Mac Pro is dead, all hail the iMac!

Catchy title, eh? Might not be totally true, but hey it got you clicking on here..I think I can have a career creating click-bait websites..

Anyway..to the crux of the issue. Apple has largely ignored the poor Mac Pro, affectionally called the Trash Can, since it's reboot in 2013. There has been word/rumbles about them taking the Desktop seriously and doing another reboot of the Mac Pro in 2018..

But a new rumor of the iMac refresh for later this year seems to suggest that it might be configurable with Xeon processors (the same kind that powers the Mac Pro), up to 64GB of memory and other goodies. With these changes and the exceptional display, is there really a reason to even consider a Mac Pro??

Read more: https://www.macrumors.com/2017/04/06/imac-xeon-e3-64gb-ram-amd-late-october/

Ashwin - Do you need another career? What's it like to have so much free time that you are career shopping???? (Must be nice! ;D )

Seriously, the only objections I would have to the iMac - and it is the same one I have with the Trashcan MP - is the pain involved in later customization and expandability that does not require cords. I like the features offered with the old silver box. I can add memory, change the CPUs, put in a different or second video card, add internally up too six storage drives (if I take out the DVD burner).

I admit I am in a minority camp. I tend to customize and change every computer I have on a regular basis. Most never touch theres once they turn it on until it dies.

But a really beefy iMac would be tempting. I would seriously consider it over the Trashcan MP. Actually, I would buy an iMac - I would never buy the Trashcan MP, waste of money IMO.

Lisa

A little clue Ashwin.

Buyers have ignored the ash can also. Never popular as the 'big tank' version of earlier Mac Pros. For mine with Apple announcing availability of iMac Pro later in the year could well be the beginning of the end.

Apple released about eight or nine years ago to shareholderw ith an Annual Report I think it was Lisa, non-upgradability was the way they were heading. Some 97% of user never upgrade the hardware of their Macs, and about 33% never even upgrade the operating system.

Can they fit 12 cores in there?

I did come across this yesterday, https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/04/apple-pushes-the-reset-button-on-the-mac-pro/

Very interesting article Bob. The article indicates that Apple seems to have finally figured out the Trashcan MP missed the mark. I could have told them that.... maybe they need my wisdom at Apple.

I will be interested to see what they come up with but if it does not offer expandability I will be hugely disappointed.

Harry - In the article Bob posted, it seems Apple might be realizing non-upgradeable tech is not what everyone wants. I can only hope! I do understand that the vast majority never upgrade anything on their computer, they just replace it when it won't work the way they want it to anymore . And that only 33% never upgrade the OS - not surprising either.

Well we shall see.....

Lisa

Thanks Dennis. And where have you been? We missed you.

I, for one, hope they make something that has expandability. The only sad thing is the trashcan MP's prices will go down but I still won't buy one. Which means - since I tend to only buy used/refurbished Macs - that I need to pray my MP continues to perform well. OR I will be looking at the potentially upcoming iMac pro.

Lisa

I think a new model Mac Pro would be cool...just to see what Apple comes out with. Since usually with Mac Pro's...Apple pulls out all the stops when designing them.

By the way...in case folks have forgotten. When the 2013 Mac Pro was first introduced...it was mentioned that the 2013 Mac Pro would be viable for 10 years. Kind of an unheard of thing to say in "computerland"...when things seem to become obsolete rather quickly. But...many of us do get 5 years or more out of our other Mac's...so 10 years for the 2013 Mac Pro could be possible. And I guess it all depends on how "useful or viable" is defined.

When October 2023 finally rolls around...it will be interesting to reflect on the status of 2013 Mac Pro's.

- Nick

p.s. Great to hear from you Dennis!

ferrarr said:

Can they fit 12 cores in there?

I did come across this yesterday, https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/04/apple-pushes-the-reset-button-on-the-mac-pro/

Click to expand...

lclev said:

Very interesting article Bob. The article indicates that Apple seems to have finally figured out the Trashcan MP missed the mark. I could have told them that.... maybe they need my wisdom at Apple.

I will be interested to see what they come up with but if it does not offer expandability I will be hugely disappointed.......

Click to expand...

Just looking at Bob's link and the pic below gave me a chuckle - a future candidate for our 'liquid spill' thread - Dave
.

To pre-announce products early is quite an unprecedented move by Apple. A lot of pro users were becoming concerned at the lack of updates to the Mac Pro and as the system doesn't meet some users' needs (e.g. for some high-end production workflows), I think Apple came to realise they had no choice but to pre-announce what they are working on, and to acknowledge concerns in the community.

While the current iMac meets my needs very well, I can understand some pro users have been in quite a dilemma as the current iMac and Mac Pro may not offer the level of performance needed to handle certain workflows. I am looking forward to seeing what a "modular Mac Pro" might look like - I am hoping it is as implied, and allows you to upgrade the GPU and other components yourself.

As for the iMac, there are reports that there will be configurations available later this year that support Intel Xeon CPUs, ECC RAM and higher-end AMD graphics. Although as others have raised, I do wonder how Apple could pull this off with the current iMac form factor, given the thermal constraints.