Are you expecting that the Mac will turn into an iOS machine? Think again.
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Intel Expecting Apple to Transition to Custom ARM-Based Chips Starting in 2020
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Are you expecting that the Mac will turn into an iOS machine? Think again.
And what about software support?
Universal Apps were only around for so long last time, and not all apps were universal.
The last generation of PPC Macs had rubbish software support. 3 years on and they were unsupported. Not really in line with Apple's supposed environmental commitment.
It means we've got a few more years left until we can give Apple the finger for good and never buy any of their products or services ever again.
Apple's done a great job of squandering a great operating system... instead they capitalized on selling gimped phones marketed as fashion accessories.
So so so so so true, the endless PC upgrades you get yearly quite clearly demonstrates your comment!
Let me add to this, Nvidia, it launched it's next gen RTX graphics platform and you had an absolute plethora of desktops AND laptops from different manufactures supporting it from launch! AMD showed off their Vega 7 platform, I don't recall any fanfare of any laptops or desktops (although I'm sure their are some) supporting it from launch. And the Mac uses AMD exclusively now, the Vega 64 is currently the highest end GPU you can get in a Mac new from Apple, and it's only available in the iMac Pro, unless you get into external GPU's or the old school cheese grater Mac Po.
So whilst they seem to have made a GPU work in the A series chips after ditching the excellent PowerVR tech, I don't hold much hope of them matching the likes of AMD let alone Nvidia, Intel can't even manage to do it. Yet surely if they go the ARM route they'd have to ditch AMD and Nvidia support completely?
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Yes, that’s the way life goes. You buy a machine for the software that it can run at the time you buy it. At some point in the future, you may not be able to get updates or support for that software, unless you have a firm maintenance contract with a fixed term. What about poor me? I can’t get updates for my copy of Microsoft Multiplan for my TI-99/4A anymore.
In a world where we really need to be conserving resources it is the wrong way to go. Software support should be increasing not decreasing. Apple's greenwashing is hypocritical.
I find it laughable that I can get Windows 10 on a 13 year old MacBook, but I can't get MacOS on a 7 year old MacBook.
Apple should tell people that the current machines they are selling are going to have a compromised lifespan.
Sometimes forward progress requires that you abandon the past. Windows imploded on a pile of decrepitude because of the piles of crufty special-cases they need to accommodate to keep ancient software working.
I've been through lots of transitions with Apple. Each one had pains but all were for the better in the end; System 1 thru 7, MacOS 8/9, to OS X and then PPC to X86. Mr. Jobs said he likes options and Intel certainly hasn't done much. I think ARM will overtake X86/AMD64 in personal computers over time and possibly in customized sever applications, so this move isn't surprising and Apple always like having control of its own hardware and destiny.
That all being said, I have moved to Linux because of lack of pro and up-gradable hardware. Come up with whatever argument you want but I'm happy with the move and I like being able to upgrade my hardware and having control of my system. That's not to say I don't miss OS X; I think it's fantastic. The Apple echo system has become too locked down for me and I'm not interested in their service offerings at this stage. That could change, but it's not for me at this time. I watch with interest what products they launch this year and hope it's what everyone has been waiting for.
That all being said, I have moved to Linux because of lack of pro and up-gradable hardware. Come up with whatever argument you want but I'm happy with the move and I like being able to upgrade my hardware and having control of my system. That's not to say I don't miss OS X; I think it's fantastic. The Apple echo system has become too locked down for me and I'm not interested in their service offerings at this stage. That could change, but it's not for me at this time. I watch with interest what products they launch this year and hope it's what everyone has been waiting for.
Apple is planning to ditch Intel and transition to Mac chips starting in 2020, based on multiple rumors we've heard in the past from Bloomberg. Axios today confirmed Bloomberg's reporting and said that multiple sources have suggested Apple will transition to custom ARM-based chips next year.
According to Axios, developers and Intel officials are expecting Apple to begin using ARM-based chips in 2020.
Article Link: Intel Expecting Apple to Transition to Custom ARM-Based Chips Starting in 2020
hooray, apple chromebooks for everybody. so much for running CAD on the mac. Eh, might as well quit making the mac altogether, and just produce iPads and ipads with hardwired keyboards. If youre already determined to rip off the band-aid and lose whatever customers you lose by ditching Nvidia, and now Intel, why not just go all the way at once and throw os x on the trash heap as well... It’d be cheaper than halfassedly maintaining this dated stuff. Theres no point in continuing to support your old priducts, its a money loser. We’ve seen Apple make that decision with increasing frequency year after year already. They can afford to lose their old customers anyway, with an endless supply of easy to please kids lining up to buy whatever is new, so they really might as well throw everything out at once and make a clean break to what they’d rather be making, which appears to be short-lifecycle, premium priced, disposable iOS devices.
Microsoft stepped up to the plate with the surface books anyway, and can produce the workhorses we need. We’d rather have bought modern computers from Apple, but its understandable, Apple now exists to hoover up money, nothing more, and so must decide what will work best to that end. cest la vie
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Same crap they keep saying.
Tim Cook has said that iOS and MacOS are different and just because an app developer has a write once, does not mean all the CPUs must be the same.
A MacBook with ARM is of no use to me.
I'll switch to Lenovo or Dell. I need an x86 laptop since I run VMWare and multiple Linux VMs.
We've had this discussion before.
An A12 is not a laptop processor or even close.
Tim Cook has said that iOS and MacOS are different and just because an app developer has a write once, does not mean all the CPUs must be the same.
A MacBook with ARM is of no use to me.
I'll switch to Lenovo or Dell. I need an x86 laptop since I run VMWare and multiple Linux VMs.
We've had this discussion before.
An A12 is not a laptop processor or even close.
It could be that the main problem from Apple's point of view is Intel's spotty upgrades. Intel still hasn't worked the kinks out of their 10 nm processor. We're back to the dilemma in the old G5 days: IBM couldn't (or wouldn't) upgrade fast enough to suit Apple's needs. By doing it all in-house, Apple controls the timeline.
I'm wondering if Apple will retain Intel for their "pro" line of machines, to ensure maximum compatibility. The bigger-selling consumer models like the MacBook line could transition to ARM, but the more specialized Mac Pro might not. Then again, Apple might need a separate OS for each type. Who knows? If this is true, though, I just hope they get it right.
I'm wondering if Apple will retain Intel for their "pro" line of machines, to ensure maximum compatibility. The bigger-selling consumer models like the MacBook line could transition to ARM, but the more specialized Mac Pro might not. Then again, Apple might need a separate OS for each type. Who knows? If this is true, though, I just hope they get it right.
Bad idea … Apple already used non-intel chips years ago on Mac and it was a HUGE deal that they went to Intel chips
This article said: “the transition to ARM-based chips will be a major blow for Intel, but a win for customers in the long run”.
Really? That depends on your perspective. It may be true for some Apple customers, but not all. People who do not upgrade their computers / laptops will not be adversely affected by the planned change to custom chips.
Here is why the transition won’t work for people who plan to hold onto their machines by upgrading them over time. A neighbor who works for Apple confirmed that the company are constructing are their chips, e.g. the T2 and others, so that in 2 years time, all of their new computers will have a T2 chip, as well as their own custom processors. What this means, and the neighbor confirmed this, is that around 2021, if you buy a new mac and subsequently try to upgrade it yourself, the OS will not boot because the additional custom processors will sense that the hardware configuration has been changed by you, rather than by Apple. As a consumer, you then may end-up with a bricked computer, which you have to take to a Genius Bar to get unbricked, and may - it is unknown - have to pay a fee for.
The days of Hackintosh may be numbered, unless the Hackintosh community can construct a workaround.
Those who are relishing the release of the upcoming Mac Pro in 2019, just bear in mind that Apple may well handicap your ability to upgrade your new $3,000+ machine by adding a T2 chip and perhaps - we don’t know yet - other customer processors that limit the upgrade path.
Really? That depends on your perspective. It may be true for some Apple customers, but not all. People who do not upgrade their computers / laptops will not be adversely affected by the planned change to custom chips.
Here is why the transition won’t work for people who plan to hold onto their machines by upgrading them over time. A neighbor who works for Apple confirmed that the company are constructing are their chips, e.g. the T2 and others, so that in 2 years time, all of their new computers will have a T2 chip, as well as their own custom processors. What this means, and the neighbor confirmed this, is that around 2021, if you buy a new mac and subsequently try to upgrade it yourself, the OS will not boot because the additional custom processors will sense that the hardware configuration has been changed by you, rather than by Apple. As a consumer, you then may end-up with a bricked computer, which you have to take to a Genius Bar to get unbricked, and may - it is unknown - have to pay a fee for.
The days of Hackintosh may be numbered, unless the Hackintosh community can construct a workaround.
Those who are relishing the release of the upcoming Mac Pro in 2019, just bear in mind that Apple may well handicap your ability to upgrade your new $3,000+ machine by adding a T2 chip and perhaps - we don’t know yet - other customer processors that limit the upgrade path.
And yet Windows holds the majority market share for desktop computing.
Windows 10 is as good as or better than MacOS in a lot it ways. MacOS has gone from miles ahead and ‘it just works’ to it’s too much of a bother to move away from. Not something I would have said 5 years ago.
That being said I do see your point about leaving the past behind. Microsoft hangs on too much, however I firmly believe Apple is too far the opposite.
Again we live in a time where extending the lives of products is essential for the environment.
Funny thing is, that latest x86 Macs might actually enjoy longer software support than their ARM counterparts... just not from Apple
I would assume that Apple has been developing Intel & Arm versions of their software for the past couple years now and optimizing the hell out of them since they will now be in control of the hardware and software. You'd think Apple would have convinced the other big developers like Adobe, Microsoft, & etc to already make iOS versions of their flagship software products for the iPad Pro ahead of time in order to make their transition to Arm-based Macs faster and smoother.
Also, what is the percentage of Mac users that also use Windows on their Macs?
Also, what is the percentage of Mac users that also use Windows on their Macs?
That’s nice.
Anything else we need to know about your particular niche computing needs and future shopping choices?
Right. Because the primary reason Macs exist is to run Windows. Never mind the fact there’s an ARM version of Windows 10 too.
How will this be a win for customers in the long run? As somebody on Slashdot posted: "Only MR could see this as a win for Apple customers."
Let me see:
-No more Boot Camp
-100% of my Intel compiled Mac apps will not longer work
-No Windows 10 (Intel 32/64bit) running on my Mac
-No VMWare
-No Parallels
-No easily ported software
By using Intel, Apple gave their users access to a wide range of software that will now be gone. You know all those Windows games that got ported with wrappers like Cider? Those now will be gone too.
MacPorts will also be gone.
Anyone remember how slow Windows was on Virtual PC for the Mac when the Mac ran PPC? Well, those times are back.
Good luck running CPU intensive software on your ARM! 3D rendering apps, Photoshop, AutoCad, Wolfram MM, the list goes on and on.
Oh, but you can use crummy iOS apps on your expensive MBP! Win...for Apple since they can save on the CPU by giving you a terrible processor.
I miss Steve Jobs.
Funny thing is, that latest x86 Macs might actually enjoy longer software support than their ARM counterparts... just not from Apple
Yeah probably. What a sad state of affairs.
The doom and gloomers are always resistant and pessimistic towards change. Those here doubting the ARM chips assume Apple is slapping the chips right out of the iPhone and iPad and putting them into Macs. We have no idea what they have planned around ARM.
Apple made PPC applications run on Intel Macs during that transition just fine. Microsoft is currently making x86 programs run on Windows 10 for ARM. Why do you have any reason to expect a similar system won’t be in place when Apple transitions from Intel to ARM?
And yet desktop computing holds a minority market share for computing,
I can see this, Apple doesn't like you upgrading or repairing your personally owned Apple device unless it's Apple you are paying to do it.. the new Mac Pro will be very interesting to see how exactly it's 'modular' and 'upgradable'. Look at the battle they've chosen to fight with third party repair shops to block them repairing your iPhone! And the court cases it's lost yet it seemingly appears to ignore them..
A move to ARM I can see would be used to extend this policy to Mac computers, so Apple makes more profits.
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