IT@Intel White Paper Intel IT IT Best Practices Enterprise Mobility and IT Consumerization August 2012 Evaluating Ultrabook™ Devices for the Enterprise Executive Overview Our evaluation shows that Intel IT is proactively gathering data about Ultrabook™ devices and how they fit enterprise Ultrabook™ devices into the enterprise, in anticipation of a wave of new devices and form factors, include features that strongly and the associated expectations from employees who want to buy and use these support business usage models, devices at work. especially in cases where We recognize the strong connections that strongly support business usage models, employees need to constantly between the consumerization of IT and the especially in situations where employees evolving concept of mobility as a way of need to constantly carry their computing carry their computing device working. However, our research has shown device with them. These features include: that not all devices are well suited for secure, with them. • Durable chassis and component designs productive business usage. We have evaluated both consumer-level Ultrabook devices and • Intel® vPro™ platform for security and enterprise-level Ultrabook devices to help manageability determine the business value they may bring • High-speed Internet and WLAN connectivity to the IT environment. We continue to explore Our evaluation included the physical use cases and device capabilities to determine testing of many consumer models and a which devices best balance employees’ needs limited number of enterprise models. As for convenience and productivity. more enterprise Ultrabook devices become As a result of our evaluations, we have available later this year, we will continue determined that consumer Ultrabook devices, to evaluate and test them using proofs of while comfortable and appropriate for use concept and pilot projects. We anticipate that in an employee’s day-to-day personal life, enterprise Ultrabook devices will become the can pose security, capability, and integration primary PC for many employees and may be issues for Intel IT. an excellent bring-your-own PC choice for robust access to a wide range of enterprise In contrast, our evaluation has shown that workloads, applications, and data. enterprise Ultrabook devices include features Dave Buchholz Principal Engineer, Intel IT John Mahvi PC Planning Strategist, Intel IT Joe Thompson IT Manager, Engineering, Intel IT IT@Intel White Paper Evaluating Ultrabook™ Devices for the Enterprise Contents Ultrabook™ Definition Ultrabook™ is the name trademarked by Intel to describe a new category of thin and Executive Overview ............................. 1 light mobile computers that have a new level of responsiveness, long battery life, Background ............................................ 2 are built on Intel’s newest platform security technologies, and are less than three- quarters of an inch (21 mm) thick. Ultrabook™ Device Evaluation ......... 4 Featuring low-power Intel® Core™ processors, enterprise Ultrabook devices have great Usage Models .................................... 4 responsiveness using features such as Intel® Smart Connect Technology and Intel® Features, Form, and Function ......... 4 Rapid Start Technology to quickly get the system running. Typical battery life is five Next Steps ............................................. 5 hours or more. Enterprise Ultrabook devices also offer security features, including Intel® Anti-Theft Technology and Intel® Identity Protection Technology. Conclusion .............................................. 6 For More Information .......................... 6 Acronyms ................................................ 6 BACKGROUND In the last two to three years, we have evaluated several types of devices for use in Intel IT recognizes that the the enterprise, exploring usage models and consumerization of IT is a reality and use cases, as well as device capabilities. From is inextricably linked to the evolving our device evaluations, we have developed concept of mobility as a way of best practices and key learnings that will working. From mobile business PCs help us continue to keep abreast of changing to smartphones and tablets, to bring- technology and IT consumerization. your own (BYO) computers, Intel IT has studied a variety of devices and their Both IT and employees benefit from our impact on the IT environment. analyses. We can use this data to help plan for improved integration of technologies As consumer-driven innovation continues to and trends that make sense on a usage accelerate and as IT consumerization trends model basis. We can also communicate become more prevalent, our research indicates with employees to help them understand that certain devices are better suited for our requirements for devices used in the secure, productive business usage. Most enterprise. This information helps employees consumer devices are not designed for use make informed purchasing decisions, in the enterprise and can create unexpected choosing a device that fits their personal use- challenges for both IT and employees. case scenario and balances their needs for convenience and productivity. • Many of these devices and technologies, while comfortable and appropriate for an Our evaluation and implementation efforts IT@INteL employee to use in his or her personal for various device types include the following: life, can pose security, capability, and The IT@Intel program connects IT • Smartphones. Because of the increased integration issues for Intel IT. professionals around the world with their employee demand for using smartphones peers inside our organization – sharing • Beyond integration, we must also consider at work, we have evaluated and tested lessons learned, methods and strategies. usage models; requirements differ multiple models, and have implemented Our goal is simple: Share Intel IT best between corporate usage models and support for several of them. To date, practices that create business value and personal usage models. The experience about 25 percent of Intel employees use make IT a competitive advantage. Visit designed around consumer devices isn’t smartphones to access corporate data us today at www.intel.com/IT or contact always appropriate for enterprise use. and services. your local Intel representative if you’d like to learn more. 2 www.intel.com/IT Evaluating Ultrabook™ Devices for the Enterprise IT@Intel White Paper • Tablets. We currently enable tablets using management—independent of the PC’s Bring-Your-Own Stipend the same small form factor ecosystem that OS or power state Not Cost Effective we use for personally owned smartphones. • Intel® Solid-State Drives (Intel® SSDs), We investigated the idea of Because mobile business PCs provide the which provide rugged reliability, responsive implementing a stipend program performance and mobility our employees performance, long battery life, and for our bring-your-own (BYO) currently need, we have not experienced flexibility and scalability of storage PC initiatives, including BYO a large employee demand for more BYO • Higher-end CPUs that can perform Ultrabook™ devices. Our initial tablets—only about 2,000 employees are compute- and graphics-intensive thought was that such a stipend currently using tablets. However, we operations efficiently might offer a return on investment are looking for opportunities for tablets by optimizing the IT PC refresh to supplement primary PC use at Intel,1 • Network connectivity components budget and enabling additional and as platform capabilities evolve, we that support reliable, high-bandwidth platform choice and flexibility. do expect demand and opportunities for network connections Intel® architecture-based tablets to increase. Throughout our evaluation of new form We conducted an employee survey, the results of which showed that • BYO PCs. As with tablets, we have not factors, we have learned that allowing providing an employee-viable experienced significant employee demand employees to use the device of their choice stipend model that promotes BYO for using personally owned PCs (other could compromise consistent, standard and incentivizes participation than for Apple Mac* computers) at work, capabilities, and could negatively impact would create a significant cost because our standard computing platform core productivity. We have determined that increase to Intel. A cost-neutral provides optimal performance and user consumer devices may fit some niches, but stipend appeared unlikely to experience. However, we have explored, they do not offer the same level of benefits yield participation that was high and implemented in certain cases, various as our standard computing platform. enough to justify an investment in BYO PC usage models, such as use in stipend program management and offshore development centers and use administration costs. by contractors and contingent workers. Currently, only a few hundred employees ULTRABOOk™ DEVICE Therefore after careful use BYO PCs. EVALUATION investigation and analysis, we determined that a stipend Although we continue to analyze new In anticipation of a wave of new program for BYO PCs would not devices and form factors for their business devices and form factors, Ultrabook be cost effective for Intel or our benefit, we remain committed to innovating devices in particular, and the associated employees, and we will not offer around a standardized computing platform expectations from employees who want a BYO stipend-funded PC program that increases