Specific concerns
But even allowing for selective editing of the juiciest comments, there were some specific concerns raised in the programme. We started with an issue raised by the self-anointed tech expert of the panel – Peter Jones (pictured below) – who wasn’t convinced that Very PC’s GreenHive product offered any energy saving over a thin client setup.
“The reason we invented the GreenHive was due to a study into thin clients,” said Hopton. “A 4W thin client will actually be responsible for 44W of power with everything considered. Even in the winter servers still need air conditioning and for every Watt used by the server up to double that can be accounted for by air conditioning, UPS, etc.”
Asked what he thought of Jones’s tech credentials, Hopton said: “The same guy, later in the interview, asked me: ‘What BIOS do you use, Intel or AMD?’ He wouldn’t even admit the issues associated with air conditioning.”
Another Dragon was appalled by the fact that Very PC’s products contain very little proprietary technology. “We buy stuff off the shelf and tweak it to make it do what we want it to do,” countered Hopton. “It’s a case of underclocking as opposed to overclocking.”
"It’s a case of underclocking as opposed to overclocking."What about patenting? What’s to stop anyone else just copying what Very PC does? “Many system builders have tried to do what we do but haven’t managed it,” said Hopton. “The proof of the pudding is in the eating; the Janus uses half the power of the equivalent Dell product. Regarding patenting, it’s an expensive business and we would rather spend the money on R&D.”
Debora Meaden was among the Dragons that were unimpressed with the profitability of Very PC - £20k last year and an expected £100k this year. Hopton insisted this is not a short term investment: “Don’t expect a good net profit for two years,” he said. “I think that the valuation is more than reasonable and, if anything, we would be looking for more now.
Hopton went on to make it clear that he wasn’t too upset at Meaden’s lack of interest. "Deborah Meaden had said that saving electricity isn’t green, it’s just using less, so when she said ‘I’m out’ I said ‘thank you’".
