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Mac Pro Update with AMD Radeon HD 3800 GPUs

S

scorp888

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 25, 2007
20
0
I'm guessing this is wishful thinking, but perhaps the penryn processors were not what Apple has been waiting for to update the pro with..perhaps it's the GPU.

Radeon HD 3800 GPUs

http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/11/15/amd_rolls_out_radeon_3800/

Only out today, which means Apple would be able to offer it's usual Nvidia and AMD line up.

Goes to look at the apple store and hopes for a yellow stickie...
 
Hm, I don`t think so. Apple doesn`t seem to want good graphics in the mac pro, they would rather opt for a hd2600. And there are stable and reliable OS X drivers which require to be written, which takes some time...
 
macz1 said:
And there are stable and reliable OS X drivers which require to be written, which takes some time...
Click to expand...

I'm not convinced this is the case, if I were apple and I was talking to Nvidia and AMD about purchasing several million gpu's then the "and you'll be supplying them with drivers" would be about 3 or 4 on the list.

Unless both said no, which would suprise me, as I suspect Apples hard, we'll buy this many is more of a draw than, an unspecified number of Linux enthusiasts might buy your gpu if you provide drivers for them...
 
I think what the standard technique for predicting the next high end video card for Apple, is take what is available for the PC at the near top end a few months ago, slap a premium price on it for a few months ago, ship it, and stick with it for a year or so.

I'm hoping that if the next refresh is soon, they will have a reasonable upgrade path to the 8800GT, that seems to be the sweet spot now on the Windows side for price-performance.
 
ewinemiller said:
I think what the standard technique for predicting the next high end video card for Apple, is take what is available for the PC at the near top end a few months ago, slap a premium price on it for a few months ago, ship it, and stick with it for a year or so.

I'm hoping that if the next refresh is soon, they will have a reasonable upgrade path to the 8800GT, that seems to be the sweet spot now on the Windows side for price-performance.
Click to expand...

It would be nice...I'm really struggling to get a machine that's over a year old price and spec wise...
 
The hd3800s are the same speeds as the 2900xt, so that would be annoying. Rather a nvidia 8800 or 9800 would be nice plus a quadro 5600.
 
TheThirdMan said:
The hd3800s are the same speeds as the 2900xt, so that would be annoying.
Click to expand...
Only reason it is annoying is because the 2900 XT performance wasn't all that impressive to begin with.

Rather a nvidia 8800 or 9800 would be nice plus a quadro 5600.
Click to expand...
The 9800 was the rumored name for the G92 chip.
Turns out the 8800 GT is the actual video card for the G92.
 
Don't dream, write to Apple

It has been 16 months since the Mac Pros were introduced. We have the same options we had then, in fact fewer than the old PPC days. The PC market continues to have dozens of video cards to chose from and all we do is hope. The latest iMac offerings come with an arguably slower VC than its predecessor. The once trailblazing Macs are now not so much.

Where is Blu-Ray? Where is FW 16-3200? Where is eASTA support? Where is better, faster, cheaper RAM? Etc, etc... too busy counting money Steve?

Apple needs to STOP trying to control everything we can or can not use in our Macs and STOP trying to make a buck out of every peripheral and add on we buy.
 
The 9800 was the rumored name for the G92 chip.
Turns out the 8800 GT is the actual video card for the G92.
Click to expand...

Yeah, but logic dictates after the 5800, 6800, 7800 and 8800, the next card will be called the 9800...
 
Someone really needs to write a program like Bootcamp or Parallels in the opposite direction so that we could have the benefits of OSX and the freedom of PC users to build their own systems to their preferred specs on their own schedule.
In an ideal world, any OS could be installed on any computer and people would be free to choose. Those that valued the style qualities of Apple could choose to put up with their upgrade decisions and those who valued the OS could choose to build their own systems the way they wanted.
I suspect that if that was the case, Apple would soon begin to take more notice of their customers.
 
Luis Ortega said:
Someone really needs to write a program like Bootcamp or Parallels in the opposite direction so that we could have the benefits of OSX and the freedom of PC users to build their own systems to their preferred specs on their own schedule.
In an ideal world, any OS could be installed on any computer and people would be free to choose. Those that valued the style qualities of Apple could choose to put up with their upgrade decisions and those who valued the OS could choose to build their own systems the way they wanted.
I suspect that if that was the case, Apple would soon begin to take more notice of their customers.
Click to expand...

There is already a website dedicated to running Mac OS X on standard PCs. The reason it is not very popular is because it is unstable and a pain in the arse to setup.
 
i have an open question-

Whatever the new card(s) are, will owners of current MPs be able to buy and use those cards in their systems?
 
cuestakid said:
i have an open question-

Whatever the new card(s) are, will owners of current MPs be able to buy and use those cards in their systems?
Click to expand...

Once OS X drivers are available, there shouldn't be any problem in using those cards, in the worst case you'll be able to flash a PC-version...

Booting in Windows works anyway. Even now.
 
Cromulent said:
There is already a website dedicated to running Mac OS X on standard PCs. The reason it is not very popular is because it is unstable and a pain in the arse to setup.
Click to expand...

That's seems a step in the right direction but I'm not talking about having to hack it to get it done but a well designed emulation program like Parallels.
The market for such a program would likely be huge.
 
Voltaic said:
It has been 16 months since the Mac Pros were introduced. We have the same options we had then, in fact fewer than the old PPC days. The PC market continues to have dozens of video cards to chose from and all we do is hope. The latest iMac offerings come with an arguably slower VC than its predecessor. The once trailblazing Macs are now not so much.

Where is Blu-Ray? Where is FW 16-3200? Where is eASTA support? Where is better, faster, cheaper RAM? Etc, etc... too busy counting money Steve?

Apple needs to STOP trying to control everything we can or can not use in our Macs and STOP trying to make a buck out of every peripheral and add on we buy.
Click to expand...

This is all true, but it makes you think something really nice should be coming very soon though, no?
 
i dont know why but I have this feeling that Apple will short change us again on graphics- then again, they have been promoting their supposed partnership with EA, so if they are serious about people playing games on their Macs, be it on windows or natively, then they must make machines that can play any current game.


Then again, I also have this gut feeling that we will be disappointed for the same reasons that we want them to take gaming more seriously
 
Hmmm....

Wonder which card will appear as the standard sub-35W card. :confused:

Of course a low watt ATI card may be paired with a higher end Nvidia card.
 
cuestakid said:
i dont know why but I have this feeling that Apple will short change us again on graphics- then again, they have been promoting their supposed partnership with EA, so if they are serious about people playing games on their Macs, be it on windows or natively, then they must make machines that can play any current game.


Then again, I also have this gut feeling that we will be disappointed for the same reasons that we want them to take gaming more seriously
Click to expand...

I agree. To date I only find that macsoft and aspyr are serious about the mac gaming market.
 
cuestakid said:
i dont know why but I have this feeling that Apple will short change us again on graphics- then again, they have been promoting their supposed partnership with EA, so if they are serious about people playing games on their Macs, be it on windows or natively, then they must make machines that can play any current game.

Then again, I also have this gut feeling that we will be disappointed for the same reasons that we want them to take gaming more seriously
Click to expand...

Apple has done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to make me believe they are serious about gaming.
Apple has done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to make me believe they are serious about gaming.
Apple has done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to make me believe they are serious about gaming.

http://www.macworld.com/news/2007/11/15/carmack/index.php
http://games.kikizo.com/features/gabenewell_valve_iv_sep07_p1.asp
 
Topper said:
Apple has done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to make me believe they are serious about gaming.
Apple has done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to make me believe they are serious about gaming.
Apple has done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to make me believe they are serious about gaming.

http://www.macworld.com/news/2007/11/15/carmack/index.php
http://games.kikizo.com/features/gabenewell_valve_iv_sep07_p1.asp
Click to expand...

i think games on devices like ipods, iphones and ipod touches are a completely issue when it comes to gaming. Those devices are not built to play games on-whereas a machine like a mac pro or imac has the power and resources to run modern high end games

With regards to valve-I think while his views are right on, putting all the blame on Apple is a little unfair since game makers must be willing to port their games to begin with
 
cuestakid said:
i think games on devices like ipods, iphones and ipod touches are a completely issue when it comes to gaming. Those devices are not built to play games on-whereas a machine like a mac pro or imac has the power and resources to run modern high end games

With regards to valve-I think while his views are right on, putting all the blame on Apple is a little unfair since game makers must be willing to port their games to begin with
Click to expand...

Those web sites are just examples, albeit poor ones.
What I am really trying to say is:
1. Even game manufacturers don't believe Apple is serious about gaming.
2. The latest iMac's video cards are inferior to the previous one. In other words, in regards to gaming the iMac has gone down hill.
3. There is no video card in Apple's line-up that is excellent for gaming.
4. Apple has done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to make me believe they are serious about gaming.
 
Topper said:
Those web sites are just examples, albeit poor ones.
What I am really trying to say is:
1. Even game manufacturers don't believe Apple is serious about gaming.
2. The latest iMac's video cards are inferior to the previous one. In other words, in regards to gaming the iMac has gone down hill.
3. There is no video card in Apple's line-up that is excellent for gaming.
4. Apple has done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to make me believe they are serious about gaming.
Click to expand...

In that case I totally agree with you on all your points
 
Game developers won't bother even considering porting games to OSX if Apple offers nothing that can handle their games to their full potential.

And I don't mean "well, for 3mths every 2 years they have a semi-top end card available for mac".
 
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