IBM is offering promotions to coax System i shops into buying new boxes now rather than waiting for the Power6-based System i to hit shelves next year.

The promotion, which includes upgrade and trade-in offers, ends on Nov. 16, although you can get a better deal if you buy before Sept. 30. The offers focus around getting customers upgraded from iSeries models like the 810 and 825 to the System i models like the 520 and 525.