I found the following intel roadmap for the Xeon:
Does this mean that the Mac Pro is likely to stay pretty much the same until the end of the year? When was the last refresh? I am buying one in a month and can't take the "buy right before refresh blues".
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I don't think we see a Mac Pro Nehalem based model until 2009 (possibly announced at MWSF?)
Depending on whose press releases you believe, adding Firewire 3200 may also be a possibility.
Keeping the same processors doesn't necessarily mean they won't see a bump in other ways, such as adding DisplayPort and Blu-Ray, alongside new Cinema Displays.
Depending on whose press releases you believe, adding Firewire 3200 may also be a possibility.
Apart from adding an eight-core model, Apple did not update the Mac Pro at all until this January. From the time it was released 18 months earlier, it got no new graphics cards, no new ports... just one more CPU option. It's just wishful thinking to hope that they will update the current Mac Pro before January '09.
Then show me the panel market that includes DisplayPorts for it's end product.
We already see more and more panels becoming cheap and unusable but we are to get excited about a DisplayPort?
Apart from adding an eight-core model, Apple did not update the Mac Pro at all until this January. From the time it was released 18 months earlier, it got no new graphics cards, no new ports... just one more CPU option. It's just wishful thinking to hope that they will update the current Mac Pro before January '09.
That can't be correct. The internal architecture of the Mac Pros was also updated in January.
It wasn't just a processor drop-in, the motherboard would have to have been upgraded to work with eight cores.
That can't be correct. The internal architecture of the Mac Pros was also updated in January.
It wasn't just a processor drop-in, the motherboard would have to have been upgraded to work with eight cores.
That's why I said "until this January."
Or do you mean the original, dual-quad-core 3GHz upgrade from 2007? That was just a processor drop-in.
According to my most recent digging Nehalem is still planned for Q4 2008 which pegs it October. Remember the Mac Pros were first updated to the Core2 Xeons before they were widely available. I'm hoping Apple will get the same preferential treatment with the new Nehalem processors. Personally, I feel late September announce with shipping mid-October.
I don't know why everyone assumes that the Mac Pros will not be updated until MWSF.
According to my most recent digging Nehalem is still planned for Q4 2008 which pegs it October. Remember the Mac Pros were first updated to the Core2 Xeons before they were widely available. I'm hoping Apple will get the same preferential treatment with the new Nehalem processors. Personally, I feel late September announce with shipping mid-October.
It's based on knowing Apple. They didn't hop on Penryn right at announcement and many of us don't expect for them to hop on Nehalem right way. But you are right..Apple is unpredictble and they could decide to drop some Napalm Macpros this year.
One of my personal reason why I think Nehalem MacPros will come January is because I think we're going to see a case redesign that reflects a smaller more conservative Mac Pro.
It's based on knowing Apple. They didn't hop on Penryn right at announcement and many of us don't expect for them to hop on Nehalem right way. But you are right..Apple is unpredictble and they could decide to drop some Napalm Macpros this year.
One of my personal reason why I think Nehalem MacPros will come January is because I think we're going to see a case redesign that reflects a smaller more conservative Mac Pro.
I agree, I don't see a real update until they actually make it a worth while one. And that will come with a big announcement at a big show.
One of my personal reason why I think Nehalem MacPros will come January is because I think we're going to see a case redesign that reflects a smaller more conservative Mac Pro.
Possible, but wouldn't that make the fact that the cheapest option is $2300. stand out even more?
Nehalem is out and there are not even any rumors about upgraded Pros. So, unfortunately the 1.Q.09 prediction seems to be right.
The most interesting MP news from today, I thought, was the upgrade to using 1066 MHz DDR3 memory (from 667 MHz DD2).
There are certainly a number of other improvements that I expect to see in the next generation.
* Faster firewire (3200 vs. 800)
* USB 3.0
* Support for 8GB DIMMs (as opposed to 4GB modules today)
* SATA 6.0 GB/s (upgraded from 3.0 GB/s)
* Blu-ray drive
None of this is revolutionary. Where I expect innovation are in two areas
* Updated case; the cheese grater is getting moldy
* high-speed SSD standard (something in the 100 MB/s read + 80 MB/s write range)
What is increasingly clear with the revived support for hyperthreading in Nehalem chips is that the enhanced support for 64-bit application is Snow Leopard can't come a moment too soon.
Nehalem is out and there are not even any rumors about upgraded Pros. So, unfortunately the 1.Q.09 prediction seems to be right.
I dunno, I wouldnt be surprised to see a graphics/proc bump soon. Maybe NV8800-->NV9800 w' displayport and a drop in of the 6 core procs that intel announced (the last of the penryn set) for a *really* highend 12 core box. Like you said, won't see nehalem till q1 2009 though probably
The most interesting MP news from today, I thought, was the upgrade to using 1066 MHz DDR3 memory (from 667 MHz DD2).
<SNIP>
* Support for 8GB DIMMs (as opposed to 4GB modules today)
AFAIK there's no technical reason you cant use 8GB DIMMs in the curr MPs, aside from the lack *of* 8GB DIMMs. The machine should support it when they're around, even if apple officially doesnt.
With nehalem the MP (and all xeon based machines) will move to standard ECC DDR3 ram and drop the fully buffered DIMMs, so nehalem will see a ram boost, wont see it before that though.
Nehalem is out and there are not even any rumors about upgraded Pros. So, unfortunately the 1.Q.09 prediction seems to be right.
AFAIK, Bloomfield will officially be launched on Nov. 17th. This is the high-end desktop version. No word on the 1st gen Xeon Nehalems yet. So, we will have to wait a little more for a dual cpus Nehalem workstation.
Unless Apple choose to build a uniprocessor Mac Pro based on bloomfield and pretend it has 8 processing cores just like the current model because of hyperthreading!!!
That would allow for higher margins.
Also the 6-cores Xeons that have been released are multi-processor cpus (not DP), they don't work on current DP motherboards and they are REALLY expensive (from $1,200 up to $2,800 each).
Also the 6-cores Xeons that have been released are multi-processor cpus (not DP), they don't work on current DP motherboards and they are REALLY expensive (from $1,200 up to $2,800 each).
You're right, I had forgotten that. I retract what I said, no 12 core bump till nehalem, nor any at-home upgrading (not that I have another couple grand to drop on new procs right now anyway :-p)