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Topic: Intel-based Macs are out (Read 192 times)
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[Wumpa]
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Intel-based Macs are out
« on: January 13, 2006, 06:19:26 AM »
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They were actually released on Tuesday, but I've been busy and to be honest, I just don't care that much. They've swapped the all-in-one flat panel iMacs over to Intel's "Core Duo" double core processor, and kept just about everything else the same, including the 1299 (USD) price point.
The (slightly) bigger news is the introduction of the replacement for the intrepid PowerBook line. Seeing as "PowerBook" somewhat refers to the "PowerPC" processor under its hood, Steve Jobs decided it would be a good idea to rename the product line to something I'm sure *he* believes is more appropriate: The "MacBook Pro".
Now personally it doesn't matter one iota how much better this machine is, and despite the fact that it has a bunch of nifty new features (including an iSight camera built right into the LCD bezel!), the name is absolutely horrible and turns me off from it completely.
In addition to the new hardware, Apple released updates to a bunch of its software products as well, all of which are logical and appealing. I'm tired, so instead of embedding fancy links like I usually do, if you want to check any of these new items out they all have links from Apple's home page at apple.com.
PS (for no particular reason): Apple's stock went from $75 on Monday to $85 on Thursday. My measly 20 shares are now worth approximately $1700; which ironically is almost enough to actually BUY a Mac.
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[Wumpa] Porter
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Terraji
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #1 on: January 13, 2006, 09:24:27 AM »
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Now personally it doesn't matter one iota how much better this machine is, and despite the fact that it has a bunch of nifty new features (including an iSight camera built right into the LCD bezel!), the name is absolutely horrible and turns me off from it completely.
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Prediction: you will own a MacBook sometime within the next 3 years.
I think it's kinda like when they started putting a 'i' in front of everything. Aesthetically questionable at the time, but for some reason it is now engrained into our pop culture.
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #2 on: January 13, 2006, 12:23:38 PM »
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| Prediction: you will own a MacBook sometime within the next 3 years. |
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I doubt it. I've never had the money to buy myself a Mac (every single one I own has been a gift), and I don't see that changing in the next 3 (or 30) years.
I think it's kinda like when they started putting a 'i' in front of everything. Aesthetically questionable at the time, but for some reason it is now engrained into our pop culture.
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MackBook just sounds stupid. I was telling Yuna and yurei: "MacBook Pro" sounds like the name of one of those plastic Fisher Price play computers that teaches 4 year olds their alphabet.
If a name like that does end up being ingrained into pop culture, I think I'll kill myself. But I'm not worried. I have a strong suspicion (read: hope) that they'll return to the trusty, recognized, PowerBook name after a while.
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[Wumpa] Porter
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Terraji
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #3 on: January 13, 2006, 12:59:43 PM »
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Stevie said it himself. He wants to get Mac into the name of their products.
Apple wants to sell 2 things, iPods and Macs. They are getting a huge amount of brand recognition out of "iPod", and they are trying to do the same with "Mac"
Remember, Macs still only have 5% of the marketshare. Can the average computer buyer pick out the Mac out of this list?
a) ThinkPad
b) TravelMate
c) Vaio
d) PowerBook
e) Inspiron
Underestimating the marketing power of Apple Computer Inc. has never been wise.
| I doubt it. I've never had the money to buy myself a Mac (every single one I own has been a gift), and I don't see that changing in the next 3 (or 30) years. |
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Fair enough. Surely, I don't have enough knowledge to judge your buying habits, but I do know the effect that having a J-O-B has had on my former starving student friends who have graduated.
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #4 on: January 13, 2006, 01:57:44 PM »
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Yeah well, my J-O-B pretty much S-U-C-K-S, so I wouldn't count on me having enough funds for anything for a while. Plus, if I stick with Yuna (and I have every intention of doing so), I doubt very much if my "technology" budget will do anything but decrease as our relationship "progresses." 
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[Wumpa] Porter
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Yuna
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #5 on: January 13, 2006, 05:45:30 PM »
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In all fairness Porter, you haven't ever had a "technology" budget, that I've been aware of and you pretty much end up with whatever new "gadget" you want anyway (some way or another). Though I do have to agree, you owning a MacBook Pro does not sound like anything that will be happing (anytime soon atleast) and not just because of a changing budget. I don't think Apple has done enough to make it worth it yet, I'll be watching the next few keynotes before I decide to invest that much.
And I have to agree the name is horrid. Seriously, they come up with the whole "i-everything" title, and the next giant leap for Apple is MacBook Pro?
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #6 on: January 14, 2006, 08:29:13 AM »
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Yeah well, my J-O-B pretty much S-U-C-K-S, so I wouldn't count on me having enough funds for anything for a while. Plus, if I stick with Yuna (and I have every intention of doing so), I doubt very much if my "technology" budget will do anything but decrease as our relationship "progresses."
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I used to think the same thing... you just have to get creative, and learn to save the money that you make. If you really want something, you'll find a way. Personal finances are a give and take. If you want to take, you sometimes have to give. Cut the unnecessaries out of your budget. Work on paying down debt BEFORE making additional purchases. Consolidate expenses. Clip coupons (yes, I clip coupons, and I keep track of how much I have save each week. My total for 2005? I averaged $15 a week in coupon savings. $780 a year, approx. Still think clipping coupons isn't worth the effort?) Once you've saved a little, invest in a steady return account, like a money market. Your funds are still liquid, but they're working for you more than if they were sitting under your mattress. Freeing up monies for the purchases you want just takes a little work.
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #7 on: January 18, 2006, 08:02:39 PM »
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Well of course porter, yuna, and yurei don't think the macbook pro is all that fancy, they already have pimped out systems....Tenshi on his uber 1337, 500MHz G3 iBook however would love pretty much an upgrade of any kind if he had more money. I really like the built-in iSight and the new power connector. I really don't give a flying hoot what you call it, if it has the same OS X, and virus free computing that the other apple line has, and I had the money, it still seems cheaper then buying a 15.2" powerbook and an iSight, and less cords.
What I don't like is actually the 15.4 inch size, and they took the 800Mb Firewire connection too (i suppose since the only thing really using that is their iSights?). The choice between a macbook and a 12" powerbook really depends on much you want an iSight to me...
Though given my computer needs...I'd almost rather go with another iBook and pick-up a macMini & iSight with the extra bank. Get a little switch thingy to use my mini and PC on same monitor and keyboard, and bang Tenshi wins...but that's just my two coppers worth.
Tenshi
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #8 on: January 18, 2006, 08:40:09 PM »
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I love how Apple was totally hyping up 64 bit computing as the wave of the future when the G5's came out.....now they are like JUST KIDDING, Intel Core Duo much faster!
<shrug>
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| « Last Edit: January 18, 2006, 08:48:09 PM by yurei » |
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #9 on: January 18, 2006, 08:46:35 PM »
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Oh and Teshi, Apple is moving over to USB 2 instead of FW 800, probably due to the fact that TONS of PC users are buying up iPods. Instead of making them buy a 30$ USB connector like they used to do, they just switched over and made them happy. And since the iPod wont push acceptance of Firewire, I think its pretty much kaput. The only FW800 products I even ever saw were the Lacie External HD's.
...also the iSight runs over FW 400, not the new (and now old) 800.
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #10 on: January 19, 2006, 09:10:09 AM »
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Haven't you guy's heard? RISC Architecture is going to change everything.
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #11 on: January 19, 2006, 09:19:07 AM »
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It did-- the G3 was one of the most efficient chips ever made in terms of computing vs. power consumption, and it still holds its own on that ground! The problem is that it's going to take a while to evolve a 64-bit equivalent of it, and IBM/Motorola just weren't having much luck. I still think RISC a superior design philosophy (it's a hell of a lot easier to write assembly for, that's for sure!), and I'd bet most of the engineers at Apple do too, but good design alone isn't going to sell computers.
The switch to Intel was an entirely pragmatic decision on Apple's part. Without faster, more energy efficient chips, their product lines were dead in the water. I highly suspect this 32-bit stumble backwards will be short lived. Give it 18 to 24 months and you'll see Intel release 64-bit chips designed with Macs in mind.
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[Wumpa] Porter
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #12 on: January 19, 2006, 11:24:57 AM »
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I don't think that anyone would dispute it is a superior design. If Intel were to put its research budget into a RISC chip, it would shred. Unfortunatly if they did AMD would eat their breakfast lunch and dinner in the meantime. Gotta love the business world.
I do have to point out that CISC is much more friendly to assembly programmers. RISC was designed to be more friendly to compilers among other things. This was because designers realized compilers were the ones writing all the code which was not the case when all the old instruction sets were designed.
I learned assembly doing 68k CPU32 instructions which is CISC. Perhaps you did it with RISC, but I wouldn't imagine that being much fun. 
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #13 on: January 19, 2006, 12:24:28 PM »
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MIPS 2000, on which most of today's RISC instruction sets are built. I've never liked assembly-- it's too much moving data from one place to another (I'm incredibly thankful for today's advanced compilers actually) but just the sheer number of different instructions, and under what circumstances it made sense to use one over another, makes CISC sound like a nightmare to work with.
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[Wumpa] Porter
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #14 on: January 19, 2006, 01:56:35 PM »
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The awkward looping and branching was always my least favorite part.
Essentially the concepts are the same. The extra instructions were included as shortcuts by request of the programmer. As I understand, RISC was primarily motivated by the observation that all hardware optimizations were done on the most basic operations and as a result, the complex ones became horribly slow and nobody used them.
The only real difference is convienience if you code alot of assembler, which absolutely nobody does anymore, so the point is mute.
You have to hand it to Intel's business strategy unit for sticking with the x86 for so long and enjoying so many resurgences. 10 years ago nobody would have guessed that the x86 would own both the desktop and the server market today.
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| « Last Edit: January 19, 2006, 01:57:34 PM by Terraji » |
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #15 on: January 19, 2006, 05:46:15 PM »
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...and you'll see Intel release 64-bit chips designed with Macs in mind.
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mmmm 64 bit OSX
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #16 on: January 20, 2006, 07:09:54 AM »
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You have to hand it to Intel's business strategy unit for sticking with the x86 for so long and enjoying so many resurgences. 10 years ago nobody would have guessed that the x86 would own both the desktop and the server market today.
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Actually, I think that's the most important part of Apple's switch. Historically, one of the main reasons that x86 has lasted so long is because it's pure legacy with new crap tacked on all the time. They still have to support the instruction sets of the old 386's. Basically the x86 architecture is carrying 5% innovation and 95% historical baggage.
I think what Apple is going to prove is that they've got the tools to make switching entire architectures possible without destroying a customer base (perhaps even growing it). What I think that means for the future is that if Apple can go from PowerPC to x86 without killing themselves, they can go from x86 to just about anything-- including a new, advanced architecture not weighed down by all of x86's flotsam and jetsam. That's what I'd love to see.
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #17 on: January 20, 2006, 10:34:05 AM »
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I believe the industry term is "cruft"
Apple's vertically integrated systems make it slightly easier for them to ditch the cruft, but they are not immune. They will be shipping universal binarys and rosetta standard for at least the rest of this decade. Unfortunate, but a whole hella lot better than Microsoft having to run 8086 binaries and 1200 baud modems until the end of time.
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Re:Intel-based Macs are out
« Reply #18 on: January 21, 2006, 08:35:04 AM »
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I'd just like to point out, I stopped being able to understand this thread about 6 posts ago... Looks like you found someone else to "geek speak" with Porter 
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f.k.a. [Wumpa] Wannabe, [Guardian] Yuna
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