Bang on the nail, hmm ! A very concise summation of the workstation at the moment.
My concern is that I can see Apple dropping the MacPro for those very reasons - just not enough potential. But I want them to stick with it so the OS will still support the higher end configurations. If they drop the MP, what else would drop out of the OS over time ?
Excactly,
If they drop the high end Mac Pro, there goes hackintoshes having a comfortable, Mac Pro starting point, for Xeon or Dual CPU machines, in the eventual end...
As I see it Apple has to offer something decent for the desktop as it adds credibility and shows a commitment to Macs and Mac OS as ongoing products. The problem is that neither the Mini nor the Mac Pro are configured well to serve a market where desktops are in less demand. Poor sales of the Mini and the Pro really has little to do with the general decline in "PC" sales, it has far more to do with the poor value the machines represent even when measured against Apples other products.
As the Pro is currently designed this is certainly the case. The Pro has only really been a valid machine for those that can justify the higher end versions and the performance those machines offered for the price. Effectively this put a big gap in Apples desktop lineup with the Mini very far behind capability wise. Apple really needs to make a desktop machine that is affordable and justifiable to a far wider array of customers. So while I don't dismiss market factors in the Pros decline, I see a far bigger issue with how it is marketed and placed in Apples lineup. In a nut shell the Pro costs too damn much for what most customers want or need in a desktop machine.
Apple needs a much smaller chassis that can be marketed competitively at $1500 as a midrange machine and at whatever $$$$ for a high performance machine. The Pro has inflated in price to the point that it simply can't be justified for what many users need out of a desktop.
Good stuff there, wiz !
I seriously hope you're right. Catering for expansion is key to the whole redesign.
If they did drop the MacPro - well I guess it'd be, "Hello Linux distroland" - and all the tinkering/kludging around that goes with it.
lol [irony]
If they drop the high end Mac Pro, there goes hackintoshes having a comfortable, Mac Pro starting point, for Xeon or Dual CPU machines, in the eventual end...
Good stuff there, wiz !
I seriously hope you're right. Catering for expansion is key to the whole redesign.
In my case expansion means at least a couple of PCI - Express cards and some internal secondary storage.
If they did drop the MacPro - well I guess it'd be, "Hello Linux distroland" - and all the tinkering/kludging around that goes with it.
lol [irony]
I left Linux land to come to Mac OS, the integration with iOS locked that move. Linux is a great kernel but it is a hopeless desktop platform with zero direction. Frankly the mainstream Linux desktops suck, be that KDE or GNome.
As to the Mac Pro I don't know if I'm right of course and from past experience I don't think Apple gets it anymore. Their problems on the desktop are of their own making. Apparently they are having trouble dealing with that reality. They even screwed up iMac release so it looks like the division is being run by a bunch of bumbling fools.
There's no doubt in my mind that they're struggling with it, totally agree. They might be waiting for some tech that can be introduced - but hell, what's out there that we don't know about ?
What they have to give us is now something akin to the dreaded xmac, there I said it ! in a form factor that's like a breakout box with every conceivable connection under the sun. Low end and high end configs, scalable in a form factor that at least is something you can pick up if you have to.
If someone posts a pic of the Mac mini rack - I might kill or commit hare kare :-) Don't go there !
There's no doubt in my mind that they're struggling with it, totally agree.
They might be waiting for some tech that can be introduced - but hell, what's out there that we don't know about ?
There are many technologies out there that we do know about. For example 3D RAM and a number of other high performance RAM systems. Some time ago Intel was rumored to be working on Processors that where targeted at scientific work with Phi being part of that initiative. These processors would have super computing networking hardware built in. Moving secondary storage to PCI-Express interfaces should become very interesting real soon now.
What they have to give us is now something akin to the dreaded xmac, there I said it ! in a form factor that's like a breakout box with every conceivable connection under the sun.
XMac sure, every conceivable connection no.
Low end and high end configs, scalable in a form factor that at least is something you can pick up if you have to.
Yep a spread of capability is needed.
If someone posts a pic of the Mac mini rack - I might kill or commit hare kare :-)
Don't go there !
I try not to knock the Mini, I just don't think people grasp why it isn't good enough for many uses.
Edit:
Actually the things I highlighted above we know about. What we don't know about is what Apple will put into the Pro's replacement. Further we don't know about what Apple or its partners might be working on out of public view. Apple has even influenced Intel to a significant extent as they have become much more secretive than they have ever been in the past.
So what could Apple deliver that we don't know about? Hard to say obviously but we shouldn't dismiss things like new cooling technologies, optical interconnects, specialized processors and much higher integration.
"Today Intel made a sobering, but not entirely unexpected announcement: over the next 3 years Intel will be ramping down its own desktop motherboard business.
We will see Haswell motherboards from the group, but that will be the last official hurrah.
Most of the folks who worked in Intel's surprisingly small desktop motherboard division will move on to other groups within Intel that can use their talents.
There's also the obvious motivation: the desktop PC business isn't exactly booming. Late last year word spread of Intel's plans for making Broadwell (14nm Core microprocessor in 2014) BGA-only. While we'll continue to see socketed CPUs beyond that, the cadence will be slower than what we're used to. The focus going forward will be on highly integrated designs, even for the desktop (think all-in-ones, thin mini-ITX, NUC, etc...). Couple that reality with low board margins and exiting the desktop motherboard business all of the sudden doesn't sound like a bad idea for Intel.
In the long run, it does highlight the importance of having a business not completely tied to desktop PC motherboard sales."
As to the Mac Pro I don't know if I'm right of course and from past experience I don't think Apple gets it anymore. Their problems on the desktop are of their own making. Apparently they are having trouble dealing with that reality. They even screwed up iMac release so it looks like the division is being run by a bunch of bumbling fools.
Erm. You have a point about Apple losing touch with their desktop computer users... I'm not sure if it's hubris. I'm not sure (yeah, right) if Apple aren't making enough money when the UK is about to hit a triple recession...aka greed.
The iMac took a £100 price hike. It's £475 more expensive for the entry model that it was 4-ish years ago. Add to that £200 for a Fusion drive (when SSD drives are dirt cheap now, they've fallen like rocks eg 256 gig drives for about £100+) and add to that you have to pay £60 for a DVD that used to come for 'free' as an internal part. Let's add all that up.
...£725 more to get the 'basic' model.
'...money isn't everything.' Steve.
Sure. And it the best quarter still wasn't enough for Wall Street.
Add in the stupidity of pricing the Mac Pro at 2k plus for a quad core machine, with crappy gpu and no monitor.
The iMac isn't a bad machine at all. But if Macbook Air can come with SSD why can't the iMac?
Sometimes I don't think they 'get' the idea that we don't all have millions in stock options. £1100 is pushing it for an entry machine. And I'm sitting in front of top end iMac. Great performance but I payed for it.
Given the price, retina would have been nice. But I'm guessing it's a year away at least.
Ivy Bridge can deliver a decent desktop mac with just quad cores, though I have to admit that six cores would be nice for some uses. Hell i'd be happy with a base model that had integrated graphics only, if it also supported a slot for a decent graphics card. The expectation would be that an integrated graphics machine would start at around $1200, but that is an easy target to hit. The sad reality here is that Joe bumbling idiot can come up with a better video card than Apple can.
I really don't know what Apples problem is with desktop machines, they haven't done a decently configured machine in years. Even the Mini is going out the door starved for RAM.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lemon Bon Bon.
Don't intel now have a 6 core cpu for Ivy?
Why not have that as the £1495 entry tower. And a dual processor at £1995? SSDs as standard.
'Done.'
Why make it difficult? Bundle a decent gpu and a discount on their massively over priced studio display...when you buy together.
Apparently it is difficult for Apple! By the time Apple ships a Pro replacement, the likely GPU that will be in it will be almost two years old. Yep must be difficult.
This massive lag though just make one think that somebody is asleep at the wheel.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
Because that's the difficult part.
The Thunderbolt Display isn't overpriced, much less massively.
Apparently it is difficult for Apple! By the time Apple ships a Pro replacement, the likely GPU that will be in it will be almost two years old. Yep must be difficult.
The 4xxx line was new when the 2010 model came out. That leads me to believe they'll put the 7xxx line in the next one.
Why not have that as the £1495 entry tower. And a dual processor at £1995? SSDs as standard.
Why make it difficult? Bundle a decent gpu and a discount on their massively over priced studio display...when you buy together.
I think dual processor is just too expensive. The entry point is around $4000 now.
I want it to get back to this sort of thing with a single CPU:
I'm not thrilled with the aesthetics there but that's the general idea. It could have a side access panel again but it creates more superflous design and I like that this doesn't need additional parts to lift it up. The insides can be lifted out from the base so it's more seamless. The space at the bottom is for carrying it and for air flow. When it's flipped upside down, it would just have a 180 twist handle and you pull the insides out. This means you can't open it while it's on.
The current Mac Pro doesn't have hot swappable drives but they could do this from the back similar to Lacie drives if they wanted. I'd rather see dual Fusion drives though and hot swapping isn't so good with that.
When I see ads like this, I like that better than where the Pro is now:
[VIDEO]
It just feels more modern and now it doesn't have to sacrifice any functionality. The ports would be on the back and it would have a proper cooling system. I'd rather see quad 20Gbps TB ports with special connectivity but a single PCIe 3 expansion slot will offer more bandwidth and more hardware support.
The bundled GPU would be a midrange card and you'd have the option to go to the highest-end card.
It would start with 6-core Ivy Bridge EP, 8GB RAM, 1GB 8770 for $2499 (£2049)
It would go up to 10-core, 16GB RAM, 2GB 8970 for $3999 (£3299)
If there is a 12-core, it would go up to that but 10-core IB should be a bit faster than the 12-core from 2010.
I think dual processor is just too expensive. The entry point is around $4000 now.
For those that need it a dual processor machine is always worth it. The problem is that isn't most of us.
I want it to get back to this sort of thing with a single CPU:
Sweet! Maybe a little tall by my taste but the general idea is there.
I'm not thrilled with the aesthetics there but that's the general idea. It could have a side access panel again but it creates more superflous design and I like that this doesn't need additional parts to lift it up. The insides can be lifted out from the base so it's more seamless. The space at the bottom is for carrying it and for air flow. When it's flipped upside down, it would just have a 180 twist handle and you pull the insides out. This means you can't open it while it's on.
The current Mac Pro doesn't have hot swappable drives but they could do this from the back similar to Lacie drives if they wanted. I'd rather see dual Fusion drives though and hot swapping isn't so good with that.
When I see ads like this, I like that better than where the Pro is now:
[VIDEO]
It just feels more modern and now it doesn't have to sacrifice any functionality. The ports would be on the back and it would have a proper cooling system. I'd rather see quad 20Gbps TB ports with special connectivity but a single PCIe 3 expansion slot will offer more bandwidth and more hardware support.
Why not both? TB is great but it is a long up hole road to get market acceptance to the point where people will even consider phasing out PCI-Express cards.
The bundled GPU would be a midrange card and you'd have the option to go to the highest-end card.
I'm not sure it is worth the heat load for a midrange machine. I'd consider capping card power at 100 watts which is still a lot of CPU power. At least this is what I'd expect out of an XMAC like device that does not replace the Mac Pro.
We still come back to one issue, what does Apple do about the TB video channel. We could very well see a soldered in GPU. The other option is a custom video card for Apple hardware.
It would start with 6-core Ivy Bridge EP, 8GB RAM, 1GB 8770 for $2499 (£2049)
It would go up to 10-core, 16GB RAM, 2GB 8970 for $3999 (£3299)
Still too expensive. Apple really needs to hit $1500 dollars for a reasonably high performance base model. I'm still thinking Ivy Bridge mainstream in the base box. Now for the higher end machine by all means go for performance.
If there is a 12-core, it would go up to that but 10-core IB should be a bit faster than the 12-core from 2010.
This highlights an issue Intel ought to address. That is they should come up with a socket that is compatible across multiple device families so that one mother board can run a processor with integrated graphics while the high end board goes for high core CPU density.
The 4xxx line was new when the 2010 model came out. That leads me to believe they'll put the 7xxx line in the next one.
New GPU hardware comes out about every 18 months with the outside sitting at two years. 7xxx will be looking long in the tooth if Apple doesn't hurry up. Now admittedly 7xxx performs well even up against NVidia chips that came out months latter, but do you really want to buy a Mac Pro when AMD is just about to release an entirely new chip? Maybe, maybe not! It really depends on your expectations, a very large majority would prefer reliability over newness, however we still have a large element that whines whenever the perceive that Apple is shipping old stuff.
From my perspective it doesn't matter as I'm not interesting in video cards that draw hundreds of watts. Keep it under a hundred watts, (well under?) and ill be happy as long as the chip is OpenCL compatible and does 3D well.
New GPU hardware comes out about every 18 months with the outside sitting at two years. 7xxx will be looking long in the tooth if Apple doesn't hurry up.
Oh, is that not the set about to be released? I thought it was. 8xxx, then, since the next Mac Pro's chips won't be out until about then.
From my perspective it doesn't matter as I'm not interesting in video cards that draw hundreds of watts. Keep it under a hundred watts, (well under?) and ill be happy as long as the chip is OpenCL compatible and does 3D well.
Wish there'd be a breakthrough in GPU tech on the order of what ARM is doing for CPUs to get that down.
I mean, look at the Apple TV. First one was 100 watts. IDLE. The second and third models use 6 watts maximum. That's astonishing, and it doesn't even talk about the heat output! Imagine a GPU innovation that brought power changes like that!
I/O is key for video pro and audio. I would be rapt if I didn't have to spring the battered wallet open for yet another pci card. BMD and AJA have built their businesses around this - not to mention Matrox, Avid et al.
I certainly don't expect this type of offering on the low end model. But high end yeah, why not ? There really are very few players in that space. Apple either ignores them in the new MP or caters to them. We as users don't have too much choice. If I'm doing an ad for broadcast it has to conform to specs, therefore I have to be able to see it in broadcast colour space. This means being able to view it on a broadcast monitor, and so it goes on and on and on. Pro market is as much about third party players as it is about sheer speed and applications. That is Apples problem right there - how to cater and is it worth it ?
I don't know what they'll come up with - but the last things pros need is spaghetti junction x 2 or 3. We already have spaghetti junction. It is a very real issue
I want it to get back to this sort of thing with a single CPU:
Now this isn't 100% perfect, but it's closer to the mark than what we've seen previously.
Bringing back the Cube (in aluminium form) is the perfect tribute to Jobs, while assuring to creatives that the Pro market is still a priority with Apple.
Condemning PCI slots to expansion chassis is a double tribute to Jobs. Wouldn't be as well received, but if the new Cube does have hot-swapping drives from the back and even a hot-swappable power supply for server usage, the response from the market would be interesting to watch.
Comments
Quote:
Originally Posted by RobM
Bang on the nail, hmm ! A very concise summation of the workstation at the moment.
My concern is that I can see Apple dropping the MacPro for those very reasons - just not enough potential. But I want them to stick with it so the OS will still support the higher end configurations. If they drop the MP, what else would drop out of the OS over time ?
Excactly,
If they drop the high end Mac Pro, there goes hackintoshes having a comfortable, Mac Pro starting point, for Xeon or Dual CPU machines, in the eventual end...
Good stuff there, wiz !
I seriously hope you're right. Catering for expansion is key to the whole redesign.
If they did drop the MacPro - well I guess it'd be, "Hello Linux distroland" - and all the tinkering/kludging around that goes with it.
lol [irony]
.....
exactly
As to the Mac Pro I don't know if I'm right of course and from past experience I don't think Apple gets it anymore. Their problems on the desktop are of their own making. Apparently they are having trouble dealing with that reality. They even screwed up iMac release so it looks like the division is being run by a bunch of bumbling fools.
They might be waiting for some tech that can be introduced - but hell, what's out there that we don't know about ?
What they have to give us is now something akin to the dreaded xmac, there I said it ! in a form factor that's like a breakout box with every conceivable connection under the sun. Low end and high end configs, scalable in a form factor that at least is something you can pick up if you have to.
If someone posts a pic of the Mac mini rack - I might kill or commit hare kare :-)
Don't go there !
I try not to knock the Mini, I just don't think people grasp why it isn't good enough for many uses.
Edit:
Actually the things I highlighted above we know about. What we don't know about is what Apple will put into the Pro's replacement. Further we don't know about what Apple or its partners might be working on out of public view. Apple has even influenced Intel to a significant extent as they have become much more secretive than they have ever been in the past.
So what could Apple deliver that we don't know about? Hard to say obviously but we shouldn't dismiss things like new cooling technologies, optical interconnects, specialized processors and much higher integration.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marvin
"Today Intel made a sobering, but not entirely unexpected announcement: over the next 3 years Intel will be ramping down its own desktop motherboard business.
We will see Haswell motherboards from the group, but that will be the last official hurrah.
Most of the folks who worked in Intel's surprisingly small desktop motherboard division will move on to other groups within Intel that can use their talents.
There's also the obvious motivation: the desktop PC business isn't exactly booming. Late last year word spread of Intel's plans for making Broadwell (14nm Core microprocessor in 2014) BGA-only. While we'll continue to see socketed CPUs beyond that, the cadence will be slower than what we're used to. The focus going forward will be on highly integrated designs, even for the desktop (think all-in-ones, thin mini-ITX, NUC, etc...). Couple that reality with low board margins and exiting the desktop motherboard business all of the sudden doesn't sound like a bad idea for Intel.
In the long run, it does highlight the importance of having a business not completely tied to desktop PC motherboard sales."
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6685/the-end-of-an-era-intels-desktop-motherboard-business-to-ramp-down-over-next-3-years
It won't directly affect Apple as the Mac Pro motherboard will be custom built too but it's a sign of the times.
Interesting...
...a sign of the times.
Lemon Bon Bon.
Quote:
Originally Posted by wizard69
As to the Mac Pro I don't know if I'm right of course and from past experience I don't think Apple gets it anymore. Their problems on the desktop are of their own making. Apparently they are having trouble dealing with that reality. They even screwed up iMac release so it looks like the division is being run by a bunch of bumbling fools.
Erm. You have a point about Apple losing touch with their desktop computer users... I'm not sure if it's hubris. I'm not sure (yeah, right) if Apple aren't making enough money when the UK is about to hit a triple recession...aka greed.
The iMac took a £100 price hike. It's £475 more expensive for the entry model that it was 4-ish years ago. Add to that £200 for a Fusion drive (when SSD drives are dirt cheap now, they've fallen like rocks eg 256 gig drives for about £100+) and add to that you have to pay £60 for a DVD that used to come for 'free' as an internal part. Let's add all that up.
...£725 more to get the 'basic' model.
'...money isn't everything.' Steve.
Sure. And it the best quarter still wasn't enough for Wall Street.
Add in the stupidity of pricing the Mac Pro at 2k plus for a quad core machine, with crappy gpu and no monitor.
The iMac isn't a bad machine at all. But if Macbook Air can come with SSD why can't the iMac?
Sometimes I don't think they 'get' the idea that we don't all have millions in stock options. £1100 is pushing it for an entry machine. And I'm sitting in front of top end iMac. Great performance but I payed for it.
Given the price, retina would have been nice. But I'm guessing it's a year away at least.
Lemon Bon Bon.
Can we remember when you could get an iMac for £595 WITH keyboard, mouse and monitor? And they had LESS volume then!
Now we have NO desktop under a £1k with keyboard, mouse or monitor?
How's that for 'losing' touch.
But shrugs, the Mac Pro is a similar joke at the 'top' end. (Yeah, looks at the naff gpu on the Mac Pro...)
Lemon Bon Bon.
Don't intel now have a 6 core cpu for Ivy?
Why not have that as the £1495 entry tower. And a dual processor at £1995? SSDs as standard.
'Done.'
Why make it difficult? Bundle a decent gpu and a discount on their massively over priced studio display...when you buy together.
Lemon Bon Bon.
Originally Posted by Lemon Bon Bon.
Bundle a decent gpu…
Because that's the difficult part.
…and a discount on their massively over priced studio display…
The Thunderbolt Display isn't overpriced, much less massively.
Ivy Bridge can deliver a decent desktop mac with just quad cores, though I have to admit that six cores would be nice for some uses. Hell i'd be happy with a base model that had integrated graphics only, if it also supported a slot for a decent graphics card. The expectation would be that an integrated graphics machine would start at around $1200, but that is an easy target to hit. The sad reality here is that Joe bumbling idiot can come up with a better video card than Apple can.
I really don't know what Apples problem is with desktop machines, they haven't done a decently configured machine in years. Even the Mini is going out the door starved for RAM.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lemon Bon Bon.
Don't intel now have a 6 core cpu for Ivy?
Why not have that as the £1495 entry tower. And a dual processor at £1995? SSDs as standard.
'Done.'
Why make it difficult? Bundle a decent gpu and a discount on their massively over priced studio display...when you buy together.
Lemon Bon Bon.
Apparently it is difficult for Apple! By the time Apple ships a Pro replacement, the likely GPU that will be in it will be almost two years old. Yep must be difficult.
This massive lag though just make one think that somebody is asleep at the wheel.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
Because that's the difficult part.
The Thunderbolt Display isn't overpriced, much less massively.
Originally Posted by wizard69
Apparently it is difficult for Apple! By the time Apple ships a Pro replacement, the likely GPU that will be in it will be almost two years old. Yep must be difficult.
The 4xxx line was new when the 2010 model came out. That leads me to believe they'll put the 7xxx line in the next one.
I think dual processor is just too expensive. The entry point is around $4000 now.
I want it to get back to this sort of thing with a single CPU:
I'm not thrilled with the aesthetics there but that's the general idea. It could have a side access panel again but it creates more superflous design and I like that this doesn't need additional parts to lift it up. The insides can be lifted out from the base so it's more seamless. The space at the bottom is for carrying it and for air flow. When it's flipped upside down, it would just have a 180 twist handle and you pull the insides out. This means you can't open it while it's on.
The current Mac Pro doesn't have hot swappable drives but they could do this from the back similar to Lacie drives if they wanted. I'd rather see dual Fusion drives though and hot swapping isn't so good with that.
When I see ads like this, I like that better than where the Pro is now:
[VIDEO]
It just feels more modern and now it doesn't have to sacrifice any functionality. The ports would be on the back and it would have a proper cooling system. I'd rather see quad 20Gbps TB ports with special connectivity but a single PCIe 3 expansion slot will offer more bandwidth and more hardware support.
The bundled GPU would be a midrange card and you'd have the option to go to the highest-end card.
It would start with 6-core Ivy Bridge EP, 8GB RAM, 1GB 8770 for $2499 (£2049)
It would go up to 10-core, 16GB RAM, 2GB 8970 for $3999 (£3299)
If there is a 12-core, it would go up to that but 10-core IB should be a bit faster than the 12-core from 2010.
We still come back to one issue, what does Apple do about the TB video channel. We could very well see a soldered in GPU. The other option is a custom video card for Apple hardware. Still too expensive. Apple really needs to hit $1500 dollars for a reasonably high performance base model. I'm still thinking Ivy Bridge mainstream in the base box. Now for the higher end machine by all means go for performance.
This highlights an issue Intel ought to address. That is they should come up with a socket that is compatible across multiple device families so that one mother board can run a processor with integrated graphics while the high end board goes for high core CPU density.
New GPU hardware comes out about every 18 months with the outside sitting at two years. 7xxx will be looking long in the tooth if Apple doesn't hurry up. Now admittedly 7xxx performs well even up against NVidia chips that came out months latter, but do you really want to buy a Mac Pro when AMD is just about to release an entirely new chip? Maybe, maybe not! It really depends on your expectations, a very large majority would prefer reliability over newness, however we still have a large element that whines whenever the perceive that Apple is shipping old stuff.
From my perspective it doesn't matter as I'm not interesting in video cards that draw hundreds of watts. Keep it under a hundred watts, (well under?) and ill be happy as long as the chip is OpenCL compatible and does 3D well.
Originally Posted by wizard69
New GPU hardware comes out about every 18 months with the outside sitting at two years. 7xxx will be looking long in the tooth if Apple doesn't hurry up.
Oh, is that not the set about to be released? I thought it was. 8xxx, then, since the next Mac Pro's chips won't be out until about then.
From my perspective it doesn't matter as I'm not interesting in video cards that draw hundreds of watts. Keep it under a hundred watts, (well under?) and ill be happy as long as the chip is OpenCL compatible and does 3D well.
Wish there'd be a breakthrough in GPU tech on the order of what ARM is doing for CPUs to get that down.
I mean, look at the Apple TV. First one was 100 watts. IDLE. The second and third models use 6 watts maximum. That's astonishing, and it doesn't even talk about the heat output! Imagine a GPU innovation that brought power changes like that!
I certainly don't expect this type of offering on the low end model. But high end yeah, why not ? There really are very few players in that space. Apple either ignores them in the new MP or caters to them. We as users don't have too much choice. If I'm doing an ad for broadcast it has to conform to specs, therefore I have to be able to see it in broadcast colour space. This means being able to view it on a broadcast monitor, and so it goes on and on and on. Pro market is as much about third party players as it is about sheer speed and applications. That is Apples problem right there - how to cater and is it worth it ?
I don't know what they'll come up with - but the last things pros need is spaghetti junction x 2 or 3. We already have spaghetti junction. It is a very real issue
Anywhoo, just my 0.02 c
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marvin
I want it to get back to this sort of thing with a single CPU:
Now this isn't 100% perfect, but it's closer to the mark than what we've seen previously.
Bringing back the Cube (in aluminium form) is the perfect tribute to Jobs, while assuring to creatives that the Pro market is still a priority with Apple.
Condemning PCI slots to expansion chassis is a double tribute to Jobs. Wouldn't be as well received, but if the new Cube does have hot-swapping drives from the back and even a hot-swappable power supply for server usage, the response from the market would be interesting to watch.