NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 Mac Version Due in June

MacRumors · Apr 30, 2009, 12:37 PM

Engadget reports that a version of NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 285 graphics card for the Mac Pro will be released in June.

Image from Engadget
The GTX 285 is currently NVIDIA's fastest single-processor GPU, offering 240 processing cores and 1 GB of video memory. AnandTech recently reviewed the PC version of the GTX 285 and found that it consistently outperformed the ATI Radeon HD 4870, whose Mac counterpart is currently available as an upgrade for the Mac Pro.

NVIDIA just last week announced the upcoming Quadro FX 4800, offering a professional-level graphics card option for Mac Pro users at a price point of $1799. The GTX 285, however, should provide a significant performance boost over the current standard-level offerings for the Mac Pro at a price point closer to $400.

Article Link: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 Mac Version Due in June

polaris20 · Apr 30, 2009, 12:39 PM

I'd be quite happy to see this happen.

flopticalcube · Apr 30, 2009, 12:40 PM

Cards are appearing a bit quicker for the Mac Pro now.

dlewis23 · Apr 30, 2009, 12:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flopticalcube

Cards are appearing a bit quicker for the Mac Pro now.

Yea, as the % of macs around you will start to see both Nvidia and AMD release graphics cards faster for the mac side.

Bubba Satori · Apr 30, 2009, 12:44 PM

Great news ! Hopefully some more Quadros are on the way, too.

polaris20 · Apr 30, 2009, 12:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flopticalcube

Cards are appearing a bit quicker for the Mac Pro now.

This should have been an option from the beginning for the current MP.

bozz2006 · Apr 30, 2009, 12:44 PM

c'mon, please work with the mac pro classic!

Pugpuppydude · Apr 30, 2009, 12:44 PM

Wow that is one expensive card!

KiraDouji · Apr 30, 2009, 12:45 PM

Dare I get excited that third party video card makers are FINALLY making cards for mac of their own initiative? Or that Apple might finally... encourage it?!

Riemann Zeta · Apr 30, 2009, 12:45 PM

Well, now we know when 10.5.7 will be released.

mmccaskill · Apr 30, 2009, 12:47 PM

Hopefully this can work with Early 2008 Mac Pros.

Pika · Apr 30, 2009, 12:52 PM

No Apple mini-display port again

Eidorian · Apr 30, 2009, 12:53 PM

If there were only more Macs that could use this.

peskaa · Apr 30, 2009, 12:56 PM

I imagine that image is simply a GTX 285 that Engadget found around on the web. The final release may not be a "partner" card (much like the 8800GT is nVidia branded), and may have different ports.

velocityg4 · Apr 30, 2009, 12:56 PM

Good to hear. I am surprised that the graphics card makers have not been quicker about this.

Especially since I think it is likely that a vastly higher percentage of people spending $2000 to $4000+ on a workstation are much more likely to buy a high end graphics card than say people buying $500 computers. It's not like they have to specifically design a card for the Mac. They just need to make drivers and custom firmware for pre-existing cards.

It is really strange to me that the third party vendors have not practiced this long ago. As someone like Sapphire or eVGA would have greatly expanded their market as the sole seller on the Mac side. As opposed to the myriad of companies competing for the gaming market on the Windows side.

This will make the Hackintosh community happy as these drivers are futzed with to get the high end PC counterparts working in OS X.

With high end nVidia and ATI cards available I suppose it will be a matter of weeks until nVidia unleashes the GTX300 series and ATI the HD5000 series. To be available for Mac the following year.

Undecided · Apr 30, 2009, 01:00 PM

What we need is a mini tower, MacPro mini, into which we could put these things, instead of having to shell out serious dough for a full MacPro.

Macmenace · Apr 30, 2009, 01:01 PM

I really, really want to see this be supported by the 2006 Mac Pros!

ChrisA · Apr 30, 2009, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pugpuppydude

Wow that is one expensive card!

Yes. I'm wondering if people will really pay $1700 or even $400 so a video game will run smoother. Kind of nuts if you ask me.

Tallest Skil · Apr 30, 2009, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChrisA

Yes. I'm wondering if people will really pay $1700 or even $400 so a video game will run smoother. Kind of nuts if you ask me.

I hope you realize that the Quadro doesn't exist for games.

flopticalcube · Apr 30, 2009, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChrisA

Yes. I'm wondering if people will really pay $1700 or even $400 so a video game will run smoother. Kind of nuts if you ask me.

$400 is not unreasonable. Many will pay that, especially if they currently have a low-end card and want high-end performance or if these will be able to run on the older Pros.

nxfxcom · Apr 30, 2009, 01:04 PM

Sh.. i just today got the ATI RADEON HD 4870 512MB-ZML delivered!!!!

gazzer82 · Apr 30, 2009, 01:04 PM

I have my fingers crossed that this card only requires 1 of the internal molex connectors for power, unlike the 4870. Otherwise we are limited to one card per machine which for us is a massive problem!!

Also i would love to see this card have 2 x DVI connectors and not the stupid and most importantly non-latching mini displayport connector. I can see the need for it on laptops and imacs, but i really need my connector to not be so easy to accidentally pulled out!!

peskaa · Apr 30, 2009, 01:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gazzer82

I have my fingers crossed that this card only requires 1 of the internal molex connectors for power, unlike the 4870. Otherwise we are limited to one card per machine which for us is a massive problem!!

The GTX 285 requires a 6 and an 8 pin power feed. In other words, one card.

yomibro · Apr 30, 2009, 01:11 PM

$50 more then a 4870 for a GTX285?

Or when they say "closer" they mean more like $499? Can't picture this card costing less then $500 considering that the PC version is already priced at around $310 (with discounts).

kntgsp · Apr 30, 2009, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChrisA

Yes. I'm wondering if people will really pay $1700 or even $400 so a video game will run smoother. Kind of nuts if you ask me.

Well that's about all we need from you to realize you have no idea what you're talking about.

Apr 30, 2009, 12:37 PM	#1
MacRumors macrumors bot Join Date: Apr 2001	NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 Mac Version Due in June Engadget reports that a version of NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 285 graphics card for the Mac Pro will be released in June. Image from Engadget The GTX 285 is currently NVIDIA's fastest single-processor GPU, offering 240 processing cores and 1 GB of video memory. AnandTech recently reviewed the PC version of the GTX 285 and found that it consistently outperformed the ATI Radeon HD 4870, whose Mac counterpart is currently available as an upgrade for the Mac Pro. NVIDIA just last week announced the upcoming Quadro FX 4800, offering a professional-level graphics card option for Mac Pro users at a price point of $1799. The GTX 285, however, should provide a significant performance boost over the current standard-level offerings for the Mac Pro at a price point closer to $400. Article Link: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 Mac Version Due in June

Apr 30, 2009, 12:39 PM	#2
polaris20 macrumors 68000 Join Date: Jul 2008	I'd be quite happy to see this happen. __________________ 2.4Ghz 15" MBP Unibody \| 2.53Ghz 13" MBP Athlon X2 Ubuntu 9.04 \| HP XW4600, C2D Win7 x64 VMWare ESXi 4.0, running several OSes

Apr 30, 2009, 12:40 PM	#3
flopticalcube macrumors 601 Join Date: Sep 2006	Cards are appearing a bit quicker for the Mac Pro now. __________________ iThink therefore iAm.

Apr 30, 2009, 12:47 PM	#11
mmccaskill macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: NC	Hopefully this can work with Early 2008 Mac Pros. __________________ MacPro: 2 x 2.8GHz, 10GB RAM, 2 x 750GB HD in RAID0, 8800GT 30" ACD Uni MacBook Pro, 2.53GHz, 4GB RAM, 250GB 7200RPM

Apr 30, 2009, 12:52 PM	#12
Pika macrumors 68000 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Japan	No Apple mini-display port again __________________ 2009 Apple Workstation

Apr 30, 2009, 12:44 PM	#5
Bubba Satori macrumors 68000 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: B'ham	Great news ! Hopefully some more Quadros are on the way, too.

Apr 30, 2009, 12:44 PM	#7
bozz2006 macrumors 65816 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Minnesota	c'mon, please work with the mac pro classic!

Apr 30, 2009, 12:44 PM	#8
Pugpuppydude macrumors regular Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Utah	Wow that is one expensive card!

Apr 30, 2009, 12:45 PM	#9
KiraDouji macrumors member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: First loop of the Bible Belt D:	Dare I get excited that third party video card makers are FINALLY making cards for mac of their own initiative? Or that Apple might finally... encourage it?!

Apr 30, 2009, 12:45 PM	#10
Riemann Zeta macrumors 6502 Join Date: Feb 2008	Well, now we know when 10.5.7 will be released.

Apr 30, 2009, 12:53 PM	#13
Eidorian macrumors G3 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Indiana	If there were only more Macs that could use this. __________________ MRoogle it! hikari T7500 2.2 GHz / 4 GB / 320 GB / GMA X3100 / 10.5.8 chobimaru Core i5 750 2.66 GHz / 4 GB / 640 GB / 4830 / Windows 7

Apr 30, 2009, 12:56 PM	#14
peskaa macrumors 6502a Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Oxford, UK	I imagine that image is simply a GTX 285 that Engadget found around on the web. The final release may not be a "partner" card (much like the 8800GT is nVidia branded), and may have different ports. __________________ iMac 27"(2009), i7, 2TB, 8GB, 4850 - On Order! MacBook Pro(2008) 2.53 \| 9600 512 \| 4GB \| 320GB 7,200rpm

Apr 30, 2009, 12:56 PM	#15
velocityg4 macrumors 68000 Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Georgia	Good to hear. I am surprised that the graphics card makers have not been quicker about this. Especially since I think it is likely that a vastly higher percentage of people spending $2000 to $4000+ on a workstation are much more likely to buy a high end graphics card than say people buying $500 computers. It's not like they have to specifically design a card for the Mac. They just need to make drivers and custom firmware for pre-existing cards. It is really strange to me that the third party vendors have not practiced this long ago. As someone like Sapphire or eVGA would have greatly expanded their market as the sole seller on the Mac side. As opposed to the myriad of companies competing for the gaming market on the Windows side. This will make the Hackintosh community happy as these drivers are futzed with to get the high end PC counterparts working in OS X. With high end nVidia and ATI cards available I suppose it will be a matter of weeks until nVidia unleashes the GTX300 series and ATI the HD5000 series. To be available for Mac the following year. __________________ Quadra 650 040 33MHz 72MB RAM, 2GB HD, 2x CD PMac G5 Rev B 2x2.0; 2.5GB RAM 600GB RAID 0 Acer Laptop AMD 2800 Home Made PentiumDC 2.5GHz, ATI 4850

Apr 30, 2009, 01:00 PM	#16
Undecided macrumors regular Join Date: Mar 2005	What we need is a mini tower, MacPro mini, into which we could put these things, instead of having to shell out serious dough for a full MacPro.

Apr 30, 2009, 01:01 PM	#17
Macmenace macrumors newbie Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Redmond, WA	I really, really want to see this be supported by the 2006 Mac Pros! __________________ Mac Pro, Two 3GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon, NVIDIA 8800 GT, 7 GB RAM. 15" Macbook Pro, 2.8Ghz Core 2 Duo, NVIDIA 9600 M, 4 GB RAM.

Apr 30, 2009, 01:04 PM	#21
nxfxcom macrumors member Join Date: Jul 2008	Sh.. i just today got the ATI RADEON HD 4870 512MB-ZML delivered!!!!

Apr 30, 2009, 01:04 PM	#22
gazzer82 macrumors regular Join Date: Jul 2008	I have my fingers crossed that this card only requires 1 of the internal molex connectors for power, unlike the 4870. Otherwise we are limited to one card per machine which for us is a massive problem!! Also i would love to see this card have 2 x DVI connectors and not the stupid and most importantly non-latching mini displayport connector. I can see the need for it on laptops and imacs, but i really need my connector to not be so easy to accidentally pulled out!!

Apr 30, 2009, 01:11 PM	#24
yomibro macrumors regular Join Date: Feb 2008	$50 more then a 4870 for a GTX285? Or when they say "closer" they mean more like $499? Can't picture this card costing less then $500 considering that the PC version is already priced at around $310 (with discounts). __________________ MacPro 2008, Octo 2.8 Ghz, 32GB, XFX 4870-XXX 1GB

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