HP Launches Mac-Compatible Home Servers

HP launched the newest generation of its MediaSmart Home Servers. The big news? The MediaSmart servers are now Mac-compatible.





HP is pushing its MediaSmart servers as a, well, smart way for consumers to connect individual computers and organize media files in one central location.



"A growing number of digital-savvy households have both Windows and Mac computers, with hundreds and sometimes thousands of media files and documents scattered across these devices," said Jason Zajac, vice president of strategy, Worldwide Attach Group, HP, in a statement. "The HP MediaSmart Server protects, stores and organizes this content from anywhere on a network so consumers can access and share it any place they are connected."

The two new MediaSmart Home Server models, the EX485 and the EX487, will be available for pre-order on January 5, and will ship in February 2009. Pricing starts at $599 for the EX485 and $749 for the EX487.

The HP MediaSmart Home Server EX485 comes loaded with Microsoft Windows Home Server, the price of which Microsoft recently cut by 30 percent. The EX485 has an Intel Celeron 2.0 Ghz 64-bit processor, 2GB of memory, and a 750 GB hard drive in one of its four drive bays.

The EX487 also comes with Microsoft Home Server, an Intel Celeron 2.0 Ghz processor and 2GB of RAM, but doubles the hard drive capacity, giving users a whopping 1.5 terabytes of space, and still leaving two of its four drive bays available for expansion.

The EX485 and the EX487 will automatically back up files on a daily basis, using Apple's Time Machine application for Macs and Microsoft Home Server's Backup program for PCs. Users can easily interact with the MediaSmart server using Control Centers for both PCs and Macs.