Thread: Anandtech News

Interview with Rod O’Shea, EMEA Embedded Group Director and Site Manager for Intel UK

After my i7-4750HQ / Clevo W740SU testing at Intel UK headquarters a fortnight ago, I was lucky enough to have thirty minutes with Intel UK’s site manager, Rod O’Shea. The role of site manager is to ensure the smooth running of the site, and when I got the chance to interview Rod, he had only been in the position for six weeks! As well as Site Manager, Rod also has spent ten years as EMEA Regional Director for the Embedded Group at Intel, both in terms of development and providing solutions, giving us two prongs for our short interview. Many thanks to Mr. O’Shea for his time!
Ian Cutress: As Site Manager, could you describe how Intel UK fits in with Intel as a global entity – what is the purpose of the building being here rather than anywhere else?
Rod O’Shea: As with any significant organization, Intel has a combination of regional functional disciplines, and there are areas where you want your R&D to be very centralized for various reason, and likewise fabrication and so on. In other areas a company needs their network to be more deployed. So there are the typical sales and marketing deployment, but also in the UK we have a lot of labs that do good work helping to help and engage the unique requirements of the UK in terms of providing global solutions. For example, London is an innovation center for ‘smart/sustainable cities’, and has that leadership position, thus we have specific laboratory work going on here that would benefit not just London but would also give a global footprint. I think there is always a balance – the good thing with a company the size of Intel is that while we have significant capabilities in the US and China/India, while the UK is a little smaller, you tend to find that integrating all the different strands of the company nearer the customer has additional benefits. So we get involved in many parts of the business here – I think the UK has huge opportunities in leadership, media, content, and we have a lot of work going on in the UK for that. We have huge opportunities to develop the smart environment, and our job is to amplify that across the rest of Intel. As an economy, we need to drive that technology agenda and our position in the global marketplace.
IC: Would you say more of the outreach of Intel UK is essentially business to business solutions rather than anything else?
ROS: I think we offer all the channels in various shapes or forms. Specifically we are well known as a sales and marketing channel, but we do a lot more than that including research and development which is more sort of behind closed doors unless you interact directly with us at the base and looked under the covers! I have actually been Site Manager for about six weeks now, so piecing together the larger puzzle myself is very exciting. I think the thing that is really invigorating is compute usage, technology usage, and the value of that which is going to increase – we are well positioned to add value to that journey.
IC: I understand that you have spent many years with Intel on creating embedded solutions - what is the biggest growth segment in embedded? Is it medical?
ROS: So we see some very large trends at the moment – one is communications infrastructure and the build out of network infrastructure (which we would call a classic embedded business). We have products that have been installed in these areas and have been there for many years so I think the growth of that network is significant. The area that is really starting to get huge interest now is the ‘Internet of Things’ and taking our technology into a bunch of different kind of machine interfaces. So one interesting event we were at recently, an innovation event at WPP (global advertising/PR agency), we were showing how technology could change experience in different environments. We had a Lego Digibox for use in retail environments – you take a Lego toy box, and you hold it up in front of an augmented reality kiosk and it enlivens the experience and shows the toy in action. The amazing thing with that is the first time you see it it is like a WOW moment. We also showed the Adidas virtual footwear wall, which is a large input of technology into digital signage. We showed the intelligent vending solutions from Costa, so the interesting thing there is when we first started talking about coffee machines, the discussion was around a basic device and whether it needs technology. So we now have a device that shows HD images and real-time payment services and surround sound audio – those devices are offering a better experience. I think the really interesting thing with all of those devices is that they have the ability to then connect and work with the cloud and become part of a network.
IC: I remember the Intel presentation, and on the podcast we kind of had a laugh, asking for an i7 vending machine!
ROS: So I think we are scratching the surface. We have traditionally come at things through the experience perspective, and we are very good at that on the PC and the whole ‘how do you make sure that the consumer has a good experience’. Then we come at it from making sure that people have well managed and secure devices for business – when you start getting into the realm of the ‘Internet of Things’ you start getting into more opportunities. I will give you an example – we met with some sustainable city people from London last week, and we started talking about big issues. The scope of some of those issues is so broad that there is clearly going to be a huge benefit of technology, but the issue is finding where exactly it should be. So for example the one point that stuck in my mind was if you look at all the water that is pumped into London, and there is a lot (about a third) of water that is wasted from source to the house. Then you think that because water is a required resource, how can you then start using technology to really start to solve that issue – can you start adding sensor networks or intelligence into the pipes, or can you look into flow of water and figure out how to instrument the detection of water pressure. There is also the social media aspect to interact with users who will describe sudden issues or events – then how do you encourage citizens to be involved in that. So there are really big issues that can be solved.
IC: Do you find that you are actively going out to search for these problems or people are coming in to find you?
ROS: I do not think that we have any shortage of people who are willing to talk about those problems! Sometimes it is not always obvious that Intel is the sort of company that you would approach with various issues.
IC: It is coming across to me as ‘We are this sort of company, but we also offer consultancy services, and we are vertically integrated to help from start to finish’.
ROS: I think we have a lot of discussions around clearly defining where technology is going, so people come to us and ask things like ‘Are you really going to have mass produced wireless power in the future and how is that going to work’. We have a lot of those sorts of discussions, and there is a fair amount of talk about what is really possible now against what is practical now. In the vending machine example, I still go and talk to people involved in vending, and present these types of solutions where you can offer an experience and attach into the cloud services. They respond saying that this sort of thing is in the future, and then we have to respond that that may be the case in terms of scale and deployment, but the actual technology is here today. This develops into conversations about the ‘Internet of Things’ and it clearly requires managing a massive legacy as well as bolting on IP. I think those challenges are pretty consistent across different countries and infrastructures – everyone is trying to figure out ‘smart city’ and ‘smart grid’. Then we try and figure out the best solution, where that is coming and how we can drive them forward.
IC: Has the economic downturn affected that in any significant way? Now that people are less willing to spend money on it?
ROS: I think overall that austerity has an effect on some projects, and in other areas you look at efficient use of IT and in the end it has to reduce costs as well as enabling you to do things that you would not have been able to do previously. There is a lot of work that continues to be done. There is sometimes big forcing factors that drive change beyond the initial budgets – for example, with ‘smart energy’, the European Commission announced their 2020 goals, and the German government set the direction and looked to the industry to innovate and find a solution. This has led to a massive disruption in that industry, and the interesting thing in ‘smart grid renewables’ is that power, rather than being generated centrally, is being generated in a very distributed way. This requires an IP network that can begin to understand what is going on. Frightening statistics often pop out – sometimes utility companies find it difficult to track much of the power traffic on and off the grid because they do not have intelligence in the network. So are those kinds of projects affected by austerity? Sometimes there is a higher bar for investment, but there is a real force and function to get those things done, just like medical research and so on – these things have a natural momentum.
IC: It almost feels separate that Intel generates new products and tick-tock cadence. Does the fact that Intel keeps bringing out new projects relevant to enabling some of these ideas which were not previously possible? Does there end up being projects you cannot complete because the technology is not fast enough / low powered enough yet?
ROS: I think that if you look broadly the embedded industry, in the way that we produce solutions, there are a number of industries that basically work and act in a similar way to the PC industry. For example, in the vending industry – if you need to say that a vending machine needs to have a great experience and it needs to have compute capability and needs to be managed, and if I bring out a 4^th Generation Intel Core part we can continue our technology and it gives value to the classic environment as well as the PC environment. It also gives huge benefit to the embedded environment, and we are going into some specific areas such as phones. We need to develop a specific piece of silicon for a phone, and four or five years ago the industry asked if Intel was going to be able to manage a power envelope to get into a phone, so we have managed to do that. We are working on projects with the car industry where there are requirements for specific SOCs to support them, which need different IP. There is a universal asset to that core silicon process and innovation – then it all becomes a question of what you do with it! Now obviously that is a ‘one size fits all’ approach as you go into very specific industries, and I think the genesis of embedded at Intel was originally to take standard product and enable it to be used in different environments while offering longer life support and support for seven years – that is the classic embedded environment. Now we are saying we should be able to take that core IP and innovate into different solution and different areas so you start seeing Intel in other devices as well.
IC: Are you saying that in terms of the embedded industry, because you have to deal with very specific problems that the HSA approach does not necessarily work?
ROS: I think there is an intersection, that there are some specific requirements for particular industries that you have to support. I think the trick is to use that process, technology, leadership and capability to figure out how you can deliver value to those industries. If you had asked me five years ago if I believed we would be using those very high performance parts that we produce in a vending machine, I would have said that it would be more of an Atom, but when you start actually looking at it, when you can create a platform for innovation, people will start to innovate around it. I think it is an area of massive innovation potential and I think there are some consistent requirements that come through, like low power, data processing, data handling, analysis, connectivity, security and so on. I think our premise is that each of these devices and the network will generate value, but will also be connected, secured and managed, but you can do this in a very consistent way. I think one of the values that Intel brings is that we do have that architecture, discipline and compatibility approach that delivers value. I was with a customer in the Middle East recently and the CTO started the meeting talking about an OS image lifted off a Pentium III PC and placed directly onto a 4^th Generation Intel Core based PC. He was very happy that it was running almost perfectly. So I think there is a lot of value in that type of compatibility and consistent architecture – I think that we do not necessarily have that in embedded but it will become an ever increasing requirement.
IC: Is ARM being competitive?
ROS: I think that in many of those devices, ARM architecture has proliferated and has been deployed. I think we are increasingly seeing our products in these new areas, such as the phone, and also we see that having the knowledge of the cloud and the infrastructure around those products gives significant value.
IC: So with Intel being a vertically integrated company is the selling point that you are trying to put across?
ROS: I think having that capability from the data center, cloud and all the way through to the end point bring value. In reality, these are going to be systems of systems and very heterogeneous environments, and I think there are going to be different points to consider. I think vertical integration covers many areas, and we will end up with a strategy that has very specific solutions maybe for the retail environment, or communications for example, and help in that broad deployment of intelligent solutions.
IC: One question I like at all my interviews is this – if a high school/college/university student wants to have a goal of working with the company, what would you find is the best way going about doing it? I met some of the interns earlier today in the middle of their university courses!
ROS: We take interns from all disciplines – computer science, engineering, finance, marketing, so they are not all in the sciences. I think Intel is a company that is built on innovation and driving change as well as the value of technology. All of our innovation relies on challenging the status quo year after year, so finding people with the passion and interest that are looking to question and challenge is a key skill we look at. We always look at people willing to make a difference and change things – beyond that, for the specific disciplines we are always looking for people with a strong technology interest and an ability to take that and join that with real-life problems. I think the sweet spot of the industry has moved from the hardcore designer to the architecture of solutions, and learning to control that complete experience – that means you need to have knowledge of environments so it helps to find users that have a creative discipline and can implement that in a technological way. Many different types come into Intel which is great – Intel UK has employees of over 30+ nationalities, speaking 40+ languages, resulting in a very diverse employee base.
IC: Many thanks for the interview!



More...

Computers with completely passive cooling systems are advantageous in many respects. These aspects turn out to be very important for many industrial applications. We reviewed the Aleutia Relia last year. Today, we are adding another fanless Ivy Bridge PC to the list, the Habey BIS-6922. The unit was launched late last year. Unlike units meant for the traditional PC market, embedded and industrial units are more focused on long term support and reliability rather than the latest and greatest that the silicon vendor has to offer. So, it is not surprising that Ivy Bridge-based industrial computers are seeing a strong presence in the market only now after long-term validation by the manufacturers. Habey sent over one of their top-end configurations for review. Read on to find out how the BIS-6922 stacks up against the competition.


More...

With AMD’s existing Never Settle Reloaded bundle set to wind-down this summer, AMD is announcing this morning that they are once again refreshing their popular Never Settle bundle program. The latest iteration of the program, being dubbed Never Settle Forever, is going live today and will immediately be replacing Level Up with Never Settle Reloaded across most products. And like previous iterations of the Never Settle program, Never Settle Forever will be coming with its own set of changes for the program.
The most significant news here, beyond the fact that AMD is renewing Never Settle, is how the redemption program works. With Never Settle Reloaded and previous editions of the bundle, AMD has been bundling offers for specific games with specific products. The most recent edition, for example, would offer Bioshock Infinite, Tomb Raider, and Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon with a Radeon HD 7790, while a Radeon HD 7770 would come with Blood Dragon, but drop the other two titles for Far Cry 3. However with Never Settle Forever, AMD is moving away from a fixed game model to a pick-your-game model that lets buyers redeem games off of a revolving list of several games.
Alongside the pick-your-game model, with Never Settle Forever AMD is moving redemption into 3 “Radeon Rewards” tiers: Bronze, Silver, and Gold, with the tiers tied to video cards of increasing value. Each tier in turn has its own list of games – these lists currently being supersets of each other as you go up in tiers – with buyers getting 1, 2, or 3 games off of each list respectively. Meanwhile this tier system will also serve to slightly simplify AMD’s redemption system, as this will see AMD contracting the number of card/game configurations from 5 to 3 (7990 excluded).

AMD Never Settle Forever: Radeon Rewards Tiers
Card	Tier	Number of Free Games	Cur. Number of Games on Tier
7990	N/A	8	8
7900 Series	Gold	3	9
7800 Series	Silver	2	8
7790/7770	Bronze	1	7

Next to the pick-your-game model and the use of tiers, the final change in the program is that AMD is now going to allow buyers to “bank” their redemption credit, in anticipation of future titles. As previously mentioned AMD will be using a revolving list of games, so games will be periodically added or dropped as AMD signs up new games, loses old games, or exhausts their key allocations. Buyers in turn may choose to use their redemption coupon now or in the future, with those choosing to bank their coupon betting on being able to redeem those coupons for newer/better games in the future.
However there will be a trio of catches to banking redemption credit that need to be pointed out. First and foremost, AMD will not be announcing new games ahead of time. So whatever games they add in the future – and they have made it clear they will be adding games – are anyone’s guess, as will what tiers get those games (only gold tier is a given). The second catch is that silver and gold tier coupons, good for 2 and 3 games respectively, must have all of their games redeemed all at once; the credits can’t be split. So for example on a gold tier coupon it’s not possible to get Tomb Raider now, and then save just 2 of the credits for future use. It’s all or nothing, as it were. AMD didn’t go into great detail on why they’re handling the program in this manner, but judging from their current game lists it’s a reasonable assumption that they don’t want coupon holders “sniping” the most valuable (read: expensive to AMD) games. Finally, redemption coupons/credits are only valid until the end of 2013, so while buyers can bank their credits they can't bank them for too long, as they'll need to spend them by the end of the year.

With all of that in mind, given AMD’s current game list the banking system is a reasonable compromise considering what games are currently available on each tier. Compared to Never Settle Reloaded, Never Settle Forever is at least initially a weaker bundle; AMD has lost two of their most recent titles, Crysis 3 and Bioshock Infinite. The only 2013 AAA games that remain are Tomb Raider and DMC, the rest of the games being from 2012 or earlier, or in the case of Blood Dragon a budget game from the start. So despite the additional flexibility the pick-your-game model offers, buyers at the highest tier in particular (7900 series/gold) are getting a less valuable bundle at this moment. We can’t guess what titles will be introduced in the future, but banking may not be a bad idea for those looking to get the most bang for their buck.
Finally, Never Settle Forever will for the time being only cover AMD’s single GPU parts, as noted in the product chart above. The Radeon HD 7990 retains its existing 8 game (i.e. everything) bundle, in part a consequence of the fact that the coupons for those cards are bundled in the product box itself rather than added by the retailer, and as such cannot be changed by AMD. This also means that the 7990 will continue to have by far the most lucrative bundle, even after the recent AMD price cuts that saw the 7990 drop to as low as $649 after rebate.
Ultimately from a marketing perspective the fact that AMD is renewing the Never Settle program comes as no great surprise, as the game bundle program has been undeniably popular among Radeon buyers. It has been obvious that AMD was going to continue the program in some form considering all the good will and good press it has earned them, so we're glad to see it renewed. At the same time while the pick-your-game model is not groundbreaking (we’ve seen MSI do it before) this is the first time we’ve seen such a program done at the highest levels, and in AMD’s case it’s a simple yet effective change that will reduce buyer concern over duplicate games. Finally with the Forever iteration of the program running until the end of the year, it will be interesting to see what games AMD adds to the program. There are a number of AAA games from AMD’s typical partners due over the next couple of months, so hopefully in light of the loss of Bioshock and Crysis AMD can land some new anchor titles to further augment the program.

More...

One of my most used cases of last year is the Bitfenix Prodigy (my family own three between us), and Dustin gave it an Editor's Choice award back in June last year. It offered a slightly larger mini-ITX case with space for several storage drives and a large GPU. The Prodigy got enough of a following that requests were funnelled back to BitFenix to release a version, either the same size or slightly bigger for micro-ATX motherboards and dual GPU functionality. I saw some of the design factors that Bitfenix were working on during Computex, but today they are officially announcing the BitFenix Prodigy M, the same size as the Prodigy but enough to fit a micro-ATX motherboard inside.

As you can see, it is all a tight squeeze to fit a 5-bay mATX board inside. The Power Supply insert requires a unique cable (provided) to route the PSU to the front of the case, and both 120mm and slim 240mm water cooling radiators are supported. The Prodigy M comes with the same SofTouch surface treatment as the Prodigy as well as FyberFlex handles. By fitting the storage into the side panels and on the bottom of the case, BitFenix are claiming support for four 3.5" bays or five 2.5" bays, though I'd imagine that comes at the expense of certain other features. For example, it would seem that users have the choice of a second long GPU or an ODD.
I am awaiting an email back in terms of price, but we are told that the Prodigy M will be available in October, and UK retailers currently have it on pre-order for just under £70 (inc. tax), which would put it at the US$90 mark (without tax). It would seem that intially the case will be available in white or black, although I would imagine we will see a more diverse color range as the orginial Prodigy has today.
Gallery: BitFenix announces the Prodigy M case - a Prodigy for mATX





More...

The typical mainstay for the overclocker is the ATX size, with ample room for large coolers and multi-GPU setups. Is micro-ATX up to scratch? ASRock thinks so at $190 with the Z87M OC Formula.


More...

Ask any computer/technology enthusiast about the best place to buy hardware online and it’s almost inevitable that you’ll hear the name “Newegg”. They have been around just about as long as I can remember in the computer world – founded in 2001, a couple years before I actually started writing for AnandTech. The reasons for their success are too much to get into right now, but having good prices and good customer service with a large selection of products is at least a big part of the story.
The Internet boom over the years has also caught many retail outlets with their proverbial pants down – we’ve seen companies like CompUSA, Incredible Universe, and various other companies expand and contract over the years as more and more people began shopping online. Newegg has largely avoided all that, starting with an online presence and generally avoiding rapid expansion, but they’re always looking for new ways to grow their business. They started out as a company primarily focused on selling computer components and software, but we’ve seen them expand into other electronics items, books, clothing, outdoor accessories, and numerous other products. This week, they’re going to try another new idea: a pop-up store.
The ideas pretty straightforward: erect a temporary structure, stock it with popular devices, staff it for a few days or a few weeks, and when you’re done you take it all down and store it again… or take it somewhere else and erect another pop-up store there. Newegg will be doing exactly this from August 16-18 at the Oaks Shopping Center in Thousand Oaks, California. Obviously that limits who will be able to attend in person, but Newegg promises to stock a variety of laptops and Ultrabooks, tablets, digital cameras, hard drives and solid-state drives, and various other devices that any back-to-school shopper might find useful. The available inventory will definitely be more limited than what you find at Newegg.com, however, as the announcement says they will have “over 70 products from Intel, Samsung, Sony, WD and more.” As an added bonus, the first 100 shoppers to come by the store each day will receive a free gift – we don’t know what that the gift will be, unfortunately, so we can’t say whether it will actually be worth the trouble of waiting in line.
Going back to what we were saying earlier about large retail outlets that have come and go over the years, the pop-up store gives companies a way to offer a short-term presence in an area without the long-term investment. While this initial trial by Newegg will be primarily for residents of Southern California, if it’s a success we expect to see future pop-up stores, and not just from Newegg. If you happen to stop by, let us know what you think of the idea and how well Newegg executes.



More...

What happens when you rethink everything concerning the traditional notebook and try to come up with something newer and hopefully better? Earlier this year, Acer released the Aspire R7, a sort of hybrid device that offers a unique take on touchscreen laptops. We weren’t able to review it at the time of launch, and at this stage it’s a little late for a full review, but we did want to take a look at what Acer did with the R7 and discuss where they might go in the future.


More...

We've followed Intel's CPU teams march towards mobile for years now, but we've seen very little from the wireless group. That's all beginning to change. Earlier this year at MWC, Brian and I had one of our first meetings with the wireless group at Intel. In that meeting we met Aicha Evans, Vice President of Intel's Mobile & Communications Group. Every now and then I get to meet someone who is a pretty awesome combination of smart and passionate, and Aicha definitely fit the bill.
That initial meeting, which unfortunately remains off the record (it was a pretty awesome one), got me wondering if it would be possible to get Aicha talking directly to the AnandTech audience. A couple of months ago, while visiting Intel, Aicha agreed to sit down with me at Intel Studios and talk a bit about their wireless strategy on camera. She also agreed to personally answer any questions AT readers might have about Intel wireless or the industry in general.

In order to make the interview a bit easier to digest, Intel split it up into 5 - 7 minute segments. I've embedded them all below, along with a brief synopsis of each video. After watching the segments, be sure to leave any questions you have for Aicha in the comments to this article. Once we get enough, Aicha will look through them and answer them in an upcoming post.


More...

Over the past several years, I’ve wasted invested more time than I care to admit to the slaying of zombie hordes with the help of my plant minions. (Truth be told, PopCap has managed to suck down far more hours of my life than is healthy, what with Bejeweled, Chuzzle, Zuma, Peggle, and other diversions.) I’ve also dabbled in Plants vs. Zombies Adventures on Facebook, but I have to say that the Farmville aspects and general social/free to play features make that far less appealing than the original – I just want to play the game, as much as I want, without having to farm/mine in order to advance; is that so wrong!?
Thankfully, the answer is a resounding “No!”, and PopCap has given fans of the original what they’ve wanted: more Plants vs. Zombies entertainment, more Crazy Dave, and less social/Facebook shenanigans. You can snag the new Plants vs. Zombies 2: It’s About Time on the iTunes Store, and even better: it’s free. And by “free” we mean it’s free to play, with optional micro transactions, and being an iTunes exclusive almost certainly involved some money changing hands somewhere. Still, I’ve played a fair amount now and can confirm that purchases will not be required in order to advance – and there’s no farming/waiting required.
If you want to blast through the entire game in one sitting, you’re welcome to do so – PopCap estimates it will take most people around 15 hours to finish the game, which is probably twice as long as the original (or maybe I just don’t want to recall exactly how much time I’ve spent beating and then rebeating the original). The microtransactions come in several varieties: you can buy useful plants, sometimes earlier than you would otherwise get them (I think); you can buy additional coins, which can be used for Plant Food – a one-time power-up you can use on any plant – and other items; or you can unlock additional features like starting with 25 extra sun, another slot for plants, etc.
Reading the reviews, a ton of people are complaining about the cost of in-app purchases, but so far I haven’t encountered a single level where you’ll need more than what you get for free. If you really want to have Snow Pea, yes, it will set you back $3.99 (hello, extortion!), but with plenty of new plants to keep you busy – not to mention the plant food power ups – you only need to spend money if you want a specific plant/feature or if you just want to support PopCap. Of course, maybe I’ll hit a wall at some point and feel the need to spend money to progress, but so far that hasn’t been the case.
The bad news is that currently the game is only available for iOS devices, but presumably Android and Windows (and Facebook) versions are planned for the future. Hopefully this time we won’t get a version on Android that’s limited to select devices and/or requires that you go through the Amazon Store app to purchase and play it. As for me, I’m playing it on a 4^th Gen iPod Touch, since that’s the only Apple device I own. It runs well, but the initial load time can be a bit painful – around 28 seconds to get to the main menu, and 4-5 second delays between many screens. Still, other than the tiny screen, I have no complaints.
You can find more videos and information on the official Plants vs. Zombies 2 page. Now I just need to put the iPod down so I can finish that Acer V7 review….
Gallery: Plants vs. Zombies 2: It’s About Time on iTunes





More...

Small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) and datacenter operators are minimizing the footprints of their computing equipment using virtualization. Heavily virtualized environments require a good network backend (efficient IP-SANs and / or fast NAS units along with 10G-enabled switches). However, NAS units and switches with 10G functionality are currently not very cost-effective.
QNAP already has powerful and affordable rackmounts capable of accepting 10G add-on cards such as the TS-EC1279U-RP. The need for their customers was affordable 10G networking equipment. While vendors such as Netgear (and, to some extent, Supermicro) bundle both switches and NAS / storage server units as a package for customers, QNAP doesn't have expertise on the networking side in-house. On the other hand, ZyXEL's NAS ambitions have been restricted to home consumer versions. Therefore, teaming up makes a lot of sense for both QNAP and ZyXEL.
We are very impressed by the price points that QNAP and ZyXEL have achieved with their bundles. There are two packages: The Performance Pack bundles a ZyXEL XGS1910-24 (a 24-port switch with 2x 10Gb SFP ports) and a QNAP TS-870U-RP (a 8-bay rackmount with a 2.4 GHz dual core x86 CPU) for less than $3000. The Premium Pack bundles a ZyXEL XGS1910-48 (a 48-port switch with 4x 10Gb SFP ports) and a QNAP TS-1270U-RP (a 12-bay rackmount with a 2.4 GHz dual core x86 CPU) for less than $4000. These price points are way less than what one would pay separately for the units.
While pricing is definitely important, bundling, long term support and reliability are other factors that SMB customers keep in mind while ordering IT equipment. With this partnership, both QNAP and ZyXEL are moving towards addressing these concerns. Long term support and reliability can only be assessed as the partnership gains more customers.



More...