IBM Introduces Low Cost Mainframes

Now anyone can get an IBM z9 mainframe for a mere $100,000

There are servers, and then there are what IT folks call mainframes. Generally speaking, most companies don't have a real need for mainframes because up front costs are usually in the six and seven digit range. Most companies tend to buy as their needs increase and would rather not spend up front for the future. Small servers, either ones that are made out of typical desktop computers, or those that are slightly larger and fit into rack mounts, offer considerable cost advantages, and for a company that's starting out or growing, makes much more sense than a larger than life mainframe system.

But for the medium and large businesses that have invested a large amount in many small servers but are looking for a way to reduce environmental costs and consolidate, IBM is announcing a new series in its z9 mainframe family that is priced affordably. Called the z9 BC or Business Class family, IBM has made mainframe performance and expandability for small to medium enterprises. Starting at $100,000, the new z9 family raises the bar in terms of bringing large enterprise performance down to scale. IBM's regular z9 family can exceed $1 million per mainframe and for most companies, is out of reach. IBM's press release claims:

The IBM System z9 Business Class (z9 BC) advances the innovation of the System z9 platform and brings value to a wider audience, both midrange and small enterprise businesses. The z9 BC offers a low cost of entry, granular growth, flexible configurations, subcapacity pricing and On/Off Capacity on Demand to meet growing and changing demands for traditional and new workloads.

Recently, condensed servers such as blades have gained popularity due to the compact size and low power. All tier one manufacturers are offering blade solutions, even IBM. However, IBM claims that there are considerable margins in mainframes, and being a prolific advocator of Big Iron, the company is trying to maintain mainframe popularity. Bringing prices down is definitely one way to do it.