Apple intros new Mac Pro with "Nehalem" Xeon processors
Apple on Tuesday introduced its new Mac Pro workstations using Intel's "Nehalem" Xeon processors and an updated system architecture that delivers twice the performance of the previous model.
"The new Mac Pro is a significant upgrade and starts at $300 less than before," said Apple senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing Phil Schiller. "The Mac Pro features an advanced system architecture, new faster processors and our best-ever graphics options to deliver a faster, more powerful system that our professional customers are going to love."
The new machine starts at $2,499 with 2.66GHz Intel Xeon processors with integrated memory controllers. Three channels of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC memory increase memory bandwidth 2.4 times while lowering memory latency up to 40 percent.
Apple promises three times greater video performance with the NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics card with 512MB of dedicated GDDR3 memory. An ATI Radeon HD 4870 is available as a custom option, and the Mac Pro has a Mini DisplayPort and DVI port, meaning it can support Apple's new LED Cinema Display as well as existing DVI based models including the 30-inch Apple Cinema HD Display.
Other features include:
Four direct-attach cable-free hard drive carriersCapable of up to 4TB internal storageMac Pro RAID card optionalExceeds current Energy Star 4.0 and future Energy Star 5.0 requirementsHighly recyclable aluminum enclosureInterior designed to be more material-efficientPVC-free internal cables and componentsNo brominated flame retardantsAchieves EPEAT Gold status
Specifications
Quad-core Mac Pro ($2,499):
one 2.66 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 3500 series processors with 8MB of L3 cache3GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory, expandable up to 8GBNVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics with 512MB of GDDR3 memory640GB Serial ATA 3GB/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm18x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)Mini DisplayPort and DVI (dual-link) for video output (adapters sold separately)four PCI Express 2.0 slotsfive USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 portsBluetooth 2.1+EDRShips with Apple Keyboard with numerical keypad and Mighty Mouse
8-core Mac Pro ($3,299):
two 2.26 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5500 series processors with 8MB of shared L3 cache6GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory, expandable up to 32GBNVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics with 512MB of GDDR3 memory640GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm18x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)Mini DisplayPort and DVI (dual-link) for video output (adapters sold separately)four PCI Express 2.0 slotsfive USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 portsBluetooth 2.1+EDRShips with Apple Keyboard with numerical keypad and Mighty Mouse
Build to order options and accessories:
One 2.93 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon processor for the quad-core Mac ProTwo 2.66 GHz or two 2.93 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon processors for the 8-core Mac ProUp to 8GB for the quad-core Mac Pro, up to 32GB for the 8-core Mac Pro of 1066MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memoryUp to four 1TB Serial ATA hard drives running at 7200 rpmMac Pro RAID cardUp to two 18x SuperDrives with double-layer supportATI Radeon HD 4870 graphics with 512MB of GDDR5 memoryAirPort Extreme(R) 802.11nApple KeyboardApple Wireless KeyboardApple Wireless Mighty MouseMac OS X Server Leopard
Pricing and Availability
The new Mac Pro will be available next week through the online Apple Store, Apple Retail Stores, and authorized resellers.
The new quad-core Mac Pro is priced at $2,499 while the 8-core model starts at $3,299.
"The new Mac Pro is a significant upgrade and starts at $300 less than before," said Apple senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing Phil Schiller. "The Mac Pro features an advanced system architecture, new faster processors and our best-ever graphics options to deliver a faster, more powerful system that our professional customers are going to love."
The new machine starts at $2,499 with 2.66GHz Intel Xeon processors with integrated memory controllers. Three channels of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC memory increase memory bandwidth 2.4 times while lowering memory latency up to 40 percent.
Apple promises three times greater video performance with the NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics card with 512MB of dedicated GDDR3 memory. An ATI Radeon HD 4870 is available as a custom option, and the Mac Pro has a Mini DisplayPort and DVI port, meaning it can support Apple's new LED Cinema Display as well as existing DVI based models including the 30-inch Apple Cinema HD Display.
Other features include:
Four direct-attach cable-free hard drive carriersCapable of up to 4TB internal storageMac Pro RAID card optionalExceeds current Energy Star 4.0 and future Energy Star 5.0 requirementsHighly recyclable aluminum enclosureInterior designed to be more material-efficientPVC-free internal cables and componentsNo brominated flame retardantsAchieves EPEAT Gold status
Specifications
Quad-core Mac Pro ($2,499):
one 2.66 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 3500 series processors with 8MB of L3 cache3GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory, expandable up to 8GBNVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics with 512MB of GDDR3 memory640GB Serial ATA 3GB/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm18x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)Mini DisplayPort and DVI (dual-link) for video output (adapters sold separately)four PCI Express 2.0 slotsfive USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 portsBluetooth 2.1+EDRShips with Apple Keyboard with numerical keypad and Mighty Mouse
8-core Mac Pro ($3,299):
two 2.26 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5500 series processors with 8MB of shared L3 cache6GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory, expandable up to 32GBNVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics with 512MB of GDDR3 memory640GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm18x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)Mini DisplayPort and DVI (dual-link) for video output (adapters sold separately)four PCI Express 2.0 slotsfive USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 portsBluetooth 2.1+EDRShips with Apple Keyboard with numerical keypad and Mighty Mouse
Build to order options and accessories:
One 2.93 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon processor for the quad-core Mac ProTwo 2.66 GHz or two 2.93 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon processors for the 8-core Mac ProUp to 8GB for the quad-core Mac Pro, up to 32GB for the 8-core Mac Pro of 1066MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memoryUp to four 1TB Serial ATA hard drives running at 7200 rpmMac Pro RAID cardUp to two 18x SuperDrives with double-layer supportATI Radeon HD 4870 graphics with 512MB of GDDR5 memoryAirPort Extreme(R) 802.11nApple KeyboardApple Wireless KeyboardApple Wireless Mighty MouseMac OS X Server Leopard
Pricing and Availability
The new Mac Pro will be available next week through the online Apple Store, Apple Retail Stores, and authorized resellers.
The new quad-core Mac Pro is priced at $2,499 while the 8-core model starts at $3,299.
Comments
Apple on Tuesday introduced its new Mac Pro workstations using Intel's "Nehalem" Xeon processors and an updated system architecture that delivers twice the performance of the previous model.
"The new Mac Pro is a significant upgrade and starts at $300 less than before," said Apple senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing Phil Schiller. "The Mac Pro features an advanced system architecture, new faster processors and our best-ever graphics options to deliver a faster, more powerful system that our professional customers are going to love."
The new machine starts at $2,499 with 2.66GHz Intel Xeon processors with integrated memory controllers. Three channels of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC memory increase memory bandwidth 2.4 times while lowering memory latency up to 40 percent.
Apple promises three times greater performance with the NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics card with 512MB of GDDR3 memory. An ATI Radeon HD 4870 is available as a custom option, and the Mac Pro has a Mini DisplayPort and DVI port, meaning it can support Apple's new LED Cinema Display as well as existing DVI based models including the 30-inch Apple Cinema HD Display.
Other features include:
Four direct-attach cable-free hard drive carriers
Capable of up to 4TB internal storage
Mac Pro RAID card optional
Exceeds current Energy Star 4.0 and future Energy Star 5.0 requirements
Highly recyclable aluminum enclosure
Interior designed to be more material-efficient
PVC-free internal cables and components
No brominated flame retardants
Achieves EPEAT Gold status
Specifications
Quad-core Mac Pro ($2,499):
one 2.66 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 3500 series processors with 8MB of L3 cache
3GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory, expandable up to 8GB
NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics with 512MB of GDDR3 memory
640GB Serial ATA 3GB/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm
18x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)
Mini DisplayPort and DVI (dual-link) for video output (adapters sold separately)
four PCI Express 2.0 slots
five USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 ports
Bluetooth 2.1+EDR
Ships with Apple Keyboard with numerical keypad and Mighty Mouse
8-core Mac Pro ($3,299):
two 2.26 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5500 series processors with 8MB of shared L3 cache
6GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory, expandable up to 32GB
NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics with 512MB of GDDR3 memory
640GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm
18x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)
Mini DisplayPort and DVI (dual-link) for video output (adapters sold separately)
four PCI Express 2.0 slots
five USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 ports
Bluetooth 2.1+EDR
Ships with Apple Keyboard with numerical keypad and Mighty Mouse
Build to order options and accessories:
One 2.93 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon processor for the quad-core Mac Pro
Two 2.66 GHz or two 2.93 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon processors for the 8-core Mac Pro
Up to 8GB for the quad-core Mac Pro, up to 32GB for the 8-core Mac Pro of 1066MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory
Up to four 1TB Serial ATA hard drives running at 7200 rpm
Mac Pro RAID card
Up to two 18x SuperDrives with double-layer support
ATI Radeon HD 4870 graphics with 512MB of GDDR5 memory
AirPort Extreme(R) 802.11n
Apple Keyboard
Apple Wireless Keyboard
Apple Wireless Mighty Mouse
Mac OS X Server Leopard
Pricing and Availability
The new Mac Pro will be available next week through the online Apple Store, Apple Retail Stores, and authorized resellers.
The new quad-core Mac Pro is priced at $2,499 while the 8-core model starts at $3,299.
[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]
Is this machine really worth its price tag compaired to the previous '8-cores as standard' generation?
Personally, i think not.
One interesting thing is they completely took out ANY professional graphics card options. I do some work with CUDA and the gt 120 (rebranded 9500 from what I understand) is a downgrade from the 8800 I think. I would go for the ATI product but no CUDA.
Both limited to 8GB of memory.
iMac includes display.
Mac Pro is expandable with video and disks.
My personal feeling is: buy the iMac and buy a new one in 2 years instead of expanding your Mac Pro. Especially as you will be able to sell your used iMac for $1000 USD.
The updates should have been out about 8 months ago, this is nothing big.
Aren't these chips brand new ones? Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought these chips didn't EXIST eight months ago.
$2500 for a Mac Pro or $2200 for an iMac.
Both limited to 8GB of memory.
iMac includes display.
Mac Pro is expandable with video and disks.
My personal feeling is: buy the iMac and buy a new one in 2 years instead of expanding your Mac Pro. Especially as you will be able to sell your used iMac for $1000 USD.
You can upgrade the Mac Pro to 32GB of memory, not 8GB.
Maybe this is their intention.
I'm really shocked about the prices. You can buy or build a faster Core i7 for half that. And only 8GB of RAM? Even the 4 slot Intel board supports up to 16GB. I think you can probably put in 4GB DIMMs in there and get 16GB. I hope.
Would have been a good update if not for massive price increases.
Bingo. Five hundred bucks more for eight cores, and Apple is flat out lying to say the cheapest model dropped $300 - there was already a BTO quad at that price, and comparing to the old $2799 model is bogus when it's a downgrade to HALF the cores.
Huge disappointment, I was planning on buying one of these the second they were announced because I never expected a gigantic price increase. Now I have to think long and hard - I have to admit a hackintosh is looking pretty good right now.
So is there a price drop on the previous gen quads? I don't see them listed on apple's website.
You can upgrade the Mac Pro to 32GB of memory, not 8GB.
I think he's referring to the single CPU model.
I know I do
The stock 4-core Mac Pro seems like a slamming machine for the same price...
Maybe this upgrade is meant to make those who already bought a MacPro feel better...
I know I do
Yes, I do too!