HP Releases Firebird 802 and 803 Gaming PCs with VoodooDNA
HP took the wraps off of their secret desktop project, today: the HP Firebird 800 PC with VoodooDNA. The new desktop takes its design cues from the high-end HP Blackbird 002; the case looks very similar, but significantly smaller. You can see this sitting on your desktop, not under it. Inside the system packs a quad-core CPU and 2 MXM graphics cards in SLI. It's smaller, cheaper, and uses less power -- but HP swears you couldn't tell it from the gameplay.
Optical Drive: Slot-loading SuperMulti DVD+/-RW drive, Blu-Ray ROM
Graphics: 2 x 512MB NVIDIA 9800S in SLI
Networking: 10/100/1000 Ethernet
Wireless: 802.11b/g/n, integrated Bluetooth
Sound: Creative Labs X-Fi mini PCI audio card
5-in-1 Memory card reader
6 USB 2.0 ports, 1 FireWire, 2 eSATA
Headphone/Microphone out, optical audio out
HDMI out, DVI-I out
ExpressCard-54 slot in the rear
External 350W power supply
The Firebird 802 will retail for $1799; the 803 will sell for $2099.
VoodooPC founder Rahul Sood has been working up to this release for some time; on his blog not so long ago, he posted about the death of the gaming PC. An ironic point from the founder of a high-end boutique computer company, Sood makes the point that by and large, the era of ultra super high-end street fighter ex 2 alpha gaming systems with 37GB of RAM and 8 processors are over. He has a point; certainly sales of such systems were down, at least from an OEM standpoint. From now on, more and more of those machines will likely be custom jobs or self-built.
HP is going after the segment of the market that still wants a high-end machine, but doesn't necessarily want a huge rig that weighs 60 pounds and sounds like a jet engine. The new Firebird is unique in that it uses custom graphics cards from NVIDIA on the MXM standard - a style used in high-end gaming notebooks. Paired with a from-the-factory liquid cooling system, the new darling of the Voodoo line manages respectable performance with a lot fewer drawbacks.
If the name sounds familiar, there's a reason: the recently touted HP Firefly concept notebook was developed alongside the Firebird and shares some of the technologies with its bigger brother. The efficient external power supply used in the Firebird is a modified version of that same one used in the Firefly notebook.
It's certainly a daring endeavor on the part of HP; the world's numver one OEM has to look out for no.2 Dell, who has certainly been making strides in the gaming space. The Firebird, however, is a huge departure from the traditional gaming philosophy. It's a risky move - will gamers, enthusiasts all and traditionally very exacting in their computer requirements go for a system that combines both desktop and notebook manufacturing techniques? A distinct lack of upgradability is certainly an issue; you won't be able to go out and buy the latest graphics card from ATI or NVIDIA, slot it in, and instantly be able to play the newest games.
What it lacks in expandability, however, it more than makes up for with style and price: the new Firebirds will be launching at a sub-$2000 price point. Certainly, they've learned a lesson from their Voodoo acquistion: yes, style is important, but price rules the bottom line. I for one am certainly excited about the new systems and can't wait to get my hands on one.
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This desktop is such a drool-worthy piece of art. I'm very happy with my current custom-built desktop, but if I was in the market for a brand-new system this would probably be at the top of my list ... even though I prefer to build my own desktops.
The fact that the Firebird is small, silent, has minimal power consumption (my current desktop is a power hog) and is scalable/upgradeable make this thing awesome.
Add to that the incredible case, solid port selection, and overall strong performance (at least based on the paper specs) and you've got a desktop that's hard to beat in this price range ... particularly starting at just $1,799.
If I bought an Alienware desktop with similar hardware it would likely be twice the price. I would go and pre-order a Firebird 802 right now if I was in the market for a new desktop.
If I bought an Alienware desktop with similar hardware it would likely be twice the price. I would go and pre-order a Firebird 802 right now if I was in the market for a new desktop.
At least.
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On the Firebird's main page, it states that it can be upgraded or "expanded" via the easy-access. Yet in the article you've noted that no upgrades can be done.
I'm confused.
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- KINGWIN Mach1 700W ATX
- AMD Phenom(TM) II X4 920 (2.8GHz) (HP fan)
- 4GB DDR2-800MHz SDRAM
- 1GB HIS IceQ Turbo 5770
- Blu-Ray Drive / DVD Burner
- 320GB 7200 HDD
- 500GB 7200 HDD
- Windows 7 Home Premium
On the Firebird's main page, it states that it can be upgraded or "expanded" via the easy-access. Yet in the article you've noted that no upgrades can be done.
I'm confused.
I should clarify. You'll be able to upgrade the RAM, the hard drives, optical drive, things like that. You won't be able to upgrade (as far as I know) any of the graphics capabilities, while the CPU is almost top of the line for its socket.
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J.R. -- if you could indulge a noob's question -- I know that laptop GPUs cannot normally be upgraded but is that necessarily true for a product like this that offers easier access to internal components? Would it necessarily be impossible to replace the 9800S cards with more advanced MXM standard cards in the future?
Also, is there any information yet about how the 9800S performs?
J.R. -- if you could indulge a noob's question -- I know that laptop GPUs cannot normally be upgraded but is that necessarily true for a product like this that offers easier access to internal components? Would it necessarily be impossible to replace the 9800S cards with more advanced MXM standard cards in the future?
Also, is there any information yet about how the 9800S performs?
Thanks!
That's just it; I'm not 100% certain whether they are actual removable MXM cards. If so, they might be upgradeable. Given the custom nature of the board, though, they might also be built into the board and thus not upgradeable.
There's nothing yet pointing to how it will perform, but I suspect it'll handle Crysis at medium settings. I'd be surprised if it couldn't.
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HP Releases Firebird 802 and 803 Gaming PCs with VoodooDNA
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