Apple Store: Xserve, 750GB, Apple Care

[jholzner]

At Apple's prices, it's hard to understand how any business can justify switching to Xserve. Sorry, but I can buy several Dells with the same CPUs and RAM for what Apple is charging. This is unbelieveable. I canb buy SuperMicro or Tyan 1U barebones and assemble all the remaining CPUs/components myself and set it up in about 2 to 3 hours and probably still come out 1/5th the price of the Xserve. This just makes absolutely no sense at all.

Does that include unlimited Windows server? I assume you are using Linux though.

 

[whatever]

As much as I'd like a new macbook or iMac with a 750gb hard disk, I think I'm going to stick with what I've got until 802.11n and HD/Blueray burners are standardised on the mac.

I'd personally like to see a smaller macbook revision, for ultra traveling, possibly with extra securty for the traveler....

Well, I hope you enjoy that computer when it comes out sometime (if ever) in 2008.

 

[baxterbrittle]

OS X Server unlimited client is quite expensive by itself, add that to a MacPro and see what the price diff for xserve is. How much is server 2003 unlimited these days, still pretty pricy if I understand correctly and that does not come with your backyard barebones.

Also there was something about lights out management (which I know nothing about) added to the cost of the dell in the WWDC comarison.

In other words hardware is one thing but the big picture needs to be looked at more carefully.

Also 1/5 of the cost? I'd like to see some figures. I can't even get 1 xeon for that let alone 2.

 

[Eidorian]

Time to break out the screwdriver and service manual next year.

 

[Macmaniac]

Lol

Subtotal $98,711.00

Estimated Ship:
3-5 weeks
Free Shipping
Click "Update Details" to reflect changes to system price and shipping.
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Specifications
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* Two 3.0GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon
* 32GB (8x4GB)
* 300GB SAS ADM @ 15,000-rpm
* 300GB SAS ADM @ 15,000-rpm
* 300GB SAS ADM @ 15,000-rpm
* 8x SuperDrive DL (DVD+R DL/DVD + RW/CD-RW)
* ATI Radeon X1300 64MB SDRAM with VGA Adapter
* Dual channel 2Gb Fibre Channel card with PCIe riser
* Dual channel gigabit ethernet card with PCIe riser
* Dual 650W Power Supply
* Rack Mounting Kit - Square Hole Rack
* Xserve RAID (14x500GB)
* Mac OS X Server Maintenance 36 Mths Unl. Client (Single Server), price per server
* Apple Remote Desktop 3 (Unlimited Managed Systems)
* AppleCare Service Parts Kit for Xserve
* Mac OS X Server Software Support - Alliance
* AppleCare Premium Service and Support for Xserve

Still not $100,000 machine from apple

 

[Diavilo1]

This makes me very happy, very happy indeed to see the Xserve. 3-5 weeks isn't outrageous either. I'm sure my clients will be happy to see this!

 

[baxterbrittle]

Subtotal $98,711.00

Still not $100,000 machine from apple

Add a screen and it'll do it.

 

[scottlinux]

If you go all out with an Xserve config (including a 7 TB RAID) the price tag comes just shy of $100,000.

This is a small chunk of change for a company. I have a friend who is a sys admin for a company and they have over a million dollars spent in their server hardware. It's crazy.

Xserves, but running Linux.

 

[idea_hamster]

Subtotal $98,711.00

Just keep in mind that $50k of that price is the support contract.

I'm not sure what you'd be doing with a single XServe (and 14.9TB of storage) that would require 24/7 1-hour response service from Apple, but hey -- whatever floats your boat.

 

[bdj21ya]

They also added a chat room while you configuring a system that lets you chat with a apple rep. Really neat.

Where? I tries to find this by going to "Configure" but I don't see any chat option.

 

[Maccus Aurelius]

Nope. No C2D in the MacBook until 2007. Why? Distinguish product lines between MB vs. MBP with different chips. Also economics. With only CD in MacBooks, Apple makes more $$$ per MB.

The chip alone doesn't really distinguish the macbook from the macbook pro. In the wake of the first wave, the pro was upped in GHz just a bit so that no model was slower than a macbook, but for that period of time they use the same exact chip but were obviously not the same computer. The fact that the pro has better display real estate, a dedicated graphics card, the aluminum shell, 2 firewire ports, a slot for an express card, a double layer superdrive and now support for 3GB of RAM make a seriously big difference when compared to the macbook's hardware. simply adding C2D wont make it equal to the pro at all. also, how much more overhead does apple actually see compared to what they'd make if macbooks had core 2 duos in them?

 

[kernel_panic]

They removed the PCI RAID card option! BOO!

I guess they want to force people into a $6000 Xraid.

 

[gnasher729]

However, it's still way overpriced compared to other server manufacturers providing the same thing. Dell's pricing on their website is cheaper and you can probably get about 1/4 off of that by going through a rep. I'd be curious to know if Apple offers the same kind of sales techniques to get a better deal, or if what you see is what you get?

Exactly what processor do you get in a cheaper Dell? There is a huge difference in price between a single 50xx processor (one old P4-style space heater Xeon), a single 51xx processor (a new Core 2 Duo Xeon chip), and two 51xx processors = four cores, which is what the Mac Pros and XServes have.

 

[chadtorts]

The chip alone doesn't really distinguish the macbook from the macbook pro. In the wake of the first wave, the pro was upped in GHz just a bit so that no model was slower than a macbook, but for that period of time they use the same exact chip but were obviously not the same computer. The fact that the pro has better display real estate, a dedicated graphics card, the aluminum shell, 2 firewire ports, a slot for an express card, a double layer superdrive and now support for 3GB of RAM make a seriously big difference when compared to the macbook's hardware. simply adding C2D wont make it equal to the pro at all. also, how much more overhead does apple actually see compared to what they'd make if macbooks had core 2 duos in them?

I have to agree with the overhead argument. There is still plenty to distinguish between the two, even if they both have c2d. And more important than the differentiation in componentry of the two notebooks is the difference in price. Apple cannot maintain the current macbook price, given that (with similar components) the macbook can be more expensive than the new macbook pros. Without either a drop in price (which is not likely at this point) or an update, macbook sales will drop. In other words, something has to change relatively soon...

 

[gnasher729]

At Apple's prices, it's hard to understand how any business can justify switching to Xserve. Sorry, but I can buy several Dells with the same CPUs and RAM for what Apple is charging. This is unbelieveable. I canb buy SuperMicro or Tyan 1U barebones and assemble all the remaining CPUs/components myself and set it up in about 2 to 3 hours and probably still come out 1/5th the price of the Xserve. This just makes absolutely no sense at all.

Let me just check if I get this right: For $760 you can build a server with two dual-core 2.66 GHz Core2 Duo chips, where the chips alone cost >$800 each. You can add three 750GB drives for $140 each, and a 7 TB RAID server for another $2600. Cool. You take orders?

 

[AppliedVisual]

Does that include unlimited Windows server? I assume you are using Linux though.

Yeah, I would use Linux... Not a big fan of Windows Server. I run XP Pro on most of our workstations, but that's about it.

Here's what I can do:

1U Tyan chassis w/MB (3yr manufacturer warranty)
2 x 3.0GHz Woodcrest w/1U active coolers
8 GB (4x2GB FB-DIMM - Kingston)
2 x 750GB Hitachi 7200rpm HDDs
Internal DVD-DL writer 16X (not slot-load, aw shucks).
PCI-E fiber-channel controller
Video is integrated into mainboard, dual redundant PSUs...

I come up with about $5200... So if you avoid Apple's support contracts, Xserve isn't quite as far out of line as I was thinking. Especially since they're double-charging for the RAM, so I can knock $1100 off the Apple price and another $200 off buying HDDs elsewhere....

.

I don't need a support contract, just the warranties and in this case manufacturer warranties are good enough as I and a few of my other helpers around here are more than capable of building, supporting and maintaining these ourselves.

 

[homieg340]

Nope. No C2D in the MacBook until 2007. Why? Distinguish product lines between MB vs. MBP with different chips. Also economics. With only CD in MacBooks, Apple makes more $$$ per MB.

Sorry, I don't think you're always right. While everyone here may outbuy MBP's vs MB's, the mass market buys Macbooks much more than MBP's (according to a recent article, MB outsold MBP 2:1). The MB is very important for apple and will allow them to gain huge marketshare in the notebook market if they keep it up-to-date. A lot of financial success of apple last quarter was due to laptop sales (of which were mostly macbooks) to college kids. So, if apple is smart and wants to experience high portable sales during the holidays, they will have to update the macbooks...after all, they are in a MUCH better price range in terms of gifting than the MBP's and would make more likely gifts. The C2D is similar in costs to C1D now that C1D is getting replaced, thus the price of the MB would not change much with this upgrade.

I am thinking in terms of what is most financially profitable for apple-and my conclusion in that line of thought is updating the Macbooks to C2D within 3 weeks.

 

[Keymaster]

Especially since they're double-charging for the RAM, so I can knock $1100 off the Apple price and another $200 off buying HDDs elsewhere....

One thing about that.....the G4 Xserves did not come with drive sleds for the empty drive bays. So, when I added disks on our servers, I had to order them through Apple. It may be the same with the new servers; the sled would be part of the cost of buying a new drive. I'm not sure Apple sells the sleds empty, you'll want to check on that before buying your own drives.

Our Xserves have been completely reliable; the only issue that has come up was a dying RAM module replaced under warranty. And, the main thing for me has been OS X Server; I literally spend a couple hours a month doing software maintenance. With a Linux or Windows server we were talking about adding a person to take care of them, but with the Xserves I do it all myself.

 

[mahonmeister]

The chip alone doesn't really distinguish the macbook from the macbook pro. In the wake of the first wave, the pro was upped in GHz just a bit so that no model was slower than a macbook, but for that period of time they use the same exact chip but were obviously not the same computer. The fact that the pro has better display real estate, a dedicated graphics card, the aluminum shell, 2 firewire ports, a slot for an express card, a double layer superdrive and now support for 3GB of RAM make a seriously big difference when compared to the macbook's hardware. simply adding C2D wont make it equal to the pro at all. also, how much more overhead does apple actually see compared to what they'd make if macbooks had core 2 duos in them?

I agree. They don't distinguish them with different processors, just different clock speed ranges. MBP from 2.16 to 2.33 and MB (I would guess) 2.0 to 2.16.

 

[p0intblank]

750 GB... that is just insane, especially for a consumer Mac! Apple is getting nicer and nicer when it comes to offering more configuration options.

 

[Warbrain]

750 GB... that is just insane, especially for a consumer Mac! Apple is getting nicer and nicer when it comes to offering more configuration options.

That's a whole lot of porn...

 

[Clive At Five]

This does not excite me. I feel it is yet another way Apple is trying to plug the gaping hole between iMac and Mac Pro. Those wishing for a mid-range tower... keep dreaming.

And is it just me or has Apple been focusing a lot on gadgetry lately? iPods, PhonePods (iPhones), TelePorts (iTV), Google/GPS iPhoto syncing camera, etc... We want a computer company, not trinket provider. Leave that to Sony.

-Clive

 

[wizard]

Sadly after the MBP update I don't see this happening. The MBP rev isn't to bad for an incremental upgrade but it really doesn't represent what I was expecting for a revision. If any thing this revision seems to have provided some distance between the MB and the MBP. I could be wrong of course, but I now suspect that Apple will try to trim the MB and reduce its heat signature. That is the MB could be waiting for lower power devices from Intel which probably aren't 64 bit.

Dave

Hopefully, the next update will be C2D MacBook

 

[KamaloPSU]

Why would anyone with half an ounce of common sense buy the 750GB HD from Apple directly for the Mac Pro for a $399 upgrade for the first one and then $599 for each additional one when you can just buy a new one (or two or three) from Fry's.com for $159 each?! Shipping is $9. I can see if you don't want to take apart the imac to put a new drive in, but the Mac Pro has to be the easiest computer to add a HD to! I am all for good technology but i am loyal to my wallet not increasing apples profits by 3 fold per hard drive. And why can't these Mac Pro's have Hardware RAID controllers?!

 

[SMM]

Xserve lags so far behind the Mac Pro in release, costs much more, has little to make it better and just as much to make it worse. I would love to have an Xserve, but I don't understand why anyone would buy one.

Do a little research and you will find this is a incredibly well engineered server. I have read a couple reviews and it looks like it will be a big hit with IT pros. That may not be easily understood, or appreciated by others.