HP Z4 G5 Workstation 2024, Xeon W3-2423, 16GB, 512GB SSD, T1000

The HP Z4 G5 is a great workstation chassis with a mediocre starting config. The six-core Xeon and 16GB of RAM hold it back, but the tool-less design and 1125W PSU make upgrades easy. Worth considering near $2,347, but skip it at $3,009.

The T1000 GPU lands in the 62nd percentile, which is solid for entry-level professional graphics work like CAD or light video editing. The 16GB of DDR5 is about average, and the 512GB NVMe SSD is a bit below the middle of the pack. The real weak spot is that six-core Xeon. At 2.1GHz base, it's fine for single-threaded office tasks, but heavy rendering or simulation work will feel sluggish compared to what this tower can actually support. HP says you can stuff up to 26 cores and 512GB of RAM in here, so the chassis is begging for more than this config delivers.

Stacked against the Lenovo Legion Tower 5a Gen 10, the Z4 G5 loses on raw CPU and GPU performance per dollar, but wins on expandability and enterprise features. The Apple Mac Studio M3 Ultra absolutely crushes this config in compute density and efficiency, but it's a sealed box with zero internal upgrade path. The Dell Area-51 is more of a gaming-focused competitor with flashier specs. The Z4 G5's real advantage is longevity. You can keep this chassis for years and swap in better parts as your budget allows. Most competitors can't match that.

Pricing is all over the place. US listings range from $2,347 to $3,009, which is a $662 spread for what appears to be the same config. That's a huge gap, so shop carefully. At the low end, you're paying for the chassis, the Xeon platform, and HP's build quality. At the high end, you're getting fleeced. For context, competitors like the Lenovo Legion Tower 5a Gen 10 or even an Apple Mac Studio M3 Ultra offer dramatically more compute per dollar, though they're different beasts entirely. If you can snag this near $2,347 and plan to upgrade the CPU and RAM yourself, it makes sense. At $3,009, absolutely not.

The HP Z4 G5 is a proper tower workstation built for people who need Xeon reliability and tool-less expandability, not a flashy gaming rig. HP packed this config with an Intel Xeon W3-2423, 16GB of DDR5, a 512GB NVMe SSD, and an NVIDIA T1000 with 8GB of VRAM. It's a workhorse chassis with room to grow, and that's the whole pitch.

But this specific config feels like a base model wearing a workstation badge. The six-core Xeon sits in the 36th percentile for CPUs in our database, which is underwhelming for a machine that starts around $2,347. The chassis is fantastic. The internals? You'll probably want to upgrade them sooner than later.

Skip this if you need strong performance out of the box. The six-core Xeon and 16GB of RAM will frustrate anyone doing serious rendering, simulation, or machine learning without immediate upgrades. If you want a quiet, compact machine, the 10.5kg tower is also a poor fit. And if you're not comfortable opening a case and swapping parts, you're better off with a pre-configured system that's already specced properly.

Buy this if you need a reliable, quiet, expandable Xeon workstation and you're comfortable upgrading the internals yourself. The chassis, cooling, and power delivery are excellent. The stock config is a starting point, not a finished product. If you need serious performance out of the box, look elsewhere or budget for immediate upgrades.