Filed under: Hardware
Apple unleashes 8-core and quad-core Mac Pro
After a very brief bit of downtime for the store, Apple whipped out the big guns this morning: quad-core and 8-core Xeon workstations. The quad-cores are two dual-core "Woodcrest" Xeons inside, in the 2.0GHz, 2.66GHz, or 3.0GHz flavors. The 8-core monster is a duo of "Clovertown" Quad-core Xeon's-- and you only get it in 3 GHz. Naturally there are a zillion* options to go along with all this hot'n'steamy power, but the cores make the Mac, as they say.*actually 33 million configurations, according to Apple's product page.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Matt Redman said 9:34AM on 4-04-2007
it seems they also dropped the prices on the cinema displays.
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Eric Chiu said 9:37AM on 4-04-2007
my geek friend told me the current quad-core processors are all 'fake'. Manufacturer jst past two duo-core processors together so the performance increase is minimal. Is this true?
He also said the real quad-core (i dun no wot that means) will be avaialbe in late 2007?
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Thomas said 9:38AM on 4-04-2007
hardly brief, the store was down for 1.5 hours for a processor upgrade and monitor price cut.
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eG said 9:45AM on 4-04-2007
...the only thing that's changed is the addition of the top-end model, am I right? Apple didn't add anything to the rest of the models, right?
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jose celaya said 9:53AM on 4-04-2007
I wish I can buy one !!
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David said 9:57AM on 4-04-2007
yeah, the only thing that changed was them adding Dual Quad-core's as the top option
They have always had the Dual Dual-Core Woodcrests in the Moac Pro.
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Hammo said 9:57AM on 4-04-2007
Rough/dirty/fast comparison
USD$16k for a maxxed out Apple.
USD$15.2k for a maxxed out Dell.
Apple - 2 x 30 inch screens / Dell - 2 x 24
Apple - 3TB / Dell 2TB
Apple - 2 x Quad Cores / Dell - 1 x Quad Core
Apple - 16GB RAM / Dell - 8GB
What a load of arse.
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kauthor said 9:58AM on 4-04-2007
They dropped the cinema displays price.
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svds said 10:01AM on 4-04-2007
Why are they only available in the U.S? Can't even find a reference to them on any other apple store :-(
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Michael said 10:24AM on 4-04-2007
Just a HUGE FYI : If you are a student... man o man - Jump on that ADC Student membership. Here is my (dream) example:
Part Number: Z0D8
Product Name: Mac Pro
Options:
065-6918 Two 3.0GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon
065-7167 4GB (4 x 1GB)
065-6363 ATI Radeon X1900 XT 512MB (2 x dual-link DVI)
065-6816 750GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s
065-6817 750GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s
065-6818 750GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s
065-6819 750GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s
065-6507 Two 16x SuperDrives
065-6725 Both Bluetooth 2.0+EDR and AirPort Extreme
065-6287 Apple Keyboard and Mighty Mouse - U.S. English
065-6245 Mac OS X - U.S. English
065-6244 Accessory kit
Unit Price: $5,534.00
Quantity: 1
Net Price: $5,534.00
Same config normal price: $6,919.00
That means you save aprox. $1400
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wicker_man said 10:47AM on 4-04-2007
UK store hasn't been updated with 8 core Mac Pro yet.
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Albert said 11:03AM on 4-04-2007
Wow. I can't even imagine what I'd do with all that computing power.
33 Million++ configurations?!?! Really?
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epobirs said 12:07PM on 4-04-2007
#2
Your geek friend is a dolt. Benchmark and real-world testing of Intel Core Quad systems is widely available and the results are very real for software that knows how to take advantage of it. The bus access may not b as optimal as it will in later design but the benefit are available now, today. If it really bothers you, you can think of it as two dual-core CPUs in a single socket or four dual-core CPUs in two socket for the maxxed out version.
This is pretty major power in a single tower. Those who have the right application can get a lot of real value from this. Even without thread-smart apps, virtualization lets you get an outrageous amount of less intelligent or parellelable apps going in the one box.
It's not for everyone. A group of separate boxes would make s more sense for many uses. But if you've got a very high salaried animator needing more performance in Maya and other high-end apps, it could be a good investment.
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Travis said 1:56PM on 4-04-2007
You'll need at least 1GB RAM per core for optimum performance. Any less, and the processor will be starved for data.
The guys over at Nucleo Pro ran a test with AE 7, Nucleo Pro and a 8-Core developer unit. They took a 2 hour render down to 8 minutes!
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artifex said 2:15PM on 4-04-2007
do the FB-DIMMs make sense, yet?
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Ron Hartmus said 3:33PM on 4-04-2007
It is time we start calling it by it's real name.
"The Ocho", (from DodgeBall the Movie)
ESPN watch out Apple is a comin'
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Olly said 6:59PM on 4-04-2007
Still nothing new on the UK store???
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TheUser said 9:07PM on 4-04-2007
This is a good thing now I know that WWDC there are going to be brand new Mac Pro's not just updates and brand new displays I base this theory on a rumor I read a month ago (it was on one of the major rumor site if anyone can find the link please post) about apple working on an Octo-core Mac Pro that would only run Leopard I think It actually use Penryn based Xeon's instead of Cloverton I mean why would they use Cloverton when Penryn is right around the corner and usually there more press on apples website when it come to their flagship Workstation Plus Duh new monitor their clearing old stock of Display and Mac Pro but it's only a theory.
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Tacticus said 1:49AM on 4-05-2007
Marcos they would actually be w8 setup :) 2 dual core chips on each package
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marcos said 4:25AM on 4-05-2007
I have a question. Are the 8 cores in a straight-8 configuration, or is it two clovertowns in a V-twin? I'd prefer the latter, because you'd get more low end torque.
Also, the final data bus is chain, shaft, or belt drive? Either shaft or belt would be cool (I prefer belt); chain drives are a pain in the ass.
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