The limitation that I see is that it appears to use SATA SSDs instead of the (potentially) much faster M.2 SSDs.
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Roundup: First-Look Impressions of the New Mac Pro
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The limitation that I see is that it appears to use SATA SSDs instead of the (potentially) much faster M.2 SSDs.
The problem here is that HP also sells workstations that start at $500. Apple cheapest workstation is $6000.
All but the most serious hobbyists will be priced out of this and the iMac Pro but professionals will get their money back quite quickly as a tool for work.
The issue will be those professionals who know this is Apple's final gambit for those power users who will be making money off the back of the Cheese Grater Pro. It looks competitively priced compared to similar workstations - its now a matter of how seriously they take the road map ahead.
Leaving this or the iMac Pro to languish unloved for 3-4 years at the same price will not be acceptable.
For the rest of us hobbyists with less deep pockets they at least have given us a decent Mac mini and continue to update the iMac while MacBook Pros have the keyboard issue which may be reaching the endgame - the next generation in 12 months time will be interesting in terms of a full redesign with Cannon Lake/Ice Lake CPUs.
The cheapest Mac mini is $800. You were hoping they'd do a base Mac Pro for only $200 more, even though the cheapest Mac Pro ever, counting for inflation, was $2500 in 2012 dollars? Hmm.
Not a snowball's chance in hell. Intel is only releasing mobile CPUs right now at 10 nm. Think yields.
Welp, this is clearly not the machine I was looking for. Quite happy with my maxed out 2019 iMac 5K. Glad I didn’t wait to see what this was. I mean, it’s cool, but I’m not God.
$1k for a monitor stand is the "we don't want to make those" price
iMac Pro's Xeon maxes out at 18 cores as opposed to 28, 256GB RAM as opposed to 1.5TB, has just one 10gbe, and does not have 8 PCIe slots, optional FPGA card, optional MPX modules (which add 4 more TB ports per card), support for 4 GPUs (and possibly more), nor other features. They're both great machines, but not comparable.
As for display, the iMac Pro is 27", 5k, 500 nit. The new Pro display is 32", 6k, 1000 nit, HDR. Both fine displays, but again not even comparable.
I don't know why all the hating on the design, I think it looks great. It's a more modern, refined, and compact version of the old cheese grater design, which was excellent.
But yeah, I wish the base model was a tad more affordable for people that just need more expansion than the Mini provides.
One question I have is how does it fit in a rack mount?
But yeah, I wish the base model was a tad more affordable for people that just need more expansion than the Mini provides.
One question I have is how does it fit in a rack mount?
So let’s all pause what we’re doing and praise Apple for producing ... the 2012 cheese grader? No seriously. I’m glad it’s back but what took so long?
A pricey cheese grader or not, it's so nice to be reading stuff about high-end pro gear instead of watches and notches. Makes me feel like a kid again.
What a beast! You gotta expect the hate on the design and price because it always happens. This is what pros have been asking for and apple did it. Remember if you have to ask yourself if you need a computer like this then you don't.
To be fair, the vast majority of computing devices are overpowered for what people actually use them for.
The problem here is that there are actually no Z4s for $500, the lowest priced one is $895 and so completely under-spec'd that it's useless (4GB ram, 500GB HD (no SSD), Core i3 CPU). Please don't make me laugh... Heck, the entry level Mac mini is twice the machine, and at a lower price.
The design of it is off-putting to a certain extend. I don't think I have ever looked at a Mac and though, well that doesn't look right. Even the trashcan Mac Pro was OK looking to me. This hover will definitely take some time to get used to, not sure what is going on at Apple but the design of their products lately has certainly been hit and miss.
Those black cheese graders are at least $1500 less than the new MacPro. Is the Apexx S4 comparable to an entry level Mac Pro?
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Unless I land some intense music or video work, I can't say I need one. Kinda makes me want to land some intense music or video work! IMO they really overshot the entry price point. After years of waiting, struggling pros are left with non-ungradable iMacs.
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wow that monitor is ugly. entire setup is, gulp, 12k! what the flying fk?
Crazy how you put it. I didn't think of that, until you mentioned it. Now, 256GB does look really bad, having said that...
I noticed that too and although slightly disappointing, they are giving us plenty of PCIe expansion. Most of us currently have Highpoint and (or) Amfletec quad m.2 carriers. Now there is enough space and lanes for a few of those plus whatever else you want in terms of expansion I/O. I could see myself getting another 10 years out of this and slowly upgrading it as it ages.