Dell launches new PowerEdge servers, private 5G partnerships at MWC

Dell’s announcements at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona include new edge-specialized servers and partnerships with 5G networking services and hardware providers.

Dell today announced the forthcoming availability of a new line of PowerEdge servers powered by 4th Generation Xeon Scalable processors, as well as new partnerships with cloud networking providers and hardware makers for private 5G networks.

The new PowerEdge server models, which will be availabe in May, are the XR8000, XR7620, and XR5610. They’re designed with modularity and scalability in mind, with the idea of making it easy to deploy and maintain them, even in difficult conditions. (The systems are meant to support temperatures ranging from -5 to 55 degrees Celsius in the field.)

The 1U PowerEdge XR5610 is particularly ruggedized, marrying a short-depth form factor with a high tolerance for dust and humidity. It’s also compliant with the MIL-STD-810H and Network Equipment Level 3 ruggedization standards.

The 2U XR7620 is designed specifically for edge acceleration, particularly in the industrial edge and telecom use cases. It also boasts integrated networking and expanded storage. The XR8000 is sled-based, and designed for an attractive TCO and high performance in open RAN use cases.

“Servers in the XR series are purpose-built from the ground up with the edge in mind,” Dell said in an official blog post accompanying the release. “As such, we’ve taken size and design constraints into consideration, adding ruggedized components and shorter-depth servers that fit into cabinets or MECs at the base of cell towers. These servers are designed to withstand bumps and bruises, vibration and shocks, dust and dirt, harsh weather and extreme temperatures.”

Simultaneously, the company announced the global availability of Dell Private Wireless systems in partnerships with networking PaaS provider Expeto and mobile networking equipment vendors Athonet and Airspan.

The first partnership, with Expeto and Airspan, is for a large enterprise-focused system for private networking, designed to provide integrated connectivity across both public and private 5G and LTE networks for application support.

The second, with Athonet, is aimed more at small and medium-size businesses, offering a flexible option for deploying a business’ choice of radio vendor, spectrum band and network architecture. Dell provides pretesting, integration management and support for these systems.