Apple Considering Switch From Intel Chips in Future Macs

[MacRumors]

Apple is considering dropping Intel CPUs in favor of its own chip design, according to a report from Bloomberg. It was rumored last year that Apple was considering switching from Intel to ARM processors in future laptops.

Apple engineers have grown confident that the chip designs used for its mobile devices will one day be powerful enough to run its desktops and laptops, said three people with knowledge of the work, who asked to remain anonymous because the plans are confidential. Apple began using Intel chips for Macs in 2005.

While Apple is now committed to Intel in computers and is unlikely to switch in the next few years, some engineers say a shift to its own designs is inevitable as the features of mobile devices and PCs become more similar, two people said. Any change would be a blow to Intel, the world's largest processor maker, which has already been hurt by a stagnating market for computers running Microsoft Corp.'s Windows software and its failure to gain a foothold in mobile gadgets.

Apple has recently moved away from using off the shelf chips in its iOS devices in recent years, launching its latest A6 and A6X chips based on custom designs. The company has acquired a number of hardware firms to ramp up its expertise in integrated circuit design.

Apple acquired chip designer P.A. Semi in 2008 for $278 million, ARM specialist Intrinsity in 2010, and most recently, Israeli flash memory firm Anobit earlier this year.

Apple first announced its move to Intel processors back in 2005, dropping PowerPC chips because of issues with power consumption and limited availability of high-performance processors.


Article Link: Apple Considering Switch From Intel Chips in Future Macs

[monokitty]

This could be interesting.

[Consultant]

Of course. Intel's MacBook Air cloning strategy will backfire.

[gotluck]

no more bootcamp?

[kcamfork]

If this is true, I guess my 2012 mbp will be my last Mac...

[silverf1re]

Please don't

[troop231]

Maybe we'll get an ARM powered PowerBook G5

[Purant]

Please no.

I've been through the PPC to Intel transition. It wasn't pretty.

All software through rosetta was VERY slow and it took a couple of years until all the software I needed had a half-decent universal binary version out.

I don't want to go through that again.

[adcx64]

Long live PowerPC!

[iSteve-O]

Not again. Remember When you decided to drop Google Maps and make your own? How did that turn out?

[nickn]

Haha! Apple might as well put a gun to its head. My Pentium 4 from eight or nine years still has a good edge over any mobile CPU. According to Geekbench, the A6X manages to get an impressive score of around 1700. Compare that to the Mac Pro though, which benches scores of over 38000, and I think you can all see a problem. This forum in particular likes to say specs don't matter, but I don't think even you all would be stupid enough to fall for a move like that.

[bbeagle]

Apple did an amazing job switching from Motorola chips to Intel chips. I'm sure the experience Apple had doing this will help in this new move.

It will also allow iOS apps to run on Macs, and vice-versa. This is good and bad in so many different ways.

[nuckinfutz]

This changes EVERYTHING !!

[MacFather]

Originally Posted by kcamfork

If this is true, I guess my 2012 mbp will be my last Mac...

[musio]

Is this a case of users are interested in CPU power and Apple are interesting in money, profit margins and controlling everything? (But CPU speed)

[Prof.]

If this turns out to be the case, I won't be buying from Apple anymore...

[Vol7ron]

The reason I started using Mac's was because of the x86 architecture. If Apple moves away to an ARM based architecture, then i may have to move into linux, back to windows 7, or just stay with my old Mac.

[Cougarcat]

Originally Posted by gotluck

no more bootcamp?

Yeah, that would suck. You could theoretically run Windows RT, but MS isn't selling it on its own, only with tablets. And you wouldn't be able to run any x86 apps, which would pretty much defeat the purpose.

I really hope this doesn't happen.

Originally Posted by bbeagle

It will also allow iOS apps to run on Macs, and vice-versa. This is good and bad in so many different ways.

If this was their primary goal (and I doubt it--Macs and iOS are totally different interfaces) there would be no point in using ARM because iOS apps work on x86 out of the box. When you test an app on the iOS simulator (not an emulator) it's running in an x86 environment.

[nuckinfutz]

Originally Posted by nickn

Haha! Apple might as well put a gun to its head. How will any ARM chip compare to even the oldest and slower Intel cpu? My Pentium 4 still has a large edge over any mobile CPU....

You would need to know what ARM has in the next few years. For that we wait and see.

[I8P'CS]

This is the reason I;m waiting for the 2013 iMacs and beyond, I can sit and wait as I have 2011 Model but like the design of new iMacs besides Apple always bumps things on 2 Gens. Hope this is one of them.

Although the article says they won't change for a few years, hope thats wrong.

[JavaTheHut]

To who's benefit? Not ours

[hathornb]

We already deal with lagging gaming ability as it is, why do we have to have lagging core processors? Not a fan of this at all.

[mc.stever]

Unless they have a way to be able to run windows as well as it is run now in Fusion etc., this will be a very bad idea. Doesn't matter how much power they save etc., the ability to run windows was one of the reasons I came back to the mac.

[Sneakz]

Remember how Apple had x86 OS X being developed alongside PPC OS X? Wouldn't surprise me one bit that Apple has the same going on with ARM

[MacsRgr8]

In related news: "Apple Considering Moving Away from Classic "Personal Computer" Design, focussing on more single-purpose hardware-software-optimised devices (like iPad, iPhone, PS 3, Xbox 360, etc.)

And why not?