Apple adds 3.33GHz Xeon, 2TB hard drive options to Mac Pro
By Donald Melanson 
posted December 4th 2009 2:41PM
posted December 4th 2009 2:41PM
We know it can be tough scraping by with a measly 2.93GHz Xeon processor and 1TB hard drives in your Mac Pro, so you'll no doubt be pleased to know that Apple has finally seen fit to add a bit of extra horsepower to its humble little desktop. That includes a new option for a speedy 3.33GHz Xeon processor, which will add a hefty $1,200 to the base price, and a new a 2TB SATA 3Gb/s 7,200rpm hard drive option (also now available on Apple's Xserve server), which is a comparative bargain at just $350 -- though you can, of course, add four of them. Unfortunately, anyone that's thinking about doubling up on those 3.33GHz Xeon processors is still out of luck, as the 8-core rigs still top out at just 2.93Ghz. 
OMG GREAT VALUE HARD DRIVE!
I remember when Apple tried to charge me ninety-fucking-nine quid to upgrade my ram in my iMac.
I replied "lolno" and did it myself.
@ChazClout
heh, seriously... 350 to increase from 1TB to 2TB? wtf are they smoking?
and 1200 for a slightly faster cpu? you can buy a i7-975 plus mobo for that price
i dont understand how they can justify those prices, and its even harder for me to understand why people pay it
@ChazClout
of course you COULD just buy the generic parts yourself off of newegg for a fraction of a price and drop them into your current mac...
oh wait... can you?
@d889
The iMac I can't but I can do plenty to my trusty old hackintosh.
http://www.chazclout.co.uk/chaz/My_Computers.html
Yes you could. Ram though, you got to make sure you buy the right stuff else suffer the go slow consequence.
@d889
uh yeah you could actually. Best make sure you buy the right ram though or enjoy the go slow consequence.
@ChazClout
It always boggled my mind how Apple's Mac platform, one that was made famous YEARS ago for being "the multimedia creation platform" always had either a lack of RAM/storage space, or SUPER OVERPRICED RAM/storage space.
Also, 2TB drives run for $180, not "under $300" as some others have tried saying.
@Alaric
The Mac Pro is a professional workstation class machine. You shouldn't try to rationalize it compared to normal consumer hardware. People who use this hardware are mostly making money off it. For them the Mac Pro is a magical machine that prints money when you stick the right graphics designer, film editor, music producer, etc in front of it.
For example, let's say your employee is worth about $100 per hour. Let's say the 1Ghz CPU upgrade saves them 30 minutes per day of waiting around for a CPU intensive task to finish. That means in 24 work days the $1200 upgrade has already broke even. Let's say you own the machine for two years. That $1200 saved you $26,000 (5 day work week, 30 minutes per day) of man hours. (excluding holidays, sick days, vacations, etc and the possibility the employee was taking a long coffee break so the task finishing 30 minutes earlier was meaningless but surely you see the point.)
Based on NewEgg's pricing it's about a $500 premium to have Apple upgrade it for you. Trust me, no one in this industry is sweating a $500 upgrade. If they were sweating they'd use $500 bills to wipe the sweat off their rich faces.
@(Unverified) - "You shouldn't try to rationalize it compared to normal consumer hardware." Exactly the kind of rationale that Apple hopes idiots will make. (Cha-ching!)
Unfortunately for you and Apple it is consumer hardware (albeit shiny hardware for people who can't see past "shiny"). The cost difference of the Xeon processor (2.93GHz Nehalem to 3.33GHz Nehalem), through retail channels (i.e. newegg), is $250 dollars. And, if your argument is "think of the cost savings", neither processor has been installed on a new box until you configure and buy it. This, in effect, sets the cost of having someone in China pick a processor from one bin instead of another to ~$900. I know the USofA is in a recession, but... the dollar hasn't dropped so far, has it?
I wonder when people will realize how ridiculous it is to pay the exorbitant prices Apple demands for the same equipment.
On a side note, I just bought a quad-core box w/ Windows 7, 4GB ram, 1TB HD for $450. It's about the size of a DVD player and hides nicely behind my 26" monitor. I could buy 3 of those computers for the _cost difference_ of the processor upgrade on the Mac and chuckle all the way to the bank.
@Alaric The CPU is a Xeon W3580. It's a workstation/server chip, not a consumer chip. You can't compare the Xeon to a Core i7- they target different markets. On Newegg, the processor alone is over $1000. The $1200 is in comparison to the Xeon W3520 base model. The difference in cost between the chips is almost $800.
@ChazClout If you want Economy class get Windows, if you want 1st class get a Mac. Now does everyone understand?
@meridimus
Is it normal for 1st class to come with broken screens, flickering displays or completely DOA?
What's more Powerful, This Mac Pro OR God?
@PATRICKmcnicholl
None of the above. Power6.
I would say if you add WIndows 7, and buy Sims 3 THEN it will match God
Hence the Playing God in the Sims.
@PATRICKmcnicholl
A much cheaper, and more powerful PC is the correct answer.
@PATRICKmcnicholl Lemmy.
@PATRICKmcnicholl
The Mac Pro. It can be benchmarked. God has yet to show up for any type of benchmarking
@J D
I benchmarked God. He wasn't prime-stable.
@PATRICKmcnicholl God is vaporware.
I'm pretty sure Donald was jizzing his pants as he wrote this.
Not on the UK store you can't.
>.>
For the price of 1x2TB HDD and a 3.33 GHz CPU, I could have..
A LIAN LI PC-A71F case, A ASUS P7P55D PRO motherboard, a Radeon HD 5970 GPU (best on the market), a LIAN LI 750W power supply, a Core i7 920 (which is the same as the 2.8 version, so it overclocks fine), 6GB of ram, a 2xWD 1TB HDD, Logitech 110 keyboard, HP LP3065 Black-Silver 30" monitor, a Logitech G9x mouse, Pioneer Black Blu-ray Disc/DVD/CD Writer, a PS3 slim, A water cooling system with heatkiller blocks...
this is a terrible deal. if you want a mac pro, build one, get a mac pro case (they exist), load osx86.
@(Unverified) oh and money left over. Y'know, you need to pay the rent.
@(Unverified)
Where do you get a mac pro case?
You can't use a LGA 1366 processor with a 1156 mobo.
@(Unverified)
Can you explain exactly how all of that stuff adds up to $1,550 (1x3.33GHz chip and 1x2TB drive)? That 30" monitor alone puts you around $1,100....
That said, I still agree with your point in spirit.
@(Unverified)
It adds up to less than $4500. If you take the bare Mac Pro, add the 2tb HDD and a 3.33GHz quad, it goes to $4,049.00. And true, the motherboard is wrong, but my point remains.
Also, search on eBay, it exists.
@(Unverified)
Yes, but sadly after building that primo system you'd still be running Windows, i.e., MacOS1985
@(Unverified) Go back and change that CPU to a quad core XEON. Make sure the mother board has 2 CPU sockets and 2 PCIe X16 slots and come back with a revised price for me if you want to match the hardware in the Mac Pro. They use a server class mother board and Xeon CPUs, not standard mother boards and desktop class CPUs.
enough with the cost per component breakdowns! people that buy apple hardware are not hobbyist hackers. they are working professionals that don't have time to dick around with firmware updates everytime their hackintosh needs an update. why don't you try a cost per labor minute comparison. add up how much time you spent tweaking your hackintosh or pc and then tell me...oh that's right, you're probably out of work.
@wigby WTF? If you have the money to buy such a machine, you have the time to spend on anything. And why the hell would I cripple such a machine with OS X?
@DigDug
Yet another Apple fanboy desperately trying to be relevant. Have you even been looking at the general reactions to Windows 7 compared to Snow Leopard? Windows 7 isn't saddled with major issues like guest account bugs, breaking compatibility with tons of apps and plug-ins (despite being a so-called MAINTENANCE release). As other commenters have mentioned, there were more people running the Windows 7 RC than are yet running Snow Leopard.
@DigDug
Google OSX86. Or lean about computers, and realize that you have been ripped off my Apple for years, most likely.
@DigDug
So what you're saying is that the same OS that comes on $700 mac minis is worth the $1000+ premium on a high-end machine?
It's one thing to prefer one OS over another, it's quite another to smile happily and defend it while the maker of that OS screws you with a splintered broom handle.
@John H Your whole comment is just a giant MS advertising bullet point ass licking fest. The guest account thing affected .0001% of users, wasnt reproducable on 10 macs i have here at work and thousands and thousands of others. Win7 is not all peaches and cream like you morons would have everyone believe.
And to the guy thinking he can build this machine, you have no idea how different the hardware in this is compared to that retail crap you are trying to pass off as "just as good".
All of you should quit being fanboy morons and look at actual facts, especially you Jon H.
@Zuato
It's not a 8 core, it's a single processor, so one socket is needed for the same performance.
So I removed the PS3 from the price (I was joking) and added a 3.33GHz Harpertown (better than the Bloomfield you get from Apple), and it still beats its price. So, the best graphics card in the world, a 30" monitor, a very nice processor, a massive tower, a BDD player, a water cooling system. And it will run OSX(86).
Can you match that price?
@(Unverified) What price? Where is the magical build you think is "just as good"? Links.
@(Unverified) So your saying Macs are more expensive compared to PCs? I had no idea!
...
I wonder if it's possible to ever read an article about a Mac without someone coming along and telling everyone its more expensive then a comparable PC...we know already!
@(Unverified)
The funny thing is, YOU know, and you don't have to care. But obviously, some of these posters/comments show that one can read engadget, and read reviews, and STILL fall for a flashy ad and a want a POS overpriced machine. There is no justification for OSX, unless you can only use Logic (the software). But I really doubt these commenters need Logic.
@(Unverified)
I never said Windows 7 wasn't without its problems. It has a few, to be sure. So does Snow Leopard. All I said is that the reaction to Windows 7 seems to be more positive than the reaction to Snow Leopard, and not just because Windows 7 has more users.
And yes, I agree the glitches I cited aren't widespread. I mentioned them only because DigDug was trying to claim that Windows was some Soviet-era product and OS X was the answer to everyone's prayers.
@John H
The reaction to Windows 7 was always going to be a relatively positive one when compared to the steaming turd that came before it, so that isn't really a valid point.
@(Unverified)
You don't hackintosh a multi-thousand dollar machine. I'm running osx86 on a thinkpad and it's just barely better than XP
Nobody spending 2-3-4k on a machine wants to deal with not being able to reliable apply OS patches.
@(Unverified) Too bad the computer would look ugly as sin. I have to say that most apple users purchase apple computers for various reasons. Personally I buy them because I love good design (I am a working professional graphic designer) and I have the money to spend on them. I could build my own computer from scratch, but my time is money and I rather make it by designing than building an ugly computer. Sure MAC products are expensive. But that's because you are paying for 1. Brand name and 2. Design. I have nothing against Windows or anyone that likes to build PC's, but too call someone stupid because they like a specific brand or spend there money a certain way is plain idiotic. How I spend my money is my business.
@John H
Yes, I use W7 on my home PC and W7 enterprise at work. It is great, especially in view of that OS "STD" that was Windows Vista.
The point is, W7 "incredible features" such as having appropriate drivers, and not crashing every 10 minutes (ala Vista) were in MacOS at least 15 years ago.
Go ahead, call me a mac fanboy, whatever you want (name calling is sooooo 2nd grade), but the fact of the matter is that - generally speaking, Macs work, PCs are problem ridden.
And yes, W7 has been extremely successful, and as per above, I really like it. But once an OS is >5 years old (XP), and the interim OS is an epic FAIL (Vista), then of course people are going to flock (out of desperation if nothing else) to upgrade to something that actually works (hence, people in aged XP systems wanting to upgrade, terrified of Vista for obvious reasons, go to W7). Of course they just have to figure out which of the oodles of versions 'might' work on their system lol.
I love W7, I can actually turn my PC on and print without having to reload the printer every time I reboot ala Vista. How so very novel of MS.
@Jorvay
I have a mac mini, the original. Never crashed once, always booted up in
@DigDug
Lol, it only gets better. Have W7 on my dell. A great OS overall (at least compared to Vista, but that's like comparing a 2009 Bentley to a '74 pinto - with woody sides).
W7 just did 19 "important security updates." How old is W7? Um, a month?
My OS partition is 30GB. Before tonight's "update" I had 10.23GB (of this partition) free. Resource hog. Anyway, now I have 8.09GB free. One day. Yet another "security update." 2.14GB of my OS partition gone in a blink. Bill Gates just laughed. Steve Jobs just puked.
@(Unverified) The aesthetics, feel, built, and cohesion between OS and the hardware is worth the extra price over a comparable PC box to some people. If you think it's overpriced, then you're not one of those people. Apple products are not perfect and they get their sure of defects and bugs. Just because people have different perspective on the value of aesthetics doesn't make them stupid, but it does make you narrow minded for thinking they are stupid. Either way, don't blame a capitalistic corporation for being able to make huge profit margins on their products.
@UnixSystemsEngineer
Not so true. I have seen people spend 3K on a hackintosh and updates work just fine. I do like OSX but not wasting money on a real mac, I have more of a bargain model hackintosh because I only wanted to play with iPhone apps. Windows 7 is still the best, I only just today upgraded my main system to it from the RC. Best OS ever in my view.