Live coverage of Apple's address at PhotoPlus Expo 2005
posted October 19th 2005 12:10PM
We're here live at Apple's press event here at PhotoPlus Expo 2005. So far attendance is sparse — maybe about 25 journalists. We're just waiting for everything to go down, in the meantime they're playing Weezer, Gorillaz, and Beck over the soundsystem — you know, the usual hipster BS. This is Apple's third press event in seven weeks, you could definitely say they're on the warpath. For what it's worth, the Apple store has gone down, which means something'll probably be announced.
12:08pm - David Moody is on stage, promises a number of hardware and software announcements. Reviewing core professional imaging stuff: Core Image, Image Capture, Quartz Extreme, ColorSync, Automator.
12:10pm - Looks like we're getting right into it! Two new PowerBooks announced today, a 15-inch and 17-inch upgrade.
12:12pm - The 15-inch will get a new display with 1440 x 960 resolution; the 17-inch will get 1680 x 1050. Both will be 46% brighter than previous models, and both will have 22% better battery life.
12:14pm - Oh, and SuperDrive (DVD burners, that is) will be standard. Apple Cinema HD support is now built-in as well. Expect the 12-inch to retial now for $1,500, the 15-inch for $2,000, and the 17-inch for $2,500. All are available now.
12:15pm - Looks like the G5 isnt out yet, too. Theyve bumped the L2 cache on new G5-based systems to 1MB, and added dual-core support (as expected) with dual velocity engines.
12:16pm - These chips will be used in the new dual-core Power Macs, which will support 16GB of 533MHz DDR2 SDRAM, and can rock up to 1TB of internal storage. Theyll come equipped with PCI-Express (finally!), and are being launched with four nVidia cards, including something in the way of a Quadro FX 4500. All four cards support the 30-inch Cinema Display, and you can add up to a total of four 30-inchers, now.
12:17pm - The product is called the Power Mac G5 Quadthats a total of four operating cores, 76.6 gigaflops. The Quad will be available in early November.
12:19pm - Now on to the Cinema Displays new pricing on the 23-inch, down to $1299. The 30-inch will also get a price drop. Thats it for hardware!
12:24pm - Apples also introducing a new post-production tool for photographers today. Its called Aperture. The idea is to make shooting in RAW as easy as shooting in JPEG.
12:31pm - Theyre getting into the nitty gritty photo stuff now, which well do what we can with. This is a tool obviously aimed at professionals; its got a virtual loupe for magnification, a virtual light table, and a free form space for mock-ups.
1:01pm - Aperture will be out next month, retail price of $499.
1:10pm - Looks like were all about wrapped up here. Thanks for tuning in everybody!
So - brighter, but not lighter PBs - and no new 12"...
LAME...
I wonder if I can hack intel OSX to run on a real notebook computer - say one of those panasonics or Sonys... (>_<)
Tiny Powerbook bump = Intel powerbooks very early next year? Possibly in January?
You can already run OSX on an x86 machine as long as it has the necessary multimedia instruction sets, but that's something else.
built-in bluetooth & airport not standard in the new PowerMacs!?! LAME! Who wants a flippin' mighty mouse anyways? for $3,200 those things should not be options.
I see the Mighty Mouse is now standard on the G5's
glad i didn't wait to for a 12" PB and already ordered my 20" iMac... should be ariving in the next week or so :-D
what, no apple digital camera???
seriously, was anybody expecting that?
Damn, the apple store is just getting HAMMERED (natch)! I can't even check out the products.
What Apple needs is a Pro mouse that fits big hands and has a nice backward and forward browsing buttons.
even my crappy dell has 1920 x 1200 resolution...
allready been done
The Apple store's "We'll be back soon page" has an icon for the Australia store.
No way Apple is going to touch Photoshop in the near future. I just dont see it, unless they have been developing the software for 10yrs.
Never say never, but I don't think Apple would ever enter the digital camera market. It's just not their area of expertise. It's easy to bust out cell phones thru companies like HTC, but so far this digital camera market hasn't been as commiditized.
Ah...oh well...
Apple trying to conquer Adobe?
right.... :D
Were there 7200 RPM 100 GB hard drive and 120 GB 5400 RPM options for the PowerBooks before? I know when I got mine in July, they only had the 80 GB and 5400 RPM 100 GB.
Re: Apple harming Photoshop:
So, where is Adobe Premiere for Mac these days? Photoshop Elements 4?
Why would they need to have been developing the software for 10 years? Just because it took Adobe that long to get where it is? Gimme a break.
A little more competition in that field wouldn't hurt much, least of all software prices.
Recommended system
Dual 2GHz Power Mac G5 or faster
2GB of RAM
One of the following graphics cards: ATI Radeon X800 XT Mac Edition; ATI Radeon 9800 XT or 9800 Pro; NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra DDL or 6800 GT DDL; NVIDIA GeForce 7800 GT; NVIDIA Quadro FX 4500
5GB of disk space for application, templates, and tutorial
Damm 2 GB ram for Aperture thats quite alot
HAHAHA, the new quad G5 gets rediculously expensive. I just built one with every option and it came to 23k and that's only with 2 30" monitors, so with 4 it's 28k.
P.S. i realize i'm about to get destroyed by everyone for that comment but i just thought a 28k computer was hillarious.
@ #61...
Yeah, Aperture requires 2GB of RAM, and still Apple ships these new powermacs with only 512MB.
Bad apple. Bad apple.
I'd like to see ARS Technica run a stress test on the new PowerMac G5 Quad the way they did with the iPod Nano. That'd be money down the drizzain. w00t.
So are the prices coming down on the displays in the UK too?
This is a joke. A 'special announcement' for tweaking the Powerbooks a little? Big deal. A special event for the new iPod is one thing, but this?
Hey, special announcement! Powerbooks now packaged in cardboard boxes!
Charlie - Yeah, but $12000 of that is RAM, $1000 is OSX Server (unlimited client), $600 is a FiberChannel card, and $1700 is the Quadro graphics card.
So, yeah, you're getting attacked, but only because you're a troll.
Conquering Adobe? Please. Look at the quick tour and tell me that Aperture is anything like Photoshop. It's for managing, tweaking and batch adjusting RAW photos. Adobe didn't even address this aspect of the workflow seriously until Bridge popped up in CS2. Photoshop is great for creating worth1000-esque images, but do most career photographers have a regular need for that?
It seems that aperture doesn't support the 12" powerbook either.
Which quite frankyly, blows. It's a stunning piece of software, I watched the demo from behind the Engadget guys, and loved it. But now I can't buy it to use with my Canon DSLR and 12" PB.
Damnit.
I'd say Aperture is more Apple taking on Canon's DPP or Phase One's C1 than Adobe Photoshop.
Yes. This is lame. No intel pb's yet :(.
$30k for a personal computer is hilarious!
How much was the price increase for the pb's I wasn't paying attention?
I'd say Aperture is more Apple taking on Canon's DPP or Phase One's C1 than Adobe Photoshop.
#50- how soon we forget....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_QuickTake
Sure Aperture isn't attacking PhotoShop CS at all right now. But they are nailing the source: the picture database. On top of that sooner or later they'll add all the processing features they want to add. And when they do slowly photoshop on mac will go the way of the dodo, aka Premiere.
PS: I tried to look at the demo of aperture on my 1024x768 ibook screen. You can be sure it's targeted at high-end users... even the information page doesn't fit on my entry-level laptop :-)
Damn it, why do they always release new products a few weeks after I've already purchased a new system? Moore's Law should be changed to 'you will be screwed after every technology purchase'
Alain (75) - read the buyers guide on macrumors.com for when is a good time to buy if you have the luxury of buying at a time convenient to you and not your necessity.
With the price drop on the 23", soon I will able to afford one.
So Aperture is like....iPhoto Pro you could say, or rather lets not ad these features to iPhoto and charge for them, eh hem remind you of anything, Quicktime Pro maybe. Man they sure are trying to squeeze every nickel out.
New PowerBooks, whoopedy doo! Really? I mean who gives a flying pig. They are really drawing out this transition period, they could have at least bumped the 17" up to 1.8Ghz or at least 1.76 but it looks like there will be another PB speedbump before we see intel ones.
New PowerMacs, now there is one machine that I would have wanted to have, Last Year! With new Intel Macs coming out, they will have to blow the doors off the quad G5. I mean they better have one rocketship of an intel mac coming out to go up against the the new top of the line G5. Is it just me or is the Quad G5 way too expensive. Yeah I know it's not that much blah, blah etc.. but who wants a stock top of line PowerMac. Even if I buy the RAM somewhere else, and add my own HD's and what not, the only way to get a decent graphic card worthy of this machine is to get the quadro FX, adding what another $1650. I mean come on. I'm sure NASA will be all over 'em. And if you are going to blow your wad of the Quadro FX, don't tell me you want to limp by on a 20" display, no friggin way! You need to go for the 30"er. So that brings the base price of a DECENTLY equipped Quad G5 custom configured from the Apple store to $7448.
One more thing......
Please Apple, please. Equip your totl PowerMac with at least 1GB of RAM.
PowerMac G5 Quads sound amazing. Just configured one and the RAM is a HUGE part of the high price tag...I bough this PMG5 5 months ago...I would have wanted a dual core, does anyone want a PowerMac G5 2.0Ghz with 1.5GB of RAM, Radeon 9800 Special Edition and 460 GB of storage? (160 + 300 GB HDs). Its only been lightly used for 5 months!