Depends on the skill of that someone. After all, the computer is just a tool. The guy could be very good in his/her trade regardless of the hardware chosen.
But I don’t really see a loans manager asking which computer does one intend to buy.
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Mac Pro - the End of an ERA?
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But I don’t really see a loans manager asking which computer does one intend to buy.
But you assume that a large percentage of people/professionals actually ever upgrade their computer internals rather than flat replacing them. This forum and your friends do not make up the >98% of computers that never get upgraded.
Walk into any business and look at all the factory boxes that never even get a RAM upgrade.
Do I want Apple to build a computer and OS that is perfect for my needs and forget all the other people? Oh yes. Will they ever do it? No. Should I get over it and live my life? Only if I want to be happy.
Blackmagic Design unveiled Resolve 15 (now with Fusion integrated
) on a row of iMacs. The trailer for Inifinity War was edited on iMacs. The Foundry uses iMacs. Apparently, a lot of professionals use Macs.
If you absolutely need some feature, then you do. Get it. Live with the consequences.
If you need Windows in a tower with 2 1080Tis and 26 SSDs and 256GB of RAM, to run Sony Vegas and 3D Studio Max, go buy it. Apple is never going to build that system for you. Ranting here will not change it.
Apple does care about professional users. They do not care about people who mess around with the insides of their computers. Those two groups while having some overlap, are not the same.
Walk into any business and look at all the factory boxes that never even get a RAM upgrade.
Do I want Apple to build a computer and OS that is perfect for my needs and forget all the other people? Oh yes. Will they ever do it? No. Should I get over it and live my life? Only if I want to be happy.
Blackmagic Design unveiled Resolve 15 (now with Fusion integrated
) on a row of iMacs. The trailer for Inifinity War was edited on iMacs. The Foundry uses iMacs. Apparently, a lot of professionals use Macs.If you absolutely need some feature, then you do. Get it. Live with the consequences.
If you need Windows in a tower with 2 1080Tis and 26 SSDs and 256GB of RAM, to run Sony Vegas and 3D Studio Max, go buy it. Apple is never going to build that system for you. Ranting here will not change it.
Apple does care about professional users. They do not care about people who mess around with the insides of their computers. Those two groups while having some overlap, are not the same.
So why were they building those cMPs till about 2010 ?
And this new talk of upgradable nMPs ( when they were already on the way to release an iMac pro which is by definition ‘upgradable’ ) ?
Why talk about a new Mac pro if it is going to be a similar system as an iMac pro ? ( single GPU, single CPU etc ) ?
If the pre 2013 Mac Pros were not upgradables, there would be even less pros using Macs today.
Well, that someone can always just change his workflow to Windows if it comes to it, so sure. Unless he's not mentally stable. And in any case, those machines are likely not going to be that much compared to the rest of the expenses or life in general.
Personally I wonder if I am just waiting to be kicked into balls again by waiting this Mac Pro and if I should just make my mind and do something else already.
I'm switching to Linux (centos/kde) not much different than macOS (specially if you use an android phone), but more programming tools available for HPC (cuda/CodeXL etc), some very good CAD tools but no so mainstram as ADesk 360 (you can run on Wine emulation quite stable)
[doublepost=1526257608][/doublepost]ICYMI:
AMD to launch ThreadRipper 2 in the coming months (maybe another reason for Apple to hold the mMP)... Vega20 too (compute capable 1/2 FP64)
Wow, you're reaching and making bad excuses for Apple.
The only reasons the mMP isn't here yet is because Apple don't use many resources doing it and because they are trying too hard to make something different again.
As discussed many times before, it's about choices, compatibility, affordability and future proofing .
It just so happens that closed, proprietary workstations offer none of the above, while virtually all user upgradable ones do .
Customization, flexibilty mean a lot more than a nerdy kid popping cheap parts into a scruffy old tower .
The issue is not being helped by Apple's indifference towards all but the least demanding users .
At this point, to state otherwise is simply not correct .
Unfortunately - they have “dumped” quite a few things over the years that some people ( not all unfortunately) that could have kept them in the creative race.
They dumped “Aperture” when it was holding its own against Lightroom for photography.
They dumed down iWorks when it looked like it could be a viable option for MS Office ( I’m thinking Pages 09)
They dumped their server - when it looked like a lot of business were coming on board.
Their server app has become weaker and weaker.
I know they claim it is for “progress” - but there are a core group of people who would support their products if they kept up the attention. The Mac Pro is an example. I’m sure if it was expandable and changeable their fan base would increase - not decrease ! Due to iphones, iPads etc - there are a lot of people ( presently using windows machines) who would consider an expandable mac - whether it is for gaming, creative purposes or just simply because they can swap components. Yeah - I shake my head at their logic as well.
They dumped “Aperture” when it was holding its own against Lightroom for photography.
They dumed down iWorks when it looked like it could be a viable option for MS Office ( I’m thinking Pages 09)
They dumped their server - when it looked like a lot of business were coming on board.
Their server app has become weaker and weaker.
I know they claim it is for “progress” - but there are a core group of people who would support their products if they kept up the attention. The Mac Pro is an example. I’m sure if it was expandable and changeable their fan base would increase - not decrease ! Due to iphones, iPads etc - there are a lot of people ( presently using windows machines) who would consider an expandable mac - whether it is for gaming, creative purposes or just simply because they can swap components. Yeah - I shake my head at their logic as well.
There is a market for standalone desktops. Unfortunately it eats into iMac and Macbook sales which have a higher profit margin and shorter lifespan (planned obsolescence=more sales). Apple fancies itself a trendy fashionista boutique designer company and standalone desktops are too boring!
On the contrary...Minimal customization maximizes compatibility across apps/hardware designed to work with the platform. You don't have to worry if it will work with your graphics card if there is only the one, for example.
I never said anything about a nerdy kid stuffing cheap parts. I said the vast majority of computers sold do not get upgraded. They get replaced. I don't mind digging around inside, but most of the professional market doesn't do that. They buy a system, use it on a 5 year depreciation cycle, then replace it if they use applications that require it, or keep using it until it breaks if not.
This applies to like Intel, and small businesses like your dentist. It is cheaper for your dentist to pay IT to fix/replace his laptop than to fix it himself and miss out on however many customers it takes to solve the issue, and he really isn't interested in doing it in his free time which he would rather spend with his family.
Again, Apple and many others (Dell, HP, etc) have pulled this data, and it is always the same. Most people do not upgrade their computer after buying it.
You and I are the exceptions, not the rule.
...or Cube 3.0
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But a much higher percentage exercise "build to order" options to get the right CPU(s), GPU(s), RAM, storage, network,...
You can't do a great BTO menu if everything is soldered to the motherboard. That's the real power of industry-standard ports and slots.
(And I bought a bunch of servers with about 24 Maxwell GPUs (mostly 980ti). The Maxwells are gone now, replaced by Pascal 1080ti. Working on the order this quarter to replace the Pascals with Voltas. We may not be "typical", but we spend a boatload on expandable systems.)
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In general I agree with most of that - not the GPU part though .
To use this as an example, Apple have made the GPUs they've been offering work prefectly fine , but they failed to supply competitive models for many years .
Which was bearable when GPU power was of limited use, which is a field that keeps changing and requires flexibility .
Ironically Apple was betting on that horse with the 2013 nMP, only to get it wrong by designing a proprietary solution ...
More importantly, the above mentioned BTO options should not be underestimated .
And that includes 3rd party components ; bulk buyers in particular might or might not upgrade workstations during their life cycles, but they expect a high degree of flexibility with their initial purchase .
You tell those cats they can't pop in certain PCIe cards and such, and you not only lose customers, you lose market share .
As for the dentist, my graphic designer and photographer friends , small businesses - they rock their Macs till they fall apart .
Then they have some freelance IT guy or an amateur friend like myself come over to squeeze some more life out of those things - which used to be simple and very efficient - and they are not well pleased when told they need to just suck it up and buy a newer model .
Oh, and they also need to stop using some of their old programs and buy a new scanner because OSX is no longer compatible with this or that .
I'm wondering how many Macs out there are held together by just USB 2.0, dongles and Firefox ...
It's not the expense, it's the disruption and changes in a workflow that can have a major impact on all but the most professional and affulent workstation customers .
Hence, I believe Apple needs to do a 180 and use their considerable capacities to reinvent the Mac as the most versatile quality computer line ever , workstations and others .
Or just get off the pot .
While I'm very pesimistic about Apple, "news" from Darknet, insists for Apple to sneak peek the mMP on WWDC as 2019 product, and as a FULL AMD solution(CPU/GPU), with custom everything and NO PCIe expansion unless you get a tb3 PCIe cage, and not much bigger than the trashcan, a touchbar wireless keyboard also will launch at WWDC or near WWDC. 6 core MBP2 is another WWDC surprise (hopefully with an more resilent Buttefly KBD III).
Apple leakers police should be in alert now, a cue on my source: also leaked about apple AR/VR headset: it uses custom SOC with twiceA10X A11 gpu power, and work as a remote desktop for the iPhone, an iPhone could master multiple AR/VR headset to build a sort of social holodesk with your friends.
Anyone affraid ?
Anyone interested to know more can deposit me 1 Bitcoin in XMR and I tell you more about -its a joke-.
Apple leakers police should be in alert now, a cue on my source: also leaked about apple AR/VR headset: it uses custom SOC with twice
Anyone affraid ?
Anyone interested to know more can deposit me 1 Bitcoin in XMR and I tell you more about -its a joke-.
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So, the word "modular" is not needed for describing it.
This is quite the opposite, a new 6,1.
If true, one more fail...
So it’s got about 1/20th of the horsepower necessary to drive a VR experience of any reasonable utility.
There is no way in hell that expansion will be solely via TB3 expansion cage. How on earth is that addressing the current problems? I reckon only 2 design elements of nMP make it over: thermal core (in some fashion) and color.
Maybe if they where earing our problems, the mMP update should be embodied at least two years ago, with at least some PCIe expansion, at this point I believe everything about Apple
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Iphone X SOC, not A10X but A11X, anyway you're moreless right, remember they are using Metal for this.So it’s got about 1/20th of the horsepower necessary to drive a VR experience of any reasonable utility.
Is the Bitcoin part the joke , or all of it ?
Never mind, it's all a joke ...
Apart maybe from a WWDC sneak peak - Apple would be well advised to comment on the issue in public asap .
Let's not forget there has been not a single official statement on future MPs since 2013 .
And no, some utterances reported from a meeting or a blogger event at headquarters don't count .
For all intents and purposes, the iMP is still the current successor to the nMP .
In the meantime, I have bought a refurbed and lightly pimped 6 core MP 5.1 to replace an MP 3.1 ; a new nMP wouldn't have been faster for my work, and even a used one with the required quiet external drive enclosures, hubs and dongles would be at least 3 times more expensive .
I'm als looking for 2015 or earlier MBPs and deals on current MBAs to upgrade my portable Macs .
Can't risk a butterfly kb, have no use for a port challengded non touchbar MBP, MB is no go, so vintage is the only choice .
I'm doing this after much consideration and a lot of research .
Used to be, I just bought the latest BTO model one step above base config with a few extras .
on a side note, recently I was hunting down the original wired Aluminum keyboards on Ebay, which for some reason cost used more than when they were new, and NOS ones are triple the original price .
Macs and Mac accessories have always held their value well, but their recent offerings don't seem to do so .
Used nMPs don't seem to move at asking prices, cMPs and early MBPs , even used MBAs move like crazy .
Hey Hey Hey, So Looooong w/o seeyou friend...
I'm very dissapointed with Apple, but at least I find the all AMD rumour very consistent, I plan to build a Linux box with dual Titan Volta and a 16 core threadripper, and forget macOS (actually less than 10% of my work actually needs macOS, no hackintsh, a full blown Linux workstation running centos/kde or ubuntu/kde
I stopped coming here, because I stopped being interested in Apple computers.
Today the news broke out, that 10 nm Process is 2020 from Intel, and this may be the main reason why Apple is shying away from Intel. They cannot give Apple the reliable roadmap for CPU releases for upcoming years. 10 nm process is pretty much dead at this point. 7 nm - maybe 2021 possible release. But I would not count on this release date. Intel is stuck with 14 nm process for upcoming 2-3 years, while everybody will be on 7 nm, and will be going to 5 nm.
Would it be strange, for those interested in longevity of Apple hardware, if Apple would go to AMD and use their x86 architecture to build on it their own Semi-Custom chips, that they can use wherever they want to: Samsung, TSMC, GloFo, the one manufacturer who can give them enough chips, each year?
If you are running business, my advice: shift to Windows and AMD. They have much better future, than Intel. At least for upcoming 2-3 years.
Anything that Intel will come up with on 14 nm+++ will be laughable from every point of view.
Next year, 7 nm chips will have 16 cores, on consumer, AM4 platform, with the same level of IPC, as Intel latest offering, clocking the same, as Intel's latest offerings. And the best they will be able to do is 8C/16T on this platform.
I was warning you about this years ago.
Today the news broke out, that 10 nm Process is 2020 from Intel, and this may be the main reason why Apple is shying away from Intel. They cannot give Apple the reliable roadmap for CPU releases for upcoming years. 10 nm process is pretty much dead at this point. 7 nm - maybe 2021 possible release. But I would not count on this release date. Intel is stuck with 14 nm process for upcoming 2-3 years, while everybody will be on 7 nm, and will be going to 5 nm.
Would it be strange, for those interested in longevity of Apple hardware, if Apple would go to AMD and use their x86 architecture to build on it their own Semi-Custom chips, that they can use wherever they want to: Samsung, TSMC, GloFo, the one manufacturer who can give them enough chips, each year?
If you are running business, my advice: shift to Windows and AMD. They have much better future, than Intel. At least for upcoming 2-3 years.
Anything that Intel will come up with on 14 nm+++ will be laughable from every point of view.
Next year, 7 nm chips will have 16 cores, on consumer, AM4 platform, with the same level of IPC, as Intel latest offering, clocking the same, as Intel's latest offerings. And the best they will be able to do is 8C/16T on this platform.
I was warning you about this years ago.
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I'm moving to Linux, I cant live again at the Windows-Hell, also I first considered to build on Intel HEDT looking for a dual boot hacintosh-linux ws, then GPU cost put me on hold, now GPU back to sanity pricing levels I'm building again, Threadripper 2 should come in the next months (vega 20 too, but I'm on Cuda) with single-thread performance similar to intel's 10-core but having 4 extra cores at higher clock with multi-threaded performance far superior than Intel's 18 core Xeon-W.