New features

The HP BladeSystem c-Class technology will replace the p-Class blade, HP said. The company said it will continue to produce the latter blades through 2007 and will support them through 2012.

The HP c-Class chassis can hold 16 server and storage blades; its p-Class predecessor supports 12 blades, HP said.

The new management features include improved integration with other servers, storage that allows virtualization and management from one environment, and LCD screens for monitoring the system.

Blade systems using Intel Corp.'s latest Dempsey and Woodcrest dual-core processors will ship in July. Pricing for those systems will be disclosed when they ship. HP plans to add blades runningAdvanced Micro Devices Inc.'s Opteron processors by September and Intel's Itanium processors by the end of the year.