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Apple Hedges Its Bet on New Intel Chips
Corrado writes "The Mercury News is reporting that Apple is still planning to use PowerPC chips well into 2008 for its low end and portable systems. Does this increase the "warm fuzzes" for the Intel move?
More information from TheStreet and lots more links from Google News."
Steve said low end items were the first to go (mini, iBook, etc). What the hell are they talking about.
The Doormat
If you're not outraged, then you're not paying attention.
So presumably we will again have an extended transitional period where Mac binaries have x86 and PPC code rolled together. I wonder how big an OS X Office install will be now.
I am becoming gerund, destroyer of verbs.
Will this be a problem for support? They'll now have to support this much more hardware, and will have to have a fork of their OS X code; or will all code be done for Intel procs now, and 'just work (tm)' via the rosetta on powerpc procs? I think they'd have to do this, but still, I think it's going to taint the marketing a bit. Still, this hasn't been done before, and it's in sits like this that Apple usually does well. As long as production can keep up...
bad_outlook
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Is this vague enough for you?
Good, because I just plain don't want an Intel chip. I don't care if it's the future of Apple's support, I want to keep buying PPC as long as I possibly can. I don't care if you think I'm crazy or stupid. Personally I just have a whole bunch of personal Altivec code and I don't want to have to rewrite it.
Posted as AC because every time I express that I do not want to be forced to use Intel chips in order to continue using OS X, I get screamed at for being a "zealot". I find it a bit funny that disagreeing with Apple gets you branded as an Apple Zealot now, but there it is.
Yeah, especially since, these days, virtually nobody cares about wasting disk space or bandwidth anymore anyway. And for most applications, most of the space is in the data. In fact, it has been speculated that this is exactly what Apple will do; provide an update to Xcode that will cause it to generate fat PPC/intel binaries, and everybody will be writing software compatible with both platforms with no extra effort.
Please correct me if I got my facts wrong.
Umm, for like no money, they've secured access to a chip. If they hadn't, they'd be liable to lawsuits for not securing chips in case there is a problem with the transition. CYA material, plain and simple.
People may laugh when you say `Intel' and `Roadmap' together, but they don't laugh nearly as hard as when you say `Freescale' and `Roadmap' together. I remember these guys promising 3.6GHz+ G6 chips being ready by 2002 back in the late '90s. Next to them, Intel roadmaps look positively reliable...
I am TheRaven on Soylent News
That's not what the deal is. Apple isn't hedging its bets. From the various articles: " Apple Computer Inc. said it has an option to keep buying microprocessors from Freescale Semiconductor Inc., three months after saying Macs will switch to Intel Corp. chips next year." Apple has negotiated for an option to buy the processors, and there is no set number of processors they will buy. Freescale just agreed to supply whatever Apple orders for the next three years. Apple could order 0. Apple could order a bunch. But probably not. They're most likely buying these processors to support the existing user base, to produce enough existing models to meet existing contractual obligations, and to be able to meet any unexpected surges in demand during the transition period. Where do people get that Apple is "hedging its bets?" Apple has bet the farm on Mac on Intel. Believe it. And don't think that for one minute the underlying hardware makes no difference. There will always be certain types of applications that will very much be hardware dependent, and yes, it DOES make a difference.
My blog
Apple will support PPC macs in OS X probably about seven years after the last one is sold.
That's based on older models that OS X supports today, every release it seems like back support from OS releases is about five to seven years.
We know that not all mac will switch at once, say high-end Intel macs start coming out the year after next. That's 2007, which means there will be solid PPC support from Apple until at least 2012.
WHat about software vendors? Well you can imagine they would have strong motivation to keep software working well on PPC macs until the percentage of Intel macs is a lot higher than PPC macs. But that will take some time, so I think in the end you'll see universal binaries from just about all Mac software makers until at least 2012 - and it costs them nothing to keep making the universal binaries if they decided to drop testing support for PPC versions, which could extend it out longer.
In short, buy the powerbook.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
It appears likely that having a chip supply would allow Apple to make a G5 plugin card for new Intel Macs if some high powered hold-outs demanded G5's remain available.
I see no concern about purchasing chips for a tech Apple claims it's dumping. It actually makes it more likely they'll be prepared to deal with stragglers and hold-outs so that they can officially abandon PowerPC retail computers sooner (if not the chips and architecture itself).
Dual processor motherboards, has two sockets. One for an Intel chip, and one for a PowerPC chip. You choose which one you wish to use at the factory when you order it. If you chose one, and decided you need to run programs designed for the other, you can order that chip and have an Apple Tech put it in for you. If you cannot decide, order both chips and use them in a parallel processing.
// or PC on a card for the original PowerMacs.
Special dual-use Macintosh motherboards can be designed to work with an Intel chip, a PowerPC chip, or both.
For those who bought an Intel or PowerPC Mac without the dual-use capability, Apple will be happy to provide an expansion card with the other chip on it to run programs designed for that processor. Just like they used to have an Apple
How about we put a fire under the MAME/MESS community and they design a PCI card standard that uses Intel X86, PowerPC, 680X0, Z80, 6502, 6509, Z800, MIPS, SH4, and other processors on it, or have the sockets to add processors to it for emulators and other systems to use to run non-Native code on the processor card. Then your F/OSS software can use the PowerPC on the PCI card to run PearPC on your Intel X86 Linux PC at almost normal speeds? Stick a G4 or G5 on a PCI card, and sell it for use with F/OSS software that uses the card.
How about the Asian community makes a PowerPC socket for their Intel X86 motherboards to use it as a co-processor for emulators and other things? Just buy a PowerPC chip, clip it in the socket, run PearPC, Bochs, or whatever, and be happy with your native run PowerPC OS of choice.
Remember, Slashdot does not have a -1 disagree moderation, and no, troll, flamebait, and overrated are not substitutes.
You've obviously never used a Pentium-based laptop. There is a reason why Apple is going to use the newer, cooler, mobile chips rather than Pentium chips.
Of course, it's really speculation that Apple is going to use those newer chips, but given that the timeframes for the chips' introduction and Apple's switch, it's not a big stretch...
Apple laptops can get warm, though, especially the newer, higher-clockrate ones. They're clearly pushing those G4s pretty hard. Oddly enough, though, there are no stories of Mac users burning themselves on their laptops...
The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
Okay, I give up. Someone tell me what the hell this viral sig line is about.
I don't know what kind of crack I was on, but I suspect it was decaf.
Apple will be transitioning all their G4 product beginning in 2006. They contract Frescale till the end of 2008, which 3 years - the length of a typical applecare extended contract. So, I guess they only intend to sell these systems till the end of this year. Given the recent announcements of Intel processor lineup, I guess Apple will release new Powerbook, iBook, and mac mini's along side Intels release of dual-core and single Yonahs.
You don't have to be smart to use a Mac, you just have to be smart enough to buy one