10/23/99 - Dell Unveils High-Level Workgroup Server -- Poweredge 2400 Offers Pentium III Technology And Hot-Swappable Redundant Power Supplies
Oct. 22, 1999 (InformationWeek - CMP via COMTEX) -- Dell Computer this week will enhance its line of workgroup offerings with the introduction of a server designed to bring high-availability features and Pentium III 667-MHz technology to the workgroup level.
The PowerEdge 2400 server, slated to ship this month, is Dell's first workgroup server to feature hot-swappable redundant power supplies. Dell officials say the 2400's feature set reflects a growing trend to bring high-level functionality to workgroups and small businesses. "This is the first time these kinds of features have been available to that level at a suitable price point," says Russ Ray, product manager for Dell's departmental workgroup servers unit.
The 2400 also supports up to 180 Gbytes of internal storage and up to 2 Gbytes of SDRAM. The PowerEdge will be priced at about $2,400.
Industry watchers characterize the 2400 as a response to recent systems introduced by Dell's rivals. "IBM led the way in terms of bringing high-availability features to the lower end of the market with Netfinity, so the others have to follow suit," says Joe Ferlazzo, an analyst at Technology Business Research.
Meanwhile, Dell warned last week that increases of up to 25% in the price it pays for memory, due to disruptions in chip manufacturing caused by the Taiwan earthquake, would likely cut into profits for the third quarter ending this month. The news caused Dell's stock price to fall $2.81 per share to $38.50, a drop of 6.8% last Tuesday, the day the warning was issued.
Observers say that while all computer makers will ultimately be hit with higher memory costs in the near term, Dell's custom-direct selling model makes it more vulnerable. "Dell deals with prices that are very fresh," says Ferlazzo. "They don't keep the four to eight weeks of inventory on hand that some of the others do." |
