Apple Shares Detailed Technical Overviews of Pro Display XDR and Mac Pro

[MacRumors]

Apple today shared two new "Technical Overview" white papers that take an extensive look into the technology and feature set of the Pro Display XDR and the Mac Pro.

Available as PDFs, the Mac Pro overview and the Pro Display XDR overview (via 9to5Mac) walk through key features and components, with ultra detailed rundowns on every component. The Mac Pro overview highlights the lattice case, Intel Xeon W chip, GPUs, PCIe expansion slots, MPX module, I/O, T2 chip, SSD, and more.

Apple explains the reason for design choices made for the Mac Pro, does a deep dive into performance, and lists technical specifications. Much of this information has previously been shared in product pages and marketing info provided by Apple, but this is the single most comprehensive source for Mac Pro info.

The Pro Display XDR white paper is similar, detailing display panel components, LED backlighting system, timing controller, display accuracy, reference modes, enclosure design mounting, and technical specifications.

This information has also been previously shared by Apple for the most part, but again, the white paper is a useful place to see it all in one place.

These are useful resources for those who are interested in learning more about the Mac Pro and the Pro Display XDR ahead of purchase, and can be found through these PDF links: Pro Display XDR and Mac Pro.

Article Link: Apple Shares Detailed Technical Overviews of Pro Display XDR and Mac Pro

 

[bsbeamer]

Radeon Pro W5700X mentioned throughout. Pricing hasn't been released and isn't even available to purchase yet... even though it's the recommended config for Sci/Tech and Developers on Page 38.

Then go to the end with note:
7. Some options may have delayed availability. See the Apple online store for current availability.

 

[farewelwilliams]

0 mentions of NVIDIA, sadly.

 

[djcerla]

I’m thinking about getting one. I believe the price of the used machine in one or two years will not drop too much, so I would enjoy it for a very modest sum all things considered.

 

[Hexley]

99.999% of those commenting in thread don’t own one neither can afford one. Nice thread though.

Those who claim they do "really dont".

 

[tobiastimpe]

The Mac Pro Technical Overview mentions a 3m Thunderbolt 3 cable! Finally!

Pro Display XDR comes standard with a 2M braided Thunderbolt 3 cable; 
 an optional 3M cable7 is ideal for Mac Pro configurations with multiple Pro Display XDR displays, where the extra length can be needed.
Deskside tower or rack configurations also benefit from the longer 3M Thunderbolt 3 cable or optical cables.

 

[bsbeamer]

Longer cables are coming, eventually:

Long, optical Thunderbolt 3 cables are coming soon | Appleinsider

Sonnet is teaming up with Archiware to demonstrate the first in a line of optical Thunderbolt 3 cables, allowing for high-speed data transfers across the protocol at long range.

iphone.appleinsider.com

 

[deconstruct60]

...
Available as PDFs, the Mac Pro overview and the Pro Display XDR overview (via 9to5Mac) walk through key features and components, with ultra detailed rundowns on every component. The Mac Pro overview highlights the lattice case, Intel Xeon W chip, GPUs, PCIe expansion slots, MPX module, I/O, T2 chip, SSD, and more.
...
Apple explains the reason for design choices made for the Mac Pro, does a deep dive into performance, and lists technical specifications. Much of this information has previously been shared in product pages and marketing info provided by Apple, but this is the single most comprehensive source for Mac Pro info.
...

It has some stuff that has more detail but it still suffers from being a bit to much of a "sales pitch" as opposed to accurate technical overview.

Examples.

page 10.
"... When an MPX Module is installed in bay 2 (slots 3 and 4), slot 4 is disabled and its PCI lanes are routed to the MPX connector in bay 2. ..."

That really should be "When a full sized MPX Module ...." . Most of them are full sized ( full 'height'). The 580X is not. And yes right there in the 580X section of the document it talks about how can use the slot that isn't covered. ( the 580X also doesn't 'consume' any PCI-e bandwidth for Thunderbolt either).

Pragmatically it really isn't about the slots 2 and 4 being disabled. You physically can't get to them in a practical way when the full size MPX module is installed.


page 11

" ... Afterburner was designed to enable camera native files to be used throughout the workflow without the need for proxies. It does this by offloading the decoding of all flavors of the ProRes video codec, including ProRes 422HQ, ProRes 4444, ProRes XQ, and ProRes RAW, with the exception of interleaved formats that are currently decoded strictly in software, and the final debayer of ProRes RAW images that are done on the GPU. ... "

Chuckle. The first sentence has grandiose , expansionist reach. The native file of the camera ... proxies gone forever. Right up until you get to the implementation of these ... just as long as the RAW file of the camera is ProRes. Apple is still vastly overselling Afterburner. Arm flapping on marketing spin web pages is kind of expected. Something the purports to be a technical document.... not so much. Gee Apple what camera out there has a default native format of ProRes. ( Zero? ).

How hard is it to just simply say that "Afterburner was design to be used with ProRes workflow".



The surprising thing saw here was the DisplayPort hook ups for the Vega II Duo card. The 2nd GPU is hooked to much more than I thought it would be ( one pair of the TB ports on the edge ). I expected that it just would feed the top/front TB controller. Makes sense but it kind of odd if have a program that wants two displays hooked to the same GPU. With two 5K or XDR "dual stream" monitors you'd have to hook one to the edge and then the other to the I/O card to get them to share the 1st GPU ( or to the other edge TB controller and to the top for the 2nd GPU). However, this does help spread out the GPU load though for apps that aren't super sensitive to all monitors on one GPU.

 

[citysnaps]

I’m thinking about getting one. I believe the price of the used machine in one or two years will not drop too much, so I would enjoy it for a very modest sum all things considered.

Same here. And the display.

 

[Naraxus]

These look like great machines. I'm certainly mot the target market for them but for those who are the price is pretty good

 

[Peperino]

I actually was at an Apple store recently and, had a chance to check the Mac Pro.
Pleasantly surprised by the speed. Though the Stand arm for the monitor is quite a joke for the 1k Apple is charging. The up-down mobility range is minimal. for a 1k arm I would expect something way much better.
1k is certainly a big rip-off.

 

[iRun26.2]

Same here. And the display.

I have no definite need for the display but I want one and may just buy it because it looks so nice.

 

[citysnaps]

I have no definite need for the display but I want one and may just buy it because it looks so nice.

Nothing wrong with that. I've seen one at the local Apple Store in Palo Alto and it's very nice. You do need a Mac that can adequately drive it, though. There's a guy on the forum that now has and uses two, and has been a good resource for firsthand information.

 

[ytk]

Gee Apple what camera out there has a default native format of ProRes. ( Zero? ).

Well, there's the Arri Alexa, which is pretty much THE camera used in the motion picture industry. For pretty much any TV show shot within the last few years, there's a very good chance it was shot on Alexa using some flavor of ProRes as the acquisition format. Features tend to shoot ARRIRAW, but for TV it's overwhelmingly ProRes.

 

[Freeangel1]

why invest $6500 Plus in this when as early as 2021 APPLE will be switching processors from Intel to it's own chip?
Thats called BATE and SWITCH marketing tactics
I'm staying with Intel. No way am I investing in all new software
Good LUCK Apple
Windows 10 here I come.

Apple Plans to Sell Mac with Apple-Designed Processor in 2021: Analyst

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo wrote that Apple products coming out over the next 12-18 months will use a new Apple-designed 5 nanometer chip.

www.thestreet.com

 

[theLedger]

It’s only a rumor at this point and any ARM based Mac would likely be a consumer focused item.

 

[Zwhaler]

why invest $6500 Plus in this when as early as 2021 APPLE will be switching processors from Intel to it's own chip?
Thats called BATE and SWITCH marketing tactics
I'm staying with Intel. No way am I investing in all new software
Good LUCK Apple
Windows 10 here I come.

Apple Plans to Sell Mac with Apple-Designed Processor in 2021: Analyst

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo wrote that Apple products coming out over the next 12-18 months will use a new Apple-designed 5 nanometer chip.

www.thestreet.com

It's unlikely that Apple's own chip will rival the power of the current Mac Pro anytime soon. Their existing SoCs are for mobile, tablet, and are equivalent to entry-to-mid level notebooks at best, which is admittedly quite good. Mac Pro "powered by Apple" is a ways off.

 

[Macbookprodude]

why invest $6500 Plus in this when as early as 2021 APPLE will be switching processors from Intel to it's own chip?
Thats called BATE and SWITCH marketing tactics
I'm staying with Intel. No way am I investing in all new software
Good LUCK Apple
Windows 10 here I come.

Apple Plans to Sell Mac with Apple-Designed Processor in 2021: Analyst

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo wrote that Apple products coming out over the next 12-18 months will use a new Apple-designed 5 nanometer chip.

www.thestreet.com

I read about this somewhere also. Will ARM make Apple cheaper ?

 

[PickUrPoison]

why invest $6500 Plus in this when as early as 2021 APPLE will be switching processors from Intel to it's own chip?
Thats called BATE and SWITCH marketing tactics
I'm staying with Intel. No way am I investing in all new software
Good LUCK Apple
Windows 10 here I come.

It might make more sense to run your Windows software on a PC. Depending on your choice of hardware, you could probably save some money. It’s been that way for decades.

But if your concern is the availability of software for Intel-based Macs, your concern is not well founded. There are well over 100 million Intel-based Macs. No developer is going to turn their back on that market.

Software availability would be a much more valid concern if you were planning to buy a Mac running an Apple ARM processor.

 

[AppelGeenyus]

I'm surprised they still haven't corrected the image of the XDR layers. The micro-lens layer is upside down, it's been like that since launch.

(Apologies to the OCD crowd who never noticed this before)

 

[Saliency]

There are missing words and grammatical errors throughout this document. The Catalina section on refinements decidedly lacks refinement. It repeats the same sentences slightly differently. Did no one proofread this?

So...who loves to use these Catalina apps every day?

Refinements

The apps love to use everyday are beautiful and intelligent. Photos includes a new immersive browsing experience that showcases your photos and memories. Notes delivers a new gallery view and shared folders let you collaborate faster and easier. The Reminders app has been completely rebuilt, with an all-new design and new ways to easily create, organize, and keep track of reminders. And Safari has an updated smart start page for getting to the sites you want and smart refinements to help you use stronger passwords and browse the web more efficiently.

With macOS Catalina, the apps you love are now more beautiful and intelligent than ever, making everyday tasks easier than ever. Notes delivers a new gallery view and more powerful search to help you find content faster than ever, while shared folders let you collaborate faster and easier. Photos has a new immersive, dynamic look that showcases your photos and memories. The Reminders app has been completely rebuilt, with an all-new design and new ways to easily create, organize, and keep track of reminders. And when you’re ready for a break, the new Music, TV, and Podcast apps make content easy to find and enjoy.

 

[DanielEAndersson]

As far as mac and arm goes, it would probably make sense to keep the air and macbook pro intel or amd and put out a macbook with arm. I would make 0 business sense to just go arm and dump intel/amd.

 

[PickUrPoison]

As far as mac and arm goes, it would probably make sense to keep the air and macbook pro intel or amd and put out a macbook with arm. I would make 0 business sense to just go arm and dump intel/amd.

I’d love to see the return of a 12” ultrabook somewhere in the 1.5-1.75 lb. range, and also a 14” MacBook weighing 2.5 lb. or less.

I’m not sure the market is big enough, but with more and more computing (in the broadest sense, not just wrt CPU) taking place in the cloud, I think there’s room for what we used to call a thin client. There would still be plenty of power to do 90+% of what 90+% of users need to do locally anyway, imo.

Three, five, ten years from now, now much performance do we need to carry around with us?

 

[jeffhayford]

Would 2x Pro Display XDR monitors run off one RX 580?

 

[PickUrPoison]

Would 2x Pro Display XDR monitors run off one RX 580?

Yes, the RX 580 MPX module on the Mac Pro can run two XDRs at the full resolution of 6016 x 3384, at 60Hz. You have to use one Thunderbolt 3 port on the top and one on the back.

It’ll also support 2x 5K + 2x 4K, all @60Hz. Or 6x 4K @60.