christracy Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 i thought intel processors couldnt do risc processing at all and if they can they dont run nearly as efficently as powerPC processors. wouldnt apple have to redesign and recompile the whole OS? i'm just curious to IF this was true how would it happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougal.s Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 This would be a little strange, as IBM makes the G5 which is only used in the Powermac and the iMac. We know that IBM and Motorola are both developing dual-core versions of the G5 and G4 respectively, why would they do so if an architecture change was on the books? Part of the whole Mac 'thing' is that they are completely different from a PC, and years of touting the advantage of the PPC architecture would go out of the window! We'll see though. Dougal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diffused Mind Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA This is the most retarded thing ive seen Thurrott say. Ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandon Live Veteran Posted April 27, 2005 Veteran Share Posted April 27, 2005 i thought intel processors couldnt do risc processing at all and if they can they dont run nearly as efficently as powerPC processors. wouldnt apple have to redesign and recompile the whole OS? i'm just curious to IF this was true how would it happen. 585838097[/snapback] You've been a victim of Apple propoghanda :) The G5 is barely any more a RISC processor than a Pentium 4. Yes they would have to recompile the OS, however that's not as hard as it sounds. OS X was designed to work on x86 (Darwin already runs on it), and Apple showed an x86-64 system running OS X well over a year ago (on an AMD system at the time). So no, it's not impossible. And it would probably be a huge step for Apple if they went to x86. HOWEVER, no one has said for sure that they're going to x86, just that they're looking to Intel for supply. If Apple owns the right to license the PowerPC architecutre, they may well work out a deal where Intel produces PPC capable chips for them. Or the whole thing could be a joke, a red herring, or misinformation. But it's certainly not impossible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
se7en.hu Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 Whoa, now that's news. A Mac with an AMD chip? :woot: 585837738[/snapback] No a mac with an Intel chip. I doubt they would use the normal Intel chips which you are thinking of eg. Intel compatible AMD chips, they would use a new archetecture for apple if this happens not x86 or EM64T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandon Live Veteran Posted April 27, 2005 Veteran Share Posted April 27, 2005 This would be a little strange, as IBM makes the G5 which is only used in the Powermac and the iMac. We know that IBM and Motorola are both developing dual-core versions of the G5 and G4 respectively, why would they do so if an architecture change was on the books? If memory serves, Motorola no longer makes CPUs at all. IBM already has dual-core G5s.. they're called Power4 chips. They also have Power5 these days. IBM has devoted a very, very small amount of their production capability to building Apple's special crippled Power4 chips. However, it's possible that both Apple and IBM got tired of this arrangement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougal.s Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 . . . they may well work out a deal where Intel produces PPC capable chips for them. 585838120[/snapback] Paul's piece of text says they are looking at a move to an Intel-compatible processor, not Intel to manufacture PPC processors. Although what you have suggested is the more likely, and could well be the result of bad information channeling. Dougal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neufuse Veteran Posted April 27, 2005 Veteran Share Posted April 27, 2005 one word... Itanium Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leedogg Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 If this turns out to be true, and its what I think it is, it would be a very big strategical move for apple. Effectively, anybody with a pc would be able to install a copy of the Mac OS on it (sortof like blackbox) Apple would single handedly expand its possible customer base by 800 percent. People would be able to try a flavor of apple on their pc's and, as its user base grows and people feel more comfortable with the OS, they would also be more likely to purchase a true mac down the road. For all practical purposes this would be the move apple should have done wayyyyyyyyyyyyy back when ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samoa Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 big whoop, Windows all the way... :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djsaad1 Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 why would you be more likely to purchase a mac when a pc can be half the price. If anything they might lose mac buyers. And just get people that will buy a pc with osx. They would have to lower the prices of macs which would would probably lead to worst income. In my opinion it would hurt apple more then help them. At the end all they will have is osx and the ipod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[idkfa] Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 If memory serves, Motorola no longer makes CPUs at all. 585838129[/snapback] AFAIK Motorola still produces G4s, while IBM makes G5s. If Motorola doesn't make CPUs anymore, who produces the G4s for Mac mini, Powerbook and iBook? IBM, too? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougal.s Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 why would you be more likely to purchase a mac when a pc can be half the price. If anything they might lose mac buyers. And just get people that will buy a pc with osx. 585838158[/snapback] Macs being more expensive than PCs is a myth, they just don't make really low end stuff. Try comparing a Dual G5 to a Dual Opteron system, they are VERY close price-wise. Dougal. Edit: I was sure that it was still Motorola's Freescale processor as the G4, the switch to IBM came because Moto couldn't push the G4 beyond 2Ghz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djsaad1 Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 an average user doesnt need a dual optetron or a dual g5. he needs something that can browse the internet for cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougal.s Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 Point taken. For just browsing etc, the Mac Mini is very competitive, but there are certainly cheaper options out there, especially if you don't need the power. Dougal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andre Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 Would be funny if they go for Intel and then post comparance table of G6 and Pentium, and as always Their G's will be 150% faster. xD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leedogg Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 Macs being more expensive than PCs is a myth, they just don't make really low end stuff. Try comparing a Dual G5 to a Dual Opteron system, they are VERY close price-wise.Dougal. Edit: I was sure that it was still Motorola's Freescale processor as the G4, the switch to IBM came because Moto couldn't push the G4 beyond 2Ghz. 585838164[/snapback] Get back to me when you can build your own top of the line mac for under 1k. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
betasp Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 Anonther thought is that it will increase apple Margins. Apple could leverage the market to force venders to reduce the price of parts. Apple still does not have to license the OS and could introduce proprietary technology to keep people from trying to use unauthorized and unsupported hardware. Don't forget on of the reasons Macs are more stable is because Apple controls the hardware. Lose control of the hardware and you lose some stability. If Apple could sign a deal with intel or AMD for a "special" chip that does not have to be completly x86 compatible, they might be able to reduce cost. Remember, Apple could give a rat's arse how many people use the OS, they care about how many people own the hardware. Apple is in the hardware business, they just happen to make software. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+E.Worm Jimmy Subscriber¹ Posted April 27, 2005 Subscriber¹ Share Posted April 27, 2005 heh, poeple being saying it for a while now, even since os x appeared. but having osx on pc would be pretty sweet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djsaad1 Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 I dont see how they could reduce cost of the chip if itis only being made for apple computers. I dont think that iis enough revenue for the chip companies for them to lower prices. But if somehow they were able to lower the price, then great for apple that would really help their sales. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerry Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 If memory serves, Motorola no longer makes CPUs at all. 585838129[/snapback] Oh ! your memory doesnt serve you anymore :p https://www.neowin.net/comments.php?id=1156...main&highlight= If this turns out to be true, and its what I think it is, it would be a very big strategical move for apple.? Effectively, anybody with a pc would be able to install a copy of the Mac OS on it (sortof like blackbox)? Apple would single handedly expand its possible customer base by 800 percent.? People would be able to try a flavor of apple on their pc's and, as its user base grows and people feel more comfortable with the OS, they would also be more likely to purchase a true mac down the road. For all practical purposes this would be the move apple should have done wayyyyyyyyyyyyy back wh;) ;) 585838144[/snapback] Funny thing you mention that ... Will D-Day be led by a Tiger? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aristotle-dude Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 Get back to me when you can build your own top of the line mac for under 1k. 585838185[/snapback] Get back to us when you can build a top of the line PC for under 1k factoring in both parts and labour (bill yourself 20 per hour minimum) which includes similar software and a pro level OS as macs do. My free time is valuable to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aristotle-dude Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 Whether or not an OS can run on a particular platform is completely irrelevant. A platform without "software" will die. Switching to an Intel compatible chip would be the death of Apple. Doing that killed NeXT or did we all forget already. Will you hardware fanboys STFU! It's the software stupid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattisking Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 This rumor comes and goes every couple of years. Mind you, that doesn't mean it isn't true. Still, it doesn't really matter in the long run. There are few real benefits to the switch except possibly cost (which Mac users are pretty unlikely to see). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SapUMBC Posted April 27, 2005 Share Posted April 27, 2005 Get back to me when you can build your own top of the line mac for under 1k. 585838185[/snapback] And where is your warranty? Where is your tech support? Where is your software? Warranty: "Dammit the hard drive is borked. Time to go find my receipt..." Tech Support: "Dammit now I have to find a working computer so I can connect to Neowin and hope someone can answer my question." Software: "Let me just go buy a legal copy of Windows now..." (or you could use Linux, if you have a way to get the ISO's and burn them.) It's nice to hide behind this "I want to see you build your own Mac" thing, but it's crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts