[Eug Wanker]

If so, suddenly my Cube upgrade suddenly doesn't seem so cool...

http://thinksecret.com/news/0412expo2.html

The new Mac, code-named Q88, will be part of the iMac family and is expected to sport a PowerPC G4 processor at a speed around 1.25GHz. The new Mac is said to be incredibly small and will be housed in a flat enclosure with a height similar to the 1.73 inches of Apple's Xserve. Its size benefits will include the ability to stand the Mac on its side or put it below a display or monitor.

[Disgruntled Head of C-3PO]

Cool I want to trade in my G5 for it!

Well sorta, I mean no point in getting it unless you have a nice flat LCD to go with it and then you might as well have an iMac.

Shame you just pissed away all that money on the cube upgrades

[Eug Wanker]

$500 would be sweet, but still a 1.25 GHz G4 is kinda slow, even for a (s)low end box.

Shame you just pissed away all that money on the cube upgrades

Yeah, that would be really irritating, considering I spent about US$1000. Oh well, at least I got 1.7 GHz... and it's a Cube of course.

Now to spend another $15 to quiet down the fan...

[osxpinot]

The demise of Microsoft?

[macaddict0001]

its not that slow, on the pc side equivalent speeds are on the low end.

[Wiskedjak]

Finally, the headless iMac.

[Eug Wanker]

Originally posted by macaddict0001:
its not that slow, on the pc side equivalent speeds are on the low end.

I'd guess my G4 1.7 GHz Cube is similar to a 2 GHz P4 in average business app usage. Maybe a G4 1.25 GHz is more like a 1.4 GHz P4.

Yeah, it's not THAT slow, but less than 2 GHz P4 speeds these days is definitely not speedy. I have a G4 1 GHz TiBook (with 1 MB L3 cache) and I find it a bit slow.

Still, if true, at $500, a 1.25 GHz G4 is tolerable.

[velodev]

Originally posted by Eug Wanker:
$500 would be sweet, but still a 1.25 GHz G4 is kinda slow, even for a (s)low end box.

Yeah, that would be really irritating, considering I spent about US$1000. Oh well, at least I got 1.7 GHz... and it's a Cube of course.

Now to spend another $15 to quiet down the fan...

C'mon now... my 1.25 AlBooks does a great job of bearing the grunt of some of my work. Never complains and gets the job done in great time.

I can't wait to have a new cube sit next to my upgraded cube and my stock cube.

[Disgruntled Head of C-3PO]

Originally posted by Eug Wanker:
I'd guess my G4 1.7 GHz Cube is similar to a 2 GHz P4 in average business app usage. Maybe a G4 1.25 GHz is more like a 1.4 GHz P4.

That is not fair, the cube has a slower bus and RAM. Even the current iBooks feel plenty speedy.

[euchomai]

I'd like one now! Later next quarter? That seems a long way off... I might get a few and raid em up.

[Mac Write]

If true (highly doubt it since we've been down this road before), I will get one late next yea to replace my Beige G3 as a dev server. It would make the perfect server with a 160GB HD. Then I might also get a second one as a testing machine.

Now to write enough articles to pay for them.

[Disgruntled Head of C-3PO]

Naturally Apple will come up with something nicer than this:

[MaxPower2k3]

Originally posted by Disgruntled Head of C-3PO:
Naturally Apple will come up with something nicer than this:

img snipped

like what? that's pretty much what I would expect.

[euchomai]

Originally posted by MaxPower2k3:
like what? that's pretty much what I would expect.

Yeah, I think that's really pretty. I'd love one of those. It does seem funny though, a $500 computer with a $1000 monitor from Apple. I guess I'll have to look for a pretty and inexpensive flat screen to go with it.

[olePigeon]

It's a headless iMac. I think this'll be great. I know of at least 3 PC users who said they'd buy an iMac if they didn't have to pay for the monitor. $500 is a great price point to get introduced to the Mac.

[milhous]

that form factor reminds me of the NC's that Sun tried to push back in the day. but so long as it looks good (and apple should have no problem with this), is priced right, and has a decent gpu integrated in the unit, it would sell quite well. this would definitely help to increase marketshare.

edit:

ok, now i've read the article and WOW, sub $500!

if this really happens, my mind will be blown and an order will have to be placed.

you will see marketshare bloom like never before and an aapl stock price of $100+

jobs, make it happen!

[olePigeon]

If it's Core Image capable, I'm gettin' one.

[roam]

Now this looks good. TS if have a decent hisory of getting things spot-on, so if this isn't just smoke & mirrors, I'll get one.

The 1.25 G4 is fine proc. too, still does an admiral job of running Photoshop, and other cpu intensive apps.

[Big Mac]

I hate to throw a wet blanket on the festivities, but I must remind everyone that we're on the verge of 2005, and 1.25GHz is pathetic for any desktop other than the eMac. If there is a new Cube, and it is to be driven by that processor, then we can expect it to be put on ice yet a second time. Let's get realistic: You cannot find a Celeron desktop that's clocked lower than 2.4GHz. The G4 should be relegated to the eMac and iBook. I love the Cube as much as the next person, but I hope this rumor is false or only partially correct.

[roam]

Originally posted by Big Mac:
I hate to throw a wet blanket on the festivities, but I must remind everyone that we're on the verge of 2005, and 1.25GHz is pathetic for any desktop other than the eMac. If there is a new Cube, and it is to be driven by that processor, then we can expect it to be put on ice yet a second time. Let's get realistic: You cannot find a Celeron desktop that's clocked lower than 2.4GHz. The G4 should be relegated to the eMac and iBook. I love the Cube as much as the next person, but I hope this rumor is false or only partially correct.

I agree partly with you, but it's not so simple to compare x86 to Power chips in terms of GHz. In saying that though, there is a point in which the sheer brute power of a higher clocked x86 chip does embarrass a G4 one, mainly due too the massive gulf between GHz/MHz.

[Goldfinger]

Originally posted by Big Mac:
I hate to throw a wet blanket on the festivities, but I must remind everyone that we're on the verge of 2005, and 1.25GHz is pathetic for any desktop other than the eMac. If there is a new Cube, and it is to be driven by that processor, then we can expect it to be put on ice yet a second time. Let's get realistic: You cannot find a Celeron desktop that's clocked lower than 2.4GHz. The G4 should be relegated to the eMac and iBook. I love the Cube as much as the next person, but I hope this rumor is false or only partially correct.

I completely agree.

[screamingFit]

If it's true, I'll be ready with the credit card.

I think this is part of something bigger going on over at Apple. A box like this wouldn't look too out of place next to the TV, y'know? Yeah, wild speculation but if they went that route, this would be the design to use, I'd think.

[paully dub]

1.25 ghz seems kinda low, what is Apple just trying to get rid of a bunch of their low end processors?

I would only buy such a thing if it were a compelling upgrade to my decent 1 ghz TiBook, ie lots more ram, way better graphics card, lots more video memory and so on. I'd take it as a good sign though that they would consider a g5 version.

I see it as possible perfect for those who wanto to switch from their crummy PC but don't want an all in one with a moniter if they already have a perfectly good one already.

[Spheric Harlot]

If they advertise the hell out of it, a headless iMac (no less than 1.5GHz though) would be *exactly* what Apple needs in Europe. The iPod and iTunes are really starting to get PC users interested. I see 'em every day in the store.

[Sven G]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
If they advertise the hell out of it, a headless iMac (no less than 1.5GHz though) would be *exactly* what Apple needs in Europe.

Exactly: would be great (as in the simulation in the previous pic posted above)!

[ReggieX]

Originally posted by olePigeon:
It's a headless iMac. I think this'll be great. I know of at least 3 PC users who said they'd buy an iMac if they didn't have to pay for the monitor. $500 is a great price point to get introduced to the Mac.

Tell them to get a used G4 Power Mac. If they don't like it, they can sell it for nearly what they paid for it.

[paully dub]

Originally posted by ReggieX:
Tell them to get a used G4 Power Mac. If they don't like it, they can sell it for nearly what they paid for it.

Ah, but there are a lot of people out there who *don't* buy used.

What's a good price for Europe? €500 seems about right. An iPod starts out at a whopping €349 and an emac at €850.

[nforcer]

Originally posted by Wiskedjak:
Finally, the headless iMac.

It's more of a headless eMac. Maybe an iBook-mini without a screen.

[nforcer]

Originally posted by Disgruntled Head of C-3PO:
Naturally Apple will come up with something nicer than this:

I sure hope so. They spelled "center" like a retard.

[Gankdawg]

Originally posted by Goldfinger:
I completely agree.

I complete agree with your complete agreement. And, like SH said, it needs to be a minimum of 1.5GHz.

And $499? I don't think so. Think Secret forgot the Apple Premium. Probably $599.

[roam]

Originally posted by nforcer:
I sure hope so. They spelled "center" like a retard.

You forgot to put in a sarcastic smiley.

[nforcer]

Originally posted by Big Mac:
I hate to throw a wet blanket on the festivities, but I must remind everyone that we're on the verge of 2005, and 1.25GHz is pathetic for any desktop other than the eMac. If there is a new Cube, and it is to be driven by that processor, then we can expect it to be put on ice yet a second time. Let's get realistic: You cannot find a Celeron desktop that's clocked lower than 2.4GHz. The G4 should be relegated to the eMac and iBook. I love the Cube as much as the next person, but I hope this rumor is false or only partially correct.

I agree. If this ends up true, the only thing that strikes me as cool is that it marks Apple as starting to realize that they need more competitive prices, because a lot of the underlying tech (and especially in the case of the G4) isn't.

[SimpleLife]

Sounds like a good idea.

But I agree that it seems a bit low in performance.

I would still get one though, as a small media server at home, not more than that.

I think there is also that attractive aspect of small packages; iPod, the wireless Mouse, the DVI converters, the power block and AirPort Extreme. They are all white and come as small little bricks, or "pods" or "pieces". Barely any marks or engravings on them, naked except for the Apple logo and the few icons for I/O.

White is very fashionable, although one can get tired of it; we had beige for so many years on the PC side of the world, I suppose we can hang on there a litttle while more with the shiny plastic white.

I don't like the lack of a SuperDrive though, and not being a G5 is kind of disappointing to me, but I understand the fan would make the whole thing twice as big.

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally posted by paully dub:
Ah, but there are a lot of people out there who *don't* buy used.

What's a good price for Europe? €500 seems about right. An iPod starts out at a whopping €349 and an emac at €850.

iPod mini: €260. iPod 20GB: €319.

including 16% VAT.

[Scifience]

I'm not sure why everyone is complaining about the speed.

1.25 GHz is plenty for surfing the web, doing family photos, word processing, some iMovie work, etc. Not everyone wants Photoshop to be able to apply some insanely complicated filter to some insanely huge file in under one second.

Another market I see for these (if they do get announced, of course) is libraries. They are small and inexpensive, and don't have the spyware/virus issue that PCs do.

I know a lot of people who are still happy with the speed of their 500MHz PII systems but disappointed with the problems with Windows (viruses, spyware, security holes). That would be the market this machine is aimed at, not most of the people who frequent these forums.

[Gankdawg]

Originally posted by Scifience:


1.25 GHz is plenty for doing family photos, some iMovie work, etc.

Define plenty. I've got a dual 1.8 and it's still not enough to handle 4300 photos in iPhoto. Maybe someday iPhoto will be Snappy....

[Scifience]

Originally posted by Gankdawg:
Define plenty. I've got a dual 1.8 and it's still not enough to handle 4300 photos in iPhoto. Maybe someday iPhoto will be Snappy....

"Plenty" if you don't keep them all in iPhoto.

[MrSundberg]

Originally posted by nforcer:
I sure hope so. They spelled "center" like a retard.

Heh, that's not a very nice thing to say to the UK MacNN members.

[paully dub]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
iPod mini: €260. iPod 20GB: €319.

including 16% VAT.

Hmm... France's store has the mini at €279, 20 gb at €349 (€233 and €291 before tax).

VAT is 19.6 frigging percent.

[mdc]

i do everything on my 1.25 powerbook g4 with a gig of ram and i think it is "snappy" enough. yeah, it could be faster, but i am not complaining.

i'd buy one of these in a heartbeat.

[brapper]

interesting....interesting indeed.

[Cody Dawg]

I'll wait for the 2nd revision when it comes with a DVD-R and I'll buy it.



WAY COOL.



I think that Apple will introduce it without DVD-R to see how well it will sell and of course they will sell like hotcakes.

I'll probably even buy two of them. Pair it with a huge flat panel (Apple of course) and it will be smoking cool.

[BrunoBruin]

Great idea, but Apple would be crazy to not offer an upgraded model with a faster processor and SuperDrive. You should always have a higher-margin model to "sell up." I, for one, would gladly pay $699 or even $799 for a 1.5 (or 1.7) GHz model with a SuperDrive to replace my Cube; I already have a 17-inch Studio Display and that's what has kept me from buying an iMac.

[spatterson]

Originally posted by nforcer:
I sure hope so. They spelled "center" like a retard.

Thats British english genius.

[BasketofPuppies]

I think he's joking. (At least I hope he is.)

[GoGoReggieXPowars]

Originally posted by spatterson:
Thats British english genius.

No, it's the "Everyone but the USA" spelling

[TheJoshu]

Originally posted by Eug Wanker:
Its size benefits will include the ability to stand the Mac on its side or put it below a display or monitor.

Aye, there's a novel concept.

[scottiB]

Originally posted by BrunoBruin:
Great idea, but Apple would be crazy to not offer an upgraded model with a faster processor and SuperDrive. You should always have a higher-margin model to "sell up." I, for one, would gladly pay $699 or even $799 for a 1.5 (or 1.7) GHz model with a SuperDrive to replace my Cube; I already have a 17-inch Studio Display and that's what has kept me from buying an iMac.

Yep, yep, yep. Apple charges a $200 premium for a SuperDrive and 80GB drive in the eMacs; $699 wouldn't be out-of-line.

To further the upsale, I wonder if Apple will reintroduce a 17" monitor (1440x900) for $499 or so (though the existing monitors would need to drop in price for this not to be out-of-whack). Expensive considering the competition, but that's Apple.

Another way Apple will save money over the eMac is shipping. eMacs aren't light, and Apple could fit quite a few more headless Macs on a pallette.

Finally, a chewable rumor prior to MacWorld.

[spatterson]

Originally posted by GoGoReggieXPowars:
No, it's the "Everyone but the USA" spelling

LOL, good point!

[Disgruntled Head of C-3PO]

Originally posted by nforcer:
I sure hope so. They spelled "center" like a retard.

I think it is better than the American spelling of it. Or is this the "Anything that is not American is retarded" thing?