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

PALO ALTO, Calif., Nov. 7, 2005, HP 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™ 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® 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.

“The CCI solution is an innovative platform for providing Windows XP customers with the ability to deliver the Windows desktop experience to end-users and significant security and total cost of ownership benefits to corporate IT departments by moving the PC hardware into a centralized data center,” said Brad Brooks, senior director, Windows XP, Microsoft. “Microsoft is eager to support our customers who can benefit from the value of the CCI solution.”

IT management of the HP CCI solution has additionally been upgraded with support for more advanced versions of HP Systems Insight Manager and HP Rapid Deployment Pack, which can also be used for provisioning and monitoring HP ProLiant server blades.

Customers can also use SmartCard technologies to provide multifactor authentication to access their HP CCI blade PCs with HP t5000 series thin clients to improve login security. For enhanced security, the bc1500 also has full NX support, which helps protect against buffer over-run virus attacks.

Availability, pricing and warranty

The HP CCI solution is available immediately in the United States and Australia. Pricing will vary by region. Complete racked, configured and tested HP CCI solutions based on customer specifications are available through HP’s Factory Express facilities. The HP bc1500 blade PC has a three-year “Advanced Exchange” warranty and is compliant with EU Reduction of Hazardous Substances codes.

More information about the HP Consolidated Client Infrastructure is available at http://www.hp.com/go/cci.

About HP

HP is a technology solutions provider to consumers, businesses and institutions globally. The company’s offerings span IT infrastructure, global services, business and home computing, and imaging and printing. For the four fiscal quarters ended July 31, 2005, HP revenue totaled $85.2 billion. More information about HP (NYSE, Nasdaq: HPQ) is available at http://www.hp.com.

(1) HP estimate of total cost of ownership savings due to CCI implementation over a typical desktop PC implementation during a 4-year period based on a hypothetical customer with 10,000 users in a single environment with 70 percent concurrent access.

(2) 64 bit is a new technology designed to improve performance of software products designed to use this feature and also requires 64-bit operating system software for full benefit; check with software provider to determine suitability. Not all customers or software applications will necessarily benefit from use of this technology.

(3) Maximum of ~8kw per 280 blades in a single industry-standard 42U rack.

AMD, AMD Athlon, and combinations thereof, are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries.

This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions that, if they ever materialize or prove incorrect, could cause the results of HP and its consolidated subsidiaries to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and assumptions. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements, including the expected development, performance or rankings of products or services; statements of expectation or belief; and any statement of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. Risks, uncertainties and assumptions include the development, performance and market acceptance of products and services and other risks that are described from time to time in HP’s Securities and Exchange Commission reports, including but not limited to HP’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended July 31, 2005, and other reports filed after HP’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Oct. 31, 2004. HP assumes no obligation and does not intend to update these forward-looking statements.

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