I need a G1 Zbook Mobile Workstation Suggestion

[Residentx10]

I need suggestions on a Zbook Mobile Workstation. I had a Zbook Fury and I still use it and love it but I need to move to replace now. 

My Zbook Fury 7 had the following features: 

128GB of RAM

Dream Color 17 inches Display

Decent Nvidia GPU at 8GB

Dual Boot - Windows and Ubuntu or SUSE

I need the following now: 

128GB+ ....I see some can hold 256GB now

Dream Color or OLED Display

Intel CPU 9 HX (because of Turbo boost...I tried AMD and hate it)

GPU that I can run all day using simulation software (Altair, Comsol, and Ansys)

Expansion slots for storage and ram. 

Any suggestions? Thanks in advance

[Jupitero]

Hello,

Fury is still the top of the line with the best CPU's and GPU's.

HP has changed the laptop type designations this year:

G1i indicates Intel laptops.

G1a indicates AMD laptops.

(G1q indicates Qualcomm ARM devices - not found in workstations)

There is no 17" model available in current lineup, only 14/16/18 inches. Name of the Zbook indicates the display size, e.g. Zbook Fury G1i 18 is an Intel-based 18" laptop.

The few differences between the G1i Fury 16 and 18 models boils down to:

- The memory is limited to 192GB on 16" model for some reason. The 18" model is specified for up to 256GB.

- The 16" model has multiple displays to choose from. The 18" model has only a single display type.

I recommend reading both laptops' Quickspecs documents to see all available options:

HP ZBook Fury G1i 16 inch Mobile Workstation PC

HP ZBook Fury G1i 18 inch Mobile Workstation PC

In any case, I recommend buying the laptop through an HP dealer. They can fully customize the laptop at HP Partner Portal with the exact options you want, and leave out things you don't need. I always leave out NFC and Smart Card readers in my home laptops, for example. While the money saved is almost trivial, each device removed means a little more battery life.

[Residentx10]

Hi @jupitero

Here are my quick replies. First thanks for the info about i, a, and q. 

I want to make some replies to your comments now. 

I think the extra 64 memory is embedded in the unit at purchase. 

Moving along, the display and GPU are all that matter to me now: 

In the past, I had 2 gpus on the unit. The embedded Intel next to the CPU and then the discrete Nvidia GPU. 

I need a GPU that I can run for a least 12 hours daily.

Where can I find the thermal specs? 

Does HP still do it this way now? (Intel and Nvidia GPUs together) 

The G7 I have now stops running after 8 hours and the computer shuts down. I need to find a way around this.

Also, I don't know why HP wouldn't add DreamColor to the display on the 18. The colors are so magnificent that people comment when they see the images displayed. 

[Jupitero · Accepted solution]

Hi,

Minimum memory for both Fury's ("Furies"?) is specified as 16GB, written on the Quickspecs documents I linked to. No memory is embedded on the system board, there are four DIMM slots which can take 64GB modules. I would opt for the ECC memory since you are doing memory heavy workloads.

HP's own shop website stocks a selection of base configuration models which they would like to sell. Similarly the HP resellers offer a few common models because the distributors also stock a handful of models with "middle ground" parts inside. Perhaps they all have 64GB because that is a good amount of memory in a workstation today. But as I mentioned, you are not obliged to buy them. Custom orders are perfectly fine, but delivery takes more time than a next-day-delivery from a distributor warehouse. The stocked models usually are made in such a large quantity that their price is more reasonable than a customizes computer.

Fury G1i laptops have both the Intel and Nvidia GPU's available.

Thermal specs - no idea. Nevertheless HP specifically advertises "Keep Cool Under Any Workload", and I haven't seen any small print mentioning limits to the CPU/GPU usage.

I looked at your posting history but didn't see any mention of the shutdown problem. This could be a thermal CPU shutdown, failure caused by thermal expansion (although I would expect it to manifest much sooner), or an underpowered power supply causing the battery to slowly discharge as it provides the extra wattage for the workload. 5-year-old battery in heavy use could be down to 50%. Easily seen if the battery level is dropping during the analysis.

Has this problem been since you bought it or a later development? Replacing the thermal material and removing dust after 5 years of heavy use could be the solution. I'm just guessing here of course.

About Dreamcolor...

Dreamcolor means 10-bit color (or 30-bit displays). The reason HP hasn't included a Dreamcolor display with the 18" model could be technical - maybe no-one makes 18" 10-bit panels of sufficient quality? If this is a must-have, then the 18" model just isn't for you.

Remember: You are about to buy a very expensive laptop. Depending where you live, HP or its resellers may have showrooms around. HP has (in the past) arranged short-term loan units for evaluation. I would approach a local reseller to see if it would be possible to evaluate both 16"/18" models to see whether the display quality and thermal management is up to your standards.

[Residentx10]

Hi @Jupitero,

I don't think ECC memory is available anymore...only non-ecc. 

The stocking /sparing by disti's/resellers I completely understand. 

About my posting history about the thermals. I opened a case and they just replaced the gpu & motherboard. 

I tried at first with thermal material before calling for a replacement. My unit I maintained and reformatted the os quarterly and used spray to keep the unit free of dust. 

About DreamColor, I will accept this explanation, "maybe no-one makes 18" 10-bit panels of sufficient quality?" I like the wide screens but the DreamColor is just so amazing, lol.  My past unit cost me about $14,000 so I know it's expensive. Thanks for your comments.