Prices falling, sources rising for HP 3000 used systems

April 2003

Prices falling, sources rising for HP 3000 used systems

Although HP assures its customers that components for older systems are going to get less available, and prices for systems are bound to rise, there’s evidence of another reality. The authorized supplier of used HP 3000s in North America, Phoenix Systems, is running a special on Series 9x8 systems until April 30. The cost of a Phoenix 9x8 server with a 4Gb disk drive and 64Mb of RAM is $3,599, reduced some $1,400 from the price during February. 9x8 systems will run MPE/iX 7.0, which doesn’t drop off HP support until December of 2006. Phoenix (www.phoenixsystems.com) likes to point out that its used systems are eligible for immediate HP hardware support. Third party resellers can sell you systems that can also be put on HP maintenance, after a short waiting period. We found no shortage of HP 3000 managers at the Solutions Symposium using non-HP support, however, especially for hardware maintenance.

There’s even a “want-to-buy” reverse auction site for HP 3000 components and systems. HP TraderOnline runs a Web site where you enter the part or system you’d like to purchase and brokers can bid for your business. It’s an alternative to making the calls to a number of brokers; check it out at www.hptraderonline.com. The site also has a standard classified section with solutions like a Series 929/030 with an 8-user MPE/iX license. More importantly, TraderOnline shows that the world of HP 3000 systems goes far beyond those that HP can keep track of in its support databases.