Lets hope apple can redeem themselves a bit with the new MBP's that may be coming out in the very near future, and the not to far away Mac Pro updates with the new gulftown processors.
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Mac Pro Price Point
- Thread starter JamesGorman
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Yep. The next release will tell users what they need to know about how important they are to Apple.
Be careful what you wish for! The 2010 MBPs may be faster than the 2009 MPs, causing the sales of the latter to stall completely, causing in turn Apple to scrap MPs for good
Be careful what you wish for! The 2010 MBPs may be faster than the 2009 MPs, causing the sales od the latter to stall completely, causing in turn Apple to scrap MPs for good
Even if the system is faster in terms of the CPU's, the MP's can still make up for it when upgraded. Namely additional RAM (beyond what the laptops will be capable of), and addressing HDD bottlenecks (i.e. RAID). Then there's the ability to upgrade the graphics as well, so that's the cherry on top.
Based upon what I've read here (quite a slippery slope), the rule of thumb seems to be:
Four-core Mac Pros are a ripoff.
Eight-core Mac Pros are priced equivalently to brand name PCs with similar configurations.
Either way, it's more than clear that Apple no longer regards professional users or even the educational sector as its primary market. Consumers offer a vastly superior source of revenue.
Prior to Steve Jobs return, Apple has been known over the years for keeping pet projects operational. Jobs, however, is more interested with investing resources along a more pragmatic approach.
If it just so happens that the Mac Pro line is a liability, they'll simply mark them up knowing that some die-hard enthusiasts will continue purchasing them or, failing that, discontinue the Mac Pro altogether.
Although the latter is less likely to happen, I can see Apple touting the high-end iMacs for professional work by gearing them appropriately.
12-core machine with an attached screen anyone? How's that for scary?
Four-core Mac Pros are a ripoff.
Eight-core Mac Pros are priced equivalently to brand name PCs with similar configurations.
Either way, it's more than clear that Apple no longer regards professional users or even the educational sector as its primary market. Consumers offer a vastly superior source of revenue.
Prior to Steve Jobs return, Apple has been known over the years for keeping pet projects operational. Jobs, however, is more interested with investing resources along a more pragmatic approach.
If it just so happens that the Mac Pro line is a liability, they'll simply mark them up knowing that some die-hard enthusiasts will continue purchasing them or, failing that, discontinue the Mac Pro altogether.
Although the latter is less likely to happen, I can see Apple touting the high-end iMacs for professional work by gearing them appropriately.
12-core machine with an attached screen anyone? How's that for scary?
Yes.
Assuming parity with CPU's, perhaps with the upper models. Base 2.26GHz, No, from what I've priced out.
Back into the fold...
Hello everyone,
I am a former G5 Dual 1.8GHz owner and I have sinned... I've been using an iMac since March when I sold my machine. During that time, I've learned that I am not an iMac fan. My son now has the machine. I bought a 27" Core i5 machine in November then proceeded to go through three of them due to video issues. Yes, I know...I'm not too swift.
I am seriously considering going back to the pro line since that's where I've invested my money for years. Trouble is, we're right on the cusp of a transition to a new line. I am using an old G4 Powerbook right at the moment and my digital life is sitting quietly and patiently on a 1TB external drive.
I was contemplating the $2,400 MP, but after reading this thread, I am left wondering what to do. I could wait for the next gen, but I don't necessarily want to cut my teeth on a new hardware rev.
I am a web and print designer who also uses the Office suite. I love having an open system that I can service (somewhat) myself. I have always added memory, drives, changed video cards in my previous tower systems.
What do you folks think I should do - wait? I cannot afford the octo model.
Hello everyone,
I am a former G5 Dual 1.8GHz owner and I have sinned... I've been using an iMac since March when I sold my machine. During that time, I've learned that I am not an iMac fan. My son now has the machine. I bought a 27" Core i5 machine in November then proceeded to go through three of them due to video issues. Yes, I know...I'm not too swift.
I am seriously considering going back to the pro line since that's where I've invested my money for years. Trouble is, we're right on the cusp of a transition to a new line. I am using an old G4 Powerbook right at the moment and my digital life is sitting quietly and patiently on a 1TB external drive.
I was contemplating the $2,400 MP, but after reading this thread, I am left wondering what to do. I could wait for the next gen, but I don't necessarily want to cut my teeth on a new hardware rev.
I am a web and print designer who also uses the Office suite. I love having an open system that I can service (somewhat) myself. I have always added memory, drives, changed video cards in my previous tower systems.
What do you folks think I should do - wait? I cannot afford the octo model.
One thing kept popping into my head while I read this...REFURB!!! I think that what best suit your needs,and you may even be able to get a last gen octo at a stellar price.
I was in a similar position as you when my last desktop machine (a 4 year old windows monster) bit the dust this past september. I understood that the last generation mac pro was a better deal, but then I considered a years worth of depreciation, an up to date warrantee, and having a virgin machine and went ahead and pulled the trigger on a new 2.6 mac pro quad.
Despite the fact that it's not as good a value per/$ as the previous generation mac pro, and that the equivalent windows computer was less expensive, I just couldn't spend another dime on a machine that could ONLY run windows.
I've since outfitted the machine with the ati graphics card + the nvidea, 3 monitors, 2 ssd intel drives (one per os), and 8 gigs of ram... and I couldn't have gotten a better machine/os for the $$ today.
r.
that comparison is misleading the the price shown for the Mac Pro is the base model price. With 2x 2.66 the price is comparable to the Dell.
I wish my Mac Pro only cost $2499. I bought a similar configuration and paid closer to $3400.
I wish my Mac Pro only cost $2499. I bought a similar configuration and paid closer to $3400.
What do you mean by this? I was simply suggesting that he makes his purchase from the refurb store.
Although those machines are a few years old. They are identical, hardware wise, except for the graphics card. They are both 2.66ghz machines.
Refurbs aren't exclusive to Apple. You cannot compare Apple refurbs to new PCs.
In no way was I comparing Refurb Mac's to New Pc's. I realize that and that was not what I was doing at all. But since he stated that an octo was out of his budget, I suggested he look at the refurb store to see if he can get a high spec'd machine for a lower price.
Thanks a ton for the input. I a m considering a refurb as well. Another option is the Apple Store Employee Purchase Program. Through it, I can get the quad core model for $2299 or the 8 core for $3,029 - essentially a few hundred dollars off each system.
What do you think?
What do you think?
I should add that in either case, I need to buy a display as well. If I buy the base model with the Apple 24" display, I'm at roughly $3,126. Bummer, since that buys an octo CPU as well. Perhaps I could find a bargain somewhere on the 24" LCD or one of the older cinema displays (I loved my 20" cinema display!!!). I'm not sure that 8 cores will do that much for me from an app perspective. I'm sure that SN will suck them up for sure.
I'm a student in the UK and the student discount is more than the Apple refurb discount, on top of which you get 3 year warranty as a student so there is no point in buying a refurb.
The Mac Pro high new prices means that the market is very small so they hold their value (if you're a seller), but if you are a buyer it makes even refurbished Macs expensive. I went for a Dell workstation instead as the refurb discount via a third party supplier was over 60%.
Mac Pros are a bit like expensive Swiss watches, they are marvels of craftsmanship and a thing of beauty but if you're on a budget a cheap quartz digital watch will do at least a good a job of telling you the time.
I have traditionally been a power user all the way back to the Mac II. In between, I managed to own a few iMacs and even a 20th Anniversary Mac (yes, I was one of the folks who paid $7,000). I place high value on expandability and build quality (obviously, I was completely mad when I bought the TAM).
The pros have the rest of the Apple line beat in these respects. My only concern is future proofing the machine, but I guess I can do that since it's expandable. I'm not too concerned about the fact that the i5/i7 iMacs are faster. The overall quality and stability of those machines are very poor at the moment. What good is a fast machine if the display has a yellow tinge, flashing, grinding noises, etc...
I've always been a component kind of person when it comes to audio and computers. Single points of failure are easier to cope with on a machine that is made up of several components. I guess I'm talking myself into the direction of a new quad/octo machine.
The pros have the rest of the Apple line beat in these respects. My only concern is future proofing the machine, but I guess I can do that since it's expandable. I'm not too concerned about the fact that the i5/i7 iMacs are faster. The overall quality and stability of those machines are very poor at the moment. What good is a fast machine if the display has a yellow tinge, flashing, grinding noises, etc...
I've always been a component kind of person when it comes to audio and computers. Single points of failure are easier to cope with on a machine that is made up of several components. I guess I'm talking myself into the direction of a new quad/octo machine.
I think the 8 core model would be best. I assume your purchasing this machine for the long haul, and it'd be best to future proof as much as you can. Also, unless you absolutely need the cinema display(they are nice,and I too would love one) I suggest purchasing just a simple samsung monitor from bestbuy or futureeshop for 1/3 the price. You can get good quality monitors for 3-450 dollars, that will give you more connectivity choices than the ACD.
i agree on the monitor...and samsung makes some very nice ones at good price points.
I've looked inside a few mac pros and I just don't see anything in there that is of higher quality or even much different than the ordinary parity computer pieces and parts you find in a Dell, or any other major manufacturer. Apple's moherboards don't appear to be of any higher quality than a middle of the line ASUS board. The drives are the same, the memory chips are the same, the video cards are the same.
So...what's the premium for pieces and parts all about? Ergonomics, mostly.
Assuming price is no barrier, why would you skimp on the part of the computer system that you interact with the most/the number one productivity enhancement you can get? I love my 30" ACD. The 2 USB and 2 FW ports are enough for my needs, and I have no desire to hook it up to a game console. Anyway, if those kinds of things are important to you, you can always get a Dell 3008WFP, for a little less than the ACD.
At the very least, I suggest getting a couple 24" screens (normally not found in your typical B&M electronics stores such as BestBuy). Running a MP on a single small size (<24") screen is just silly, given the opportunity to multitask that the MP offers.
These threads seem to pop up every month... here's my latest views on it...
If you are making money with your Mac Pro, then hopefully you're making enough that the cost of the machine is a relatively small part of the cost of doing business. You likely have a significant investment in OSX software and expertise in how to use it, so the cost of a Mac Pro every few years is a no brainer.
If you are not making money with your Mac Pro, then you are not really the target market for the Mac Pro. Sure you can buy it, and it will seem very expensive to you since you're not making any money with it, but if you want to play with the same toys the pros use, it's going to cost you. You can buy cheaper alternatives, but you choose not to because you WANT a Mac Pro.
It's like a hobby mechanic that complains about the price of Snap-On tools. Buy Sears tools then. Snap-On tools are not for the hobby mechanic.
If you are making money with your Mac Pro, then hopefully you're making enough that the cost of the machine is a relatively small part of the cost of doing business. You likely have a significant investment in OSX software and expertise in how to use it, so the cost of a Mac Pro every few years is a no brainer.
If you are not making money with your Mac Pro, then you are not really the target market for the Mac Pro. Sure you can buy it, and it will seem very expensive to you since you're not making any money with it, but if you want to play with the same toys the pros use, it's going to cost you. You can buy cheaper alternatives, but you choose not to because you WANT a Mac Pro.
It's like a hobby mechanic that complains about the price of Snap-On tools. Buy Sears tools then. Snap-On tools are not for the hobby mechanic.