Apple's Potential Shift from Intel to ARM for Macs Not Implausible, But Faces Hurdles

[roxxette]

Improve battery = less performance

Its science; more watts = more power

[maccompatible]

Another reason they won't leave intel: their partnership with thunderbolt.

[definitive]

How would this affect one's ability to use Windows through Bootcamp?

[johnnybluejeans]

I have no problem with a move to custom ARM chips as long as they are competitive performance-wise. Look at the power consumption of something like the iPad compared to your PC -- the iPad consumes roughly 1/15th the power. Beyond applying this to home computers and laptops, think about the implications for a server farm. We are moving more and more to "the cloud", but look at what it takes to power and cool these enormous data centers -- it isn't cheap.

If Apple can make chips that perform near Intel levels and consume a fraction of the power it is a no brainer if you ask me.

[WardC]

From what I hear, it's much easier to develop multicore variants of the ARM chips than it is with the intel processors. In other words, Apple could develop a 24-core ARM-based processor that performance-wise totally obliterates anything that any Ivy Bridge processor can do. And Apple will do this. It's not CISC folks, it's RISC. ARM is RISC-based, and yes, it's much-much better.

[STiNG Operation]

Originally Posted by the8thark

Cause if there is a hurdle in the future they won't have the years to design a solution. They'll have to already spent the years making the solution. Ie better to have a solution you never have to use then get caught with your pants down and no immediate solution.

Ahh I get it. So even if they don't switch to ARM they could still have them in their corner down the road. Gotcha. For some reason I was thinking they would just drop intel and switch to ARM immediately

[bharatgupta]

This is an annoying rumor

we should be discussing what the next big thing apple will roll out in 2013, damn the guy who extracted this news

love you intel, reason i love macs

[newdeal]

Originally Posted by roxxette

Improve battery = less performance

Its science; more watts = more power

No, improve battery doesnt mean less performance if you can increase the efficiency. They are making servers with arm cpus now so apple can clearly make it work if they wanted to. Dont think about a macbook air with an A6 think about a macbook air with 10 A6s shruken down to fit in the size of one intel cpu and with no need for cooling (letting them make it thin, then an air becomes the thickness of an ipad but unfolds to have two touchscreens one for display and one for keyboard and trackpad) the technology for all of that would be possible right now

[WardC]

Originally Posted by bharatgupta

This is an annoying rumor

we should be discussing what the next big thing apple will roll out in 2013, damn the guy who extracted this news

love you intel, reason i love macs

You must have missed out on the PowerPC days. They were fun....and the computers felt powerful back then.

[bharatgupta]

Originally Posted by STiNG Operation

Ahh I get it. So even if they don't switch to ARM they could still have them in their corner down the road. Gotcha. For some reason I was thinking they would just drop intel and switch to ARM immediately

it ll be a very slow transition, possibly for "showcase" products like macbook air that might/might not take the form of a touch computer, that is the only product that apple might beta test to consumers, pro pc's will have to wait!

and patently apple has also shared a rumor that apple is indeed testinga new type of notebook with glass input area.

hope that explains

[STiNG Operation]

Originally Posted by Spanky Deluxe

Because they have to keep their options open. Intel's doing great right now but that might not always be the case - the Pentium 4 was an atrocious processor and AMD trumped them in almost every way. These days AMD isn't really much of a contender due to comparatively lacklustre performance. If Intel missteps and spends another 5 years pushing a poor processor, Apple might do well to use a different technology.

I understand now. For some reason was thinking they were doing this immediately. This is good then, it will keep intel on their toes and provide competition to the processor market.

[bharatgupta]

Originally Posted by WardC

You must have missed out on the PowerPC days. They were fun....and the computers felt powerful back then.

history was bad my friend!

[dukebound85]

Originally Posted by WardC

From what I hear, it's much easier to develop multicore variants of the ARM chips than it is with the intel processors. In other words, Apple could develop a 24-core ARM-based processor that performance-wise totally obliterates anything that any Ivy Bridge processor can do. And Apple will do this. It's not CISC folks, it's RISC. ARM is RISC-based, and yes, it's much-much better.

It has benefits over CISC and also big drawbacks at same time:/

You are naive though if you think a RISC based chip can get any where near an ivy bridge processor in performance as a replacement seen in our macs

[longofest]

Honestly, I think this rumor continues to be premature. The gap is just too big. I'm sure there is a skunkworks-like project, kind of like project Marklar, to put ARM in Macs, but we don't know if it will happen or not. With Marklar, it did eventually happen when PowerPC reached the end of its rope. Intel hasn't reached the end of its rope yet, so this will remain a contingency plan for the foreseeable future.

[Acorn]

Im not sure I want a arm chip truth be told. I am hoping this is just to sort of poke the beehive known as intel to produce cooler more energy efficient chips. Apple has pushed this and made it known to intel that its something they want so they can further push the boundaries of design.

[bharatgupta]

Originally Posted by longofest

Honestly, I think this rumor continues to be premature. The gap is just too big. I'm sure there is a skunkworks-like project, kind of like project Marklar, to put ARM in Macs, but we don't know if it will happen or not. With Marklar, it did eventually happen when PowerPC reached the end of its rope. Intel hasn't reached the end of its rope yet, so this will remain a contingency plan for the foreseeable future.

read something about a "new kind of notebook" that apple is testing in its lab on patently apple website, possibly that and macbook air kind of notebook might see such transplants otherwise i too see no reason for apple to switch away from intel cpu's atleast not in coming 5 years.

----------

Originally Posted by Acorn

Im not sure I want a arm chip truth be told. I am hoping this is just to sort of poke the beehive known as intel to produce cooler more energy efficient chips. Apple has pushed this and made it known to intel that its something they want so they can further push the boundaries of design.

that my friend is really bad if intel gets upset by suck "pokes", they do hold a kind of monopoly in good quality cpu's, apple cant push them, they are doing great job.

[johncrab]

I am just not sure the the myopia which would be induced would be good in the long term. Yes, there could be one OS but would that really be a good idea? People buy computers for power and performance and Intel designs chips and little else. Being able to go to the state of the art chip company with some give and take and get a product has to be cheaper and faster than designing chips in-house exclusively for one company's consumption. Economies of scale have to kick in at some point.

[mleary]

Originally Posted by definitive

How would this affect one's ability to use Windows through Bootcamp?

Hah, maybe windows 8 RM could work but desktop Windows versions certainly would not be compatible. Apple might as well get out of the laptop/desktop business if they switch to arm.

[baryon]

Don't think anyone would enjoy having to rewrite every dingle piece of software ever written for the Mac, or else run it in emulation, 20 times slower than if you didn't switch from Intel. The switch from PPC to Intel only just finished completely, a few years ago, when pretty much PCC is no longer supported by anyone. Are we going to have to start all over again, just to get slightly faster computer?

[mr.bee]

What's wrong with striving to an architecture independent platform?
They will have more bargain power, and more choice.

[OllyW]

Originally Posted by Mr Fusion

This would be a very silly move.

Switching to their own chips I could possibly understand, but ARM? Eventually they're going to let them down just like IBM and Intel.

ARM doesn't manufacturer chips, they just license their designs to other companies.

[Sincci]

Originally Posted by Diversion

If ANYTHING happens, Apple will design their own in-house x86/64 CPUs.. Much like AMD is to Intel.

But they cannot do that since it would require a license from Intel for x86(which they don't sell anymore) and license from AMD for x86-64 (which they might sell, but it would be useless without the x86 license since it's just an extension for it).

[roxxette]

Originally Posted by mr.bee

What's wrong with striving to an architecture independent platform?
They will have more bargain power, and more choice.

Not much choice for us thats for sure.

[bharatgupta]

Originally Posted by baryon

Don't think anyone would enjoy having to rewrite every dingle piece of software ever written for the Mac, or else run it in emulation, 20 times slower than if you didn't switch from Intel. The switch from PPC to Intel only just finished completely, a few years ago, when pretty much PCC is no longer supported by anyone. Are we going to have to start all over again, just to get slightly faster computer?

very valid point and its at present that things are kind of stable for software developers and users, such moves will only disturb already healthy and flourishing ecosystem.

[ntux]

I'd bet Apple is currently negotiating some contracts with Intel, and is intentionnaly letting some rumors like these get out so they could pressure them a bit