HP rolls out Penryn-based, eight-core Xeon desktops

HP on Wednesday upgraded its xw -series workstations with the company's first machines based on Intel's Penryn architecture. The xw6600 and xw8600 will use the upcoming Xeon 5200 (dual-core) and Xeon 5400 (quad-core) in twin sockets to include as many as eight cores in a single system; the smaller 45-nanometer manufacturing process for the chips improves their performance while also reducing heat and power draw. Professionals can juggle intensive modeling and image editing programs without a significant speed drop, HP says. Both systems also boast dual full-speed PCI Express slots for users who need dual high-end video cards, and room for up to 5TB of hard drive storage. The xw8600 can load as much as 128GB of memory with a 64-bit operating system.

These systems are also greener than past systems, with the elimination of lead from the Intel processors, more efficient power supplies, and an entire platform which is 90 percent recyclable. Despite the early announcement, however, the tower desktops will ship only by mid-December and should be available with an unknown base configuration starting at $1,200. Full details are likely to be revealed by the official debut of the new Xeon line on November 12th.