ATI today announced the Radeon X800 XT for Mac, at US$499. This card utilizes ATI's latest generation GPU, and competes in performance with the nVidia GeForce 6800 Ultra DDL. The main difference with the GeForce card is that the ATI card sports ADC and DVI instead of dual DVI (although ADC can be converted to DVI with a $30 adapter), and while it can drive a single 30" screen, it can't drive two of them like the GeForce card can. On the other hand, the ATI card is $100 cheaper, and doesn't block a PCI-X slot. One cannot build a G5 at the Apple Store with the X800 XT however, as it is strictly a non-OEM retail product. However, it's possible it will appear with the next G5 Power Mac revisions as an OEM built-to-order product.
The Radeon X800 XT is an AGP Pro 8X card. This means it will only run in a G5 Power Mac, although the good news is that it does not require external power. The bad news is that there's still no evidence that Apple will be releasing a PCI Express Power Mac any time soon.
The first reviews of the X800 XT for Mac are up, at AnandTech and at BareFeats.
Wednesday, January 05, 2005
Tuesday, January 04, 2005
Apple releases Xsan
Apple is now shipping Xsan, Apple's new Storage Area Network (SAN) software. This software will allow multiple users to read and write to large high-speed shared SAN systems, including SANs using Apple's own XRAID.
Xsan is apparently based upon ADIC's StorNext File System drivers, but integrates Apple's versions of the SAN management applications. In fact, Xsan networks are advertised to have complete interoperability with Windows and Unix machines using ADIC's StorNext drivers.
Pricing for Xsan is relatively inexpensive, at US$999 per node.
Xsan is apparently based upon ADIC's StorNext File System drivers, but integrates Apple's versions of the SAN management applications. In fact, Xsan networks are advertised to have complete interoperability with Windows and Unix machines using ADIC's StorNext drivers.
Pricing for Xsan is relatively inexpensive, at US$999 per node.
Apple releases 2.3 GHz Xserves, drops prices on Cinema Displays
Months ago we mentioned the existence of 2.3 GHz Xserves, which were custom made for the Virginia Tech supercomputer. Today, Apple finally released these to the general public, a year after Apple Canada initially leaked the 2.3 GHz spec.
Apple also dropped pricing on its Cinema Displays. This had been expected, since prices for third party LCD screens have dropped significantly since the introduction of the Cinema Displays. In addition, the Apple Stores in many other countries dropped prices on several other products to compensate for the increased currency values relative to the to weakened US dollar.
Apple also dropped pricing on its Cinema Displays. This had been expected, since prices for third party LCD screens have dropped significantly since the introduction of the Cinema Displays. In addition, the Apple Stores in many other countries dropped prices on several other products to compensate for the increased currency values relative to the to weakened US dollar.
Friday, December 31, 2004
New headless Mac at Macworld?
You've probably already heard by now the rumours of a new headless low end Mac to be announced at Macworld 2005 in January. The rumours were first started by Think Secret on Tuesday, and since then several other rumour sites and even much of the mainstream media has joined in the chant. Most agree such a product is likely for Macworld. If true, this would answer the wishes of many a potential switcher: an entry-level headless Mac, priced low enough to almost be an iPod accessory. Think Secret suggests US$499, although the $599 or higher predictions by others seem more realistic.
I would suspect (based partially on Think Secret's article) such a product to have specs such as this in the base model:
1.25 GHz G4 7447A, CPU soldered to motherboard
256 MB DDR333 RAM, expandable to 2 GB
167 MHz bus
Radeon 9200 32 MB (no full CoreImage support)
DVI and VGA support, GPU soldered to motherboard
40 GB hard drive
DVD/CD-RW combo drive (slot-load)
Firewire 400 and USB 2
100 Mbps Ethernet
V.92 modem
Airport Extreme ready
Bluetooth ready
US$599
In essence, it would be a current eMac without the CRT display. This would be a major development, as many people want a low priced Mac, without the added cost of the CRT, which for most is unwanted and takes up too much space anyway.
Is 1.25 GHz enough? Yes, for this kind of product. Let me explain.
Since I had not suspected such a product might be released, I went ahead and purchased a Cube, and added a 1.7 GHz 7447A CPU upgrade. This machine is reasonably fast for basic use, and would be 36% faster in terms of clock speed compared to such a G4 1.25 GHz 7447A headless iPodMac... err... Mac. Indeed, the Cube 1.7 feels significantly faster than the 1.25 7455 G4 iMacs I have tried in the past, despite their 167 MHz bus. Most OS slowdowns that I've noticed with a 1 GHz 7455 machine (with 1 MB L3) are gone with my 1.7 GHz Cube. They are not completely gone on the 1.25 GHz iMacs, but overall, those machines are indeed fast enough for most people, for basic use such as surfing and word processing. A 1.5 GHz or faster G4 would be preferred, because the speed difference is still sometimes noticeable in basic use, but the 1.25 GHz 7447A is definitely a nice start for the headless Mac. This is in stark contrast to something like a G4 800, which would feel slow to too many people. Still, one would hope that the speeds can ramp up quickly, both for the headless G4 Mac, and for the G5 Macs too of course.
What does this mean for this eMac? If the low end headless Mac does appear, it's possible the eMac could go to a G5. A G5 1.6 eMac would be a reasonable product, and could be reasonably priced. Either that or it would disappear altogether. I don't expect the headless Mac to go G5 just yet, for reasons of G5 supply and product segmentation, and this would also be a good argument for the expectation of the eMac to disappear, too. Furthermore, the eMac's CRT is becoming less and less desirable even at the low end, and for many people the built-in CRT in the all-in-one eMac design is simply a liability.
Let me go on record to say that I too believe this rumour could be true. Or at least I hope this rumour is true. Even if this makes my updated Cube less valuable, this is a good thing for the Mac platform, and is something that many people have been asking for, for years.
In an ironic twist, the same day Think Secret posted this rumour, PC Magazine's John Dvorak published Grim Macintosh Market Share Forebodes Crisis, which talks about "...Apple's inability to make the Mac a commodity computer" and details why Apple is thus doomed. All I have say is that for the most part, Apple does what it needs to do when it needs to do it. It's no surprise that Apple is one of the few consistently profitable personal computer manufacturers today.
I'm sure that 2005 will bring lots of new and cool products from Apple, and we'll see soon enough if the headless Mac is one of them.
I would suspect (based partially on Think Secret's article) such a product to have specs such as this in the base model:
1.25 GHz G4 7447A, CPU soldered to motherboard
256 MB DDR333 RAM, expandable to 2 GB
167 MHz bus
Radeon 9200 32 MB (no full CoreImage support)
DVI and VGA support, GPU soldered to motherboard
40 GB hard drive
DVD/CD-RW combo drive (slot-load)
Firewire 400 and USB 2
100 Mbps Ethernet
V.92 modem
Airport Extreme ready
Bluetooth ready
US$599
In essence, it would be a current eMac without the CRT display. This would be a major development, as many people want a low priced Mac, without the added cost of the CRT, which for most is unwanted and takes up too much space anyway.
Is 1.25 GHz enough? Yes, for this kind of product. Let me explain.
Since I had not suspected such a product might be released, I went ahead and purchased a Cube, and added a 1.7 GHz 7447A CPU upgrade. This machine is reasonably fast for basic use, and would be 36% faster in terms of clock speed compared to such a G4 1.25 GHz 7447A headless iPodMac... err... Mac. Indeed, the Cube 1.7 feels significantly faster than the 1.25 7455 G4 iMacs I have tried in the past, despite their 167 MHz bus. Most OS slowdowns that I've noticed with a 1 GHz 7455 machine (with 1 MB L3) are gone with my 1.7 GHz Cube. They are not completely gone on the 1.25 GHz iMacs, but overall, those machines are indeed fast enough for most people, for basic use such as surfing and word processing. A 1.5 GHz or faster G4 would be preferred, because the speed difference is still sometimes noticeable in basic use, but the 1.25 GHz 7447A is definitely a nice start for the headless Mac. This is in stark contrast to something like a G4 800, which would feel slow to too many people. Still, one would hope that the speeds can ramp up quickly, both for the headless G4 Mac, and for the G5 Macs too of course.
What does this mean for this eMac? If the low end headless Mac does appear, it's possible the eMac could go to a G5. A G5 1.6 eMac would be a reasonable product, and could be reasonably priced. Either that or it would disappear altogether. I don't expect the headless Mac to go G5 just yet, for reasons of G5 supply and product segmentation, and this would also be a good argument for the expectation of the eMac to disappear, too. Furthermore, the eMac's CRT is becoming less and less desirable even at the low end, and for many people the built-in CRT in the all-in-one eMac design is simply a liability.
Let me go on record to say that I too believe this rumour could be true. Or at least I hope this rumour is true. Even if this makes my updated Cube less valuable, this is a good thing for the Mac platform, and is something that many people have been asking for, for years.
In an ironic twist, the same day Think Secret posted this rumour, PC Magazine's John Dvorak published Grim Macintosh Market Share Forebodes Crisis, which talks about "...Apple's inability to make the Mac a commodity computer" and details why Apple is thus doomed. All I have say is that for the most part, Apple does what it needs to do when it needs to do it. It's no surprise that Apple is one of the few consistently profitable personal computer manufacturers today.
I'm sure that 2005 will bring lots of new and cool products from Apple, and we'll see soon enough if the headless Mac is one of them.
Thursday, December 23, 2004
ATI to introduce new PCI Express video cards at Macworld 2005?
On the ATI homepage there is a link to an ATI at Macworld page for the Macworld Conference & Expo in January 2005.
In that page ATI states:
It sounds like ATI may be releasing new video cards and GPUs at Macworld. If so, it's quite possible they may be based on the PCI Express (PCIe) interface (not to be confused with PCI-X), since ATI's recent PC video cards are built around this interface. If any newly announced cards are indeed PCIe, then Apple will also have announced new Power Macs, since Apple's current Power Mac line does not support PCIe.
In that page ATI states:
The future of 3D gaming on the Mac will be unveiled at the Macintosh Gaming Theater. Meet “Ruby,” ATI’s critically acclaimed Digital Superstar , introduced in 2004 in the animated demo “DoubleCross.” Ruby has recently reappeared in the fast-moving “Dangerous Curves” demo, and you’ll get a chance to get up-close-and-personal with her as she is running real-time on Mac OS X. Powered by the latest ATI graphics, you’ll see many techniques previously only seen in the latest Hollywood blockbusters. Join ATI’s 3D Application Research Group for an overview of the techniques developed for Ruby and a glimpse into the future of Mac gaming.
It sounds like ATI may be releasing new video cards and GPUs at Macworld. If so, it's quite possible they may be based on the PCI Express (PCIe) interface (not to be confused with PCI-X), since ATI's recent PC video cards are built around this interface. If any newly announced cards are indeed PCIe, then Apple will also have announced new Power Macs, since Apple's current Power Mac line does not support PCIe.
Friday, December 17, 2004
Canadian levy on iPod illegal, says Federal Court of Appeal
The Federal Court of Appeal has ruled that the levies applied to the iPod, iPod photo, and iPod mini by the Copyright Board of Canada are illegal. The ruling states that the Copyright Board of Canada stepped beyond its legal authority when it imposed these levies.
Apple Canada's prices currently include a $25 levy on the iPod and iPod photo, and a $15 levy on the iPod mini. We should expect prices on Apple's popular iPod lines to decrease accordingly in the new year.
Apple Canada's prices currently include a $25 levy on the iPod and iPod photo, and a $15 levy on the iPod mini. We should expect prices on Apple's popular iPod lines to decrease accordingly in the new year.
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