New Mac Pro debut at WWDC?

[Tesselator]

I still have no idea what you're talking about. Bentley vs. VW somehow equals Apple vs. Everyone?

Bentley is a status symbol that says: "I'm almost rich" or "I'm from rich parents and have almost no life experience" which sits in the driveway and is seldom to never driven. If you see someone driving a Bentley that is a message to the world saying: "I enjoy driving some of the worst cars on the planet" or "I recently fired the maid so I'm stuck doing my own grocery shopping this week". That's Apple? Or Apple's users?

Computers are tools. Cars are not tools. I guess I'm too stupid to get the relationship you're trying to make.

Anyway, all that aside, if Apple wanted to release a real desktop grade system which appealed to (enough) people they would have to change some of their tactics. Don't you think?

 

[Neodym]

[*]A new Mac Pro Cube still a possibility, but falls out the conservative Apple thinking.

"conservative [...] thinking" - bah! Unfortunately i think you're right there. What has become of "Think different"...?! *sigh*

I could easily do with 1 PCIe and the rest Thunderbolt. One SSD inside and Thunderbolt Chassis outside.

Since i experienced first hand how easily a Thunderbolt cable can unplug unintentionally (due to lack of a proper holding mechanism), i wouldn't want to have production or similarly crucial data relying on a Thunderbolt connection during write accesses.

false, apple is about simplicity in its form and function.[...]if you want modular get a MacMini with Thunderbolt accessories.

I wouldn't consider a rat's nest of Thunderbolt and power cables a prime example for simplicity, neither in form nor function.

That and because of the improper retention mechanism inherent in Thunderbolt connections, a Mini can not really substitute either a big box or a system designed for modular from ground up - even if such Thunderbolt accessories would actually exist in usable varieties and quantities in the first place.

 

[barmann]

I wouldn't consider a rat's nest of Thunderbolt and power cables a prime example for simplicity, neither in form nor function.

I now have an MP, with 6 internal drives, connected are about a dozen external FW and USB external drives, 2 printers, one scanner, an FW hub, two displays, and a 5-drive backup box, plus a router and some stuff I am not sure about . All spread over 2 rooms .

Are you suggesting this can not easily be replaced by a Mac Mini sized computer, with a single extra thing attached by Thunderbolt, that does it all ?

 

[Neodym]

Are you suggesting this can not easily be replaced by a Mac Mini sized computer, with a single extra thing attached by Thunderbolt, that does it all ?

The external box would primarily apply to your external drives, which could probably be neatly replaced, yes. Though at a very high price and with a very limited selection of products.

btw - with 12 external drives you may need at least two external Thunderbolt housings, as the afaik biggest (Promise Pegasus R6) offers 'only' 6 slots...

And with a Thunderbolt connection not offering a proper retention mechanism you would take the chance of FUBARing the content of a multitude of drives with one single action.

 

[bsbeamer]

FYI, there are a few 8-bay Thunderbolt housings out there now, but I think most are all hardware RAID configurations, similar in design to how the HDPro looks and functions, but connected via Thunderbolt instead of PCIe.

 

[righteye]

Also Apple may Ditch the MP and instead Present an iMac Pro wth Top i7/ Quadro architectures.

Plus support for High Speed communication (10G Eth port) with things as nVidia VCA for Heavy Rendering/Number Crushing Needs.

And Maybe qHD display (27"qHD are available now from Sharp), and don't need to wait until Thunderbolt 2 is available next Year.

(If i'm Jonny Ive I'll Ditch MP and build iMac Pros)

A "Pro" machine should allow the user to make their own choice regarding monitor in my personal opinion,this makes sense for productivity as a fail in one means you can always use a back up of either monitor or computer.

 

[barmann]

The external box would primarily apply to your external drives, which could probably be neatly replaced, yes. Though at a very high price and with a very limited selection of products.

btw - with 12 external drives you may need at least two external Thunderbolt housings, as the afaik biggest (Promise Pegasus R6) offers 'only' 6 slots...

And with a Thunderbolt connection not offering a proper retention mechanism you would take the chance of FUBARing the content of a multitude of drives with one single action.

Foreign speaker here, the sarcasm might not have translated well , sorry .

The point I was trying to make: I agree with your sentiment, Thunderbolt will not likely simplify or unclutter current workstation environments .
Quite the opposite, unless the user's needs are marginal .

 

[m4v3r1ck]

New Mac Pro 2013?

New Mac Pro will be based on this:
MODULAR, BABY!

Image

OR....

 

[tamvly]

Highly unlikely, BDM. Just my opinion.

 

[m4v3r1ck]

Highly unlikely, BDM. Just my opinion.

But....... very sexy & look-able! Agree?

 

[tamvly]

Then why not do something that would fit in a standard rack? You know the saying: "different strokes ..."

 

[deconstruct60]

He's probably citing the quote from the article yesterday:

"We don't want to be more specific, but we have some really great stuff coming in the fall and across all of 2014."

Of course he never ruled out something earlier in 2013, but it seems unlikely.

Sigh.... folks take the quotes out of context and then try to read gobs of stuff that isn't there. Cook's quote was in direct response to an analyst querying if there would be no significant updates till fall.

"... But as for those new products, Apple's exec team wouldn't crack. "Our teams are hard at work at some amazing new hardware, software, and services that we can't wait to introduce this fall and throughout 2014," Cook said in the beginning of the call. One analyst tried to get more details later on, asking if Cook's comments "indicate there are no substantial new products until September?" Cook repeated his usual line about not elaborating: "I don't want to be more specific, but I'm just saying we've got some really great stuff coming in the fall and across all of 2014," Cook replied. ...."
http://arstechnica.com/apple/2013/04/apple-hints-at-new-products-in-q4-and-throughout-2014/


Significant is operative here. On the analyst call, they are looking for new products that are going to significantly move Apple's financials. The Mac Pro isn't one of those.

Some of this is expectation management that there probably won't be a "an amazing" iOS device upgrade until Fall ( or close to Fall). That really isn't a "new" rumor ( https://www.macrumors.com/2013/01/1...nes-retina-ipad-mini-all-retina-macbook-pros/ ). There is no iWatch or AppleTV-with-integrated-screen products coming to change Apple's financials "real soon now".

That does leave room for normal "better than last years" upgrades for iPhone ( iPhone5S) and other devices to happen in the Summer.

It seems highly unlikely though that Apple would stall the MBA and/or MBP from a Haswell upgrade until the Fall ( September-November ) though. That would be a pretty goofy move. There will probably be some Mac updates in June-July. They just can't "move" Apple's overall major numbers.

The Mac mini and iMac landing in the Fall? Sure.... that's where they were last year. There is little incentive to revise those much quicker than 12 months ( especially since still playing catch-up on the iMac ). But again those aren't significant overall results moving products.


Where the Mac Pro lands is really incidental to the conversation that Cook and the analysts were having.


Presuming Intel is actually going to ship in volume in Q3 the Xeon E5 v2 upgrades then one of the driving factors at this point is that it is too late to reasonably ship a current Xeon E5 based upgrade given all the competitive systems will be refreshed in a 3-4 of months. At some point, the Mac Pro is so far beyond late that another 3-4 months don't really matter.

There is a bit of doubt though that Intel will actually ship on time (track record over last 2 years is spotty). If they aren't then there is still a window for Apple to ship a new Mac Pro using the current Tech.

----------

As far as I know the Intel processors will be released third quarter unless Apple is able to get advance orders.

All big system vendors get "advance orders"

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1001_3-57...ng-to-pc-makers/?part=rss&subj=news&tag=title

There is no "special" status Apple has.

Intel has tighter controls now over vendors launch out of the gate prematurely before Intel does the formal product introduction. It is highly unlikely Apple is going to get permission to sell/ship Xeon E5 v2 systems before anyone else will. There was a one time fluke where Apple jumped into the market with only advance order quantity to back them up for a couple of weeks. That isn't and hasn't been a repeated practice.

 

[Mac Hammer Fan]

OR....

Image

I definitely hope this won't be the case.

 

[H2SO4]

I still have no idea what you're talking about. Bentley vs. VW somehow equals Apple vs. Everyone?

Bentley is a status symbol that says: "I'm almost rich" or "I'm from rich parents and have almost no life experience" which sits in the driveway and is seldom to never driven. If you see someone driving a Bentley that is a message to the world saying: "I enjoy driving some of the worst cars on the planet" or "I recently fired the maid so I'm stuck doing my own grocery shopping this week". That's Apple? Or Apple's users?

Computers are tools. Cars are not tools. I guess I'm too stupid to get the relationship you're trying to make.

Anyway, all that aside, if Apple wanted to release a real desktop grade system which appealed to (enough) people they would have to change some of their tactics. Don't you think?

I'll try again. You made the point about Apple charging $1600 whilst everybody else charges $800.
There is a reason for this, Apple is a premium brand, (as is Bentley). The point being that while Bentley do it and are never deemed rip off, people call it the Apple tax.
Same hardware, (hence the comparison with VW), vastly different cost.

 

[AppleWarMachine]

I'm sure the release of the new Mac Pro is at the top of Apple's list...NOT

 

[ActionableMango]

Not the same hardware

The Mac Pro case is a pleasure to work with. The slide out CPU tray, the slide out optical bay, the directly connected hard drives, and the lack of a rat's next of cabling. Each cable that does exist is wonderfully routed and exactly the correct length.

The metal is luxuriously thick anodized aluminum. Almost everything can be done without tools. The three separate heat chambers are well thought out. Ventilation capacity is enormous. There are nice little touches like four spare optical drive screws sitting in threaded holes just waiting for a second optical drive.

The plate that holds down the PCIe cards is a great improvement over the motley assortment of screws that always fall into the case somewhere. The little bar that holds PCIe cards from the bottom. The way the PCIe fan enclosure holds full length cards.

The beautiful hard drive trays that have nice touches like captured vibration-dampening screws and laser etched bay numbering. The uber-thick access panel. The big lever in the back that unlocks everything.

Then there's the typical PC case...

Rat's nest of wiring. Crayola colors everywhere. Mismatched, poorly machined screws that fall all over the place and only work because you are rethreading the holes.

Panels are cheap flimsy steel with edges sharper than a razor, and that's when you are lucky enough to have steel instead of plastic. Cases easily warp because they are so cheap and thin.

Ventilation requires blowing massive amounts of air everywhere and hoping for the best. Wiring of every which type going every which way to a hundred little pin connectors on the mobo because despite having the ancient so-called standard of ATX, nobody does anything the same way.

Tools required for EVERYTHING, HDDs, optical drives, PCIe cards.

A Lian Li case engineer once said, "If Lian Li released a case with the exact build quality and with the same thick aluminum, they'd charge no less than $600 for it."

To simply call it an "Apple Tax" for the "same hardware" is to discount the thoughtful engineering, quality, and excellence put into every little piece of the equation.

 

[deconstruct60]

... It is very surprising that Apple provide no options for a European pro user if e.g. the machine breaks beyond repair.

"Beyond repair" occurs how often? Besides putting the Mac Pro in a car crusher or it being stolen there is nothing prohibiting replacement parts being shipped to the EU if necessary. The whole motherboard and power supply could be swapped out. Unless someone destroyed the case and wanted to be upgraded to the lastest Mac Pro, I don't see why the Mac Pro can't be repaired.

The EU market prohibition is about importing brand new Mac Pros. It is not that all the old ones have to be pulled from the market , being sold used, or are banned from getting replacement parts.


Second, refurbs are for sell now in a limited number of EU country's online stores. A refurb that replaces a broken beyond repair isn't a "new" Mac Pro. For relatively low repair volumes Apple could just buy up used ones from the market and refurb them for the needed replacement.

that would solve a problem for a lab that lost 20 Mac Pro is a disaster but the normal "replace whole box" rate for most set-ups likely isn't that high.

 

[righteye]

Image

"The Mac Pro case is a pleasure to work with. The slide out CPU tray, the slide out optical bay, the directly connected hard drives, and the lack of a rat's next of cabling. Each cable that does exist is wonderfully routed and exactly the correct length.

The metal is luxuriously thick anodized aluminum. Almost everything can be done without tools. The three separate heat chambers are well thought out. Ventilation capacity is enormous. There are nice little touches like four spare optical drive screws sitting in threaded holes just waiting for a second optical drive.

The plate that holds down the PCIe cards, instead of a motley assortment of screws that always fall into the case somewhere. The little bar that holds PCIe cards from the bottom. The way the PCIe fan enclosure holds full length cards.

The beautiful hard drive trays that have nice touches like captured vibration-dampening screws and laser etched bay numbering. The uber-thick access panel. The big lever in the back that unlocks everything.

Then there's the typical PC case..."

Please Note the PC case section has been deleted from ActionableMango's post

Indeed its a wonderfully engineered case and every time i turn it on i appreciate the build quality, mine sits on my desk so i can see it (but more importantly to keep the dust levels down)
When something is this well made it inspires one to do good work.
I hope the Apple ethos for this sort of build quality caries on into the next Pro but not to the point that the looks over ride the function.

 

[handsome pete]

When something is this well made it inspires one to do good work.

I love the Mac Pro case design, but what inspires me to do good work is reliable hardware that will let me get the job done as quickly and efficiently as possible. If given the choice I'd obviously choose the Mac Pro case over the PC alternatives. I don't know why so many clamor for a re-design. However the stagnancy of the Mac Pro has me as close as ever to heading back to Windows. I'm not bound to any Apple software anymore. I've been in the market for a little while for a new machine, patiently hoping to get news of a new MP soon. Hopefully we'll hear something soon because I doubt I will wait until the fall. There are some real quality PC cases out there that I could deal with in lieu of outdated hardware.

 

[righteye]

I love the Mac Pro case design, but what inspires me to do good work is reliable hardware that will let me get the job done as quickly and efficiently as possible. If given the choice I'd obviously choose the Mac Pro case over the PC alternatives. I don't know why so many clamor for a re-design. However the stagnancy of the Mac Pro has me as close as ever to heading back to Windows. I'm not bound to any Apple software anymore. I've been in the market for a little while for a new machine, patiently hoping to get news of a new MP soon. Hopefully we'll hear something soon because I doubt I will wait until the fall. There are some real quality PC cases out there that I could deal with in lieu of outdated hardware.

Iam with you on the redesign, no external change required.
Its always nice to have the latest and greatest and an update would certainly go down well but i have to say the hex core for my PS/LR use with plugins is working well enough for me at present and some software still does not take advantage of all the cores available. Lets just hope there will be a Pro worthy of that title.

 

[mslide]

OR....

Does anybody who really needs the power of a Mac Pro want a modular design like this? I'm not talking about gamers (who really want a real Mac with a replaceable GPU), professionals who use a Mac Pro but could easily get away with a loaded iMac, people who just want a real desktop Mac, etc. I mean the professionals here who really, honestly need a Mac Pro. The folks who use all those cores, use tons of RAM, actually stick things in those extra PCI slots, etc. Do any of you really want a modular design?

 

[m4v3r1ck]

Does anybody who really needs the power of a Mac Pro want a modular design like this? I'm not talking about gamers (who really want a real Mac with a replaceable GPU), professionals who use a Mac Pro but could easily get away with a loaded iMac, people who just want a real desktop Mac, etc. I mean the professionals here who really, honestly need a Mac Pro. The folks with who use all those cores and use tons of RAM. Do any of you really want a modular design?

If it is a real modulair system, YES! Rendering video, I use both the 8 cores (MP3.1) and the GPU!

For my likings and needs:

- upgradeble CPU unit and RAM with 12 slots for 96 GB
- upgradeble GPU unit and RAM 4 (s)Hdmi outputs
- sata600 unit for 6 SSD's

But for me a total puzzle how to connect the seperate units? ;-)

 

[wonderspark]

Does anybody who really needs the power of a Mac Pro want a modular design like this? I'm not talking about gamers (who really want a real Mac with a replaceable GPU), professionals who use a Mac Pro but could easily get away with a loaded iMac, people who just want a real desktop Mac, etc. I mean the professionals here who really, honestly need a Mac Pro. The folks who use all those cores, use tons of RAM, actually stick things in those extra PCI slots, etc. Do any of you really want a modular design?

No. I don't care about Thunderbolt at all, either. There's more speed to be had with PCI slots.

I think a new Mac Pro should have a SATA III backplane with interchangeable single 3.5" / dual 2.5" drive sleds/slots. That way, we could mix 3.5" HDDs with 2.5" SSDs on the backplane without penalty. I imagine the four drive carriers coming with a snap-in/snap-out adapter for SSDs that combine the two SSD SATA plugs into a wideband connector to the backplane. If removed, it would just be a single standard SATA connection to the wideband backplane connector. Having up to eight SSDs in the dedicated drive bays @SATA III speeds would be amazing.

The rest can be the usual updates... Haswell, native USB3, and whatever.

 

[TyPod]

OR....

Please no...

 

[macalec]

I'm sure the release of the new Mac Pro is at the top of Apple's list...NOT

Correct, and Tim cook even said that they will be releasing new products in the fall. Not anytime soon!