HP MediaSmart servers get priced?

Not a lot to go on here, but it looks like a couple sites leaked tentative pricing information for HP's first Windows Home Server machine, the MediaSmart Home Server. OnSale.com, PC Mall and Best Buy all listed the 1TB EX475 at $749, while the 500GB EX470 appears to be set at $599. Amazon also listed both models today sans pricing, so it looks like we'll have these in our hot little hands soon.

Read - PC Mall cache
Read - Onsale.com cache

[Via We Got Served]

[Scott @ Aug 20th 2007 10:59PM]

Bah prices are such a joke when stuff like this gets released within a year or two it will be drives + 100-200.

Same thing with the media center pcs (also from HP) horribly overpriced then actually reasonable

[nih @ Aug 20th 2007 11:07PM]

Here's hoping! That's one hell of a sexy case though.

[michael.lerner @ Aug 21st 2007 9:08AM]

Actually these mediasmart servers are overpriced but I find the Media Center PC's are the lowest priced compared to other OEMs.

[Daimyo Nintendo @ Aug 20th 2007 11:09PM]

Ahh I want one..Id love to upgrade my home...it should be standard..furnace..water heater..home server

[Microdot @ Aug 20th 2007 11:30PM]

just a suggestion:
http://www.qnap.com.tw/pro_detail_feature.asp?p_id=74

$300 and you can use your own drives (supports up to 2tb with the ability to expand through usb externals). it runs nix, has mods floating all around, is rock solid stable, and expansive without proprietary crap and software. nas, dlna media server, ftp server, download (bt, ftp, http) managed station, backup server, hot swappable drive bays, runs apache/php/mysql/sqllite, etc.

dont throw money away on useless garbage from microsoft because its new and shiny.

[blamecanada @ Aug 20th 2007 11:51PM]

This is aimed at the consumer who has no idea what *nix is, let alone how to configure it. I'd build my own and buy a copy of WHS for it.

[Mark @ Aug 20th 2007 11:54PM]

But it's new and shiny

[Microdot @ Aug 20th 2007 11:59PM]

"This is aimed at the consumer who has no idea what *nix is, let alone how to configure it. I'd build my own and buy a copy of WHS for it."


thats the beauty of the qnap nas (as well as most others on the market)... you dont need to know squat. plug in your drives... if you have windows, they give you a little helper app to setup backup rotations and networking, and you're done. everything else is simple and self explanatory... log into the system via your browser, and control it all... media sharing, itunes server, etc.

the nice part is, if you want more... its there. if you are a more advanced user, they offer a telnet client to jump into the core of the os and set it up as you see fit. host sites, run your pwn programs, etc. its all there, at a fraction of the cost, and without the proprietary bs.

[John @ Aug 21st 2007 2:32AM]

"thats the beauty of the qnap nas (as well as most others on the market)... you dont need to know squat."

Sure. But you try and explain to a triple-clicker/12-o'clock flasher what a hard drive is. :)

[crucial @ Aug 21st 2007 12:02AM]

Bring on the OEM version. I have a bunch of spare parts just waiting to go for this. $300 for 1600MB of HD space and I am good to go.

[a ham sandwich @ Aug 21st 2007 12:09AM]

no i dont think thats SO bad. terabyte drives are still pretty up there. nowhere near $749, tho. i would say that i think the sweet spot for it is $649 with the 500gb at $399

[paakofi @ Aug 21st 2007 4:03AM]

sure.. let' put you in charge of the pricing. you seem to know better than the people that spent money on building it on how best to get their a profit from this

[Neal @ Aug 21st 2007 10:17AM]

I prefer the Hockey Puck design myself :) very minimal and simplistic (cool too)

http://www.engadget.com/2007/05/25/microsoft-turns-xbox-rol-into-prototype-windows-home-server/

[Pony @ Aug 22nd 2007 12:05AM]

And why would I want this when I can pick up a 300GB HP Media Vault at Wal*Mart for $278 today?

[jab @ Aug 24th 2007 7:35AM]

can u get remote access via live messenger with this solution?

[David J. Heinrich @ Sep 1st 2007 3:42PM]

Well, this thing is similar to Drobo, but a little better (with network accessibility). It is basically a server tower box.

I'm not sure it's over-priced. People here seem to be acting like it's just a tower with a 500GB hard drive. Just hard-ware, it also has a 1.8 GHz, 64-bit AMD Sempron processor and 512MB of DDR2 RAM. There must also be a bunch of other hard-ware too. I think those things might start to justify the price.

And of course, the Windows Home Server also accounts for some of the price. Although many might look at that as a net negative (I suppose you can always reinstall the server-OS of your choice).