New HP Kayak sets record for PC workstations

Palo Alto, 14 July 98 According to test results published by the BAPCo Corporation, the new HP Kayak XU PC Workstation has established a new record for PC workstations. The new workstation shows high graphics performance for 2-D and entry-level 3-D applications. The dual-processor-capable system features Intel's 400MHz Pentium Xeon processor . The HP Kayak XU PC Workstation is expected to be available in August, with an estimated street price starting at $4,999.

The previous record was held by an HP Kayak XU PC Workstation with a Pentium II processor. The increased performance in the dual-processing HP Kayak XU PC Workstation is a result of combining the 400MHz Intel Pentium II Xeon processor with the Intel 440GX AGPset. This new chip set also allows the system to support a maximum of 2Gbyte of SDRAM.

The HP Kayak XU PC Workstation also features the ELSA Gloria Synergy graphics card, which is based on 3Dlabs PERMEDIA-2 technology; 10,000rpm Wide Ultra SCSI hard drives; dual wide UltraSCSI controllers for optimal use of SCSI and PCI bandwidth and HP FastRAID 2 for hardware disk acceleration. It comes in a new system package with improved accessibility, five PCI slots and an enhanced UltraFlow cooling system. In addition, the HP Kayak XU PC Workstation includes UNIX system and NT interoperability software for integration across both environments.

Also included is HP MaxiLife, a diagnostic application with an LCD mounted on the systems' front panel. It delivers hardware-monitoring messages, failure-prevention warnings and status reports. It complements HP DiagTools, the diagnostics module of the HP TopTools DMI (desktop management interface) PC-management software.

Sandra Wermer