Apple Hires ARM's Lead CPU Architect Amid Rumors of ARM-Based Macs as Early as 2020

[fourthtunz]

End of Hackintosh era is upon us.

I for one won't mind not hearing "I can build a faster cheaper Mac"

 

[mi7chy]

That's what I'm wondering. They're going to come out with a $4000+ 16" Intel Mac this fall then quickly follow it up with an ARM based Mac? What about the people who spend $12,000 on the Mac Pro?

Or is ARM only coming to the lower-end Macs?

Just follow industry trends. ARM as a x86-64 replacement is targeted primarily at mobile laptop and hybrid (Surface like) devices like Windows on ARM devices. ARM as high end workstation replacement is far out in the future so nothing to worry about yet.

 

[McScooby]

Arm based macs with an intel co-processor for those that need it, would that work?

 

[canonical]

Thing is, why wouldn't Apple, at the very least, be considering an ARM transition? .

Because it is a profoundly stupid idea that will invoke a huge amount of headaches, and achieve nothing other than declining sales. Moreover, Apple has tried it before (remember PowerPC) and unless it is going to be 10 or 20 times faster, no-one will notice the speed difference, and there will just be a bag of mess.

 

[iZac]

Long live the iBook!

 

[rodpascoe]

Because it is a profoundly stupid idea that will invoke a huge amount of headaches, and achieve nothing other than declining sales. Moreover, Apple has tried it before (remember PowerPC) and unless it is going to be 10 or 20 times faster, no-one will notice the speed difference, and there will just be a bag of mess.

Nonsense. Also, what do you mean "remember PowerPC" ? Apple made their name and gained their reputation WHILST being on PowerPC.

 

[AxiomaticRubric]

LOL @ ARM based Macs. Why would any professional that requires a fast CPU move from Intel to ARM?

Why are you assuming that Apple can’t design a desktop-class ARM chip? Even if you don’t like the idea you can’t argue that they don’t have the resources to pull it off.

 

[product26]

End of Hackintosh era is upon us.

Let's not forget about Raspberry Pi. There is still hope on the consumer level.

I will say that as they blur the line between IOS and Mac OS I am uncertain about my future as a mac user in general.

 

[fokmik]

Arm will be for 12" Macbook, Macbook Air and base mac mini and 21" imac
Maybe after 10 years....after developers adopt these....than Apple will put macbook pro , high imac and imac pro...and probably after 15 years if the mac pro still lives...

 

[andiwm2003]

could be good for consumer type users like me if the ARM chips really perform well. I use safari, MS Office, Netflix, iTunes, iMovie, Youtube, Pixelmator, basically Apple's standard apps and such.
I would like to have a very fast machine for those apps. I don't use it for gaming. So apple could make a cool running machine that is optimized for the software I use.
Then they could have a parallel line of Mac's for Pro user. In some sense they already have the iMac Pro and the Mac Pro that I as a consumer would never buy. However the key software would have to be cross compatible and that is usually an issue (looking at you Adobe).

 

[MrRabuf]

Face it folks, the industry is moving more and more towards ARM and away from x86 and Apple/MacOS isn't the only one. Even Microsoft is considering using ARMs in their Surface Pros. It's especially clear that Apple is going this route. That's probably the main reason they started Project Catalyst.

I'm curious to see how an ARM-powered Mac (and one with a real desktop-class processor with active cooling and whatnot) could do against a typical Intel powered computer.

 

[bluecoast]

At this point it would be more surprising if we don’t see ARM based Macs.

I suspect that every line apart from the Mac Pro will be ARM based within two years time, starting with the MacBook and iMac.

We can probably expect a time when Apple will sell both intel and ARM Macs for those who can’t/won’t make the initial jump, with the Air being the last of its kind (the MacBook will be the mobile Mac that Apple always wanted to make). And the ARM MBP will shock people with how fast it is when it arrives (my bet: WWDC 2021).

And even the Mac Pro will eventually go ARM.

And I wonder if they need this guy’s skills to power the chips in AVR glasses and automotive systems? I suspect that they do.

 

[JoeG4]

I'm kinda dreading this, and kinda looking forward to it.

 

[Kaibelf]

This has everything to do with A series architecture leader leaving earlier this year, and nothing to do with your fantasy on Macs.

Interesting standpoint, as MS is also playing around with Windows on ARM.

 

[ph001bi]

Hopefully a real iPad Pro running MacOS for ARM that can run iOS apps instead of lipstick on a pig iPodOS.

There is no iPodOS.

 

[robotfist]

So if this news is correct, if you buy a Mac this year you can expect the OS that is released next year to be optimized for ARM and not x86. Not to say it won't be supported, it just may not run as well on the x86 as it does on the ARM. Your machine will be instantly crippled in 1 year.

This suddenly makes the rumored 16" Macbook Pro (or any machine in the current lineup for that matter) less attractive. Perhaps it's best to wait a year? I mean, I understand that there is always the next best thing right around the corner, but a shift in processor architecture is kind of huge, especially if it will be the roadmap for all machines in the future.

 

[ph001bi]

If Apple does do an ARM Mac, I wonder what it would be like? Also wonder how it would handle things like PCIe, DisplayPort, Thunderbolt, etc.? Hopefully, Apple would transition to newer versions of them faster.

PCIe, DP and TB3 can all be used on ARM based devices. The only thing I'd worry about is Windows compatibility through BootCamp or Virtualisation, but whow knows? Maybe Satela willl turn up at WWDC2020 and announce that they've worked with Apple to port WindowsOnArm to the Apple A chips, and it's the fastest implementation around.

 

[Victor Mortimer]

If this actually happens, it's the end of the Macintosh.

Let's all hope very much that it doesn't.

 

[NT1440]

So if this news is correct, if you buy a Mac this year you can expect the OS that is released next year to be optimized for ARM and not x86. Not to say it won't be supported, it just may not run as well on the x86 as it does on the ARM. Your machine will be instantly crippled in 1 year.

This suddenly makes the rumored 16" Macbook Pro (or any machine in the current lineup for that matter) less attractive. Perhaps it's best to wait a year? I mean, I understand that there is always the next best thing right around the corner, but a shift in processor architecture is kind of huge, especially if it will be the roadmap for all machines in the future.

Surely Apple has t given any consideration at all to this transition.

Crippled? Come on.

 

[avvpiras]

Macs with ARM processors would mind no BootCamp and no Windows. A lot of highly specialized software runs only on Windows.

 

[ipedro]

It really makes the most sense. Apple is a leader in processor design and their ramp up graph is only going to increase even more sharply. They should bring that to the Mac.

They’ve given us every hint that this is happening, the latest of which is Project Catalyst. Apple’s bigger App Store, the one on iOS, will be providing apps designed for ARM chips on the Mac. There will be few important apps that aren’t available by the time the first ARM Macs come out.

My bet is for a new A-chip based MacBook to replace the MacBook that is overdue for an update. The next iMac redesign and the MacBook Air would follow, then joined by the professional lineup in a few years.

The MacPro will remain Windows compatible for industrial use but it’s modular and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s secretly prepared for a powerful A series chip that can be added on in a few years.

 

[Bokito]

Apple's iDevices might pose nice benchmark scores that are almost comparable to Macs, but there is a whole lot of work yet to do for Apple before they can replace Intel's CPUs in Macs. I think Final Cut Pro would only run on half the speed if Apple would scale it's A-processors to those of the Intel CPUs found in Macs. That will change in the coming years, but I don't think Apple is there yet.

Apple is hard at work deprecating a lot of old technology in macOS so that developers need to take on newer technology, that will make the transition a whole lot smoother than the transition from PowerPC to x86, but also on the software-side Apple is not there yet.

I also had hopes for Apple making an announcement at WWDC, because people are expecting it now and people will hold off buying new Macs if they don't really have to. My hopes of a hybrid Mac Pro v3 have also voided.

 

[ph001bi]

If this actually happens, it's the end of the Macintosh.

Let's all hope very much that it doesn't.

You mean no more "I can build a Hackintosh with three times the speed for half the price" comments on every Apple web sites?
Where do I sign?

 

[NickName99]

Hiring this guy is a good move for continued iPhone/iPad dominance.

I see no reason why Apple couldn’t put their own chips in their fanless consumer laptops such as MacBook and MacBook Air. They would absolutely blow away the Intel options in that thermal profile.

They will definitely stick with Intel for their Pro models. Big developers don’t all just have an XCode project they can do a simple recompile on for a new CPU. Also virtual machines and Boot Camp... Come on, think this through. Apple certainly has.

 

[Heineken]

This has everything to do with A series architecture leader leaving earlier this year, and nothing to do with your fantasy on Macs.

If Apple is smart which is more likely then they might branch out if they haven’t already.