Macintosh Moving to Intel Processors [Updated]

[digitalbiker]

Misleading!

From https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/

Product: PowerBook
Last Release: January 31, 2005
Days Since Update: 127 (Average = 185)
Recommendation: Neutral - Mid product cycle

Don't expect a Powerbook update just yet. It's only mid cycle. iBook is waaaaay over due.

This is misleading in this case because the last update to the PowerBook was extremely lame. In fact it was so lame most people don't even know it happened. Also I do agree with Dr. G. that the Pentium-M should make it's way to the PB realitively quickly ( I still think more than 1 year though). This means Apple needs to move the PPC gear still in the pipeline as SJ mentioned. Expect all releases to speed up to clear out the last gen PPC pipelines on all products.

 

[stephenli]

wait....wait.....
how about classic support?! i doubt.
DTP industry still need OS9 in 2005
and still need OS9 in, at least 2006
I dont think the new machine can run classic....

 

[k3nx]

With Apple switching to Intel processors, will we see Blue Man Group doing Macintel shadow dancer commercials similar to current iPod commercials?

I dunno, personally I think that would be kinda cool - white iPods and blue heads - cool cool

 

[eVolcre]

That is not completely true when it comes to Macs. or rather it hasnt been like that in the past. You would be surprised if you knew how many people that are running systems that in the Wintel world would be completely and utterly outdated.

Awesome. can't wait. In fact I wanna start a new thread that is fun and speculates about the next dream laptop. Mine would be an ultra sexy ultra lightweight ultra compact laptop that has size to take on my sales pitches and long flights, but have the juice to be able to plug it in at home and have a decent desktop replacement. Until then ... I will make do with my 2002 12" G4 ( i think i bought mine a month aftrer they were released.) AND of it does support Windows I can make a valid business case to my company to buy me one of those, have the requisite Windows crap and run OSX for myself.

I can dream ...

What's your source? Reliable? and are htey looking at the ultra portable market ? (13.1 " widescreen?" or a mid level model - 15" etc.

 

[galvez465]

well its about time...

what did you guys expect... not even ibm uses there own PPC processor.
they use intel.

 

[Dr.Gargoyle]

1) SJ said that the first Mactels would be shipping prior to the WWDC next year. It has been widely reported, (Cnet) that Apple would start with the consumer low-end machines first and slowly add intel to all product lines. This means most likely +1 probably +1.5 years before PB intel.

...shipping prior to the WWDC next year... I guess it will be sooner than you guess it will be. Note that it was Cnet said it would be low-end machines, not steve. Hence we are both guessing. Still, it would be a first one if a new chip was introduced in a low-end machine and not a high end.

2) So what if Rosetta appears in 10.4.2 or 10.4.3? Rosetta is a PPC emulator, you won't need it with a true PPC. It is only for the intel-macs.

Since I guess the first mactels will arrive rather soon, it follows that Rosetta must arrive to have some apps running on that machine...

3) SJ said "many exciting new PPC products are in the pipeline". PB is due for an upgrade as you noted. Most likely very soon you will see PB with a new PPC chip since intel PPC is 1 to 1.5 years away.

Who said that Intel will make PPC chips? My guess is that they will put a Pentium M in it. But again guessing...

4) Blue-Ray? who knows it was a wild guess since this is year of HD and new HD format DVD's will be Blue-Ray. I remember when the super-drive surprised everyone as well.

You might be right, I still think it will take a bit longer due to the HD/BR conflict. Besides I havent seen a BR in production yet.

5) Why is Freescale chip and screwing up with intel related? Intel probably knows exactly what Apple intends to release and is busy gearing up for supplying the next gen Mac-intel PB's in 1 to 2 years.

The last thing I heard about e600 was that it wasn't ready for production. Before production starts and you get the chip in a machine, my guess is that Intel will have a chip ready for the PB. I think a PB with an intel chip would sell better give what has happened. But if you know more please tell.

6) Have you been paying attention? How many posts have you seen about people just waiting for the price to drop so that they can grab a new or used PPC mac? Ain't gonna happen, demand is too high. Too many people waiting for release of PB G5 or 3 GHz PM. Well guess what, Apple pretty much announced that they aren't happening. This means those same people might as well upgrade with the last gen PPC that Apple releases from the pipeline this year.

Paying attention??? If you have read some post back you can see there are other people that guess the same as me. But ok, I guess the sales figures will show who was right. But again your guess is as good as my guess. It is a rumor site you know, we are in the guessing game here. Unless you are an employee of Apple breaking your NDA?
That being said, you might be correct, and I might be wrong. But realize that we are both...guessing.

 

[chibianh]

wait....wait.....
how about classic support?! i doubt.
DTP industry still need OS9 in 2005
and still need OS9 in, at least 2006
I dont think the new machine can run classic....

And they can continue to use the machines they're currently using...

 

[MontyZ]

what did you guys expect... not even ibm uses there own PPC processor. they use intel.

Really?? I didn't know that. Explains a lot.

 

[wildmac]

wait....wait.....
how about classic support?! i doubt.
DTP industry still need OS9 in 2005
and still need OS9 in, at least 2006
I dont think the new machine can run classic....

Oh come on... drink the Adobe cool-aid and buy InDesign. Or upgrade Quark. But please, designers don't need OS9 anymore. Convert those MacDraw files and be done with it. Please. Any apps that haven't been ported to OSX yet never will, so move on and try new software.

 

[ipiloot]

Yellow box

Speaking about Leopard for a moment.

Does anyone remember the first box schemes about the architecture of the OSX that got going around in 1998?

Was it yellow box or blue box or whatever, but there was some box that presented an api for running Windows apps on a Mac, wasn't it? May happen that we'll see it in Leopard again? Shall be a no-brainer to make an API that'll run win apps with little modifications. Remember, that the real monopoly for Microsoft is Windows API and they're trying to shake it with Longhorn a lot. Backwards compatibility is going to be a problem with Longhorn. That may be Apple's chance delivered on golden plate.

 

[Dr.Gargoyle]

Also I do agree with Dr. G. that the Pentium-M should make it's way to the PB realitively quickly ( I still think more than 1 year though).

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't pentium M ready for production? If so why wait? Am I missing something here?

 

[eVolcre]

what did you guys expect... not even ibm uses there own PPC processor.
they use intel.

Eh, in what? they don't even have a PC business anymore.

 

[galvez465]

Eh, in what? they don't even have a PC business anymore.

ibm still makes desktops and laptops...

http://www.ibm.com/products/us/

 

[vaslav]

Calm down people - no need for panic

For those who are speculating the demise of Apple or the immediate 'rendered obsolete' status of their PPC Mac, did you listen to the keynote address or read the press release on Apple's site? If you had you would have heard/read the following:

“We plan to create future versions of Microsoft Office for the Mac that support both PowerPC and Intel processors,” said Roz Ho, general manager of Microsoft’s Macintosh Business Unit. “We have a strong relationship with Apple and will work closely with them to continue our long tradition of making great applications for a great platform.”

“We think this is a really smart move on Apple’s part and plan to create future versions of our Creative Suite for Macintosh that support both PowerPC and Intel processors,” said Bruce Chizen, CEO of Adobe.

Here are two major software companies voicing their committment to provide FUTURE versions that will support both processors and it is likely that other software companies will also follow suit.

Apple has shown us in the past that they don't abandon their customer base using current machines when making major transistions: i.e., OS 9 to OS X (providing Classic environment) or from 680x0 chips to PPC (the OS at the time was able to run on both chip types up until OSX which was how many years (6, I think) after the PPC change?).

I also can't imagine that Steve Jobs will allow OS X for Intel to run on any x86 machine. There is much more to the architecture of a computer than just the main processor and Steve would not allow one of the main benefits of a Mac (hardware and software made by the same company) to be thrown out the window.

 

[paulsecic]

Why are you stunned?

Apple probably purposefully leaked this on Friday to lessen the shock.

Where are all the people that said this was not going to happen???

They're buying PCs like me. Jobs is a sell-out!

 

[matticus008]

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't pentium M ready for production? If so why wait? Am I missing something here?

Just that Steve Jobs said that we wouldn't see Intel-powered computers until next year, and that the transition wouldn't be complete until well into 2007 (meaning new PowerPC computers at least through 2007). So, at the soonest possible, there won't be a Pentium M in a PowerBook until next year. By then, there could be something completely new. The other reason to wait, of course, is that there isn't a completely ready version of OS X for Intel yet, and there are essentially no applications that have been recompiled at this point. You wouldn't launch a new platform and architecture relying solely on an emulator, so they have to wait until at least most of the major applications are fully native. That'll take at least several months for many companies, regardless of the ease of recompiling advertised at the keynote.


And Apple wouldn't just turn around and abandon the majority of its users at that point, meaning that OS X will continue to support PowerPC at least through Leopard's lifespan (a good four years from now). That's really unrelated to your post, but I thought I'd add it because too many people seem to be overreacting about the usefulness of their recent purchases.

 

[PedroDiniz]

SGI Prism

Hey, if Apple move to Intel, could they maybe use Itanium processors like in the new SGI Prism Deskside?

Don't know much about SGI machines but a friend really rates the hardware. Mac OS X running on a really well build intel based machine like the Prism would be nice eh?

APPLE FOR EVER ! ! ! ! !

 

[digitalbiker]

Whoops... that was a typo. I meant to say Intel-Mac PBs not Intel-PPC PBs.

Yes, you are right we are just guessing. But Steve did mention several times about great new PPC products in the pipeline. Also this is a developer convention, not a general consumer convention. Most things that are discussed here don't effect consumers for at least a year. I think we will see a new PPC PB before we see an intel PB. It is just a guess.
Also I don't think very many apps will be available in just a years time. Apple won't release pro-sumer products until many key pro apps are in place.

 

[runninmac]

I wonder if the stock will go down as low as it was when I first bought it, which was around $11/each. While it would seem tempting, it would look really bad if it dropped that low.

very bad. God i bought it around 44!!! I guess i should have known the bubble was gonna burst. I was just so frustrated becuase I was going to buy some at 17 then at 25 then a 36!!! then I got up to the hight 80's durning the stock split and that's what im left with!

 

[wdlove]

With Apple switching to Intel processors, will we see Blue Man Group doing Macintel shadow dancer commercials similar to current iPod commercials?

I would actually like to see Apple doing some commercials other than just the iPod. Maybe when the switch to Intel actually comes to market, it will spur Steve to advertise.

 

[maclamb]

Better VPC for Mac performance?

I think this is great news. If it becomes possible to have a dual boot OS X + Windows XP computer I'll be so happy.

At the end of the day everyone wins.

Wouldn't Virtual PC for Mac run at almost native speeds, like VPC for Windows does on intel now?

 

[runninmac]

This is misleading in this case because the last update to the PowerBook was extremely lame. In fact it was so lame most people don't even know it happened. Also I do agree with Dr. G. that the Pentium-M should make it's way to the PB realitively quickly ( I still think more than 1 year though). This means Apple needs to move the PPC gear still in the pipeline as SJ mentioned. Expect all releases to speed up to clear out the last gen PPC pipelines on all products.

I really hope they get their protable lines shiping with the Pentium M asap! I know they would have said something about it coming be for christmas... but i can dream.

 

[Dr.Gargoyle]

Oh come on... drink the Adobe cool-aid and buy InDesign. Or upgrade Quark. But please, designers don't need OS9 anymore. Convert those MacDraw files and be done with it. Please. Any apps that haven't been ported to OSX yet never will, so move on and try new software.

A guy doing his Ph.D. in Biology posted that their dept was still running OS 9 for their DNA sequenses... That is a common problem in science. You get a program, tweak it, and then you hope you will be able to run that on new platforms too. It is not always as easy as you suggest to just "update".

 

[obeygiant]

does anyone know or want to speculate on what apple will call these beasts?

i cant imagine them calling and intel box a G5 or G6.

I have no idea.

 

[Panu]

I think it will be important for Apple to lower it's computer prices somewhat if they want more market share, as price-resistance is one of the big negatives for Apple equipment. Everything just costs SO MUCH more, and PC users don't understand why and would much rather buy a $399 Dell than a $799 eMac, because they get a free printer, faster processor, bigger hard disk, more RAM, etc. So, that's one of Apple's biggest problems, and if they don't take this opportunity to even the playing field a bit, then this whole Intel change will be worthless.

It's not the consumer market that Apple needs to be concerned about. People did buy Macs for their kids because the kids used Macs at school. But they bought Windows PCs for themselves because they used Windows at work. That is where Apple has to make inroads--in the workplace.

The real money is in the businesses and government agencies. To get into those markets, Apple has to be more price-competitive. Have you ever been in a business (other than the Apple store), a hospital, or a government agency in which Macs were the standard workstation? I've been in dozens of federal agencies, a half-dozen hospitals, and innumerable major corporations in the Washington DC area. I have only seen a handful of Macs in specialized departments in two corporations, none in government offices, and none in hospitals. The entire US military worldwide runs on mainframes and Windows PCs.

Apple couldn't compete in those price-sensitive markets because their CPU cost was so high. With Intel chips, that can change. They can begin to invade the corporate and government worlds for real, not just by supplying props to fictional businesses in TV shows.

To continue living in the style to which they have become accustomed, Apple doesn't need to conquer the world or kill off Microsoft--but they do have to get a share of those markets.