Apple to Begin Merging iOS and OS X With Quad-Core A6 Chip Next Year?

[Vader]

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????? You have ur files uploaded to the cloud already! U have a UI ur using to send commands to the severs.... Or ur. Viewing a video stream of the UI! how is that different from watching Netflix or YouTube or streaming music or playing an online game as we do now????

If you are sending requests for actually processing and receiving the stream back, it will more data than simply streaming Netflix. Also, doing 1080p from Netlix, it is easy to go over your ISP limit if you watch a few episodes of a show a day and stream a few movies.

I do not have much in the cloud, but even on my 6 meg internet (4x the dsl I had up to a month ago), grabbing a 400 mb file takes a few minutes.

Not to mention the lag of sending things offsite, it would be intolerable. 25ms for everything that usually is instant in comparison within your computer will be very annoying.

 

[Mike Teezie]

My, albeit limited, experience with Lion leaves me despondent at this.

Same here. I've had Lion for about a week, only on my Air, and I'm just not feeling these changes. I fear the day of iOS and OS X merging. I hope it never happens, but I'm not optimistic after Lion.

 

[DavidLeblond]

I love Lion but I can count on one hand the amount of times I've used Launchpad.

 

[macUser2007]

...
"choice" don't plant your seed in their garden;personally I am loving everything we have (icloud, iOS, iTunes match) and everything which is coming-you sound like a Tea Party conspirator who believes the government is "big evil" (ok, say maybe it is big, just not as evil as they imagine...

The newly introduced iCloud and Match are certainly great, but the same services have been available from other companies, like Google, for a while now.

The only reason people don't know it, is because they have never poked their heads outside of the "walled garden."

And it's not "Tea Party" conspiracy, but realization that Apple's current business model is not good for consumers in the long run, and memories of proprietary, incompatible hardware, which had left the Mac unable to keep up and made it grossly overpriced.

Cultist self-delusions about the hidden super-powers of Power PC notwithstanding.

 

[rwilliams]

Professional, power users, programmers, and the like will continue to need the power of OS X. I can see a greater emphasis being placed on moving people to iOS and devices like the iPad as their primary method of computing in the future, but there will be a need for OS X for some time to come.

 

[Amazing Iceman]

If you are sending requests for actually processing and receiving the stream back, it will more data than simply streaming Netflix. Also, doing 1080p from Netlix, it is easy to go over your ISP limit if you watch a few episodes of a show a day and stream a few movies.

I do not have much in the cloud, but even on my 6 meg internet (4x the dsl I had up to a month ago), grabbing a 400 mb file takes a few minutes.

Not to mention the lag of sending things offsite, it would be intolerable. 25ms for everything that usually is instant in comparison within your computer will be very annoying.

Most ISPs currently set the monthly transfer limit at 250GB.
I would imagine this limit will eventually be increased as the demand for transfer volume and bandwidth continues to grow.

For watching a movie (let's say a 1 GB movie), why download it when you can just stream it?
The bandwidth requirements for a video stream is way below 6 Mbits/sec.

Even if you have all your other files in the Cloud, you are never going to use them all at once. And If you ever do, just transfer it at night while you sleep.

 

[fjsiskilroy]

Doubtful

Doubtful that OS/X and IOS will merge (especially next year). The performance of Quad core ARM chip is nowhere near that of the current ULV Core I5 that the MBA uses. They are barely near that of the old Core 2 Duos.

Imagine putting a 4 cylinder engine (ARM cpu) in the body of a 2 Ton Semi truck instead of a 6 Cylinder engine (Core I3) or a 8 Cylinder (Core I5). Sure it will work, but the truck will take a while just to get going.

This doesn't mean that Apple is not thinking about merging both OSes. In essence they already are, as both have the same Darwin core. It's just the UI that is different.

The article mentions addressable market as the main driver to combining the OSes. I think that commonality of tools, and security are bigger drivers. One of the main advantages for IOS is that each application is sandboxed from OS processes. That is why you don't see viruses or malware in IOS. Lion introduced several IOS like gestures, but mainly to eliminate the need of a mouse. There is a reason why Apple hasn't used touch panels on Laptops or the iMac. It's not practical to touch a vertical screen. Usability is horrible. But a mouse pad lies flat (horizontally), so the use case is more natural.

If we go back to car metaphor, using full IOS in a laptop would be like having a 2 seat roadster to carry a mattress. No both platforms will flow into each other but remain separate for teh foreseeable future.

The author mentions that people want to be able to use the same application from the phone all the way to the desktop. That could still happen with the 2 platforms since they share code. And for some programs you could still have the same basic UI. You can do some photo editing on a phone on a pinch, but you wouldn't do it to publish a magazine. You would at least like to have a big screen to manage multiple images and layouts.

 

[wikus]

The thought of iOS in Mac OS X disgusts me. I absolutely despise the ipadification of Mac OS X.

 

[macUser2007]

....
For watching a movie (let's say a 1 GB movie), why download it when you can just stream it?
The bandwidth requirements for a video stream is way below 6 Mbits/sec.

Even if you have all your other files in the Cloud, you are never going to use them all at once. And If you ever do, just transfer it at night while you sleep.

Hm, the average 720p movie is more like 4-5GBs.

Oops, there goes my 5GB iCloud limit.

 

[patohi]

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????? You have ur files uploaded to the cloud already! U have a UI ur using to send commands to the severs.... Or ur. Viewing a video stream of the UI! how is that different from watching Netflix or YouTube or streaming music or playing an online game as we do now????

If you are sending requests for actually processing and receiving the stream back, it will more data than simply streaming Netflix. Also, doing 1080p from Netlix, it is easy to go over your ISP limit if you watch a few episodes of a show a day and stream a few movies.

I do not have much in the cloud, but even on my 6 meg internet (4x the dsl I had up to a month ago), grabbing a 400 mb file takes a few minutes.

Not to mention the lag of sending things offsite, it would be intolerable. 25ms for everything that usually is instant in comparison within your computer will be very annoying.

It will not be sending uncompressed images or video back to you.... I don't see it as an tool for professionals anyways.... U forget broadband will be much improved as well.... Arm in 4 years will be as capable as current intel chips by then..,..

 

[WestonHarvey1]

The thought of iOS in Mac OS X disgusts me. I absolutely despise the ipadification of Mac OS X.

Then seriously, quit whining. Buy a Windows PC and an Android tablet and get the heck out of here.

Your wife will love the dual core Tegra 2 chipset.

 

[griz]

Just tell me I will be able to buy a 128GB iPad for $699 and dock it into a cinema display and run full OSX on it. Undock it and it's the iPad version of iOS with all my stuff. Please tell me that Mr. Analyst.

 

[Winni]

I don't care what CPU they will be using for this, but the first quad core mobile CPUs for phone usage are scheduled for the end of this year, so I doubt that we will have to wait until 2016 for mobile architectures to become powerful enough to replace today's average desktop systems.

And since there can't be another big cat after the king of beasts, we --will-- hear about the first prototype of a merged iOS and OS X at next year's WWDC. Lion will be the last incarnation of Mac OS X as we know it.

iOS outsells OS X tenfold; the customers have decided what they want and it isn't our beloved Mac. Apple will follow the money, it's their job as a company.

The merging of OS X and iOS to a new platform with a lot of iOS and less OS X in it is a logical and inevitable evolution, there are no surprises here.

 

[ratzzo]

[ ... ]

But 5 years IS a long time away, so who knows what will happen by then.

Especially at the vertiginous pace at which technology has been advancing lately. In retrospect, five years ago (2006) we were all still using Motorola RAZRs

 

[nagromme]

Absurd.

iCould can already be “unified,” and yet used in many different ways, regardless of whether Apple uses two CPU families or not.

iOS and OX S were ALWAYS “merged” and always will be: they came from the same foundation and cross-pollinate to the benefit of both.

Yet they will ALWAYS be distinct, too. A mouse is not a touchscreen. A multi-app big-screen workflow is not suitable to a touchscreen. The two kinds of computer uses will grow closer—maybe a lie-flat touchscreen iMac someday? Maybe “pro” and non-pro devices all in the same far-future family, with different front-ends on the same underlying OS? But simplicity and power are both needed, and you can’t try to be “all things” (ask Windows tablets).

If I were Apple, I’d keep looking at ways the two can share—and I’m sure they are—but they’ll never share everything.

As for processors—I’m glad Apple has made their OS base so portable. That’s good for future proofing. Who knows what will come? But they won’t drop Intel/Core without a REALLY good reason, and my new i7 can’t think of any Third-party apps agree with it.

 

[Speedy2]

This analyst has no idea about processor technologies.
There is not even the slightest indication that ARM can close the massive performance gap to Intel CPUs other than ARM's "we want". In fact, Intel is making progress in terms of power efficiency, which is ARM's only real strength, much faster.

Ask yourself, do you want a computer that has only a fraction of performance as the similarly priced competitor as your most powerful computing device?

For the time being, ARM will stay limited to devices for which performance is secondary like iPads and iPhones. These devices will sure take more of the market than they do now in the form of tablets and maybe low end notebooks. But these devices have a growth limit, and they are most commonly only used as a supplement to an existing, "real" computer.

Also, the software barrier should be mentioned. Nearly all Windows and Mac software needs to be recompiled and probably modified for use on ARM CPUs, and the more powerful and demanding a software is, the more complex is that process usually. Also you will need a new set of drivers for everything. This isn't impossible, but it will take years and slow down any form of major transition far beyond 2016.
And when you think about the business world, which comprises about half the computer market, there's simply no chance that any such transition will take place in less than 10 years. Trillions have been invested into x86 software, and businesses will need a bit more than just a little better power efficiency and smaller form factor to justify a switch.

Due to their closed nature and the hardware/software integration it might be relatively easy for Macs to move to another platform, but the game has changed since Apple linked itself to Intel. They gained A LOT of advantages by their move to the 95% monopoly that x86 is ,and to Intel in specific, which they'd have to give up by moving on to some newcomer in the computer market. Intel has by far the most powerful CPUs, a very strong roadmap, a good reputation to actually deliver that roadmap, the best manufacturing capabilities and an ecosystem of hardware and software that is so huge that it's also very cheap to be part of it.

 

[johncarync]

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Ur all missing something!!! It's all about the cloud!!!! The cloud will advance to a point that all ur files will be online!!!! The data center severs will do the heavy CPU and gpu work for you!!! It's also possible you will dock your machine to an external gpu to take care of heavy workloads!!!!! 5 years is quite far away!!!

You are dangerously close to using your quota of exclamation points for the month and it's only August 3rd.

 

[fat jez]

????? You have ur files uploaded to the cloud already! U have a UI ur using to send commands to the severs.... Or ur. Viewing a video stream of the UI! how is that different from watching Netflix or YouTube or streaming music or playing an online game as we do now????

Have you ever used VNC or Remote Desktop across the public internet? It's not a pleasant experience, believe me. Then there are a large number of countries that just don't have the IP infrastructure to support doing this either.

Maybe it is the future, but for many of us, it's a very long way in the future.

 

[thejadedmonkey]

It'll have to start by 2012, if Apple is going to have any hope of combating Microsoft's Windows 8 OS, which will be the same across PC's, tablets, and smartphones.

Already, as a developer I can see how an app I wrote for WP7 can be used without a day's worth of work on a Windows 8 tablet, as well as on a PC, albiet with a different input method.

 

[fat jez]

It will not be sending uncompressed images or video back to you.... I don't see it as an tool for professionals anyways.... U forget broadband will be much improved as well.... Arm in 4 years will be as capable as current intel chips by then..,..

I've seen what Youtube calls 1080p quality video and it ain't great, still very blocky. I'll be blowed if I use an OS like that.

Oh and I don't want an ARM CPU in 4 years time that's only as good as current Intel CPU's when Intel will have moved on another 4 years by then. ARM will always be playing catchup. Look at AMD, even with their know how and experience, they still aren't quite as fast as Intel.

 

[patohi]

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It will not be sending uncompressed images or video back to you.... I don't see it as an tool for professionals anyways.... U forget broadband will be much improved as well.... Arm in 4 years will be as capable as current intel chips by then..,..

I've seen what Youtube calls 1080p quality video and it ain't great, still very blocky. I'll be blowed if I use an OS like that.

Oh and I don't want an ARM CPU in 4 years time that's only as good as current Intel CPU's when Intel will have moved on another 4 years by then. ARM will always be playing catchup. Look at AMD, even with their know how and experience, they still aren't quite as fast as Intel.

Why or would u need that much more power?? If ur encoding hd videos then sure... But picture edits and such basic tasks don't need more power... It might be software publishers that move on to a streaming platform to put an end to piracy and maximize profit!!!

 

[baryon]

The beginning of the end of OS X... It has already begun with Lion... What's next? Removal of multitasking altogether I bet! Let's waste all that CPU power on something more important than multitasking.

 

[nylonsteel]

re original article

yum - quad core a6 sounds tasty - bring it on

Edit - just noticed i reached 6502 level - the first cpu class i took as an engineering major - i hated it though

 

[Rodimus Prime]

I don't care what CPU they will be using for this, but the first quad core mobile CPUs for phone usage are scheduled for the end of this year, so I doubt that we will have to wait until 2016 for mobile architectures to become powerful enough to replace today's average desktop systems.

Key part is TODAY'S average desktop. Today's system is not tomorrow's system which will be a lot more powerful. Remember the desktop is a moving target and as such the power to replace that in a phone form factor is going to be near if not impossible as you have some major limitations in terms of heat and power that a desktop/laptop just do not have.

My cell phone is insanely more powerful than my 1995 desktop I used to have. Hell my even older 3rd gen iPod blows that old system out of the water in terms of power.

Why or would u need that much more power?? If ur encoding hd videos then sure... But picture edits and such basic tasks don't need more power... It might be software publishers that move on to a streaming platform to put an end to piracy and maximize profit!!!

Just going to point out 20-30 years ago people though it was insane to ever need more than 4kb of ram.

Hell 15 years ago 128 megs of ram was insane.
6 years ago 1 gig of ram in a desktop was the considered the sweet spot. Now it is 4 gigs and rising.

 

[Mousse]

And since there can't be another big cat after the king of beasts, we --will-- hear about the first prototype of a merged iOS and OS X at next year's WWDC. Lion will be the last incarnation of Mac OS X as we know it.

The next Mac OS will be OS XX or Dos Equis, The Most Interesting OS in The World. I won't go into the controversial next version that's be done to death.