Custom Arm processor in a MacBook Pro coming the future?

[Charliebird]

Something doesn't add up for me. Why does Apple make a 64 bit A7 processor and not increase the ram on any IOS devices beyond 1 GB? If Apple was truly moving towards IOS devices with 4 GB+ of ram you you would think they would have started moving in that direction.

My only conclusion is that maybe Apple really does have bigger plans for their custom Arm processor lineup. Maybe the rumors are true about an Arm powered Macbook Pro where support for 4 GB+ of ram would be required.

 

[SimonTheSoundMa]

Doubt you'll see them any time soon. The A7 processor is about as fast as a 3GHz Pentium 4, good ten year old processor.

 

[Count Blah]

It's only 1Gig to make the iPad6 with 2Gigs that much more appealing for upgraders.

I can see the Air getting an Arm chip eventually. A9 at the earliest, IMHO - depending on what 10.10 and iOS8 brings us.

 

[ThisIsNotMe]

Interest with the move to OpenCL to see how this plays out.

 

[iKrivetko]

Doubt you'll see them any time soon. The A7 processor is about as fast as a 3GHz Pentium 4, good ten year old processor.

It will be more or less on par with intel's/amd's chips given the appropriate tdp, so that's hardly a valid comparison. The trouble is that all software will have to be rewritten. However, many apps that exist on iOS already exist on OS X and vice versa, so anything can happen.

 

[Wuiffi]

I'm probably the only one, that does NOT think that Apple will move it's notebooks to ARM but their mobile devices to Intel. I think, that in 2 years Intel will not only have caught up, but be superior to ARM in performance AND power consumption.

 

[iKrivetko]

I'm probably the only one, that does NOT think that Apple will move it's notebooks to ARM but their mobile devices to Intel. I think, that in 2 years Intel will not only have caught up, but be superior to ARM in performance AND power consumption.

I don't really see them moving to Intel for their mobile devices because that'd mean losing control over the design of the chips.

 

[GSPice]

Something doesn't add up for me. Why does Apple make a 64 bit A7 processor and not increase the ram on any IOS devices beyond 1 GB? If Apple was truly moving towards IOS devices with 4 GB+ of ram you you would think they would have started moving in that direction.

My only conclusion is that maybe Apple really does have bigger plans for their custom Arm processor lineup. Maybe the rumors are true about an Arm powered Macbook Pro where support for 4 GB+ of ram would be required.

Read up on why they moved to Intel in the first place, and what that process entailed.

 

[Charliebird]

Read up on why they moved to Intel in the first place, and what that process entailed.

I know all about the pains that were involved when Apple went from PowerPC to the Intel. At the time I was supporting about 5000 Macintosh users. Times have changed as an example Android supports Arm based processors and Intel base processors with little trouble. Apple is a major control freak and if they can design and engineer their own processors they will. Look how far the A processor series has evolved over the last five years. It might be a couple generations away but I believe the A series going 64 bits tips Apples hat.

 

[Atomic Walrus]

I think we're more likely to see this in the "Air" line in the relatively near future if it does happen. Pro machine users aren't going to appreciate finding out that they can no longer run Windows natively. There are entire industries this could eliminate MBP's from (random example: 3D Studio Max is Windows only).

The change to Intel may have been disappointing for a lot of long-time Mac users, but it brought Apple's hardware to Windows and Linux users. Personally I'd never even considered an Apple computer until it became possible to run Windows. Apple maintains the position of being the only computer brand that can run both major desktop OS's. The only reason VMs like Parallels work so well is because both OS's run on Intel CPUs. I hardly believe they intend to drop that advantage right now.

 

[SimonTheSoundMa]

It will be more or less on par with intel's/amd's chips given the appropriate tdp, so that's hardly a valid comparison. The trouble is that all software will have to be rewritten. However, many apps that exist on iOS already exist on OS X and vice versa, so anything can happen.

Software should not have to be re-written, it just needs cross compiling over to a different platform.

As for TDP, has nothing to do with a processors speed. The old Pentium 4's topped over 100W, the A7 a couple of Watts.