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970 Speculation (Page 4)
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rm199
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Jun 17, 2003, 07:05 PM
 
If it is kickass fast I'll have one... looks or no looks. Lets face it, towers should live under desks.

RM
     
macmicke
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Jun 17, 2003, 07:24 PM
 
I dont know. Try and picture it with a surface like the 12" and the 17" PB. And smaller than todays towers. It might look great. Why is a portion blurred? Any speculations..... USB ports, firewire perhaps... But why blurred...
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Eug
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Jun 17, 2003, 07:51 PM
 


1) It's a speculation article.
2) It itself states marketshare is what we've stated it to be (and then talks about "installed-base"). Of your 10% number, how many use their Macs primarily?
3) It makes assumptions that Macs are somehow immune to obsolescence, and Windows machines are not.
4) IMO, the installed base of Windows 95 and OS 8 users becomes almost irrelevant, because these are anachronisms and mean very little for the market.
     
SomeToast
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Jun 17, 2003, 08:50 PM
 
Originally posted by Jonesy:
Anyway is it supposed to be a single slot-loading drive in the front? I hardly think we would go to one internal drive from the MDD's two.
I see three bays, one of which has a slot-loading drive installed.

Maybe the bottom one isn't a bay, but opens for USB/Firewire access?

Originally posted by Jonesy:
If this is real I hope it looks better in real-life. It looks so cheap and nasty.
Like the leaked images/illustrations of the B&W G3, Quicksilver G4, MDD G4, 3G iPod...

I'm about 70% towards thinking this is the real deal.
     
awcopus
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Jun 17, 2003, 09:35 PM
 
Looks like a cutting edge new......speaker...with the tweeter in the middle of a cluster of mid-range cones behind that grill...or maybe this whole thing is a subwoofer with the thingy in the middle as some kind of design element.

If it gets me to the moon, I'll ride it. The chicks dig the ride more than the look of the ride, at least the ones that want to get there....and at the end of the day, that's what this is all about, baby! WOOO HOOOO!

Where am I? Is it June 23rd yet? What are you all doing in my bedroom!?

P.S. If this is the machine and it tears up shite, we're all gonna be saying, "Oh..it's so wonderful, best I ever had", as we shoo it into the corner behind the big thing under the desk thing.

Now going to set alarm for June 23rd, fu--ing rumors keep waking me up...
     
wnuez
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Jun 18, 2003, 05:01 AM
 
Hope its not like the photo...

Reminds me a Quadra 950 mixed with a windows-box...
     
IceEnclosure
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Jun 18, 2003, 05:43 AM
 
i say 'real'
ice
     
wnuez
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Jun 18, 2003, 05:59 AM
 
Sure we'll buy anyway but if it has to be a straight lines design I'd love it to be like a bigger Cube or something like that.
     
DrBoar
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Jun 18, 2003, 06:44 AM
 
Looks like a HP server or those IBM PCs that appeard to be from som sovjetic industial design commity

But in the long run performance and features are more important than looks. If the low end 1500 dollar box beat the crap out of the dual 1.42 G4 and tangle with 2.8 GHz pentiums and the high end 3000 dollar zip past 3.6 GHz P4 the tower can look like crumbled cardboard boxes and sell like hot cakes.

With the introduction of the iMac and the "toilet seat" iBook it was all curves and colours. The trend over the year has been to a more angular shape and a gray and metallic colour. That odd front really does not fit even if the Xserver has vertical slots it does not follow that the xTower should be covered with it.

Apple can make the case a standard ATX size and powersupply wise and still have it far more stylish than that

My two main concerns is that if the midrange 2K model will have DP and if they have updated some important features
     
yakkiebah
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Jun 18, 2003, 09:01 AM
 
it's fake, it has only 1 drive bay. not very pro.
     
proux
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Jun 18, 2003, 09:08 AM
 
     
veryniceguy2002
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Jun 18, 2003, 09:49 AM
 
How true is that?

Things I don't understand are:

1. 2 X USB, 1X USB 2.0... won't it make sense for Apple (manufacturing wise) to have all three as USB 2.0. Plus, how can the person can tell the difference between USB 1.0 and 2.0 port. They use the same physical interface (OK, you can get the information from documentation comes with the box or Apple System Profiler, but then it isn't consistent with 2...)

2. What about the processor speed of the 970?? I'm surprised if someone open the box and do all the investigation, but doesn't have the information on one the most important information for a PC or Mac performance???

3. Size: 15cm x 65cm x 40cm... Americans might have some difficulty to understand how big it is, but let me tell you unless Apple design the SuperDrive to be in a different orientation compare to G4 tower, the 15cm as the width of tower would not be sufficently wide enough in my opinion. I measured the width of my G4 TiBook SuperDrive opening, and it is just under 13cm. So only 1cm room from each side of the SuperDrive??? (Doesn't make sense). Plus 65cm high is quite tall... taller than a Quadra 900 (I just measured it... it is about 45cm tall). Unless 65cm is referred as the depth instead of height. Anyway, it seems to suggest me it's a bit safer to use this machine as a desktop configuration instead of tower??
     
wnuez
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Jun 18, 2003, 10:39 AM
 
According to the measures posted there is somewhat tall as a SuperMicro Server tower box, less deep and very, very thin...
uhm...

it's thinner than the tipycal 5 1/4 bays to fit a CD-ROM or whatever (in my old G4 just the DVD-ROM door is 16,5 cm.)
     
awcopus
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Jun 18, 2003, 11:04 AM
 
Originally posted by yakkiebah:
it's fake, it has only 1 drive bay. not very pro.
It has only 1 drive bay ON THE FRONT. Imagine your surprise when you discover the 3 slot loading SuperDrives ON THE TOP! WOO HOO!

I'm still looking for the volume knob, myself.

new specs from www.blastapplerumorsoutyerass.com:
$1200, dual 1.4
$1700, dual 1.6
$2200, quad 1.8

When the hell is it going to be June 23rd?!!!!

P.S. We are all taking for granted wireless, two-button mice and keyboards based on standard built-in Bluetooth, right?
     
Eug
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Jun 18, 2003, 12:15 PM
 
Originally posted by awcopus:
P.S. We are all taking for granted wireless, two-button mice and keyboards based on standard built-in Bluetooth, right?
Are you serious? I'd bet against both BlueTooth keyboards/mice, and two-button mice.
     
Macint_sh
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Jun 18, 2003, 01:47 PM
 
Originally posted by veryniceguy2002:
How true is that?

Things I don't understand are:

1. 2 X USB, 1X USB 2.0... won't it make sense for Apple (manufacturing wise) to have all three as USB 2.0.
I am sure you know that if you plug a USB 1.0 device into a USB 2.0 port it will bring the speed to the rest of the ports down to USB 1.0...

I am sure what Apple did was make the USB 2.0 port (if this information has truth to it) independent from the USB 1.0 ports this way you could have your USB 2.0 devices and your USB 1.0 devices working in harmony
     
euphras
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Jun 18, 2003, 02:40 PM
 
Quote:
"According to the measures posted there is somewhat tall as a SuperMicro Server tower box, less deep and very, very thin...
uhm...
it's thinner than the tipycal 5 1/4 bays to fit a CD-ROM or whatever (in my old G4 just the DVD-ROM door is 16,5 cm.)"

Typical optical drives are in the range of 15 cm. That means if the spec�s are right Apple has to use special drives to fit them into such a small case. But it should be possible, CD diameter is 12,00 cm, so it should be doable.


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rm199
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Jun 18, 2003, 03:13 PM
 
Well I have decided to put my money where my mouth is, so to speak. The bet? Apple shares. 4500 of them. I'm guessing a 10% pop during WWDC.

Yes there WILL be new hardware. Hopefully

RM
     
fetopher
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Jun 18, 2003, 03:27 PM
 
Originally posted by rm199:
Well I have decided to put my money where my mouth is, so to speak. The bet? Apple shares. 4500 of them. I'm guessing a 10% pop during WWDC.

Yes there WILL be new hardware. Hopefully

RM
Wow, that's quite a jump. I bought a bunch a few days ago, knowing that the stock usually does well when the rumor mill is excited. I'm going to sell the day before WWDC, knowing that no matter what is released, its going to be a dissapointment. In the last three years has there ever been an increase in the stock price right after an expo?
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rm199
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Jun 18, 2003, 03:37 PM
 
That is the problem with Mondays... unless you get a fill and kill order in real early WWDC will be upon you!

RM
     
kentuckyfried
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Jun 18, 2003, 03:38 PM
 
^ Why so negative? Something good is just around the corner....
Now I know, and knowing is half the battle!
     
rm199
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Jun 18, 2003, 03:44 PM
 
Never underestimate the ability of pseudo-tech sites like cnet to get the market into a flurry over some minor Apple announcement. A big announcement... well that of course would be all over the WSJ

Or so the theory goes! BluHorseShu loves Apple Computer

RM
     
fetopher
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Jun 18, 2003, 04:04 PM
 
Originally posted by kentuckyfried:
^ Why so negative? Something good is just around the corner....
I actually think the 970 are right around the corner. I just remember back to the days of the flat panel iMac rumors. When it didnt come true, the stock price fell. Then, after it finally was announced, immedietly after, the stock went down. After the mags and newspapers reviewed it, the stock went back up. This is just the way I remember it. I could be wrong. Anyone want to help me?
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Taipan
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Jun 18, 2003, 07:06 PM
 
Originally posted by veryniceguy2002:

3. Size: 15cm x 65cm x 40cm... Americans might have some difficulty to understand how big it is, but let me tell you unless Apple design the SuperDrive to be in a different orientation compare to G4 tower, the 15cm as the width of tower would not be sufficently wide enough in my opinion. I measured the width of my G4 TiBook SuperDrive opening, and it is just under 13cm. So only 1cm room from each side of the SuperDrive??? (Doesn't make sense). Plus 65cm high is quite tall... taller than a Quadra 900 (I just measured it... it is about 45cm tall). Unless 65cm is referred as the depth instead of height. Anyway, it seems to suggest me it's a bit safer to use this machine as a desktop configuration instead of tower??
Hi!

I just visited the forum with the original posting, and a little bit down the page the author says that the 65cm were a typo and he meant 55cm.
     
brainchild2b
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Jun 19, 2003, 04:00 AM
 
Yeah first I bet it's true. They said it was more like 17-18cm which is still narrow. But then this is Apple's style. Compact, without the sacrafices.

Lets think for a moment. The post in question said the PCI slots were mounted diagonal. Which the poster seemed to find odd. But think about it with a slim tower you'd want them to be diagonal to insure all PCI cards would fit. This lends credit to the story, otherwise these guys really thought their hoax out!

Also having a USB 1.0 and separate USB 2.0 ports goes along with "it's in the details" When you plug a 1.0 device into 2.0, it requires the entire bus hub to slow down for the 1.0 device. Basically slowing everything down. Having a separate port for USB 1.0 shows Apple thinking about all the details!


It sounds exactly like the type of details Apple does for it's customers.

The most exciting part to me would be a two button mouse with scrollwheel that ships from Apple. This in itself would show us that Apple is finally ready to be serious and take on the windows world, no more monkey business. It would mark a new era for Apple.

Here's to hoping... Cheers!
     
jcadam
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Jun 19, 2003, 06:39 AM
 
I just hope the PowerMac 970 launch doesn't turn into another big goat-screw for apple, like the G4 launch was.................
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wnuez
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Jun 19, 2003, 07:13 AM
 
One way of assuring a complete success is not only to show new powerful machines but also a price drop in the entire line, let's say around $2100 for the top line model...
     
MasonMcD
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Jun 19, 2003, 07:36 AM
 
Anyone want to try their hand at a quick mockup of the description? Maybe with something ordinary (can of Coke?) as a size comparison?
     
kbata
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Jun 19, 2003, 08:10 AM
 
I think that rumor looses some credibility by saying the CPU speed is over 2 ghz. I guess if things are going as well for IBM in producing these as it went bad for Moto with the G4's it's posable. I would think the more likely scenario would be to have the slower 970's available immediately with faster ones available in the typical 4-6 week range. The picture I think is probably a fake. I've seen several different ones around the web. If it's not a fake it could look much better with a clear photo. If it has all that good stuff in it I really don't care what it looks like.
     
Eug
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Jun 19, 2003, 09:00 AM
 
Originally posted by brainchild2b:
Yeah first I bet it's true. They said it was more like 17-18cm which is still narrow. But then this is Apple's style. Compact, without the sacrafices.

Lets think for a moment. The post in question said the PCI slots were mounted diagonal. Which the poster seemed to find odd. But think about it with a slim tower you'd want them to be diagonal to insure all PCI cards would fit. This lends credit to the story, otherwise these guys really thought their hoax out!

Also having a USB 1.0 and separate USB 2.0 ports goes along with "it's in the details" When you plug a 1.0 device into 2.0, it requires the entire bus hub to slow down for the 1.0 device. Basically slowing everything down. Having a separate port for USB 1.0 shows Apple thinking about all the details!
It just sounds like bull to me. It adds little advantage, yet makes the machine more costly and less ergonomic.
     
DrBoar
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Jun 19, 2003, 09:05 AM
 
A tower only 15 cm wide (that is 6" in US Colonial units) is very small. Why make it so narrow that a optical drive hardly fit and way to narrow for PCI cards? I hope Apple do not go ADC again. That is to go to nonstandard solution to solve somthing that is not a problem
     
Mediaman_12
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Jun 19, 2003, 10:09 AM
 
Originally posted by Eug:
It just sounds like bull to me. It adds little advantage, yet makes the machine more costly and less ergonomic.
Why? you don't need USB2 speed for a mouse or keyboard, so these could still be USB1. if you just had 2or 3 USB2 ports you would never get USB2 speed unless you bought a USB2 keyboard, of which I don't think there is any.
     
veryniceguy2002
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Jun 19, 2003, 10:10 AM
 
Originally posted by brainchild2b:
Yeah first I bet it's true. They said it was more like 17-18cm which is still narrow. But then this is Apple's style. Compact, without the sacrafices.
18cm sounds more realistic... but I don't understand why that original source change the dimension somewhat... sure you wouldn't mismeasure things 2-3 cm off with a ruler, right?


Lets think for a moment. The post in question said the PCI slots were mounted diagonal. Which the poster seemed to find odd. But think about it with a slim tower you'd want them to be diagonal to insure all PCI cards would fit. This lends credit to the story, otherwise these guys really thought their hoax out!
I don't know how Apple can manger to do that... at least the mechanical stress on the motherboard would be different, and that would cost a fair bit in their R&D to get it work.

Also, I would be interested to know: wouldn't diagonal PCI slots actually violates IEEE offical PCI specs?


Also having a USB 1.0 and separate USB 2.0 ports goes along with "it's in the details" When you plug a 1.0 device into 2.0, it requires the entire bus hub to slow down for the 1.0 device. Basically slowing everything down. Having a separate port for USB 1.0 shows Apple thinking about all the details!
No, that doesn't quite make sense for USB...
Yes, the argument above is valid, but one important fact is that USB 1.0 and USB 2.0 have extactly the same interface. So people cannot tell the difference between USB 1.0 and USB 2.0, unless Apple labelled the ports clearly. I would say you would have users plug in their USB 1.0 keyboard and mouse into USB 2 port (thus making the USB 2 port running at 1.0 speed), and plug in USB 2 hardisk into the 1.0 port (thus running at the slow speed). Therefore, I don't know how having seperate USB 1 & 2 port would make sense. Giving Apple practice to have seperate controller for each of the USB port, Apple might as well having all USB 2 ports for coinvenence...


The most exciting part to me would be a two button mouse with scrollwheel that ships from Apple. This in itself would show us that Apple is finally ready to be serious and take on the windows world, no more monkey business. It would mark a new era for Apple.

Here's to hoping... Cheers!
I wonder how Apple would promote two button mouse... after 20+ years of single button mouse for Apple...

My complant is: why not three button mouse for full X support?
     
awcopus
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Jun 19, 2003, 10:43 AM
 
Originally posted by Eug:
It just sounds like bull to me. It adds little advantage, yet makes the machine more costly and less ergonomic.
Unless the drives mount vertically instead of horizontally, in the front or from the top.

BWWAAAAAHHAHHAAAAHAHAAAA

It's June 19...soon the taste of hype bullsh-t will fade from our palates....but to be replaced with what.... WITH WHAT?????

Meanwhile, another update from blowApplerumorsOutYoAss.com:

The new PowerMac line will not be upgradeable, but, owing to its aluminum infrastructure, it will be impervious to spilled soft drinks AND it will be recycleable, for a refund of about $0.45 in participating states. Also, the wireless keyboard will feature ambient light sensors similar to those found in the 17" PowerBook's keyboard. Also, the high end quad (or dual) 1.8 GHz mac will feature not only USB and Firewire on the front, but also a 1/8" headphone jack AND optical digital in/out (ideal for for 5.1 surround sound receivers) and RCA in/out and an S-Video in/out. MORE LATER.

P.S. iCal needs an "Accelerate Passage of Time" button.
     
awcopus
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Jun 19, 2003, 10:55 AM
 
RE: USB 1.0 vs. 2.0

omygodwhocares

How many of us are waiting for our keyboard or mice to respond....faster?....more reliably.....? I'm probably missing something.

I'm open-minded. Talk to me. Why do we care if Apple adopts USB version X of all things? Okay, we want to have the latest and greatest implementation of whatever tech we use, but why do we care enough to bring it up in light of the major variables like the front side bus speeds, RAM specs.

With this release, I hope Apple achieves the same or greater overall mobo bandwidth that PC users (video editors) enjoy. That's the important thing. Do that, and have a reliable itinerary in place that increases our processing speed significantly with each update...that would just be spectacular!
     
Maquero
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Jun 19, 2003, 11:05 AM
 
more wood to the fire!

http://thinksecret.com/news/channelnewswwdc.html

The Apple retail channel has been the site of a variety of activity as we near next week's Worldwide Developers Conference and the announcements that CEO Steve Jobs is expected to make at his Monday keynote.

As mysterious boxes seep into the channel, inventories of the current Power Mac G4 lineup are getting slimmer and slimmer, a trend that started weeks ago. At this point, the high-end 1.42GHz model -- the most popular Power Mac -- is nearly gone, and Apple has told distributors and resellers not to expect new shipments. While there are a fair number of the mid-range 1.25GHz models in the channel, the low-end 1GHz, like the high-end, has generally been cleared.

This comes as Apple has reportedly been supplying its Apple retail stores with boxes scheduled to be opened Monday afternoon, and not before then, first noted by MacRumors earlier in the week. According to Think Secret sources, some Apple stores have already received the boxes, while others expect to receive them later this week (but still in advance of the Monday keynote). As can be expected, security around these boxes -- which reportedly come in multiple sizes -- has been tight.

Meanwhile, there are indications that a number of International resellers, such as Germany's Cancom and France's FNAC, have also received shipments.

What hasn't been confirmed is what, exactly, the boxes contain. While earlier indications suggested that Power Macs featuring the PowerPC 970 wouldn't actually ship until later in the summer, Apple's plans have been unclear, and in eWEEK's recent report on the 64-bit Macs and their "Smeagol" OS X build train, the publication noted that it was unable to confirm Apple's specific release schedule.



While the arrival of boxes in the channel adds credibility to "immediate availability" of new Power Macs on Monday, multiple sources suggested that this could be limited to entry-level models for the first month.

There have also been indications that a Power Mac won't be the only new piece of hardware to show its face at WWDC, but this cannot be confirmed. With the 15-inch PowerBook G4 also nearing "constrained" status in the channel, the release of a revamped aluminum replacement has been one long-standing possibility. In addition, earlier in the month we reported on an Apple videoconferencing camera which we believed to be internally known as Q8, or "iSight." (The article has since been removed at the demand of Apple Computer Inc.) Apple has been scheduled to wrap up development on Q8, a "Viceroy" iChat update, and a "Memento" iPhoto upgrade prior to WWDC, but Apple's specific release plans, including the possibility of a WWDC announcement, have not been confirmed.

There is one additional mystery product in the short-term pipeline, a hardware project known as Q6. Little is known about Q6 other than that it will ship with a build train of Mac OS X code-named "Blackrider," and that Apple previously intended to wrap up development this month or the next. Whether or not Q6 is now slated to be one of the hardware announcements at WWDC is unclear.
     
Scotttheking
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Jun 19, 2003, 03:51 PM
 
Originally posted by awcopus:
RE: USB 1.0 vs. 2.0

omygodwhocares

How many of us are waiting for our keyboard or mice to respond....faster?....more reliably.....? I'm probably missing something.

I'm open-minded. Talk to me. Why do we care if Apple adopts USB version X of all things? Okay, we want to have the latest and greatest implementation of whatever tech we use, but why do we care enough to bring it up in light of the major variables like the front side bus speeds, RAM specs.

With this release, I hope Apple achieves the same or greater overall mobo bandwidth that PC users (video editors) enjoy. That's the important thing. Do that, and have a reliable itinerary in place that increases our processing speed significantly with each update...that would just be spectacular!
USB is for many peripherals.
Scanners, zip drives, hard drives, printers, etcc. Many of those can use more bandwidth then USB1.1 provides.
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jcadam
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Jun 19, 2003, 04:16 PM
 
Originally posted by Scotttheking:
USB is for many peripherals.
Scanners, zip drives, hard drives, printers, etcc. Many of those can use more bandwidth then USB1.1 provides.
You should be using Firewire for such devices........ I do.

USB hard drives are for idiots.
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Eug
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Jun 19, 2003, 04:18 PM
 
Originally posted by jcadam:
You should be using Firewire for such devices........ I do.

USB hard drives are for idiots.
     
awcopus
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Jun 19, 2003, 04:34 PM
 
Originally posted by jcadam:
You should be using Firewire for such devices........ I do.

USB hard drives are for idiots.
BWWWWAAAAAAA HAAAA HAAHAAAAAA

<ahem>

I'm glad you said it and not me. But in all fairness to Eug, USB devices are cheaper than Firewire devices in general, and it's a good thing to have lots of affordable accessories for people who don't need Firewire or don't care to pay for its benefits over USB.

However, as was earlier pointed out, the new keyboards and (two-button) mice shipping with new PowerMacs are going to be bluetooth-based, so out of the box, I'd say Apple should use the money it saves by NOT upgrading to USB 2.0 and put that towards including Bluetooth with all of its machines. That's a trade-off we can all live with, I think.

**

Bring on the G5! I mean the 970! I mean, the XStation? I mean, the box with all the new stuff in it that goes faster'n stuff.

BTW, here's another rumor: the first-gen new machines will have enough slots to accommodate 4GB of RAM, but this will be ramped up to over 20GB of RAM by this time next year, just in time for the release of the next version of MS Office, which will require exactly 19GB of RAM to run smoothly. HOO YAA!
     
Eug
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Jun 19, 2003, 05:00 PM
 
I'm glad you said it and not me. But in all fairness to Eug, USB devices are cheaper than Firewire devices in general, and it's a good thing to have lots of affordable accessories for people who don't need Firewire or don't care to pay for its benefits over USB.
Actually, I have no USB 2 devices (except a flash media reader, hooked up to USB 1.1 only). I just think it's a completely inane statement to say "USB hard drives are for idiots".

USB 2 hard drives have comparable speeds to Firewire hard drives with chipsets like Indigita or Initio. Oxford 911 is faster however. Are all people with Initio Firewire hard drives idiots too?
     
sideus
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Jun 19, 2003, 06:24 PM
 
OMG ITS THE NEW POWER MAC! I SAW IT ON THE INTERNET SO IT MUST BE TRUE!

     
krove
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Jun 19, 2003, 07:07 PM
 
Originally posted by Eug:
Actually, I have no USB 2 devices (except a flash media reader, hooked up to USB 1.1 only). I just think it's a completely inane statement to say "USB hard drives are for idiots".

USB 2 hard drives have comparable speeds to Firewire hard drives with chipsets like Indigita or Initio. Oxford 911 is faster however. Are all people with Initio Firewire hard drives idiots too?
Umm...no:
http://www.barefeats.com/fire35.html

USB 2 sucks in comparison to Firewire 400, and BLOWS in comparison to new Firewire 800 drives!

Can I reiterate again just for my benefit?
USB 2 sucks! Firewire rules!


How did it come to this? Goodbye PowerPC. | sensory output
     
awcopus
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Jun 19, 2003, 07:08 PM
 
Nice looking fake. I guess it could be the fabled Xstation, but there's no way Apple is suddenly abandoning dual optical drives in its Pro series...unless this thing is a slot loading SuperDrive jukebox that can take 5 discs or something similarly insane.

I'm all over the internet these days trying to find updates to rumors about Mac hardware. It's incredible how many people are just bursting at the seems to buy a PowerMac, but moreover the number who are simply addicted, like me, to the rumormongering. It's nuts, it's weird, it's delightful, it's the difference between Mac users and users of nonMacs.

June 23rd, I'll be at the SOHO store around 11 AM to get a good seat for the 1 PM EST show.
     
Eug
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Jun 19, 2003, 07:13 PM
 
Originally posted by krove:
Umm...no:
http://www.barefeats.com/fire35.html

USB 2 sucks in comparison to Firewire 400, and BLOWS in comparison to new Firewire 800 drives!

Can I reiterate again just for my benefit?
USB 2 sucks! Firewire rules!

Firewire 400 uses many chipsets. I for one will only buy Oxford 911 endowed enclosures for hard drives. However, it seems that some Mac users don't know the difference, judging by the posts.
     
veryniceguy2002
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Jun 20, 2003, 05:20 AM
 
Originally posted by brainchild2b:
Yeah first I bet it's true. They said it was more like 17-18cm which is still narrow. But then this is Apple's style. Compact, without the sacrafices.

Lets think for a moment. The post in question said the PCI slots were mounted diagonal. Which the poster seemed to find odd. But think about it with a slim tower you'd want them to be diagonal to insure all PCI cards would fit. This lends credit to the story, otherwise these guys really thought their hoax out!

Also having a USB 1.0 and separate USB 2.0 ports goes along with "it's in the details" When you plug a 1.0 device into 2.0, it requires the entire bus hub to slow down for the 1.0 device. Basically slowing everything down. Having a separate port for USB 1.0 shows Apple thinking about all the details!
With the leaked information from the Apple store, with only 3 PCI or PCI-X slot, as well as 3 USB 2.0 ports. It shows the report from Germany(?) is unreliable. (Think secret still got the information... while you can... The info in MacRumors has been removed already!)

Forget about slim tower, diagonal PCI slot, etc... at least until Monday, when you see the official photos.
     
Eug
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Jun 20, 2003, 12:38 PM
 
Originally posted by veryniceguy2002:
With the leaked information from the Apple store, with only 3 PCI or PCI-X slot, as well as 3 USB 2.0 ports.
I guess if that USB 2 spec is true, then all new Power Mac buyers are idiots too (at least according to some posters in this thread).
     
jcadam
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Jun 20, 2003, 05:38 PM
 
Originally posted by Eug:
I guess if that USB 2 spec is true, then all new Power Mac buyers are idiots too (at least according to some posters in this thread).
Only the ones who plug harddrives into those USB ports....................

My USB ports are for keyboards, mice, and printers ONLY (and anything else that just ISN'T available with firewire).
Caffeinated Rhino Software -- Education and Training management software
     
Simon
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Jun 21, 2003, 06:05 AM
 
Originally posted by Eug:
Are you serious? I'd bet against both BlueTooth keyboards/mice, and two-button mice.
I don't know about Bluetooth, but I think new two-button mice are almost sure.

Here's the "proof":

Over at macrumors.com they were linking to a site that claimed to show screen shots of Panther. One of them happens to be a shot of the system pref window.

If you look at the new mouse icon I'd say you can see it has a new form (more rectangular, less round) and that it has two things on the front side which look like they could be buttons. But, I don't see a scoll wheel...
     
krove
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Jun 21, 2003, 01:35 PM
 
Originally posted by Eug:
Firewire 400 uses many chipsets. I for one will only buy Oxford 911 endowed enclosures for hard drives. However, it seems that some Mac users don't know the difference, judging by the posts.
Sorry, I skimmed over that part in your post. I didn't even realize that people ever considered buying FireWire chipsets other than the Oxford 911 or 912.

Just the same, USB 2, compared on a more technical level, just isn't all that great in comparison to Firewire. The main problem is the interface overhead (communications that deal solely with directing the traffic over the bus). Firewire has relatively low overhead compared to USB.

How did it come to this? Goodbye PowerPC. | sensory output
     
 
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