eMac G5?

[MacRumors]

Engadget posts some unconfirmed reports that Apple is gearing up to release a G5-based eMac "really soon".

Previous rumors pointed to an upcoming update to the entry level Mac.

[Superdrive]

I have been seeing things saying that the next eMac will be more along the lines another G4 revision before moving onto the G5. It sounds like that is the case because the G5 mills are not up to 100% yet. For all we know the G5 eMac could be in the works but there will be a holdover G4. I really do not think anyone knows what is going to happen right now, but that is the fun of the rumor world.

[gekko513]

Unless the low end G5 chips are actually cheaper than the G4s. The G5 chips are manufactured at 90nm, so they get more chips from each wafer, right?

Also, if IBM has some (many) chips left over that are only stable at speeds lower than 1.6GHz, then they would be perfect for an upgraded eMac.

It would seem a bit strange with G5s in the eMac and still G4s in the PBs, but a 1.5GHz G4 is just as fast as a 1.5GHz G5, so I guess it doesn't really matter.

I'm still not sure if I believe this rumor, though ... It seems very vague.

[Makosuke]

Figuring that

A) G5 supplies are very constrained right now, and Apple can't even get enough to fill the iMac orders that are coming in.

B) The pro-level laptop only sports a G4.

C) The eMac is cost over speed, and Apple has so far seemed to try to make sure it wasn't faster than the iMac.

I'm guessing that it's not quite time for a G5 eMac quite yet. I wouldn't be surprised if Apple released one eventually, but I'd expect to see one G4-based update in between. Once the iMac has seen a speedbump and there are enough 1.6GHz G5s to fill eMac orders, they might go there even if they haven't managed to jam a G5 in the Powerbook yet, but I just don't see that happening for a few months yet.

Caveat: If the eMac is selling very well, and they want to have an impressive, cheap computer for the holiday buying season, they might break with tradition.

[trrosen]

actually most reports do say that the G5s are cheaper for Apple than the G4s and the pressure to produce as many 2.0 and 2.5 units as possible is most likley creating a lot of sub 1.8 chips. A 1.4/1.6 GHz eMac would seem reasonable. The only real issue would be eMac going G5 before the PowerBook. Personally I think the it would be worth it to get a lowend G5 out on the market to attract switchers and iPoders (2 million iPods last quarter -- that a lot of potential new apple fanatics).

[Superdrive]

The consumer line (iMac/eMac) will never go G5 before the complete pro line is G5.

-People were saying that is why the iMac would never go G5 before the Powerbook. Well, now we have a G5 iMac and a G4 PB. What is stopping them from doing it to the eMac? Why cripple the rest of the products because the one (PB) can't support the latest tech?

If Apple had an all G5 line, with the exception of laptops, it would be stupid not to release it. If people need mobility, they buy a laptop. I don't think that holding the consumer desktops back from G5 directly kills the G4 laptops.

[joeyboy76]

if Apple does release an eMac G5 soon, i suspect the specs would be as follows:

Combo Drive (799.00)
1.6GHz PowerPC G5
512K L2 cache
533MHz frontside bus
256MB DDR400 SDRAM
NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra
64MB DDR video memory
40GB Serial ATA hard drive
Airport Extreme Ready
Bluetooth built-in option

Superdrive (999.00)

1.6GHz PowerPC G5
512K L2 cache
533MHz frontside bus
256MB DDR400 SDRAM
NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra
64MB DDR video memory
80GB Serial ATA hard drive
Airport Extreme Ready
Bluetooth built-in option

the looks will be the very similar to the current eMac, just the sign "eMac G5" to be on top of the screen.

edit: i think this may be announced on Nov 2. since the Mac + HP printer promo ends on Nov 1.

[BornAgainMac]

I am surprised they don't wait until MacWorld but it's due for an update. Can IBM make enough G5's to meet the demand? They seem to be the bottleneck. The powerbook should get the dual-core G4 running at 2 Ghz or better but not call it a G4 anymore.

[JRM]

You don't know they might release a G5 powerbook and an emac at the same time that would mean that there would be no problem having a the g5 in the emac.

My Specs:

15" and 17" PB Superdrive
1.8GHZ G5
512mb DDR400
Same graphics
Same HD except BTO 100gig

12" Superdrive 12" Combo and 15" Combo
1.4 GHZ G5
256mb DDR400
Same Graphics
Same HD

(Hopefully they get rid of nVidia graphics, don't apple just love the 5200)

EMAC SUPERDRIVE and EMAC COMBO
1.4 GHZ
256mb DDR400
The rest the same

( I reckon everything will be the same price aswell)

[dontmatter]

OK, so yes, it would be way easier to engineer G5 into an emac than the new imacs. And yes, it would be awesome.

But really!!!! No way. No way. That makes the imac line look pathetic all the sudden, and kills the current imac as it is still growing, and just is bad, bad timing relative to the imac, and they're already tight on chips, way tight on chips, and they just made a new computer that uses the chips they're tight on. And, WHO WOULD BUY THE IMAC?!?!?! Doesn't matter if somehow they made more money on the emac, because for apple's name, the imac can't be the flop, and the bottom of the line computer can't be the big hit. Otherwise, apple is just a dell the does a really bad job at it and is overpriced.

my vote-NOT happening. Maybe in the spring, but that's not worthy of a rumor.

[Chaszmyr]

I was thinking about this yesterday during the conference call. I realized that Apple sold a lot more eMacs than I would have expected, and thought that that number would have gone up even higher if the next eMac revision would be packing a G5 processor. However, I'm sure at the moment Apple wants to sell as many G5 iMacs as possible, and with the processors in short supply it would probably be a bad move to divert sales to lower-revenue machines.

In conclusion, I'd like to see it happen in a week or two.. but it will probably be 6 months or more before the eMac gets a G5.

[backspinner]

Nothing wrong with an eMac with a G5 running at 1.5GHz.

[nagromme]

A G5 eMac is inevitable, but I won't try to guess when. I too would be surprised if a G4 option is dropped--G4 power is fine (ask laptop owners) and helps the eMac entry-level price be lower.

Then again, pretty a soon a G4 eMac would have to cost below $800, and Apple's said they're not going there. So maybe Apple figures so many people would opt for the G5 that it's not worth the cost to manufacture eMacs with both processors.

If an eMac G5 appears soon, I expect it to be very limited availability (most G5s going to higher models) UNLESS IBM is really past their troubles. It's possible they are, with the lower speed chips.

[backspinner]

Originally Posted by nagromme

G4 power is fine and helps the eMac entry-level price be lower.

Based on what? What if the bulk price of the G4 is higher than the price of low speed G5 processors? That could well be reality.

[CMYanko]

Originally Posted by BornAgainMac

I am surprised they don't wait until MacWorld... <snip>

There is an Educational Conference next wek that would make sense to unvail a new eMac at. I also wouldn't be surprised if they did something a little flashy and offered colored cases.

Speed bump or G5 I'm sure they'll want to align the hardware with the upcoming tiger release. The guys suggesting the new video card are probably on the mark.

If they do go G5 I'm sure it will to help IBM with their yeilds.

[Wonder Boy]

Originally Posted by Makosuke

B) The pro-level laptop only sports a G4.

i don't see why this matters. we're not comparing two desktops or two laptops. we are looking at 2 totally different markets and target audiences. it makes no sense to me to slow the progress of a DESKTOP so that the LAPTOP line looks better.

im not bashing, but i think the vast majority of people moaning about lower tier desktops having faster chips than high end laptops are being babies. they can't deal with the possibilty that their 3300$ alumunim toy is slower then a bubbly crt. the fact is that faster chips can't be put into the 'book casing. right now thats just the way it is. sorry, but its true.

[Lancetx]

Originally Posted by Superdrive

-People were saying that is why the iMac would never go G5 before the Powerbook. Well, now we have a G5 iMac and a G4 PB. What is stopping them from doing it to the eMac? Why cripple the rest of the products because the one (PB) can't support the latest tech?

I totally agree with you. The G5 is a desktop processor and it may never find it's way into a PowerBook in it's current form. It's been noted many times that it's just too hot for notebook use unless you want a 2 inch thick PB that is anyway. I'm sure a mobile variation of the G5 or something similar will come along at some point in 2005. However, until it's ready, it would be foolish to hold back the eMac just because the PowerBook G5 isn't ready yet. I still think that the next eMac update will be to a 1.5 GHz G4 though, but we all shall see soon hopefully.

[johnnyjibbs]

People have been harping on about G5 PowerBooks ever since the G5 was released. In reality, what they have currently is faster than the 1.2GHz G5 processors everyone was wanting them to have.

The way I see is this. If they have enough G5 chips to put them into eMac, I say they should (although I wouldn't discount Apple shoving in 1.5GHz G4s first). 1.6 or 1.8GHz G5s would suit the eMac fine - give it the same guts as the iMac G5 - after all, it is the CRT version of the iMac.

The PowerBooks will probably stay G4 for a long while yet. I like where the G4 is heading. The G4 is a more than capable chip and is turning out to be the Pentium M of the Apple world. It's more than powerful enough and much less power hungry than a G5. The freescale dual core G4 will fit the bill nicely for the next PowerBook revision. Then iBooks will get 1.33GHz G4s.

Meanwhile, the iMacs, PowerBooks and eMacs will all have G5 processors - these can afford to be more power hungry because they are bigger designs and don't have to worry about battery life. The G5 is Apple's equivalent (or should I say IBM) of the Pentium 4. It is a high clockspeed, low efficiency chip, just a little more efficient than the P4, that's all.

I don't see any problem with having a G4 PB and a G5 eMac - they are only brand names after all. Maybe they will start calling them the PowerBook G4+ or something like that, or even calling these newer chips G5s anyway. I also don't see why a pro can't buy a "consumer" eMac or iMac. If you want all out power, the most grunt you can get, and can afford it, get a dual G5 tower. Otherwise, settle with seomthing less.

[Doraemon]

Originally Posted by joeyboy76

if Apple does release an eMac G5 soon, i suspect the specs would be as follows:

Combo Drive (799.00)
1.6GHz PowerPC G5
512K L2 cache
533MHz frontside bus
256MB DDR400 SDRAM
NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra
64MB DDR video memory
40GB Serial ATA hard drive
Airport Extreme Ready
Bluetooth built-in option

Superdrive (999.00)

1.6GHz PowerPC G5
512K L2 cache
533MHz frontside bus
256MB DDR400 SDRAM
NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra
64MB DDR video memory
80GB Serial ATA hard drive
Airport Extreme Ready
Bluetooth built-in option

Way too similar specs to the iMac. I can see 1.4 GHz G5, but 1.6?

[CTerry]

I doubt it somehow. Right now the iMac G5 provides a nice mid-range machine as a high-end consumer machine, or maybe a pro machine, if the person needs space. The iMac G5 is perfect for educational institutions for example.

I always felt that the eMac was a problem for iMac G4. Why get an iMac when there is an eMac with almost the same specs for a grand less? (During the end of the iMacs life) In fact benchmarks even showed the eMac to be faster. For a grand you were paying for a TFT and a sexy design. Those are nice, but worth a grand?

I fear that an eMac G5 would lead to a similar discontinuity between Apples desktop offerings.

The next machine to get the G5 SHOULD be the PowerBook.

[rendezvouscp]

I don't see Apple releasing the eMac G5 until education buying season in April-June. Maybe a duo release with Tiger? But not right now.
–Chase

[molcas&e'sdad]

I must admit that I am skeptical, but impressed and excited about this possibility. You can't hardly beat a G5 all-in-one for less than $800 ...

My wife and I have been considering an eMac for our kids. I don't know if my ego can handle the kids getting such a fine machine for such a reasonable price ... [we presently have an iMac G4]

[Sol]

If the G5 eMac is about to be released then Motorola/Freescale would want it that way. They would not want to be known for making the slower processors that go into the cheapest Macs. They would prefer to be Apple's only supplier for the portable Macs.

[slu]

I think progress in any area is good. Especially with all the good press Apple is getting now.

That being said, as a new switcher (2 months ago), I would be a bit upset if I could have gotten almost what I got in the iMac G5 for about $1000 less in an eMac. Don't get me wrong, I love the new iMac. However, I can say that I definately would have bought the eMac over the iMac if they both had very similar specs except for CRT/LCD.

[Flying Llama]

I doubt this is going to happen, but after reading this thread anything could happen.