hp

HP Japan lineup boasts newest AMD chips

On Monday, Hewlett-Packard's Japan arm introduced a raft of consumer PCs with plenty of offerings using processors from Advanced Micro Devices in addition to Intel chips.

In the v7000 small-form-factor tower series, HP deployed both the AMD triple-core Phenom X3 processor and quad-core Phenom X4 processors. Models are available with the X3 8400 (2.1GHz), low-power X4 9100e (1.8GHz, 65 watts), and X4 9500 (2.2GHz).

Interestingly, AMD-based models in the v7000 series come with Nvidia graphics, not AMD-ATI graphics, a synergy that AMD has had trouble realizing in some segments. Configurations are offered with either the NVIDIA … Read more

Sun obscured by The Cloud

With all the hype in the cloud and the clear necessity for big software vendors to stake their claim I would have thought Sun would have announced/done something already. As my partner-in-crime Ross Mason points out in this post, they did: network.com--which is basically Grid computing and is shockingly dated in just a few years.

I wrote previously that "Java-in-the-cloud" will lead us to "Platform-as-a-Service" and as I continue to think about it, Sun has more of the pieces than any other BigCo--the right of hardware, operating system (Solaris) and development environment (Java) … Read more

AMD X3 chip debuts in HP, Gateway, eMachines desktops

Update: Are three cores better than two? Consumers now get the chance to decide. AMD's X3 Phenom processors are available in low-cost consumer systems from Hewlett-Packard (HP), Gateway, and eMachines.

Also, on the quad-core front, AMD said Wednesday that Dell is offering five server platforms based on the AMD "Barcelona" Opteron processor.

The AMD Phenom X3 8400 (2.1GHz) and 8600 (2.3GHz) are the first mainstream x86 processors to use three cores. "The value proposition is simple. Three cores versus two cores. You make the choice," Pat Moorhead, VP of Advanced Marketing at AMD, … Read more

Print in the park with Canon's newest mobile companion

As far as mobile printers go, Hewlett-Packard's recent Officejet H470 left us with a sour taste in our mouths. We know that there are folks out there begging for a mobile printer that can do it all: portability, quality, and unique connectivity features bundled into a stylish package, but so far, we've seen a stronger push toward photo-specific kiosk printers instead of professional units. Fortunately, Canon looks as if it's poised and ready to take the mantle with its newest Pixma iP100, just announced today.

Let's take a closer look at the specs:

1. Maximum 9,… Read more

This week in laptops

The minilaptop reigns supreme for yet another week (will we never see another behemoth laptop?) with the debut of the HP 2133 Mini-Note PC. The little guy was designed for students, but has a decidedly more upscale look than the similarly low-priced Eee PC and Classmate PC. The real shocker, though, is inside the case, where you won't find an Intel Atom CPU; the company opted to use a low-cost processor from Via, a manufacturer that's better known in Europe and Asia than here in the United States.

In other little-laptop news, Asus shipped a Window XP version … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 699: The smell of pong

It's episode 699, in which we coin a new phrase, "swang pong." You figure it out. Also, video on Flickr and bad news about promotional CDs (and goblins). Also, if you live in the U.S., it's time to feel good about yourselves and your Internet. According to a new European study, it's one of the best in the world. Who'da thunk? Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 699

Video on Flickr! http://blog.flickr.net/en/2008/04/09/video-on-flickr-2/

Wal-Mart going hardline on DRM-free online music store; SonyBMG and Warner Music … Read more

Why HP chose Via chip over Intel for Mini-Note

Hewlett-Packard (HP) chose a relatively obscure processor from Via Technologies for its high-profile Mini-Note 2133. An HP marketing manager explains why.

The Via C7-M offered what HP needed now, according to Robert Baker, a notebook product marketing manager for HP. "Via gave us that right mix of performance and price for the type of environment that this product is going into--content consumption." And the chip's low power requirements were a plus too. "Their power (efficiency) is where we needed it to be for this platform. Web surfing, creating Power Points," Baker said.

CNET Reviews said … Read more

Long-delayed AMD 'Barcelona' chip available

Advanced Micro Devices said the long-delayed quad-core "Barcelona" Opteron processor is available in servers from computer vendors such as Hewlett-Packard.

Barcelona had been delayed repeatedly due to production glitches and bugs. AMD is now shipping a "B3" version that includes the bug fix in silicon.

"Customers can get the quad-core AMD Opteron processor today in systems from HP, as well as other system providers," the chipmaker said in a release Tuesday night. The HP ProLiant G5 servers are the first of many systems that are expected to be available in the coming weeks from … Read more

A heads-up on HP business desktop PCs

If you are considering buying an HP desktop computer, especially a low end business model, be sure to read this story, HP aggravates its failure rate, by Ed Foster, longtime author of the Gripe Line column/blog in InfoWorld.

The story involves a business that ordered 24 HP DX2200 desktop machines (since discontinued) and suffered four motherboard failures, two dead hard drives, and another hard drive "on the brink of failure". Beyond these hardware problems, I found the account of dealing with HP most interesting. No doubt, many of us can relate.

See a summary of all my … Read more