Apple may upgrade Power Mac G5 line as early as next week

According to sources cited by Think Secret, Apple will soon be announcing upgrades to its flagship Power Mac G5 line. If these sources are correct, the new G5s (which may be announced as early as next week's Apple Expo) will be the first to sport IBM's dual-core PowerPC 970MP processors, which max out at 2.5GHz. This unusually short period between revisons (the G5s were last repimped in April) could be indicative of either slow sales or technical problems with the current models. Plus, with their announced switch to Intel processors, Apple needs all the help it can get to avoid the mythical but dreaded Osborne Effect.

[Thanks, Carla]

[Tony @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

If a tree falls in the woods and nobody is around to hear it . . .

[James Fogel @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

what the hell is the osbourne effect?

[Nick @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

... does it make any noise?

[poncho @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

I guess you had to be there.

[Aleix @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

I though that in the same weblog inc. there is a special blog dedicated( and devoted) to apple. but as more as I read, I see that, at least, there are 2 blogs

[Cashmore @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

#2 -- see Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osborne_effect

[Techeon @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

Here is an explanation of the osbourne effect. Which really doesn't exist and is a misnomer.

http://www.engadget.com/entry/1234000140047522/

[Lee @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

The Osbourne effect is actually not a myth but an event...

Adam Osbourne had an early CP/M OS based "portable" (based on a Z80 CPU, I think) in the mid-1980's. This was a BIG hunker bigger than a carryon bag and weighed at least 25 lbs. It had a small CRT built into it and floppy drives only. It was reasonably successful.

Orbourne Computing announced that the "Osbourne Executive" was coming out, with greatly expanded features... I think things like a 7" CRT vs. the current 5" one. And I'm not making this up.

Anyway, it was late, but announced. Sales of the old model stopped completely and the company didn't have enough cash to keep going (as no new cash was coming in from sales). The company died a very public death and quickly.

So... a couple of observations:

1) The Osbourne effect is not a myth, it happened (though a long time ago).
2) Anytime a company pre-announces a new product (mostly hardware- you can always offer free upgrades for software) that greatly exceeds the old, and can't ship, they risk the Osbourne effect.
3) Cash helps with many things.
4) Laptops are really small now by comparison.

Oh, and I bought my first Power Mac G5 in May... damn.

[Lee @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

Okay, I just read the engadget column... and then the "I, Cringely column." I think Cringely was more correct... the Kaypro was cheaper with a larger 9" screen vs. 7" for the executive. But I don't buy it completely as I actually sold those systems (first job). Margins back then were around 40% on hardware sold in a computer store so there was tremendous pricing flexibility. And generally stores that sold Kaypro did not sell Osbourne and vice-versa.

Here's a link I found with pictures:
http://oldcomputers.net/osborne.html

[poncho @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

This would sadden me greatly, I only bought a G5 a few months back. I would imagine the PowerMacs will be the last to make the transition from PPC to x86 (close to two years away) so it's possible that Apple will use the dual-core PPCs in the meantime. However, I can't see them dumping a dual 2.7Ghz machine for a single dual-core 2.5Ghz.

Unless his Jobsness likes the sound of a Dual dual-core PowerMac (which would totally rock), I don't think Apple will update the PowerMacs significantly any time soon. I could be wrong though.

Cheers;
Poncho

[Bambi Hambi @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

That wasn't a 'mythical' Osborne effect. It was reaility. Osborne 1 used a Zilog Z80 chip and they sold tons of those sewing machine-sized boxes in 1981, 1982. In '82, as PCs took over, Adam Osborne was asked when the company would move to an DOS machine. He said, 'Soon' and announced the 'Executive.'

That was the end. It took a couple of years before Osborne could get a DOS machine ready and the company nearly died because nobody bought the CP/M machines after that. The company went bankrupt in 1983, though they did eventually release a DOS-based box in similar size (think original Compaq luggable).

Big mistake, hence the 'Osborne Effect.'

The machine, though, was a bargain. Dual floppies. 64k RAM, WordStar, SuperCalc, dBaseII, Basic. It was an all-in-one, just like the iMac.

The Mac is not an Osborne. The Mac user base is more loyal and really consider the Mac to be Mac OS X/Classic regardless of which chip it has.

[xVariable @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

I'm sorry, but what's the incentive to buy a PPC Mac that will, esentially, be obsolete from the time it's bought? What's that? They're selling them below cost? No? So they're still stoopidly high priced then? OK, thanks for the info.

BTW, having triple booted OS X with Linux and XP for a while, I gotta say I'm not impressed.

[Gordy @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

The incentive is not having to worry about using a buggy first generation Macintel. Why don't people see this drama coming? C'mon, Photoshop, Quark, hell, Toast? Remember the OS 9 - OS X transition?

When I see Dual 3GHz, I'm buying a G5.

[Joel @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

Long-time Mac users won't care. They will buy the new G5 if they need it and not worry about it one bit. And it has nothing to do with being a "brainwashed zealot" or whatever either.

Anyone who questions why can just scroll down a three articles to this Engadget article: "XPostFacto to shoehorn Tiger into every Mac ever built."

I have a 5-year old dual 500 Mhz G4 that is upgraded with Tiger and the latest version of Photoshop. It runs fine. G5s will be working fine for at least the next 3-5 years. So power users (the only customers that feel the need to buy these dual-core monster G5s anyway) will have moved on to the next monster Power Mac by then. Why should they care?

People who think Apple is going to give up on Universal Binaries in a year or two don't know anything about Apple. This is the same company that secretly kept an intel version of OS X going for five years "just in case." Universal binaries aren't just a safety net for Apple, they are part of the central vision of OS X's future.

[Andy @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

Hey, any upgrade is cool.

But damn, I want a Powerbook, but I can't justify it if it's a G4. That's just old tech.

Hopefully, they drop these within a year and they're Yonahs. I just hope they really put the "Power" back in "Powerbook."

[Si @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

... my new PowerMac is due to ship tomorrow :(

[Sebhelyesfarku @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

I am a troll: [e-mail]

[Elliott @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

#16 ; why even bother posting such nonsense ?

Anyway I�m ordering an new PM in October so I hope theres some thruth to these rumors. = )
If not I�m gonna wait for the dual core. My G4 400Mhz still runs photoshop cs like a champ ( albeit a bit slow champ )

[Cashmore @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

#16 The Apple Turd has been released? I wanna buy it! I wanna buy it!

[ryecob @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

i'm still hoping for a g5 mac mini. it would be a fine replacement for my aging g4/400 and get me through the growing pains of the1st macintel generation.

[JP @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

If you are waiting for a G5 PowerBook, give it up. The mini guys too, as it is not much more than an iBook in cube form, a really nice iBook, but a G5 eMac is more likely.

The reasoning:
As powerful as the G5 is, it is a power hog and heats up more than any other processor by Apple at this time. Due to these issues, by the time a G5 is shoehorned into a Powerbook, it will be scaled back so much that the existing G4's will thwomp them. The 64-bit pipeline is just not better enough to compensate. Likewise a G5 mini would be at least twice the size of the current model.

And the Macs of today will be in use long into the times of the Mactells. Obsolescence doesn't happen for a mac until it is just too slow, and it will take a while for that to happen. There were more factors for Osbourne than just a press release, like a bad sales model.

[chudgoo @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

xVariable...
What reason is there to buy ANY computer then? They will all be obsolete in 2 years. That's how this game works. What you are paying for with bleeding edge hardware is TIME, Typically the more you spend, the longer you can claim that your computer is "bleeding edge". Most people have a clear intent for their new computer purchases...and usually an immediate need. People that have a NEED for one of these new dual-core PowerMac G5s NOW will buy one NOW.


A side note is that Apple has a *working* OSX build for x86 already, so really the only wait is on the hardware (which is also nearly ready to roll) If you're like me, you'll be due for an upgrade when the Intel Macs ship and will buy one when they become available.

(ps: yay! obsolete hardware! This post brought to you by a 3 1/2 year old iBook G3 (700MHz) running OSX 10.4.2 with ease! Also, I think that Apple has demonstrated their commitment to supporting PPC macs with these so-called "Fat Binaries"....We'll see!_

[chudgoo @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

xVariable...
What reason is there to buy ANY computer then? They will all be obsolete in 2 years. That's how this game works. What you are paying for with bleeding edge hardware is TIME, Typically the more you spend, the longer you can claim that your computer is "bleeding edge". Most people have a clear intent for their new computer purchases...and usually an immediate need. People that have a NEED for one of these new dual-core PowerMac G5s NOW will buy one NOW.


A side note is that Apple has a *working* OSX build for x86 already, so really the only wait is on the hardware (which is also nearly ready to roll) If you're like me, you'll be due for an upgrade when the Intel Macs ship and will buy one when they become available.

(ps: yay! obsolete hardware! This post brought to you by a 3 1/2 year old iBook G3 (700MHz) running OSX 10.4.2 with ease! Also, I think that Apple has demonstrated their commitment to supporting PPC macs with these so-called "Fat Binaries"....We'll see!_

[Jason Anderson @ Dec 19th 2005 2:37AM]

I can't see many people buying these when they know the Intels are coming. So, Apple, you might as well clearance all your G5's at $500. ;-)

Seriously.. do it.