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Spotlight
Advancements in Hardware to Make your Investment Go Further
To some extent, being a CAD or architecture professional, you can only be as efficient as your hardware will allow you to be. From workstations to processors, and all of the graphics cards in between, the major players in the hardware industry are innovating to make hardware more powerful, and are bringing more value to the table for customers. They have had some impressive new developments in the past year, including the following recent announcements:

Workstations

BOXX has been busy in the workstation market, especially with their announcement in early March of their 3DBOXX 8920 workstation, which BOXX touts delivers 80 percent more application performance over its predecessor, the 3DBOXX 8520. According to BOXX, 8920 features dual, eight-core Intel Xeon E5-2600 series processors, 16 cores ideal for intense animation and rendering, additional memory, and the ability to include up to three NVIDIA GPUs.

Meanwhile Lenovo released the ThinkStation E30 workstation in late March, which builds on its predecessor, the E20 workstation. Ideal for those looking for an entry point into the workstation market, the E30 features second generation Intel Core processors, up to four cores, 16 GB of 1333 mHz of memory, and Intel Turbo Boost technology for performance-intensive tasks. Users also have the choice of 80 or 160 GB SSD, and the NVIDIA Quadro or NVS graphics.

Just in the beginning of March, HP announced updates and increased expandability in their popular line of HP Z Workstations. Good for those in both the CAD and architecture spaces, the HP Z820, HP Z620 and HP Z420 now all feature the latest eight-core Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 product family and up to 512 gigabytes of DDR3 memory. They also unveiled their all-in-one towerless workstation, the HP Z1 in February.

Dell announced in 2011 what they call the world’s most powerful 15.6” and 17.3” mobile workstations, the M4600 and M6600 respectively. They feature second generation Intel Core i7 processor Extreme edition and 1600 MHz system memory options. The M4600 has 32 GB of memory, and up to 750 GB of hard disk drive, while the M6600 features an optional second hard disk drive, a 128 GB solid state drive, a NVIDIA Quadro 5010M graphics card, and 4 GB of GFX memory. Dell also released their newest version of the Precision R5500 rack workstation, a workstation located in a secure data center or other central location. It features Xeon processors, memory of up to 192 GB, and dual-wide GPU slots that scale up to 450 watts. It also offers PCIe x16 slots including support for a full range of dual high-end graphics.

Processors

Among many processor-advancements, something noteworthy is the attention on data centers and cloud computing. Data centers are rising in popularity, thanks to the uptake in cloud computing. Just in Phoenix alone, according to a recent study by Microsoft, it is predicted there will be 14,000 Phoenix-based jobs created by 2015 because of the increased use of cloud-based services.

Also announced in early March, the Intel processor E5-2600, a product family of processors found in servers and workstations, is now prepared for the massive increase of cloud computing over the next five years because of updates. Updates to the E5-2600 include up to 80 percent better performance compared to the previous generation, the best data center performance per watt with over a 50 percent gain, and the ability to move data into and out of the processor up to three times faster.

Graphics cards

AMD and NVIDIA have both invested in expanding the possibilities of visualization by creating active-shutter 3D systems and graphics cards that are capable of outputting to multiple monitors. NVIDIA’s recently released Quadro 400 graphics processing unit and graphics card, a computing tool that the company is marketing directly for users working in the engineering arena, gives users of PTC and Autodesk products between five and ten times faster performance compared to competing graphics cards based on a SPEC Viewperf 11 benchmark test.

In the last year, AMD has released a range of graphics processing devices including the FirePro V3900, AMD Radeon HD 6990M, FirePro V4900, and the AMD Radeon HD 7970. All four are intended for professional graphics card users, with the FirePro V3900 and FirePro V4900 particularly good for linking multiple monitors together in the desktop workstation market, the HD 6990M ideal for mobile computing platforms, and the Radeon HD 7970 as AMD’s fastest GPU-graphics card.

Mobile Devices

Mobile devices are perhaps the most exciting of the hardware advancements just because the market for them is growing so quickly as more see the value of being able to use their mobile device in the field. While there are many devices popping up, Lenovo’s K1 IdeaPad and Apple’s iPad have garnered a lot of attention. Impressively, Lenovo’s IdeaPad comes with over 30 preloaded apps, has 1 GB of memory, up to a 64 GB hard drive, and most importantly for this industry, 2 GB of free cloud storage.

Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) like Autodesk are hitting this mobile design market hard with developments like the AutoCAD WS app that allows you to view, edit and share DWG files on your smartphone or tablet.

Enjoy the following hand-picked selection of articles and news releases that highlight the advances in hardware in the last 12 months and learn where it would be best to make your hardware investment.

March 2012
Advancements in Hardware to Make your Investment Go Further
Features
NVIDIA Maximus Helps Fisker Automotive Drive at Full Speed
By NVIDIA
The 2012 Fisker Karma, a hybrid vehicle, was brought to life using the NVIDIA Maximus product development platform.

Ontario Cancer Whitepaper: Computing a Cure
By Lenovo
By running the analysis locally on Lenovo ThinkStation D20 workstations, the Ontario Cancer team are able to analyze images 65 times faster.

The Best 3D Mouse Yet
By Rick Holets
Applications Engineer Rick Holets tests out the new 3Dconnexion, SpaceMouse Pro, gives thumbs up.

Stereoscopic 3D is Changing the Way Designers Look at CAD-Literally
By John Myers, ConnectPress Editor
NVIDIA’s 3D Vision stereoscopic 3D technology offers CAD professionals a way to visualize their designs in depth, offering greater context.

Reference Architecture for NX
By Bill Martin-Otto, CAD/CAM Evangelist, Lenovo
The right hardware configuration can boost efficiency and performance.

Graphics Card Vendors Push Multiple Monitor-use and Stereoscopic Technology
By John Myers, ConnectPress Editor
Active shutter 3D, multiple monitor outputs and faster processing speeds dominate graphics card trends in 2012.

Implementation Case Study: NX Performance Gains on Different Hardware Configurations
By Bill Martin-Otto, CAD/CAM Evangelist, Lenovo
There are several things that NX users can tweak on their workstations in order to improve productivity.

HP Attempts Comeback with HP Z1
By Kathleen Maher, Jon Peddie Research
Is the HP Z1 powerful, scalable, secure, accurate, serviceable, and ISV certified? Find out what Jon Peddie Research thinks.

AIB Shipments Seasonally Down in Q2
By Jon Peddie, Jon Peddie Research
A new report from Jon Peddie Research reveals that sales of graphics Add-in Board (AIB) shipments are down slightly.

Siggraph Pioneers Work on the Future of Graphics
By Kathleen Maher, Jon Peddie Research
Siggraph Pioneers gathered for their annual meeting at Siggraph 2011, which featured guest speaker Turner Whitted of Microsoft.

 
News
New Intel Server Technology: Powering the Cloud to Handle 15 Billion Connected Devices
Press Release Issued by Intel
The Xeon processor E5-2600 product family is built to meet the demands of an increasingly connected world.

NVIDIA Joins Forces with HP to Free the Workstation from its Tower
Press Release Issued by NVIDIA
Developed through a multi-year collaboration between HP and NVIDIA, the GPUs utilize less power, generate less heat and require less cooling.

AMD Raises the Bar on Desktop and Notebook A-Series APUs
Press Release Issued by AMD
The new Accelerated Processing Units increase performance and deliver a richer feature set than existing AMD A-series APUs.

AutoForm Accelerates Stamping Simulation by Using GPU
Press Release Issued by Autoform
AutoForm has announced the release of AutoForm GPU a tool to allow users to enhance the perofrmance of their graphic processing units.

Matrox Extends Extio Series Support to New Linux Distributions
Press Release Issued by Matrox Graphics
Matrox Graphics Extio F2208 and Extio F2408 KVM extenders and Extio F2408E Expander units now support a broader range of Linux operating systems.

AMD FirePro V4900 Professional Graphics Card Delivers Best-in-Class Features, Performance and Unparalleled Value
Press Release Issued by AMD
AMD FirePro products are tested and certified with many leading software applications such as Siemes PLM, Autodesk, Bentley and SolidWorks.

Curtiss-Wright Controls Introduces Industry's First NVIDIA GPGPU OpenVPXTM Engine Based on NVIDIA Fermi Architecture
Press Release Issued by Curtiss-Wright Controls Embedded Computing
The VPX6-490 features dual NVIDIA GPUs based on the NVIDIA Fermi architecture, each with 240 CUDA cores.

Vuuch White Paper: Security in the Cloud
By Vuuch
Vuuch was designed and architected to leverage cloud computing with security in mind from the start.

3DBOXX 3970 XTREME Workstation is Worth the Extra Cost
In a recent review the 3DBOXX 3970 XTREME was described as worth the price increase for engineering companies who need a little extra power.

HP Unveils Powerful New Line of Workstations
Press Release Issued by HP
The new Z Workstations feature the latest eight-core Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 product family.

HP Introduces World’s First 27-inch All-in-One Workstation
Press Release Issued by HP
Built for computer-aided design, digital media and entertainment professionals, the HP Z1 provides blazingly fast rendering and performance.

Highlights from NVIDIA at CES 2012
Here's a look at the technology NVIDIA previewed at this year's Consumer Electronics Show.

NVIDIA Maximus Revolutionizes the Workstation
Press Release Issued by NVIDIA
The Maximus Technology is optimized for graphics and analysis design work.

VMware and NVIDIA to Deliver True, Virtual Workstation Experience
Press Release Issued by NVIDA
The companies hope to advance virtual 3D graphics technology and enable remote delivery of high-end, workstation-class virtual desktops.

Workstation Market Behaving as Expected in the Second Quarter of 2011
Press Release Issued by Jon Peddie Research
Jon Peddie Research issued a statement saying the second quarter 2011 workstation market is neither very good or very bad.

U.S. Air Force Chooses HP as Key Technology Provider
Press Release Issued by HP
The United States Air Force has chosen HP as their source for their next generation of workstations and desktop PCs.

New Review Classifies Xi MTower PCIe Workstation as High Power, Low Cost Workstation
David Cohn of Cohn Consulting commends the Xithe Xi MTower PCIe Workstation for its ability to pack in a lot of processing power into a lower-cost system.

PNY Launches GeForce Liquid Cooled Graphics Cards
Press Release Issued by PNY
PNY has launced its new XLR8 Liquid Cooled GeForce GTX 580 and XLR8 Liquid Cooled GeForce GTX 580 with CPU Cooling graphics cards.

Highlights of NVIDIA’s Many Demos at SIGGRAPH 2011
NVIDIA hosted many demos on their graphics cards and other technology including examples on Autodesk’s 3ds Max 2012 software and Adobe software.

Matrox Extio Units Optimize Workstation Performance and Working Conditions in Multi-Utility Control Room
Press Release Issued by Matrox
The extenders eliminate system heat, noise, and dirt issues by remotely driving 19 dual- and quad-monitor workstations in their control room facility.

iBUYPOWER Launches New Professional Series Line of Workstations
Press Release Issued by iBUYPOWER
iBUYPOWER's new Professional Series line of workstations includes second generation Intel Core i7 processors and NVIDIA Quadro graphics cards.

Matrox and Trenton Partner to Provide Integrated Hardware Systems for Video Walls
Press Release Issued by Matrox Graphics Inc.
Matrox-certified Trenton TVC4401 system fits 6 Matrox Mura MPX boards to capture and display up to 24 1080p HD inputs across 24 1080p HD outputs.

AMD Paves the Way for the Next Generation of Supercharged Desktop PCs with 9-series Chipsets
Press Release Issued by AMD
AMD has announced that its Scorpius platform will take advantage of its new 9-series chipset technology.

AMD FirePro Professional Graphics Get Even Better, Outperform Competition By 100 Percent
Press Release Issued by AMD
AMD has announced the release of the AMD FirePro V5900 and AMD FirePro V7900.

New Dell Precision Workstations Support Flexible Work Environments with Uncompromised Performance
Press Release Issued by Dell
Dell has announced a new lineup of workstations including the mobile M4600, M660 and the R5500 rack workstation.

 
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