What to do? Imac but new thunderbolt no longer output, Apple let's future MAC PRO Slip, older...

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Originally Posted by wizard69 
Is this message coded in some way I don't know about?

I'll take a stab at it -- I like a challenge -- this person in the music business bought a 27" iMac i5 for a good price through a friend with some sort of employee discount, replacing a 2008 MacBook Pro that was having trouble handling the work.

The plan was to use the iMac until a new Mac Pro comes out, but now he or she is having second thoughts about their choice, and is thinking about returning the iMac and getting a current MacBook Pro and using it with a 24" non-Thunderbolt monitor they already own, or maybe the new Retina machine but it is the same price as a current Mac Pro, so maybe they should get one of those instead.

My advice would be to get a current MacBook Pro, which is still useful to have around if you travel at all after you get the new Mac Pro next year. But the iMac is also a good choice -- it allows you to get your work done without spending too much money as you wait for the new Mac Pro, and you may find next year you don't really need a Mac Pro.

Quote:

Originally Posted by wizard69 

.???????
Is this message coded in some way I don't know about?

I felt the same way. It looks like it was written to melt the average brain. hahaha

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Originally Posted by not candunc 


24 core chips... those are the knight series by intel. NO WAY they will be on any computer within the next 2 years, servers and workstations in 3 or 4 years, consumer products in 5-8 years. VERY expensive though. iMacs use i7s, Mac Pros use Xeons. Xeons are more powerful than i7s, but i7s are better for consumer things like gaming. Xeons are pure power, not sure how well games would run on them though.
 

This is not entirely correct. For cpus with both i7 and Xeon versions, the i7s typically cost the same amount as a single package compliant Xeon version. The boards are a little more expensive. If you're going to a dual cpu package configuration, costs jump way up. There is no difference between i7s and Xeons for things like gaming assuming you're comparing comparable clock speeds rather than examining 6 and 8 core Xeons that are clocked much lower. You're thinking of workstation gpus vs consumer gpus. GPUs are much more specialized in their computational ability, and the workstation versions are tuned differently at the driver level (that and NVidia intentionally kneecaps the consumer cards on double precision math). Beyond that there's no strict rule. Especially under OSX, workstation gpus (well there's only one that's currently supported) do not necessarily function better in every scenario outside of games. Many applications simply aren't tuned to take advantage of them, especially when it's unlikely that Apple sells many Quadro 4000s.

Quote:

Originally Posted by not candunc 



I wouldn't recommend getting a Mac Pro until the new model in 2013, the current model is just from 2010 with processor bumps. or... something like that
HDMI isn't dead, but DisplayPort technology is the future. Not HDMI.
Umm... I don't know, if you are using a macbook pro(?), but the 15 inch (either one) should be fine for whatever you are doing, mac pros wait until next year.
Mac Pros don't have thunderbolt because intel does not have motherboards for it!

I wouldn't suggest anyone wait until 2013. If you're really in need of that hardware class, you'd be better served going to Windows at this point than waiting to see what Apple may do in the future. That is just too much uncertainty.

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Originally Posted by hmm 
I wouldn't suggest anyone wait until 2013. If you're really in need of that hardware class, you'd be better served going to Windows at this point than waiting to see what Apple may do in the future. That is just too much uncertainty.

That advice ignores the possibility that one may have a significant investment in OS X software, and not just in terms of money -- Logic isn't hugely expensive, but there's also the learning curve to think about -- staying with what you know is not necessarily a trivial consideration. Switching can be a huge pain in the butt. Not to mention old documents that may not be compatible with whatever Windows application(s) one is switching to. It's not just a hardware thing.

I have the same setup with an iPhone plugged in to the back of the display and yes, it does charge and stop charging when the display's sound drops in and out.
Unplugging works at times but not every single time. Sometimes it'd take me ~3 times unplugging/pluggin to get it back up working.

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Originally Posted by TenThousandThings 

That advice ignores the possibility that one may have a significant investment in OS X software, and not just in terms of money -- Logic isn't hugely expensive, but there's also the learning curve to think about -- staying with what you know is not necessarily a trivial consideration. Switching can be a huge pain in the butt. Not to mention old documents that may not be compatible with whatever Windows application(s) one is switching to. It's not just a hardware thing.

Apple drinks too much of their own kool-aid at times, so they're not always reliable when it comes to certain build types. I didn't say sell your Mac. I said don't count on them to do this. Personally I pick up software pretty fast. I download every bit of documentation I can find, buy a couple books, and make notes for workflow questions as I go, then research them simultaneously. A lot of software developers that write for multiple platforms have cheap sidegrade options. It's still extremely annoying in some situations, but it can be done.

Anyway I worded my last statement poorly. I wouldn't suggest you switch today if you have a functional machine. I just wouldn't count on Apple in this market segment. They're the only ones who hiccuped on a Sandy Bridge E release.