Windows Compute Cluster Server 2003 and Windows HPC 2008. I can't imagine what the licensing fees to run one of those on a supercomputer are. But I guess the places that run those clusters don't care.
It's also possible that they got a good discount due to volume, a site license or for promotion. Even if they didn't, it doesn't mean it's as simple as. It's possible that they did factor it in but found that other considerations were more important. The one sysadmin that I know said that the cost of software isn't a big factor in the overall cost of operation of a server.
The 8-core HP workstation I tried to hone down and customize on their website came out to $4000 when I added the same 5400 Harpertown ~2.8GHz procs and 2GB of memory -- but it comes with an 80GB drive, a PS/2 mouse/keyboard and a DVD-ROM.
The 8-core HP workstation I tried to hone down and customize on their website came out to $4000 when I added the same 5400 Harpertown ~2.8GHz procs and 2GB of memory -- but it comes with an 80GB drive, a PS/2 mouse/keyboard and a DVD-ROM.
Where did this crazy price advantage come from?
HP and Dell sell to the low end - the cheapest possible $399 towers and laptops. Since they make nothing off of that, their high-ends have extremely high margins to make up for it.
Apple uses a different model and does not try to compete in the low end. As a result, their margins are more comparable across the product line. They don't have to price the Mac Pro at $5000 to make up for the $399 laptop whose profit is eaten up the first time the dweeb who bought it calls in for tech support.
The Xeons are very expensive - so it could also be that Apple gets a good deal from Intel since they are a new customer.
The 8-core HP workstation I tried to hone down and customize on their website came out to $4000 when I added the same 5400 Harpertown ~2.8GHz procs and 2GB of memory -- but it comes with an 80GB drive, a PS/2 mouse/keyboard and a DVD-ROM.
Where did this crazy price advantage come from?
Well, first of all, even at standard institution pricing the prices they see and you see are different. When I drop into my dell premier account to set up quotes for work they are nowhere near the consumer prices ('least on poweredge/powervault hardware). Likewise, my prices on switches from HP are a bit different than the consumer price (I use procurve when I can).
That said, for a system this expensive, I'd sure above and beyond that apple cut them a sweet deal, apple has a vested interest in maintaining a presence on the top500.
Comments
Windows Compute Cluster Server 2003 and Windows HPC 2008. I can't imagine what the licensing fees to run one of those on a supercomputer are. But I guess the places that run those clusters don't care.
It's also possible that they got a good discount due to volume, a site license or for promotion. Even if they didn't, it doesn't mean it's as simple as. It's possible that they did factor it in but found that other considerations were more important. The one sysadmin that I know said that the cost of software isn't a big factor in the overall cost of operation of a server.
The Macs are likewise said to be fundamentally less expensive for the same level of performance than similar systems from Apple's competitors.
"The Mac Pros are highly competitive even against building a white box off the cheapest prices," the researcher notes.
[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]
Does anyone know how this came to be?
The 8-core HP workstation I tried to hone down and customize on their website came out to $4000 when I added the same 5400 Harpertown ~2.8GHz procs and 2GB of memory -- but it comes with an 80GB drive, a PS/2 mouse/keyboard and a DVD-ROM.
Where did this crazy price advantage come from?
Does anyone know how this came to be?
The 8-core HP workstation I tried to hone down and customize on their website came out to $4000 when I added the same 5400 Harpertown ~2.8GHz procs and 2GB of memory -- but it comes with an 80GB drive, a PS/2 mouse/keyboard and a DVD-ROM.
Where did this crazy price advantage come from?
HP and Dell sell to the low end - the cheapest possible $399 towers and laptops. Since they make nothing off of that, their high-ends have extremely high margins to make up for it.
Apple uses a different model and does not try to compete in the low end. As a result, their margins are more comparable across the product line. They don't have to price the Mac Pro at $5000 to make up for the $399 laptop whose profit is eaten up the first time the dweeb who bought it calls in for tech support.
The Xeons are very expensive - so it could also be that Apple gets a good deal from Intel since they are a new customer.
Does anyone know how this came to be?
The 8-core HP workstation I tried to hone down and customize on their website came out to $4000 when I added the same 5400 Harpertown ~2.8GHz procs and 2GB of memory -- but it comes with an 80GB drive, a PS/2 mouse/keyboard and a DVD-ROM.
Where did this crazy price advantage come from?
Well, first of all, even at standard institution pricing the prices they see and you see are different. When I drop into my dell premier account to set up quotes for work they are nowhere near the consumer prices ('least on poweredge/powervault hardware). Likewise, my prices on switches from HP are a bit different than the consumer price (I use procurve when I can).
That said, for a system this expensive, I'd sure above and beyond that apple cut them a sweet deal, apple has a vested interest in maintaining a presence on the top500.