nhughes

libertykrs said:

Ok, I'll be the first to say it:  why is this on appleinsider aside from the fact that DJI drones are sold in Apple Stores?

StrangeDays said:

Strange headline. There were two different 8 models and they’re more affordable than the X. 

markaceto said:

nhughes said:

racerhomie3 said:

Guys.
What is wrong with a MBP with an external GPU?
Is there a reason I don’t know to why they aren’t so popular.

For me, the biggest rub is you can't drive the eGPU horsepower to the MBP's internal Retina display. And because the only Retina-caliber monitors out there are LG UltraFine models that connect via USB-C and TB3, you can't use those with any eGPU rigs at the moment either, because graphics cards use legacy inputs like HDMI. So eGPU+MBP is fine for a dual-monitor setup, or with a VR headset, but I think dual monitors diminish the appeal of the Touch Bar.

Apple is getting back into the display market, so I imagine we'll see some Retina-caliber displays that connect over TB3, and maybe even have their own integrated eGPUs. Toss in an external Magic Keyboard with Touch Bar, and I'm in -- but I might be asking for too much in 2018.

There are lots of wonderful 4k 32"+ antiglare monitors available now for under $1,000, and they don't require a dongle to use them. The budget GPU in the MBP is fine for driving the internal display. That's what's nice about the eGPU's: they're scalable. You can buy what you need when you need it, and totally upgradable.

GG1 said:

nhughes said:

tenthousandthings said:

This may be a dumb question, but is there any way the mysterious chip could be used to basically run iOS inside or beside macOS?

This would actually be useful for me. There’s an indispensable Chinese data/reference/research tool I use that is iOS only.

Until we know what the chip actually is (which will require an X-ray of it, and someone willing to pony up $5,000 to let their iMac Pro be destroyed), it's impossible to say. Not a dumb question though!

From a user perspective, I don't think we're going to see vanilla iOS apps on the Mac (though the rumor is a unified code base coming in 2018 will make it easier to port and update/enhance iOS apps for the Mac). From a developer perspective, Xcode already emulates running apps on the Mac, and having an A-series coprocessor could be handy for developers.

If it really is an A10 chip, and it's not currently being used for anything in the iMac Pro, then it could be an example of Apple baking hardware in for a future software update. I find that to be unlikely, however, and would imagine that the chip is being used for something already. If it's an A10, that's a pretty beefy chip (more powerful than the T2). iFixit noted the markings found on the mystery chip are different than the A10, so I suspect it may not be an A10 at all. We'll see — I don't think this story is done with yet.

Is there something native to iOS apps that couldn't be emulated with the Mac's Intel chips? I doubt it, but I'm just guessing. There's no FaceID array, so the supposed A10 wouldn't be used for that function -- unless the FaceID array is added to a future peripheral?

BTW, that black PC board finish looks nice.