Would Your Small Business Benefit from a High-End Workstation ...

Many small businesses are able to survive on the bare minimum today?s PCs have to offer. After all, we live in an age where a tiny flash drive can hold more than the first computers and a small smartphone has the power to surf the Internet. So HP?s new all-in-one workstation is an innovation we?ve all been expecting. As HP puts it in its slogan, it?s ?power without the tower.?

The real surprise with this new HP Z1 workstation is just how much power it packs into the monitor without adding bulk. In fact, the HP Z1 looks like any other monitor on the market today, without sacrificing the amenities you expect in a computer. The HP Z1 has a webcam, great sound, and high performance graphics.

The best news for your small business is that this means you can do away with the tower. Each of your employees will have a 27? monitor, keyboard, and mouse, freeing up space on the desk while making moving around easier. While the HP Z1 shows the age of the towerless workstation has begun, this particular model is specifically geared toward those who need high performance in a PC.

HP Z1?s advanced processor power makes it ideal for those small businesses that regularly deal with video editing, digital media, or computer-aided design. The HP Z1 uses Intel Xeon processors and NVIDIA Quadro graphics, with support for more than a billion colors. In itself, this is a plus for those who need high performance, but it also packs the additional punch of operating without a tower.

?We?ve been visiting customers around the globe, in industries from automotive to audio and video, and the response is overwhelmingly positive, with comments like ?it?s insanely cool? and ?just the right size,?? said Jim Zafarana, vice president and general manager, Commercial Solutions Business Unit, HP. ?Customers say they?re impressed with the combination of accelerated performance and design that?s not available on any other product in the market today.?

The Z1 was unveiled in February at the HP Global Partnership Conference and is now available worldwide. The retail price may be a little steep for the average small business?prices start at $1899?but for high-end users who are accustomed to paying a little more for superior performance, it is competitive with other models in the same range.

?In 2011, all-in-one desktops went from being a novelty to becoming a palatable product category that served up a strong value and great performance in a compact case,? said Nate Ralph, a technology columnist for PC World, in a January 13 article.

Today?s consumer likes to combine power and portability, but it is important to note that some are finding upgrading hardware a bit of a challenge, since the technology is so new. As all-in-one workstations become more the norm than the exception, however, this problem will disappear.

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