On another note, I'm a bit frustrated that Apple went halfway with Express 2, offering just 2 Express 2 slots, with the others being Ex[ress 1 slots. I'd like to find out just what this means for the overall throughput of the machine.
I had decided that if Apple went to Express 2 this time, I would get the machine now (though I was hoping for a new case, eSATA port, etc, as well).
Also the range of graphics cards.
But, now I don't know what to think. It's not like Apple to go halfway with a new bus. I guess we'll see more when the store is back online shortly.
Given Apple's recent cycles for the Mac Pro, you would be left waiting for a year (minimum) before seeing another version of the Mac Pro.
I don't think anyone got everything they wanted with this update, but I will be buying it. I cannot wait for another year and there are significant enough upgrades in this version to keep me from buying a used or refurbished last gen Mac Pro.
Given Apple's recent cycles for the Mac Pro, you would be left waiting for a year (minimum) before seeing another version of the Mac Pro.
I don't think anyone got everything they wanted with this update, but I will be buying it. I cannot wait for another year and there are significant enough upgrades in this version to keep me from buying a used or refurbished last gen Mac Pro.
When Nehalem comes out, supposedly in the 3rd quarter of this year, Apple will be required to make a massive makeover of the internals of the machine, at least.
At that time Express 2 should be completely supported, and I would expect a new case to mark that major shift. This case will be 4 years old, and that's pretty old.
Nehalem, its supporting chipset, and full support of Express 2, will also allow for more lanes, giving more options in video, among others.
I am reckoning 6 months for Bluray, with burnings support. Reasoning:
- reduced cost
- provides more value as a backup solution
- not enough titles are on Bluray at this point, to validate eating into the profit margin
If it does come before, then I would imagine it will be a BTO option, forcing the cost on the user.
As a point of note, the Samsung SH-B022, which was announced at the beginning of 2006, due April 2006, was marked at $500. Looking at one one online store (first hit with Google), the current (Jan 2008) price range is $466 - $980.
I hope all the new cards are available separately, but I only care about the lower two models, I don't know which I'd go for. I guess passive GPU cooling is gone now, but the lower model can do 2x 30".
Not sure if this is the first time Apple has announced something so close to MacExpo, but this isn't like them???
I would agree with others who say ? we must be in for a treat, but Steve's still going to speak for a while, and what will he talk about, now that it won't be (much ) about these???
- Smaller, Consumer models?
- Apple TV (how much time can he spend here?
- iPhone, iPod updates (recent or most recent - how much time here?
- Apples growth ?
- Apples Finances ?
- Software Applications ?
- NEW iMac's?
- Something NEW for Apple ? what might this be?
- iTunes, Rental services, new music, new movies?
Some of this will be boring and a real let down, if this is what MacExpo will be about
We have to figure Steve has been doing trail runs of his speech, and he determined, in the time slot, he couldn't get EVERYTHING in, so let's announce some stuff now, and the NEW, EXCITING stuff at the expo ? here's hoping.
Price increased to $2800. Enough room between consumer and pro to fit in a mid-range tower or otherwise-desktop mac.
- Xidius
That is what I thought, too.
I expect the keynote to be filled with more than one new device now that the mac Pro and Xserve have been updated. I wonder what booth people will be crowding around today at CES?
I hope all the new cards are available separately, but I only care about the lower two models, I don't know which I'd go for. I guess passive GPU cooling is gone now, but the lower model can do 2x 30".
8 cores is good. It's something that will make these machines more future proof.
It will take more time to have most apps use more than two cpu's. Meanwhile, multitasking has never been more efficient.
In two years, when PS finally uses 4 or 8 cores, it will run several times faster than now, without the purchase of a new machine. Other apps will also be more effective.
In the long run, it will be cheaper to have bought an 8 core machine, and skipped an upgrade cycle.
I expect the keynote to be filled with more than one new device now that the mac Pro and Xserve have been updated. I wonder what booth people will be crowding around today at CES?
We don't yet know what the lowest priced machine in this series is yet. Apple hasn't opened the store.
That's something I don't understand. They know what they are putting up. One would think that they have it ready, and would just need to push a button.
We don't yet know what the lowest priced machine in this series is yet. Apple hasn't opened the store.
That's something I don't understand. They know what they are putting up. One would think that they have it ready, and would just need to push a button.
They might be doing some testing to make sure it's correct, but I think Apple does it this way to create hype. I'd say it's effective marketing.
I expect the keynote to be filled with more than one new device now that the mac Pro and Xserve have been updated. I wonder what booth people will be crowding around today at CES?
I wouldn't bet on it myself.
The single CPU 2.8Ghz MacPro is £320 less than the dual. £1429 inc VAT here in the UK. Dual is £1749.
Soon we'll all be using iPhone, iTVs and iFridges.
And just like Phones, TVs and Fridges before, these devices will come out of a box, work instantly and get replaced in a multi-year cycle.
If Apple ever had plans to make a medium tower, it was 10 years ago.
Times have changed. Lets move on.
Have you never wondered why most electrical appliances start cracking up after five years ? My parents gear lasted tens of years mine seems to follow the product cycle of PC manufacturers - so your guess if the iFridge is probably not too far fetched :-)
I'm unimpressed. Not by Apple but by Penryn. When you look at official benchmarks , in 3D and video apps , 3.2Ghz Penryn is only 10% faster than previous 3.0Ghz 8core. So if you take into account 200Mhz extra Penryn is sporting , clock for clock it's probably exactly same performace. (i'm not talking about performace per watt or per $$$)
Have you never wondered why most electrical appliances start cracking up after five years ? My parents gear lasted tens of years mine seems to follow the product cycle of PC manufacturers - so your guess if the iFridge is probably not too far fetched :-)
If you want apple quality fridge/freezers, buy Northland:
When Nehalem comes out, supposedly in the 3rd quarter of this year, Apple will be required to make a massive makeover of the internals of the machine, at least.
At that time Express 2 should be completely supported, and I would expect a new case to mark that major shift. This case will be 4 years old, and that's pretty old.
Nehalem, its supporting chipset, and full support of Express 2, will also allow for more lanes, giving more options in video, among others.
I would expect eSATA by then as well.
You could be right, but I expect it will be about this time next year before we see another Mac Pro update. I don't have the luxury of waiting any longer and this machine should meet my needs for several years to come so I'm buying next week after all other products are introduced. I am hoping for new displays as well.
Quote:
Originally Posted by suhail
The Apple Store is being updated. It would really be funny if someone confused this Tuesday with next Tuesday and is updating the Store.
Store is up and it is a $500 discount if you go with the single 2.8 GHz xeon.
On another note, I'm a bit frustrated that Apple went halfway with Express 2, offering just 2 Express 2 slots, with the others being Express 1 slots. I'd like to find out just what this means for the overall throughput of the machine.
that is the limit of the intel chip set.
AMD / ATI and NVIDIA AMD chipset as FULL pci-e 2.0.
also $800 for a raid card with only 4 ports??
you get severs board with on board hardware raid for about $100 more then the non sever one.
I wonder if the single CPU 2.8GHz has the exact same innards as the rest of the BTO line?
That is, with 2 sockets, same amount of RAM and PCI-E slots?
That looks like a decent option for most graphics pros and can be later on upgraded to dual CPUs if need be.
Once again, what Apple is asking for the memory upgrade is quite steep.
I wonder if the machines can accept standard 800Mhz FB-DIMMs (say from Kingston ValueRam line). These are much cheaper than Apple BTO options.
BTW, even with 1600Mhz bus, and two separate dual channel memory pathways, 2 x quad core is still memory starved in some highly RAM bound operations. That won't be fixed until merom and it's new platform arrives (maybe this year on paper, but it won't be until Q1/2009 earliest before it ships through Apple).
Comments
On another note, I'm a bit frustrated that Apple went halfway with Express 2, offering just 2 Express 2 slots, with the others being Ex[ress 1 slots. I'd like to find out just what this means for the overall throughput of the machine.
I had decided that if Apple went to Express 2 this time, I would get the machine now (though I was hoping for a new case, eSATA port, etc, as well).
Also the range of graphics cards.
But, now I don't know what to think. It's not like Apple to go halfway with a new bus. I guess we'll see more when the store is back online shortly.
Given Apple's recent cycles for the Mac Pro, you would be left waiting for a year (minimum) before seeing another version of the Mac Pro.
I don't think anyone got everything they wanted with this update, but I will be buying it. I cannot wait for another year and there are significant enough upgrades in this version to keep me from buying a used or refurbished last gen Mac Pro.
Yesterday you could buy a four processor 2.66 for $2,499
Today you get an eight processor 2.8 for $2,799
That's only an extra $300. Awesome.
By the way, yesterday it cost $4,000 for a eight core 3.0
2.8 will be just fine for me.
Given Apple's recent cycles for the Mac Pro, you would be left waiting for a year (minimum) before seeing another version of the Mac Pro.
I don't think anyone got everything they wanted with this update, but I will be buying it. I cannot wait for another year and there are significant enough upgrades in this version to keep me from buying a used or refurbished last gen Mac Pro.
When Nehalem comes out, supposedly in the 3rd quarter of this year, Apple will be required to make a massive makeover of the internals of the machine, at least.
At that time Express 2 should be completely supported, and I would expect a new case to mark that major shift. This case will be 4 years old, and that's pretty old.
Nehalem, its supporting chipset, and full support of Express 2, will also allow for more lanes, giving more options in video, among others.
I would expect eSATA by then as well.
- reduced cost
- provides more value as a backup solution
- not enough titles are on Bluray at this point, to validate eating into the profit margin
If it does come before, then I would imagine it will be a BTO option, forcing the cost on the user.
As a point of note, the Samsung SH-B022, which was announced at the beginning of 2006, due April 2006, was marked at $500. Looking at one one online store (first hit with Google), the current (Jan 2008) price range is $466 - $980.
I think it's a bit much to go all-8 core.
I hope all the new cards are available separately, but I only care about the lower two models, I don't know which I'd go for. I guess passive GPU cooling is gone now, but the lower model can do 2x 30".
I am reckoning 6 months for Bluray, with burnings support. Reasoning:
- reduced cost
- provides more value as a backup solution
- not enough titles are on Bluray at this point, to validate eating into the profit margin
If it does come before, then I would imagine it will be a BTO option, forcing the cost on the user.
Burning support is nothing. That'a available now through Toast, or LaCie's own software.
It's the movie playback that must be recognized by the OS, and supposedly, only Apple can do that effectively.
But, playback would be much cheaper than even the $500 you can get a 4x BD burner (internal) for now.
I would agree with others who say ? we must be in for a treat, but Steve's still going to speak for a while, and what will he talk about, now that it won't be (much ) about these???
- Smaller, Consumer models?
- Apple TV (how much time can he spend here?
- iPhone, iPod updates (recent or most recent - how much time here?
- Apples growth ?
- Apples Finances ?
- Software Applications ?
- NEW iMac's?
- Something NEW for Apple ? what might this be?
- iTunes, Rental services, new music, new movies?
Some of this will be boring and a real let down, if this is what MacExpo will be about
We have to figure Steve has been doing trail runs of his speech, and he determined, in the time slot, he couldn't get EVERYTHING in, so let's announce some stuff now, and the NEW, EXCITING stuff at the expo ? here's hoping.
Skip
Price increased to $2800. Enough room between consumer and pro to fit in a mid-range tower or otherwise-desktop mac.
- Xidius
That is what I thought, too.
I expect the keynote to be filled with more than one new device now that the mac Pro and Xserve have been updated. I wonder what booth people will be crowding around today at CES?
Power up to eight 30" displays. Wow.
I think it's a bit much to go all-8 core.
I hope all the new cards are available separately, but I only care about the lower two models, I don't know which I'd go for. I guess passive GPU cooling is gone now, but the lower model can do 2x 30".
8 cores is good. It's something that will make these machines more future proof.
It will take more time to have most apps use more than two cpu's. Meanwhile, multitasking has never been more efficient.
In two years, when PS finally uses 4 or 8 cores, it will run several times faster than now, without the purchase of a new machine. Other apps will also be more effective.
In the long run, it will be cheaper to have bought an 8 core machine, and skipped an upgrade cycle.
That is what I thought, too.
I expect the keynote to be filled with more than one new device now that the mac Pro and Xserve have been updated. I wonder what booth people will be crowding around today at CES?
We don't yet know what the lowest priced machine in this series is yet. Apple hasn't opened the store.
That's something I don't understand. They know what they are putting up. One would think that they have it ready, and would just need to push a button.
We don't yet know what the lowest priced machine in this series is yet. Apple hasn't opened the store.
That's something I don't understand. They know what they are putting up. One would think that they have it ready, and would just need to push a button.
They might be doing some testing to make sure it's correct, but I think Apple does it this way to create hype. I'd say it's effective marketing.
That is what I thought, too.
I expect the keynote to be filled with more than one new device now that the mac Pro and Xserve have been updated. I wonder what booth people will be crowding around today at CES?
I wouldn't bet on it myself.
The single CPU 2.8Ghz MacPro is £320 less than the dual. £1429 inc VAT here in the UK. Dual is £1749.
On the medium tower myth
There is no future for user-serviced PCs.
Soon we'll all be using iPhone, iTVs and iFridges.
And just like Phones, TVs and Fridges before, these devices will come out of a box, work instantly and get replaced in a multi-year cycle.
If Apple ever had plans to make a medium tower, it was 10 years ago.
Times have changed. Lets move on.
Have you never wondered why most electrical appliances start cracking up after five years ? My parents gear lasted tens of years mine seems to follow the product cycle of PC manufacturers - so your guess if the iFridge is probably not too far fetched :-)
Have you never wondered why most electrical appliances start cracking up after five years ? My parents gear lasted tens of years mine seems to follow the product cycle of PC manufacturers - so your guess if the iFridge is probably not too far fetched :-)
If you want apple quality fridge/freezers, buy Northland:
http://www.northlandnka.com/
(not affiliated, but I own the 72" fridge freezer combo, and it kicks sub-zero ass)
If you want apple quality fridge/freezers, buy Northland:
http://www.northlandnka.com/
(not affiliated, but I own the 72" fridge freezer combo, and it kicks sub-zero ass)
Fridge? That looks more like a small apartment.
When Nehalem comes out, supposedly in the 3rd quarter of this year, Apple will be required to make a massive makeover of the internals of the machine, at least.
At that time Express 2 should be completely supported, and I would expect a new case to mark that major shift. This case will be 4 years old, and that's pretty old.
Nehalem, its supporting chipset, and full support of Express 2, will also allow for more lanes, giving more options in video, among others.
I would expect eSATA by then as well.
You could be right, but I expect it will be about this time next year before we see another Mac Pro update. I don't have the luxury of waiting any longer and this machine should meet my needs for several years to come so I'm buying next week after all other products are introduced. I am hoping for new displays as well.
The Apple Store is being updated. It would really be funny if someone confused this Tuesday with next Tuesday and is updating the Store.
Store is up and it is a $500 discount if you go with the single 2.8 GHz xeon.
On another note, I'm a bit frustrated that Apple went halfway with Express 2, offering just 2 Express 2 slots, with the others being Express 1 slots. I'd like to find out just what this means for the overall throughput of the machine.
that is the limit of the intel chip set.
AMD / ATI and NVIDIA AMD chipset as FULL pci-e 2.0.
also $800 for a raid card with only 4 ports??
you get severs board with on board hardware raid for about $100 more then the non sever one.
That is, with 2 sockets, same amount of RAM and PCI-E slots?
That looks like a decent option for most graphics pros and can be later on upgraded to dual CPUs if need be.
Once again, what Apple is asking for the memory upgrade is quite steep.
I wonder if the machines can accept standard 800Mhz FB-DIMMs (say from Kingston ValueRam line). These are much cheaper than Apple BTO options.
BTW, even with 1600Mhz bus, and two separate dual channel memory pathways, 2 x quad core is still memory starved in some highly RAM bound operations. That won't be fixed until merom and it's new platform arrives (maybe this year on paper, but it won't be until Q1/2009 earliest before it ships through Apple).