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8-Core Mac Pros have arrived.

Apple Releases 8-core Mac Pro



Apple has released the long-anticipated 8-core Mac Pro. The update keeps current configurations but adds a top of the line 8-core 3 GHz model for $1498 additional beyond the base 2.66 Quad-core model.

MacPro8core_400.png


Interestingly, at the current time the model is only available in the US and Canada, although this may simply reflect a lag time in Apple updating localized versions of Apple's website.

The new model is available for shipping in 3-5 business days for basic configurations from the US Apple Store.
 
apachie2k said:
i'm not quite sure what the diff. is between the 3.0 GHz quad and 8 core... they are 3.0GHz total or each chip, i don't understand
Click to expand...

Simple explanation (which is about the limit of my knowledge anyway):

A "dual core" processor is just like having two separate processors, except they are both on the same chip. Having two processors does not quite make the chip twice as powerful (some power is wasted with the cores talking to eachother) but it's much more powerful than just one chip. These new editions have two "quad core" processors - effectively 8 processors, each 3GHz, all working together.

(As a side note, quad-core is actually slightly better than 4 separate processors as they are on the same chip and can 'talk' to eachother more easily efficiently). :)
 
Very nice, indeed. Granted, I don't have a need beyond my 2.3GHz G5, but then, I didn't need THAT much power when I bought it. :D
 
Starting Out Cheaper

(Forgive me for cross-posing this from another forum, hopefully none of you saw it anyway.)

I feel that many people are going to complain that the prices didn't drop on the current system, but that's because we're in new territory here as Mac users.

Last year Phil got up and told us these things were cheaper than a Dell. That's never happened to us before for a computer at the high-end like this. So understandably we're going to see come confused Mac users today who don't yet understand that when you start OUT witih a lower price, you have much less reason to change it.

Ah well, I do admit to being slightly disappointed myself that nothing else about the machines seemed to have changed. What can we look forward to now? Fall '07?

Although...here's the thing: I want new ones to come out so I can buy a refurbished model of the CURRENT MacPro, just at a lower price. So I even admit to MYSELF that this is the machine I want and that upgrading it WON'T cause me to buy the upgrade. Geez...as much as I hate to admit it, maybe Apple is on the right track here by leaving these things alone.
 
Wow those things are expensive.

Broken record alert!
This just makes me wish even more that there was a MacPro Mini. I know, they want me to buy an iMac, but I don't want an iMac and the MacPro is massive overkill

No built in wireless seems kinda lame, too.
 
Went to the Apple site to see if they updated the mini today (my linux box died two days ago). While 'Yay! 8 cores' it's not exactly what I was hoping for (i.e., an updated mini).

They'll probably delay the mini some more to give the appleTV more time in the spotlight. *sigh*
 
Motley said:
Wow those things are expensive.

Broken record alert!
This just makes me wish even more that there was a MacPro Mini. I know, they want me to buy an iMac, but I don't want an iMac and the MacPro is massive overkill
Click to expand...

I think the time is right for this idea. They've never done it because it would eat into iMac sales. And that's true. It would.

But we're getting to the point where they can afford that. In other words, such a system could hypothetically cut iMac sales in half, but it's ok because they've grown 300% over the last few years anyway. Or something like that. I have no real numbers to back this up but I have to think that over the next 3 years something like what I described COULD happen.

I'd love to see it too.
 
.. and the current quad line is the same price for a year. What a rip..Really questioning Apple at this point. Maybe time to move on. They want super price for a super computer without super parts! Where is more ram, hd space, and good graphics for the $$? Hello?
 
isn't too expensive? If I wanted now I couldn't have it. My budget is for the recomended configuration. :( If I want to upgrade later can I?):mad:


Please GOD, please, let Apple introduce the 4 core iMacs NOW! please!
 
I wonder why they didn't introduce any of the lower end quad cores. Some people would much prefer an octo-2.4GHz than a quad 3GHz
 
Nice, but I was hoping for a bit of a price drop on the dual-core 2.66 and maybe updated displays. They dropped the price of the displays but I'm afraid if I buy a system (w/23 inch display) now, I'll may end up kicking myself in a ccouple of months.
 
Tough price.

I was wondering how power the new Macs consume. I checked my MacPro 2,66 GHz today out of curiosity.

I got

idle 192 Watt and
load 250 Watt.

I bet the new will add some more Watt to that.
 
nickane said:
Where are the blu-ray drives? This update doesn't make sense. I'd like to think that they were waiting for NAB but got sick of all the complaints/dip in sales, so they rushed out the octo as a bto option but this doesn't make sense. There were other features ppl were expecting too, like new graphics cards. I doubt they will drop a new form factor with new features in a fortnight now. They were obviously just waiting to get clovertown to 3 Ghz so that their product line was differentiated enough.
Click to expand...

YES I agree, we need Blu-Ray BTO! HD video editing is stuck until we can easily put HD on a high def supporting DVD (be in either format) and an Apple built in solution is always the safer route in my experience. It has to be coming soon. Maybe this is an interim Mac Pro until Leopard release... ? (So they can use up old cases maybe: lol) Maybe NAB is the release of ... One More Thing ... A new Mac Pro for video with Blu-Ray.
 
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