Apple/Microsoft Ecosystems — If Mac Pro is EOL, why stay with Apple at all?

[Chris Harlan]

[Jason Wood] “From all that I’ve read lately, I was under the impression it was EOL. If Apple continues to produce work stations, I’m not going anywhere.”

There is still a great deal of debate about what this all means. The MacOptimists around here say that the vague confirmation of something coming next year is Apple promising allegiance to a workstation future. The iPessimists point to how far behind other workstations Apple’s current offering is, and suggest that the quietly muttered maybes were actually just Apple wiping egg from its face after a bit of visible and vocal contention at WWDC. Something will undoubtedly happen on the “Pro” side next year, but nobody knows what, or whether it will be enough. Of course, “it will be really great.” We know that much. Sort of.

[Jason Wood]

“Jason, you may not have seen this:

https://www.macworld.com/article/1167247/cook_apple_planning_professional_ma...”

No, no I had not! That’s a beautiful sight!

Thanks, Rick… call off the dogs.

[Jeremy Garchow]

Also, it’s old and crusty, but the MacPro is still on sale, officially, you can still buy one direct from Apple.

Whether you want to or not is another story….

Also, and I mean this in all seriousness, why won’t an iMac work for you?

Peripherals? That’s an easy one, but anything else?

[T. Payton]

MacPro’s are very long lasting. My 2006 Mac Pro (yeah 6 year old box) that I use every day runs great.

However, I think I have to seriously consider why exactly I need one. Here is what I have on my box:

2 Optical Drives
1 TB Internal Drive for startup
1 TB Internal Drive for Virtual Machines (Windows)
1 eSata card connected to a 6TB RAID
1 eSata card connected to external drive
1 Matrox MX02 – driving 13″ CRT, and 40″ LCD
1 Radeon 5770 driving 30″ cinema display and 24″ dell
13 GB RAM

Every one of those things (save the video card) can be replaced by devices on a tiny Thunderbolt cable. Thunderbolt is staggering technology.

I’ve bought an original Mac in 1984, and aside from the Scully years, the track record for innovation that Apple has put in the Mac is amazing. I have every confidence that what they are making now (i.e. the new Mac Pro or whatever it is called) will be ahead of its time and meet my needs quite well.

I have every respect for Microsoft, but they just don’t make things that ignite your passion. I think as creatives we look at Apple and see them as fellow creatives and are excited about the products they make.

However, I think we are in a signifigant transition right now. The technology to replace the big towers is here, but for Mac based creative professionals we have an aging Mac Pro on one side but a non-upgradable iMac on the other. I think Apple is going to make an in-between box (that is without a built in display) that gives us some decent upgradability but without the boat anchor.

If my shops Mac Pro were all stolen today, I would replace them with iMacs and I don’t think we would miss a beat. Then next year I would see what the new professional Mac has to offer, which will probably be pretty fantastic. So I’m hopeful, and even looking forward to it. 🙂

——
T. Payton
OneCreative, Albuquerque

[Rick Lang]

Jason:
“Thanks, Rick… call off the dogs.”

Both dogs are resting at my feet, no worries.

Rick Lang

iMac 27” 2.8GHz i7 16GB

[Chris Harlan]

[Jeremy Garchow] “Also, it’s old and crusty, but the MacPro is still on sale, officially, you can still buy one direct from Apple.

Whether you want to or not is another story….
“

Definitely. She’s still there. She’s still around.

[Jeremy Garchow] “Also, and I mean this in all seriousness, why won’t an iMac work for you?

Peripherals? That’s an easy one, but anything else?
“

Let’s see. I hate the glossy monitor. I’m generally a two or more monitor kind of a guy. Right now, I have four and a program monitor. When I’m at a desk, I like that. Yes, I know I can hook up a second monitor on an iMac. When I do advance graphics, which I currently do less of, but still do, I really like the extra rendering cores. I like a choice of GFX cards. And, I like having the ability to add and remove parts–probably a throwback to my PC customization days, but something I value none-the-less. The iMac is a good computer, so I’m not trying to bag on it, but I prefer something more powerful and more customizable.

[Craig Seeman]

[Chris Harlan] “MacOptimists around here say that the vague confirmation of something coming next year is Apple promising allegiance to a workstation future. The iPessimists point to how far behind other workstations Apple’s current offering is”

I have no doubt Apple will come out with a box they will be proud of . . . they were proud of the Cube weren’t they?

As per other posts the question is whether one really needs a MacPro these days. Keep in mind that the iMac hasn’t been updated in over a year either. Given that I prefer editing on Mac and I’d expect either a new iMac I’ll like or consolidate the two lines, it’s conceivable to edit on Mac and do other things on Windows. I’m often using both Operating Systems (and I’ve been bootcamping my Macs for a few years), it wouldn’t be a great hardship to buy a Windows computer as well as an iMac. Basically though if I can get 6 cores or more with a powerful GPU I’ll be happy.

[Jeremy Garchow]

[Chris Harlan] “Let’s see. I hate the glossy monitor. I’m generally a two or more monitor kind of a guy. Right now, I have four and a program monitor. When I’m at a desk, I like that. Yes, I know I can hook up a second monitor on an iMac. When I do advance graphics, which I currently do less of, but still do, I really like the extra rendering cores. I like a choice of GFX cards. And, I like having the ability to add and remove parts–probably a throwback to my PC customization days, but something I value none-the-less. The iMac is a good computer, so I’m not trying to bag on it, but I prefer something more powerful and more customizable.”

Have you tried it?

[Chris Harlan]

[Craig Seeman] ” have no doubt Apple will come out with a box they will be proud of . . . they were proud of the Cube weren’t they? “

I agree, Whether they were planning it or were guilted into, I believe they will put their best foot forward, now that they have committed.

[Craig Seeman] “Given that I prefer editing on Mac and I’d expect either a new iMac I’ll like or consolidate the two lines, it’s conceivable to edit on Mac and do other things on Windows. I’m often using both Operating Systems (and I’ve been bootcamping my Macs for a few years), it wouldn’t be a great hardship to buy a Windows computer as well as an iMac. Basically though if I can get 6 cores or more with a powerful GPU I’ll be happy.”

If they have an option to get rid of the glossy screen, add USB 3, make thunderbolt a little more robust, add a bit more upgradable RAM space and add a robust 6 Core, I could be okay with it, as well.

[Shane Ross]

When I can afford a new tower, and need to replace the MacPro I have (it’s still running VERY strong), then I’ll be getting a PC. Might build one myself, might go HP…might go Dell. Might go ProMax One.

Shane
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