Between shrinking office space and an ever-increasing number of monitors, business PC users have less desk to work with than ever before, and HP would like to help.
Today the company unveiled the HP Z2 Mini, a server-grade workstation shorter than an espresso cup and only slightly wider than a monitor’s base.
In a Nov. 15 statement Jeff Wood, vice president and general manager of HP’s Workstations and Thin Clients division, called the mini workstation “the ultimate combination of space efficiency, elegance, and power,” adding that he expected the Z2 to disrupt office workstations, much as he said the HP Z series had “redefined” the category in 2009.
According to the company’s research, the average American worker’s space has been reduced by 60 per cent over the past 10 years, and 38 per cent of users now have two or more displays. Measuring 8.5 inches wide and 2.3 inches high, the Z2 Mini is 90 per cent smaller than the average enterprise-class workstation.
It’s also been designed with power users in mind, with HP emphasizing its value for workers in the computer-aided design (CAD) industry and claiming it’s twice as powerful as any commercial mini PC on the market today.
“The HP Z2 Mini was designed for the millions of CAD users demanding smaller hardware without compromising acoustics and performance and mission-critical reliability,” the company said in its release.
Among other features, the Z2 Mini includes Intel Xeon processors, an Nvidia Quadro M620 graphics card, an optional 1.5 TB HP Z Turbo Drive, custom-designed-fan-based cooling system that HP says is 63 per cent quieter than its business-class mini PCs, and support for both Windows and Linux operating systems.
It’s also designed to be easily placed in multiple positions: on or under a desk, mounted behind an HP Z display, or on a wall.
HP plans to release the Z2 Mini worldwide in December, for a starting price of $945.
