G5 or Freescale Dual core processor for next Powerbook?
When Apple makes the change from the current G4 processir, would you prefer a G5 or the Freescale dual processor with the on chip memory controller in the next powerbook?
Anybody have any clues if Apple intends to use the Freescale dual core chip?
Anybody have any clues if Apple intends to use the Freescale dual core chip?
Comments
Originally posted by sc_markt
When Apple makes the change from the current G4 processir, would you prefer a G5 or the Freescale dual processor with the on chip memory controller in the next powerbook?
Anybody have any clues if Apple intends to use the Freescale dual core chip?
No clue here, but I'm not sure that Freescale's dual core chip is likely to come out in the near future... I really may be wrong on this one though!
Originally posted by sc_markt
Anybody have any clues if Apple intends to use the Freescale dual core chip?
I could be wrong, but afaik the dual-core chip is not due out in mass production until summer at the earliest. Therefore, a Powerbook based on this CPU would likely be almost a year away. Therefore, I'd gladly take a 970-based book - however we still don't know if a feasible G5-CPU is available or if another iteration of the 744x-class is in the wings (my prediction).
Apple will think at least twice before going dual-core. If they follow this route, they can hardly go back to single-core should Freescale run into problems.
So, my prediction: next Powerbook will be 1.6Ghz or something 7448.
If Apple ships a new Powerbook in Q1 05, it'll either be a 1.5+ GHz G4 or G5 single core processor. Dual-core G4 processors won't be shipping until 2H 05, and if Apple wants to ship a machine with a dual-core G4, Q1 06 is probably the earliest they can ship it. Long ways to go.
re: the thread's central question (what we'd prefer, vs what will be), i would prefer to see the apple move right to the G5.
the next line of freescale chips is the easier path, being pin-compatible with existing G4 designs, and it's definitely nice to have freescale as a back-up in case IBM continues to struggle with tech details. but from everything i've read, it seems IBM has more ambitious and compelling designs for the future of the 9xx chips.
the "MPC8641D" mentioned in this infoworld article sounds like the G4 we've all been pinging for. RapidIO, dual DDR/DDR2, PCI express, etc... but we've been waiting for such for a long time from the motorolla camp, and IBM has already delivered some impressive improvements over the G4 in the currently shipping G5, vs the still vaporware MPC8641D (vaporware in the "believe it when i see it" context).
facts are:
- IBM is ahead of freescale at the present moment, eg: FSB, Ghz, 64-bit, etc...
- IBM is also going dual-core (if thinksecret "antares" article accurate).
- IBM has compelling future design goals, eg: SMT.
- IBM's primary market for the 9xx is more aligned with apple's market, eg: IBM's blade servers and linux boxes. afaik, freescale still focuses on the specialized embedded market (correct me if i'm wrong here).
again, nice to have both options and chip competition in freescale. i just see IBM increasing the gap between the two company's offerings with each year that passes.
Originally posted by imiloa
i just see IBM increasing the gap between the two company's offerings with each year that passes.
following up: FormatC2 posted a link in another thread that illustrates some of the advances IBM tech has made in chip design.
register article
The consequence is that IBM is currently able to deliver in line with the expectations of Moore's Law and will probably be able to do so for the next two generations of the PowerPC chip. In fact, in terms of this benchmark, IBM is delivering beyond the expectations of Moore's Law. While chip performance may have doubled every 18 months in the past, system performance has not and IBM has now delivered almost a tripling of system performance (and a 37 per cent price performance improvement). That is what the benchmark indicates.
And IBM is doing this at a time when its primary competitors are "feeling the heat". IBM has demonstrated that it can overcome the problem, for the moment at least. It will be interesting to see how Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Sun and Intel respond to this.