Really we're going to start the X mac argument AGAIN?
There have been significant changes at Apple with Steve Jobs passing away, so it can be expected that we will see changes in their product portfolio and market strategy as well. Therefore I would consider this discussion an absolutely valid one!
Not realistic to the business model Apple has been following thus far. [...] i5, i7 is consumer NOT Xeon. [...] It would be out of character for Apple to start offering i5 and i7 in Mac Pro that is what the iMac is for. [...] X79 is more pro class than Z68 thanks to the PCI lanes, quad channel memory, etc.
Nothing would be out of character for Apple. When Steve took over again some 10-12 years ago, he implemented a culture of constantly questioning themselves.
They introduced affordable consumer computers (iMac) when they were all about the professional users (IIfx, Quadra, Powermac etc.).
They introduced consumer devices (iPod, iPhone, iPad) with a dedicated OS when they were all about "real" computers running OSX.
They created a complete ecosphere for music purchases and even risked getting sued for breaching the old contract with Apple Records to never getting active in the music business.
They even changed the company name to underline those changes!
Now Tim Cook is at the helm and he has indicated (iirc) that he considers the enterprise market an interesting one. From his time way back at HP he probably is fully aware that the current Apple strategy poses some problems with enterprise customers. Those are "Pro" customers, however in a different way than some people here like to define the term "Pro".
For one they are much more price sensitive than the average Apple customer, so while a Mac mini may not be sufficient in all cases, an all-in-one like the iMac may not always be desirable as well for various reasons. The only alternative left (MP) has much left to desire in terms of price/performance ratio in usage scenarios where it normally is pure overkill (funny that this is exactly the same problem that quite some "normal" customers have with Apple's current lineup).
If Apple really wants to expand into the enterprise market, they may decide to do so solely based on iOS devices like the iPad. In that case the Mac Pro may continue to die a slow death.
But I would assume that they'd rather question themselves again and eventually find they can cater both to "normal" customers and to enterprise-type "Pro" customers better by offering a slightly more diversified selection in their portfolio.
Thunderbolt isn't really a hard requirement for a Mac Pro [...] Still waiting on a rational reason to hook one TB docking station (cough, displays) to Mac Pro. Let alone two.
The Mac Pro is in dire need of an interface for DAS that is significantly faster than the comparably slow (some would probably even say: pathetic!) FW800 and USB2.
Thunderbolt seems to be a likely candidate, seeing it's speed, potential development and additional use scenarios compared to things like eSata or USB3, which Apple so far has refused to embrace.
Question is whether Apple would see Thunderbolt being more of a replacement or rather a complement to USB3...
