IBM 970 Based PowerBook

[Wyrm]

IBM is sampling 2 processors in the 970 family:

130nm 1.3V 1.4Ghz - 1.8Ghz (25W - 42W)

and

130nm 1.1V 900Mhz - 1.2Ghz Low Power version. (7W - 19W)

Maybe these could be for embedded switches like the low-power 74xx from Motorola, but then Apple uses the low power Motorola processors for the current PowerBooks.

Steve Jobs said it was the "Year of the Laptop" afterall.

How about:
15.4", 17" screen
IBM 970 1.0Ghz, 1.2Ghz
ATI 9600 Mobility Radeon 128MB
2, 4 Memory slots Dual DDR SoDIMM
60GB SATA (Fujitsu) 2.5" drive, 80GB SATA (Fujitsu) 2.5" drive,
DVD-RW
Firewire2, USB2, Bluetooh

-Wyrm

 

[Grimace]

If one more person posts a new thread about a 970 powerbook I'm going to scream. How about reading and posting to any one of the threads already established????

 

[nydoofus]

What is the source of this information?

 

[NavyIntel007]

All these dream situations make me sad because I know it's not going to happen by the time June comes around.

 

[Wyrm]

Re: Source
IBM Microelectronics

It is doubtful Apple would bring out a PowerMac 970 by June (WDC) - well they might announce it there and eventually ship it... like the ATI 9700, and the 17" PowerBook. August maybe.

I think XServe will sport the 970 first.
Limited production, server environment, higher margins.

But... a 970 based PowerBook could hit Christmas 2003, or Q1 2004. Why Apple took so long to make a G4 Powerbook was because of availability of a low power G4. IBM will have a low power 970 - sampling now.

-Wyrm

 

[Wyrm]

from IBM
------
East Fishkill, NY -- (press release excerpt) -- IBM announced a newly-developed, high-performance PowerPC microprocessor for use in a variety of applications, including desktops, workstations, servers, and communications products. The new chip, called the IBM PowerPC 970, is derived from IBM's high performance POWER4 server processor.
------

The 970 is a low voltage design that is overclockable - (ie the transistors don't take much voltage to switch at moderate freq) - the higher the freq, the higher the required voltage and current to maintain a saturated state for the transitor (which is just an amplifier if you didn't know).

The 7400 aka 'original' G4 was also a low power design, but that's at a freq of like 200Mhz - shovel it up to 500Mhz and it gobbles current like there's no tomorrow... not as bad as a P3 or .. worse the P4 (not sure they can make a low power version there). Any guesses why Mac were stuck until they redesigned the G4? Any guesses why the G4 powerbook took so long?

-Wyrm

 

[5300cs]

Could we make a whole new category just for 970 speculation? That way I know which posts to skip

 

[cb911]

Wyrm, always happy to hear new info on the 970.

and about the 970 making it to XServe first... surely Apple would put it in the PowerMacs and PowerBooks as well, i mean everyone is hanging out for the 970... holding it off any longer than necessary would be torture. then again, if they hold it off, we'll be more desprately wanting it.

 

[Zaid]

Originally posted by cb911
Wyrm, always happy to hear new info on the 970.

and about the 970 making it to XServe first... surely Apple would put it in the PowerMacs and PowerBooks as well, i mean everyone is hanging out for the 970... holding it off any longer than necessary would be torture. then again, if they hold it off, we'll be more desprately wanting it.

Agreed, and use of older processors in servers is not that uncommon. People who buy those servers are more likely to be looking for tried and tested hardware thats fast enough rather than the latest and greatest.

 

[macrumors12345]

Originally posted by Wyrm
from IBM
------
East Fishkill, NY -- (press release excerpt) -- IBM announced a newly-developed, high-performance PowerPC microprocessor for use in a variety of applications, including desktops, workstations, servers, and communications products. The new chip, called the IBM PowerPC 970, is derived from IBM's high performance POWER4 server processor.
------

Um, that is just an excerpt from the original IBM press release back in October....

 

[Moe]

Re: IBM 970 Based PowerBook

Originally posted by Wyrm
Steve Jobs said it was the "Year of the Laptop" afterall.

I think what Steve secretly MEANT by that is that Apple finally caught a break and it's occuring in the laptop area where Apple has already been doing well.

For the first time in years, PC MHz are going DOWN at the same time they're getting more expensive, with the Centrino laptops using the Pentium M4. Narrows the gap with the PowerBooks a bit.

But I'm seriously concerned with the big drop in iMac sales. Expensive PowerBooks aren't going to save Apple and bring hoards of "switchers" into the fold anywhere near like the iMac did. The new FP iMacs are great, but they're at best 40% of the typical 2.4-2.66GHz Joe6Pack consumer PCs on the market. iMacs should be at least half as fast. And many on this forum complain bitterly about the iMac pricing.

I hope Steve doesn't forget the iMac in the "year of the laptop."

 

[3.1416]

I think what Steve secretly MEANT by that is that Apple finally caught a break and it's occuring in the laptop area where Apple has already been doing well.

That's exactly right. This is the "year of the laptop" because Apple still has a decent price/performance value there. There's nothing they can do about crappy iMac and tower sales until the 970 is ready.

 

[Wyrm]

Re: Um, that is just an excerpt from the original IBM press release back in October....

Yeah - but IBM is following up on the "communications products" part. Want a low-power 970 sample for embedded applications? Contact your local IBM Microelectronics rep.

I can't say if Apple is even going to use the 970 - much less make a laptop out of them - but the part is there for the attempt.

-Wyrm