Beijing, whereas fixing a Windows box is far simpler. Apple's China strategy for its computers seems entirely different than for the iPod. While its music player is accessible, affordable, and increasingly ubiquitous, for desktop hardware it seems to be following Vertu, the luxury phone maker, instead of Nokia. Unless Apple chooses to address this market on its own terms, there won't be any harvest for it here.