Today HP made several announcements around Virtual Reality (VR). This includes its bestselling workstation, the HP Z4, to now support either Intel Xeon or Core X processors as well as supporting dual extreme graphics. The company announced its new HP Windows Mixed Reality Headset. A new HP VR launch kit will be offered to accelerate VR development and optimize VR deployment for high-fidelity use-cases. And the company will expand its Device as a Service (DaaS) offering to include Virtual Reality solutions.
Today HP made several announcements around Virtual Reality (VR). This includes its bestselling workstation, the HP Z4, to now support either Intel Xeon or Core X processors as well as supporting dual extreme graphics. The company announced its new HP Windows Mixed Reality Headset. A new HP VR launch kit will be offered to accelerate VR development and optimize VR deployment for high-fidelity use-cases. And the company will expand its Device as a Service (DaaS) offering to include Virtual Reality solutions.
The HP Z4 isn’t new, in fact it has been in production long enough to become a best seller for HP. What is new is the option of added Intel Core X-Series processors (with 6 to 18 cores). The workstation now supports up to two GPUs (either NVIDIA Quadro P6000 or AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100). With more powerful CPUs and dual GPUs, the HP Z4 is now designed with VR content creation in mind, along with simulation and visualization.
When one thinks of modern VR, headsets come to mind. On that front, HP is announcing its HP Windows Mixed Reality Headset – Professional Edition. The headset has a 1440×1440 resolution per eye and up to a 90Hz refresh rate. The headset provides six degrees of freedom with no tracking boundaries and includes wireless motion controllers. The headset is easy to clean and has replaceable face cushions, making it a good choice for business use.
VR development and deployment is a time consuming and arduous process. To elevate this, HP is sharing its VR Launch Kit for Unreal Engine, a suite of tools based on the Unreal Engine. HP states this kit can accelerate development and deployment of VR by helping to determine optimal computer configurations, automate the optimization of 3D engineering assets for Unreal’s development environment with Datasmith, and turnkey common interactions including parts explosion and model cross-sections.
HP is taking its Device as a Service (DaaS) offering and expanding it to include VR solutions. This offering can help reduce costs by helping organizations by exactly what they need to accomplish their goals.
Availability and Pricing
The HP Z4 workstation is available now starting at $1,499. The HP Windows Mixed Reality Headset is expected to be available in March 2018 for $449.
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