Hewlett-Packard on Tuesday revealed the world’s first all-in-one workstation. The compact machine boards quad-core Intel Xeon microprocessor, Nvidia Quadro graphics card as well as 27” screen with 2560*1440 resolution. With HP Z1, the company establishes a new category of devices, but will it become truly popular?

The all-in-one HP Z1 workstation can be equipped with up to quad-core Intel Xeon E3-1280 (3.5GHz, 8MB cache, 95W), Nvidia Quadro 4000M (336 stream processors, 256-bit memory bus, 100W) with 2GB of GDDR5 memory, 32GB of DDR3 ECC memory, 2TB hard disk drive or SSD, Blu-ray slot-load drive, Gigabit Ethernet, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, USB 3.0 ports, high-def audio and so on. The system can be customized with various components, but its maximum power consumption should not exceed 400W.

“The revolutionary HP Z1 sets a new industry standard for workstation design, performance and serviceability. With its game-changing design and an experience that optimizes visual and computing performance, the HP Z1 will help attract new customers and expand our market leadership,” said Jim Zafarana, vice president and general manager of commercial solutions business unit at HP.

Thanks to advanced tool-less chassis, users can easily add a hard drive, upgrade memory or access the graphics card by snapping open the chassis to swap out parts. Potentially, users can even upgrade their systems.

Sales of traditional workstations are declining these days, partly because mainstream desktops offer very high performance these days, partly because a lot of customers want mobile workstations that also offer high-end CPUs and professional-grade graphics processors. HP Z1 does not offer ultra high-end microprocessors or graphics board and is not mobile. A clear advantage that Z1 offers is 27” display with ultra-high resolution, overclockability and relative affordability. But it is unclear whether it will be enough to distract customers away from mobile workstations.

The new HP Z1 Workstation is expected to be available worldwide in April. Pricing starts at $1899 in the United States.

Tags: HP, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Xeon, Nvidia, Quadro