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Apple to release Mac Pro with eight cores?
So now we've gotten word that the gang in Cupertino are working on a Mac Pro that will boast eight cores (call it octo-core, if you must) -- packing two Clovertown quad-core chips. Of course, this doesn't really seem all that much of a surprise given that this was already done over a month ago by our buds at Anandtech. But AppleInsider says that this new bump could happen "any time after mid Nov." for the Mac Pro line. Of course, most Apple rumors should normally be taken with a hefty dose of sodium chloride, but given that we've seen that no additional hardware or software tweaks are required to make the Mac Pro run properly with eight cores, it would seem that this is firmly within the realm of possibility. That is, assuming you have the hefty wad of cash that this will no doubt demand, and that Intel can produce enough supply in the near future.
Apple adds 750GB hard drive option to 24-inch iMac, Mac Pro
We aren't sure if this new option appeared today with the newly-updated MacBook Pro, but it's the first time we've heard of it: reader Mark S tipped us off to the availability of a 750GB hard drive option in the iMac 24-inch and the Mac Pro. The massive drive isn't available in any other iMac (they still cap out 500GB), but with 4 available bays in the Mac Pro, they can now be configured with 3 terabytes of storage straight out the gate. That's a lot of iTS movies.These drives don't come cheap, however: typical of Apple, each 750GB drive (across both machines) is a somewhat expensive $399 upgrade, so that's an extra $1596 just for the bragging rights of having the big bertha of Mac Pros on the block.
How to supersize your Mac Pro's SuperDrive
Oh, those tricky engineers over at Apple; how they love to slip little treats inside their boxes. Recently we found out that Cupertino had surreptitiously included 802.11n chips from Broadcom into its latest lineup of all-in-one iMacs, and now we've learned that many of the SuperDrives in the Mac Pro are even more super than their spec sheets or current functionality would have led us to believe. The good folks over at HardMac decided to find out the real deal behind Sony's DW-D150A DVD burner that ships with most Mac Pros (the others sport a Pioneer DVR-111D), and after disassembling the drive and doing a little research, discovered that this previously-unknown model is actually just a rebadged NEC ND-4570A. Normally such a revelation wouldn't be very interesting, except for the fact that NEC's version of the burner touts superior performance and more features than Apple endowed the Sony with, and a fairly simple firmware tweak is all it takes to make your SuperDrive even more powerful. We won't go into the specifics of the hack here, but after you've successfully followed the instructions laid out in the Read link, your drive will suddenly be able to burn DVD-RAMs and dual layer DVD-Rs, write CD-R discs at 48x (as is, these SuperDrives max out at 32x), and perhaps best of all, read DVDs from around the world (i.e. the new firmware is region-free). Next up for Team HardMac? Getting ahold of some LabelFlash-compatible discs and attempting a firmware update to the ND-4571 -- soon, your Mac Pro may be able to get its label on as well.[Via TUAW]
Mac Pro EFI Firmware Update 1.0
Apple has issued an EFI Firmware Update 1.0 which "fixes several Boot Camp and start up issues on Mac Pro computers." We've been hearing about these problems for a little while now, so here's hoping this 1.8MB update can let Mac Pro + XP owners sleep a little better at night. The updater requires Mac OS X 10.4.7 and is available here.Thanks Robert
Boot Camp updated for Core 2 Duo Macs
Boot Camp, Apple's software that allows Mac users to run Windows XP on a separate partition, has been updated to version 1.1.1. Specific in this release is support for Core 2 Duo Macs (Mac Pro and new iMac), though the Boot Camp page lists other updates, such as support for built-in iSight cameras and improved Apple keyboard support, that actually appeared in Boot Camp 1.1.This release weighs in at 186MB, and is available from Apple's Boot Camp page.Thanks Randy
Clovertown Intel Core 2 quad-core will work in a Mac Pro
Ok Mac fanboys, listen up: if you somehow manage to have two not-yet-released Clovertown Intel Core 2 quad-core chips kicking around and you happen to have recently bought a Mac Pro, you can pop the pair of them right there into your nice little LGA-771 sockets, for some oct-awesome processing power. In fact, that's precisely what the good folks at Anandtech did. They have their silicon-stained paws on some "engineering samples" of the Clovertown chips and dropped them into their Mac Pro. What did they find? Mac OS X didn't hiccup at all, and neither did the other hardware. The CPU Monitor indeed showed all eight processors, but as Anandtech pointed out, there's not much that you can do at this point that will stress all eight processors at once, not unless you're running SETI@Home, Folding@Home and every other distributed processing program you can find -- and even then that probably won't do it.[Via Slashdot]
Iomega rolls out OS X-ready UltraMax 640GB RAID drive
Iomega must really like making hard drives aimed at Apple users, or either its MiniMax for the Mac mini and the new UltraMax 640GB drive are completely coincidental. Whatever the case, this new 640GB HDD rocks dual 320GB SATA drives in a RAID 0 or 1 array, and sports an enclosure that any Mac Pro (or PowerMac G5) owner can appreciate. It comes formatted for OS X use (HFS+), but can be reformatted for PC use, and Iomega apparently made cross-platform setup a breeze with the included "FAT32 format tools." (What, no NTFS?) What differentiates this cheese grater drive from those lookalikes is its on-the-fly ability to turn RAID on and off, as well as offering a few more nifty options not typically found on external drives. Aside from the trifecta of USB 2.0, FireWire 400, and FireWire 800 connections, you get a manual RAID switch that allows you to turn off the RAID and use the drives as JBOD (i.e. where each HDD is treated with its own drive letter). If you've been hunting for flexible external storage options, and you're a huge fan of brushed metal, the UltraMax 640GB can get paired up with your Mac (or PC) for $449.95 later this month.
Mac Halo now with Universal Binary
Inside Mac Games has announced that a Universal Binary edition of Bungie's Halo: Combat Evolved is now available. Intel Mac owners looking for a native performance boost over the original Halo release can download the upgrade for $5. If you're new to the whole Master Chief experience, the complete shrink-wrapped game is $30.See also: Mac Quake 4 now shipping Mac UT2004 Universal Binary released
Apple Mac Pro review roundup
So everyone even remotely in the loop knew that it was just a matter of time before Apple tossed an Intel processor (or two) into its desktop Mac, and now that the deed is done and the Mac Pro is out on the street, reviewers have the scoop on whether the revamped Mac is worth your while. There seems to be echos of praise stemming from the quicker, or shall we say, "snappier," Intel chip versus the 'ole PowerPC-based processors, and the much-anticipated addition of extra hard drive bays and a secondary optical drive helped to improve on those prior limitations. Of course, Rosetta apps still lag behind on the new chips, but this will probably become a non-issue as more programs get that Universal touch. Although there didn't seem to be many complaints, the biggest gripes came from the uninspiring graphics performance versus similar PC-based GPUs (no surprise here), and the disappointing reality that built-in AirPort / Bluetooth modules aren't standard on a "professional" machine. We're sure there's a select few still bound and determined to keep plugging along in OS 9 as long as possible, but for those interested in seeing how this Intel-equipped Mac fared, these guys have done the work for you. Read - Ars Technica Read - Anandtech Read - ZDNet Read - Bare Feats Read - MacInTouch Read - Epic Empire
Apple releases Boot Camp 1.1 beta
Apple has updated Boot Camp to version 1.1 with a number of new enhancements and compatibility fixes, including: Support for the latest Intel-based Macintosh computers (I'm assuming this means the Mac Pros) Easier partitioning using presets for popular sizes Ability to install Windows XP on any internal disk iSight camera support Support for built-in microphones Right-click when pressing the right-hand Apple key on Apple keyboards Improved Apple keyboard support including Delete, PrintScreen, NumLock, and ScrollLock keys Instructions for updating are provided at the Boot Camp site (and I would assume along with the Boot Camp install itself as well), but it's pretty simple: install the new version, burn a new CD of drivers, then flip over to Windows and install them.This might be a long shot, but I wonder if this update might make running Vista - either in its current version or the upcoming RC1 - easier. Anyone have any ideas?Thanks Blair!
Cohen on Mac Pro's gaming prowess
Macworld's Peter Cohen (author of the magazine's recently vanished GameRoom column) has posted an online idolatry to Apple's new Mac Pro workstation, in which he praises the G5 successor's potential as a gaming tour de force.Cohen summarizes, "With Leopard coming next spring, Universal Binary games here today and Cider-wrapped games coming within the next couple of months, Mac gaming is on the upswing, and the Mac Pro is a rig that should really be able to take advantage of everything that's offered." Do you agree? Some of the comments we received for our original post on the Mac Pro raised issues with the Xeon's shortcomings as a gaming chip (which Cohen also addresses), while other Joystiqers engaged in a healthy debate on cost comparisons with similarly configured PCs.
Engadget Podcast 084 - 08.15.2006
We're back! Again! Yes, we're quite sorry for the delayed program (listen in to find out a bit why), but there's no dearth of news to discuss. Fresh from Apple's big WWDC 2006 kickoff event we've got the long predicted and somewhat jejune Mac Pro, the Cinema Display bumps, and some interesting tidbits on Leopard, including Time Machine -- which Ryan sorely needed this week. Sony also pulled a fast one on us with the mylo, an intriguing and beguiling new WiFi handheld that seems to compete more with the PSP than anything else. Also hot off the presses is Engadget Mobile's scoop on the BlackBerry Pearl, RIM's new mobile consumer foray, and their first with a camera, removable media, and media playback capabilities. Thanks for welcoming us back, and enjoy! Get the podcast [iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (MP3). [RSS] Add the Engadget Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically (MP3). [MP3] Download the show (MP3). [AAC] Download the enhanced show (AAC). [OGG] Download the show (OGG). Hosts: Peter Rojas and Ryan Block Producer: Trent Wolbe Music: Solvent - Instructograph (Ghostly International) Format: 1:00:15, 27.6 MB, MP3 Program: 6:05 - Apple WWDC 2006 6:48 - Mac Pro hands-on 7:03 - Apple OS X 10.5 "Leopard" officially debuts 15:56 - Sony launches mylo 27:51 - The BlackBerry Pearl 44:00 - Listener emails LISTEN (MP3) LISTEN (AAC) LISTEN (OGG) Contact the podcast: 1-888-ENGADGET, Engadget (Gizmo Project) or podcast at engadget dawt com
System Shootouts: Mac Pro vs Dell Precision 690
System Shootouts has pit a Mac Pro against a Dell Precision 690 workstation in an in-depth feature-for-feature comparison to see who gets to go home with the prom queen. This match is of particular interest in part because of how detailed the feature criteria is (it included extra drive/bays like a floppy or memory card readers, as well as any included backup solutions and even web authoring software), but also because of how ultimately mismatched these two machines are. One machine is so overpriced that System Shootouts opted to break traditional policy and include a display and/or extended warranty program in the name of mercy for the losing contender.In case you can't tell, I'm trying not to spoil this particular match because I think it's such an interesting upset, especially in light of how Apple did their own hardware match-up on stage at WWDC 2006. Check out the shootout for yourself to see whether the Mac Pro or the Dell wound up spending prom night home alone.
Mac Pro benchmark roundup
Other sites are already getting their hands on Mac Pros and putting them through the benchmark ringer, and since we aren't done checking the couch for change yet, I figured a benchmark roundup would be the best way to let you sink your teeth into some cold, hard numbers. If you've been waiting to see how well these things perform in real world tests, your wait just might be over: Macworld pits a 2.66 Quad Core Ghz Mac Pro against 2.5 Quad and Dual 2.7 G5 Power Macs - G5s run crying to mama in everything but Adobe Photoshop tests (hint: that will be a benchmark theme across the board) MacInTouch posts some initial impressions as well as a wide variety of benchmarks, including some real low-level geek stuff like "multi-threaded scalar." Until now, I thought a 'scalar' was just a monster in Unreal Bare Feats posts their own set of tests, including the only After Effects test I've found so far (AE still isn't a UB either; I guess Adobe misunderstood the phrase 'fashionably late to the party') Geek Patrol, as you might glean from the name, also posts some extensive low-level tests in categories such as memory performance, floating point, integer and more Apple's product page also seem to think pretty highly of their own new Mac Pros That's it for now. Just don't blame us for the credit card interest if this pushes you over the edge to buy one.
Brand new Mac Pro ruthlessly gutted!
And now, time for some pr0n. The folks over at PowerMax just got an early shipment of one of those fancy new Mac Pros from Apple, so they naturally ripped open the box and gutted the computer. Looks like fun, but don't take our word for it, hit the read link to head on over and peep those hugemongous heatsinks for yourself.
Super Secret Apple Rumors Podcast 083 - 08.08.06
Ah, welcome to another addition of the Super Secret Apple Rumors Podcast, with your host Stevie J. Jobsie didn't have a ton of new gear to announce -- just the Mac Pro -- but it is, in fact, WWDC. Did we ever get a load of information about Leopard, though, the new version of OS X Apple's making us wait until next year to get. Next freaking year! Well, whatever, there's sure to be a lot more to come with 10.5, but in the mean time take it away, Steve. Get the podcast [iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (MP3). [RSS] Add the Engadget Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically (MP3). [MP3] Download the show (MP3). [AAC] Download the enhanced show (AAC). [OGG] Download the show (OGG). Host: Steve Jobs Producer: Trent Wolbe Format: 01:25:22, 39.1 MB, MP3 Program: 07:46 - Apple unveils dual Xeon-Based Mac Pro 32:06 - Time Machine backup 42:30 - Apple OS X 10.5 "Leopard" features LISTEN (MP3) LISTEN (AAC) LISTEN (OGG) Contact the podcast: 1-888-ENGADGET, Engadget (Gizmo Project) or podcast at engadget dawt com
Mac Pro developer note posted
I want a Mac Pro, there is no denying it. I do not need a Mac Pro, there is no denying that either. I will not be getting one any time soon, however, I can obsess over the details thanks to the Mac Pro Developer Note, which Apple has just posted.If you are interested in the nifty gritty of how this thing is laid out, then the dev note is the place for you. I'm just glad the liquid cooling system and series of computerized fans are no longer needed.
Apple slashes Cinema display prices, too
A number of observant TUAW readers have also noticed that Apple has (quietly) slashes Cinema display prices with the introduction of the Mac Pro. There were rumors of Cinema updates before WWDC, but it seems that Apple simply wanted to give our pocketbooks a break with the $500 increase in the Mac Pro's price. Cinema display prices now look a little something like this: 20-inch: $699 23-inch: $999 30-inch: $1999 (what a drop!) Unfortunately, I can't even get into the EDU store so I'm not sure how much better prices are for students yet. Ultimately, these prices should look a bit more appealing amidst criticism of what some say are slightly overpriced LCDs.
Apple Mac Pro hands-on
Well, keynote's over, which means we got to go take a look at what Apple introduced today. We didn't see much going on in terms of the operating system, but they did have a couple of Mac Pros on display for us to handle and smudge. Guess all that talk about a radically redesigned tower system isn't going to be, but hey, if you're down with the cheese grater then this is the machine for you. Dual drives, quad processors, loads more ports, plenty of video options -- well, you know what it's got, you just came for the pr0n, and the pr0n you shall get. Click on for loads of pics!
Apple announces Mac Pro - shipping today
"The fastest, most configurable Mac ever" indeed. Today at WWDC 2006 (check out our coverage and the chatcast) Apple introduced the Mac Pro, and it might as well come with a pair of hot pads with all-new features like this: Two 2.66GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon "Woodcrest" processors 4MB shared L2 cache per processor 1.33GHz dual independent frontside buses 1GB memory (667MHz DDR2 fully-buffered DIMM ECC) NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT graphics with 256MB memory 250GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s 7200-rpm hard drive1 16x double-layer SuperDrive (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW) And the fun doesn't stop there. You can stuff up to 16GB of RAM in these beasts now, along with 2TB of storage. With over 1,000,000 available BTO configurations, we wouldn't be surprised if customers have a hard time simply deciding on which Mac Pro they want to throw down their credit cards for.Also notable: gone are the two or three configuration options from the PowerMac Mac Pro's page in the store. It simply offers the base configuration, which now starts at $2499, and beckons you to click 'configure'. Just try not getting lost in options on your way to the checkout.