Intel's 2006 Processor Roadmap

[GilGrissom]

I think the timeframe next year all depends on how well Intel do at getting the new technology out, how well Apple do in getting in ahead of all the other masses, and how the rest of the market will react to the new products when released, knowing that Apple is now in the que.

I think Steve knows this and that it will be like the Tiger release. Faint idea, the precise time is never known. Once Apple have the stuff it really depends on how fast they work in fine tuning it and making it the perfect Apple product to sell. If they are ahead of schedule why not get it out nice and early?! If not then they will use every second of available time. After all they need to get this right.

Yeah, and then it'll stop...


for one week... 🙄

Hehe!...nice one.

 

[Detlev_73]

Interesting thought?

There is a link on the Macnews.de article referenced above pointing to the Intel MOBO the developer Macs comes on:

http://www.intel.com/design/motherbd/ux/index.htm

Some of the many features of this MOBO are the following:

*8 (Eight!) USB 2.0 ports
*1 Parallel port
*1 Serial port
*4 (Four!) serial ATA interfaces

Etc, etc. Eight USB 2.0 ports will rock, but there is a lack of Firewire 400 or 800 ports. The one cool thing I'm thinking will be possible is being able to connect older parallel-based printers that currently cannot be interefaced to the Mac. I'm not a tech genius by far, but anyone care to comment on this?

 

[slu]

old news...

What an informative post! Thanks so much for the insight.

There is finally some light at then end of the tunnel for the PB stagnation!

It wouldn't surprise me if the Intel PowerBooks and Mini were both shipping by WWDC '06. That would get the main switcher box up to specs (in fact it would kill a lot of PCs in the same range) and give switchers direct comparisons between PCs and Macs. And the PowerBook really needs it's Power back, so my money is on these two first.

I don't think there will be much of a form factor change for anything, but hey what do I know?

 

[w_parietti22]

I find it so funny that before Apple said they were switching to Intel everone was like "Intel sucks!" and now that Apple is moving to Intel everyone is like "Intel Rocks" 🙄 🙂

If Apple said they were going to blow up the world with a PowerMac G5 everyone would say "Apples going to blow up to world!" jumping for joy. Ok maybe not... its more likely that MS will blow up the world when Apple takes over. 😀

 

[m-dogg]

"On the mobility side, Intel is quickly approaching the finish line of the development of the Napa platform which includes the Yonah single- and dual-core processors. Napa is prepped as a late Christmas present and scheduled to be launched in the first half of January 2006. Yonah will make a broad debut, targeting all notebook segments as well as entertainment PCs and Mac mini-like small form factor PCs in combination with the 945GT chipset. The processor will receive a major refresh in the second half of 2006: The "Merom" chip will bring a 64-bit upgrade and 4 MByte L2 cache (twice the size of Yonah's L2) and continue to offer a 667 MHz FSB. "

Hmmmm, if only Apple had something going on in the first half of January '06. Like an event to unveil something new...has Apple ever been known to reveal a 'late christmas present' before? Hmmmm....

 

[w_parietti22]

There is a link on the Macnews.de article referenced above pointing to the Intel MOBO the developer Macs comes on:

http://www.intel.com/design/motherbd/ux/index.htm

Some of the many features of this MOBO are the following:

*8 (Eight!) USB 2.0 ports
*1 Parallel port
*1 Serial port
*4 (Four!) serial ATA interfaces

Etc, etc. Eight USB 2.0 ports will rock, but there is a lack of Firewire 400 or 800 ports. The one cool thing I'm thinking will be possible is being able to connect older parallel-based printers that currently cannot be interefaced to the Mac. I'm not a tech genius by far, but anyone care to comment on this?

Who cares about Parallel ports and serial ports... its very old technology and Apple got out of it years ago with the iMac G3. 8 USB ports would be nice... but I only use 3 or 4 so it doesnt make much of a difference to me. 4 serial ATAinterfaces is nice. In the G5 that would be great. (oops sorry... I mean PowerMac)

 

[Kelson]

Powerbook thoughts....

I really think Paris will see the release of the 970FX LV based powerbooks, with the intel migration happening using the Merom processor, not Yonah. Jobs stated that it would start at the low end, meaning the mini, ibook, and iMac.

-Kelson

 

[GilGrissom]

Hmmmm, if only Apple had something going on in the first half of January '06. Like an event to unveil something new...has Apple ever been known to reveal a 'late christmas present' before? Hmmmm....

Bumped PowerBooks this year. Thats pretty much it. When the Mac Mini come out again folks?? (Don't want to say January because I'll probably be wrong!)

 

[m-dogg]

I really think Paris will see the release of the 970FX LV based powerbooks, with the intel migration happening using the Merom processor, not Yonah. Jobs stated that it would start at the low end, meaning the mini, ibook, and iMac.

-Kelson

or does 'low end' mean G4? becasue then you can add powerbooks to that list...

 

[Websnapx2]

Sorry Gil, the mac mini is an economical machine. If they start with that, the Bang-to-buck ration will be really underwhelming. The powerbook is the most in need for an update and also has the most switchers and mac loyalists waiting to buy with baited breath. If I was a PC user waiting to switch, an Intel mac mini wouldn't impress me much, since a mini wouldn't optimally have the same chip as powerbook, so I wouldn't carry the fastest chip that series has to offer. iBook, yeah, the mini is in line with that. Expect to see those tow introduced together. Also keep in mind that the company needs to make sure that the core supporters are completely impressed with the first intel offering, the Mac Mini is not a machine that was designed to blow anyone's socks off with power. Lastly, it may not have been obvious the last three years or so, but the Power book is supposed to be a portable alternative to the PowerMac. Whatever chip it has should be in a higher category than the mini or the iBook. If these are the most powerful moble chips we can get from Intel, they have no business in a MacMini/iBook line. Economy, people, economy…

 

[shamino]

Get ready folks. The first mini's and ibooks will have single-core Yonah's that are Celerons. I ain't happy, but read the article and decide for yourself. I feel dirty just thinking about a Mac with a Celeron in it.

Two things.

1. Celeron is a product name. Yonah is a code-name for a core chip. The fact that Yonah will be used in some Celerons doesn't mean it won't be used elsewhere as well. In prior generations, it was well known that the Celeron and Pentium series used the same cores, with different amounts of on-board cache.
   
   In other words, a Yonah-based Mac does not necessarily mean Celeron.
   
2. Why should you care about the brand-name for the chip? If it's fast enough to do what you need, what else matters? If you really don't like the word Celeron, ignore it. It's not like you'll be able to see the printing on the chip anyway.

 

[GilGrissom]

or does 'low end' mean G4? becasue then you can add powerbooks to that list...

I think the G4/G5 things wil be totally screwed come the main Intel switches anyway so I don't think it really matters. I don't mean they won't use them, that's a whole different story, just that what is G4/G5 at the mo will be altered.

I agree partially with an earlier poster who said that Apple may wait and go totally 64 bit. Maybe not the Mac Mini, it has no need yet. But PowerMac and iMac continue to be 64, obviously! and the PowerBook to join. Possibly eMac and later iBook? I think the iBook and Mac Mini will become better brothers and sisters after the Intel switch, leaving the PowerBook and PowerMacs much closer and happier together.

 

[shamino]

There is a link on the Macnews.de article referenced above pointing to the Intel MOBO the developer Macs comes on:

http://www.intel.com/design/motherbd/ux/index.htm

Some of the many features of this MOBO are the following:

*8 (Eight!) USB 2.0 ports
*1 Parallel port
*1 Serial port
*4 (Four!) serial ATA interfaces

Etc, etc. Eight USB 2.0 ports will rock, but there is a lack of Firewire 400 or 800 ports. The one cool thing I'm thinking will be possible is being able to connect older parallel-based printers that currently cannot be interefaced to the Mac. I'm not a tech genius by far, but anyone care to comment on this?

It's a generic PC motherboard. Something Apple selected in order to quickly get a computer out the door, so the developers would have something to work with.

Apple has repeatedly said that you should not expect the production Macs to resemble the development systems.

I can guarantee you that whatever Apple ships as a product will not have a parallel port, will not have a serial port, but will have FireWire ports.

Note that the Intel board also has a PC-style floppy drive port and PS/2-style keyboard/mouse ports. I think we can be certain that the Macs Apple ships next year won't have these either.

 

[greenfluke]

or does 'low end' mean G4? becasue then you can add powerbooks to that list...

But the PowerBook should not be low-end, or G4. I agree I think we'll see the G5 powerbooks, and a Moto based dual-core G5 and they will probably move PowerBooks in or around June, and PowerMacs in early 2007 with the G6 and Leopard to destroy any chance of Windows Vista getting press. 😀

 

[GilGrissom]

Sorry Gil, the mac mini is an economical machine. If they start with that, the Bang-to-buck ration will be really underwhelming. The powerbook is the most in need for an update and also has the most switchers and mac loyalists waiting to buy with baited breath. If I was a PC user waiting to switch, an Intel mac mini wouldn't impress me much, since a mini wouldn't optimally have the same chip as powerbook, so I wouldn't carry the fastest chip that series has to offer. iBook, yeah, the mini is in line with that. Expect to see those tow introduced together. Also keep in mind that the company needs to make sure that the core supporters are completely impressed with the first intel offering, the Mac Mini is not a machine that was designed to blow anyone's socks off with power. Lastly, it may not have been obvious the last three years or so, but the Power book is supposed to be a portable alternative to the PowerMac. Whatever chip it has should be in a higher category than the mini or the iBook. If these are the most powerful moble chips we can get from Intel, they have no business in a MacMini/iBook line. Economy, people, economy…

I appologise. You raise a good point. Didn't think of that. The cost in developing the new machines would suggest no Mac mini first. I agree with the iBook Mac mini together. I agree with the other Mac mini and iBook comments, the latest chips have no need to be in there. (Hence my original thought about using existing Intel chips quickly and easily and cheaply in the mac mini, but you're right). I'm hoping the Intel switch will bring clarity to all the lines, especially the iBook/PowerBook fiasco, also the disappointing leaps with the PowerMac.

 

[GilGrissom]

Apple has repeatedly said that you should not expect the production Macs to resemble the development systems.

I can guarantee you that whatever Apple ships as a product will not have a parallel port, will not have a serial port, but will have FireWire ports.

Note that the Intel board also has a PC-style floppy drive port and PS/2-style keyboard/mouse ports. I think we can be certain that the Macs Apple ships next year won't have these either.

Will this mean that there will be some modification of basic board from Intel for Apple? Some uniqueness tailored specifically for Apple by Intel? I ask as it's a strong story in posts that Intel will not do anything special for Apple as they are just another customer and they have bigger mouths to feed with bigger customers. I'm not aware of any Intel boards that have the Apple mods you mention (there probably out there somewhere though!)

 

[FoxyKaye]

Apple has been working on a PowerBook G5. Who's to say they can't take some of the now defuct PB G5 design and apply to a 'YonahBook'.

I second that emotion, with maybe the Minis receiving Intel chips on or about the same time.

However, didn't Steve also say that Intel was going to start at the "low-end" first? I suppose this has many connotations, but to me it means iBook/Mini and maybe eMac and not PowerBook, iMac and PowerMac first...

Also, not knowing a nickel's worth about Intel chips - are all of these going to be 64-bit chips? Presumably Apple is going to keep the pace with a 64-bit CPU/(mostly) 64-bit OS, yes?

 

[SiliconAddict]

I agree. Apple will have plenty of information and prototypes already. They will have plenty up their sleeves. Saying this I'm still doubtful for January for brand new top of the range PowerBooks. Mac mini maybe? But even that could be later than January.

Anyone want to bet on if people are walking around in Apple HQ NOW with Beta hardware Pentium M PowerBooks that sport the same shell the current PowerBooks have? You would never know other then people with quiet little smiles because they finally found teh snappy. 😎


I still think Apple is going to come out with a new shell though. Mmmmm black anodized Powerbook....*homer simpson drool* Oh baby.

 

[wrldwzrd89]

This sounds awfully like the old 68k to PowerPC transition...hopefully, with the architecture of Mac OS X behind them instead of Mac OS 9 "Classic", they can get the entirety of Mac OS X running natively before the first Intel-powered Macs are released.

Anyway, I'm excited about this news...since it seems that Steve Jobs was right about Intel's plans.

 

[GilGrissom]

This sounds awfully like the old 68k to PowerPC transition...hopefully, with the architecture of Mac OS X behind them instead of Mac OS 9 "Classic", they can get the entirety of Mac OS X running natively before the first Intel-powered Macs are released.

Isn't the actual operating system running natively already?? Has been for past 5 years? Just needs finalising? Its just all the programs and 3rd party stuff thats not all native yet. At least that's what I thought. Feel free to correct me!

 

[SiliconAddict]

Yeah, and then it'll stop...


for one week... 🙄

Probably longer then that. Since Apple is in the same boat as the rest of the industry well almost. There is AMD but their mobile solutions just aren't there yet. I think people will be happy with the next version of the PowerBook as long as they also update the screen as well. Basicly:

-Dual core around 2Ghz.
-Newer screen
-PCI-Express graphics
-DDR2 RAM up to 2GB.
-SATA hard drives.


All of which is supporting on current P-M chipsets.

It boils down to this: As long as Apple doesn't do some half assed update that leaves something off for later so they can get people to shell out cash for a feature that could have easily been in this model. People will stop bitching. Apple plays games with their wares. We will soon see if this transitions over to the Macintels. If it does expect the bitchfest to continue in mass.

 

[shamino]

Will this mean that there will be some modification of basic board from Intel for Apple? Some uniqueness tailored specifically for Apple by Intel? I ask as it's a strong story in posts that Intel will not do anything special for Apple as they are just another customer and they have bigger mouths to feed with bigger customers. I'm not aware of any Intel boards that have the Apple mods you mention (there probably out there somewhere though!)

Intel may not do anything special, but who says Intel will make the boards? They may simply provide chips, just like how IBM and Motorola only provided chips for the PPC Macs.

Apple has contracted out to various Taiwanese firms (like AsusTEK) to make custom boards for their PPC systems. Since all these companies also sell x86 boards, it would stand to reason that Apple will contract out to one or more of them to make the MacTel boards.

Although I haven't seen any PC motherboards that have eliminate all the ports Apple won't use (serial, parallel, PS/2 and floppy), I have seen boards with some of these stripped out. (My sister's old Gateway system had no PS/2 or parallel ports.)

And there are several boards you can get with on-board FireWire. My Shuttle XPC system (over a year old) has two FW-400 ports.

I think it is far more likely that the MacTel systems will have the same array of ports that we've all come to expect from Apple, than to think that they're going to abandon it all in favor of something in Intel's current retail product lineup.

 

[SiliconAddict]

Isn't the actual operating system running natively already?? Has been for past 5 years? Just needs finalising? Its just all the programs and 3rd party stuff thats not all native yet. At least that's what I thought. Feel free to correct me!

Nope you are right. WWDC showed us that not only was X running natively but the iApps were as well. The funny thing is he didn't demo any of the pro apps which prob means they are having more issues with those apps which makes sense since FCP and the like were optimized around the G5.

 

[spacemoose]

It seems to me that it is more likely that we'll be seeing Merom based PBs in the second half of '06 as the first IntelBooks.

I seem to recall Jobs saying two things:

"I think a lot of you would like a G5 in your PowerBook and we haven't been able to deliver that to you yet."

"So when we meet here again this next time next year, our plan is to be shipping Macs with Intel processors by then, and when we meet here again two years from now, our plan is that transition will be mostly complete."

Now, his "plan to be shipping" IntelMacs by June 2006 seems a somewhat reserved for Jobs if his intention is to be releasing new Intel-based products 6 months before that. This seems to imply that Q2, or thereabouts, is their target for whatever they release first.

I'd imagine that a mini would be the easiest product to redesign, its FF would likely remain identical, with only its MOBO and some internal components changing. A PB would be much more difficult, and I really don't think there is a chance in hell they could design and have the capacity ready to ship an ENTIRELY new PB in six months.

Also, Apple will obviously want to be all over the Merom when it comes out. They have been hyping 64-bit for ages and when the Windows world starts going that way (Vista), they are gonna have to be right there. I don't know the design considerations (electrical, software, physical...spiritual) when moving from the the Yonah to the Merom, but I don't imagine it's trivial.

Not to mention (although it already has been) that if Apple releases the 32-bit Yonah in the interim, they are left supporting an architecture that will only exist for 9-10 (?) months for the next 5 years. That doesn't make much sense.

If the redesign for Merom is considerable (and I don't know if it is) I don't think we are going to see Yonah-based books because you know Apple is going to want to be right there when the Merom is available.

If the design/engineering work for a 970FX is far enough along (we all know this is some cud Apple has been chewing on for more than a year) then we might see a PowerBook G5. It would sell like crazy, and that's always nice.

It's probably more likely, however, that Apple is going to use a G4 update to hold the line together for the next year (one update in between now and late 2006 is entirely reasonable given the recent revision cycle) be it the 7448, 8641, or whatever. It's a safer and easier solution that, unless they are REALLY far down the G5 road, makes the most sense given every consideration.

 

[shamino]

There is AMD but their mobile solutions just aren't there yet.

Have you noticed their new Turion 64 chipset. Similar to Intel's Centrino set, it features a mobile 64-bit processor, low-power features and wireless connectivity.

AMD's web site (see above link) has links to several laptops that are using this chipset. I've seen one of the Compaq models advertised in a local store already.