Compiled by Charles Moore
and edited by Dan Knight
- 2005.07.07
This Week's Mac-on-Intel News
PowerBook, iBook, and other portable computing news is covered
in The 'Book Review. General
Apple and Mac desktop news is covered in The Mac News Review. iPod news is
covered in The iNews
Review.
News, Analysis, and Opinion
Tech Developments
News, Analysis, and Opinion
Mac-on-Intel: Core Compatibility
In this Less Tangible column, Marc Zeedar says:
"With all the hype and horror surrounding Apple's 'huge' switch
to Intel there is much speculation, little information, and
abundant misunderstanding. I have no more information than anyone
else, and I hesitate to speculate too much at this early date, but
perhaps I can help with some of the misunderstandings regarding
this controversial move.
"It occurs to me that most people who aren't programmers don't
really understand exactly what happens when software executes and
how a CPU (Central Processing Unit) relates to that. That's where
most of the misunderstandings regarding the switch to Intel. So,
without getting too technical (and possibly being less accurate
because of that), here's a bit of an explanation of how computers
work.
"(Trust me: this will eventually have a good Mac/Intel
point.)"
Pentium M Destined for Macintel?
Mac on Intel says:
"There has been much speculation as to which Intel CPU core will
make its way into the first iterations of the Intel-based
Macintosh. With Apple's rather varied low to high end offerings, it
seems clear that we will see a similarly varied list of CPUs put to
use in Macs ranging from the low-end, consumer Mac mini and eMac to
the high-end, professional Power Macintosh series. Let us remember
that Apple has indicated that its first Intel machines (consumer
units) are about a year out, while the last of the transition (pro
machines) are about two years away. That said, clearly the current
Intel landscape is not where we should look in speculation as to
which processor will be found in a given Mac....
"The Pentium M offers impressive performance in general and far
more processing power per watt than the Pentium 4.
"If we leave the Pentium M out of the picture for
a moment, the Pentium 4 doesn't look half bad at first; without
question, it offers excellent performance. But as soon as we begin
to factor in the system's overall power consumption, our eyebrows
begin their skyward ascent...."
OS X and Windows to Share Hardware?
CRN's Russell Redman says:
"Now that the speculation about Apple switching from IBM PowerPC
to Intel chips is over, industry buzz about more platform crossover
for the Macintosh is just beginning.
"Solution providers and analysts said Apple's move to Intel
opens up some intriguing possibilities: Would Intel-based Macs be
able to run Microsoft Windows and Linux? And would the Intel
version of Unix-based Mac OS X - code-named Leopard - be able
to run on non-Apple computers powered by Intel processors?
"The answer to both questions likely will be no, at least in the
short term, VARs and analysts said. But they didn't rule out either
eventuality because of the huge market implications for Apple. Both
scenarios would open the Windows PC space - especially the
lucrative corporate market - to the Mac platform, potentially
lifting Apple's 2 percent to 3 percent computer market share into
the double digits, they said. What's more, if Leopard were
permitted to run on PCs, Apple could reverse its historic decision
to not license its operating system on other manufacturers'
computers."
Two Dealers on the Intel Switch
IT Business.ca's Howard Solomon reports:
"After days of rumours, confirmation this week of reports that
Apple Computer Inc. will gradually switch its Macintosh computers
to Intel-based processors came as no surprise.
"However, not all of the company's resellers think the news is
juicy. At least one is disappointed at the holes in the
announcement made by Apple president Steve Jobs at the company's
annual developer conference.
"For while Jobs and Intel CEO Paul Otellini patted each other on
the back, details of which processors will be running the Mac OS -
which will affect the ease of porting Apple applications to the new
system - are causing unease."
AMD vs. Intel Leaves Apple Untouched
eWeek's Daniel Drew Turner reports:
"Industry analysts are downplaying speculation as to whether
AMD's recently filed lawsuit against Intel will have any effect on
Intel's relations with Apple, which recently announced that future
Macintosh computers will be based on Intel processors.
"On June 27, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. filed suit in Delaware,
claiming that Intel Corp. violated provisions of the Sherman
Antitrust Act, the Clayton Business Act and the California Business
and Professional Code. The alleged violations include
anticompetitive acts such as pressuring PC manufacturers to reduce
or eliminate AMD-based products and influencing retailers to favor
Intel-based PCs over ones using AMD chips."
Don't Believe Online Surveys
The Mac Night Owl's Gene Steinberg writes:
"The practice of surveying people about everything imaginable
has become an epidemic, and most of it means absolutely nothing.
Even those carefully calculated polls by the likes of Gallup and
other companies have 'margins of error,' which means mistakes are
possible. That explains why, when it comes to a very close
election, the wrong candidate may be selected as the possible
winner. And let's not forget those exit polls during the last
presidential election that showed Senator Kerry emerging
victorious."
IBM Says It Could Meet Apple's Needs
eWeek's John G. Spooner reports:
"SOMERS, N.Y. - Apple Computer Inc.'s worries about watts are
unfounded, according to IBM.
"Apple said earlier this month that it will switch to Intel
chips from PowerPC chips as IBM's future PowerPC processors'
projected power consumption will make them too difficult to design
into future Apple systems.
"But IBM begs to differ. The company could build PowerPC chips
that satisfy the needs of the entire range of Apple's product
lines, including portables such as the PowerBook, said Rod Adkins,
vice president of development for IBM's Systems and Technology
Group, which produces IBM's PowerPC chips."
Firefox Ready for Intel Macs
ZD Net Australia's Renai LeMay reports:
"The Firefox browser has been ported to the new Intel-based Mac
OS X platform with the assistance of Apple.
"Firefox developer and Mozilla Foundation employee Josh Aas said
the Mozilla team built on preliminary Apple's development work in
bringing the browser across to the platform, which is scheduled for
rollout to consumers by mid-next year."
The Inquirer's Nick Farrell reports:
"The makers of the Firefox browser say that they have
successfully ported their browser to cope with the new Intel based
Apple computers.
"Josh Aas, a chief developer of the Mozilla Firefox browser....
said that most of the browser code was actually designed by Apple
employees who wanted it for a demonstration."
The Great Microsoft Equation
The Mac Night Owl's Gene Steinberg says:
"I've come to realize that most people just don't care that
Apple is going to start switching processors next year. It doesn't
make a difference whether the chip is made by IBM, Intel, or John's
Chip Factory in Nowhere, California. And apologies if the latter
company truly exists. Don't believe me? Well, ask some people who
are not in the power user category and/or deeply immersed in Mac
lore and see how many know or even care."
Intel's Yonah CPU: Heart of Future
'Books?
macsimumnews.com's Dennis Sellers reports:
"Although Apple hasn't announced which Intel chips will power
the upcoming Mactel systems, the most likely suspects are
microprocessors that have been dubbed Yonha, Celeron D 3515,
Conroe, Woodcrest, Smithfield and Merom. For the rest of the week,
we'll offer a look at the chips and what they might mean to Mac
users.
"Yonah is an Intel dual-core notebook processors that have been
announced and are due for volume production in 2006. Expect to see
it in Apple laptops and Mac minis, probably the first of the Mac
product line to go Mactel.
"Based on a mobile-optimized microarchitecture and 65nm process
technology, Yonah is designed to provide power management
capabilities and enhanced performance for multiple demanding
applications and multi-threaded applications."
"A single-core version of Yonah will also be released for budget
notebooks. Partly because of reduced power consumption, the
footprint on Yonah notebooks will be up to 31 percent smaller than
those of existing laptops...."
Tech Developments
News of Forthcoming Intel CPUs
Hardmac's Lionel reports:
"What's nice with Intel is that Apple will never be powerful
enough to prevent them from publishing very early roadmaps which we
will hence comment with delight.
"Their latest one mentioned new CPUs. So, you'll see that by
mid-2007 the Kentsfield, a high end CPU, shall arrive. It should
not derive from the PIV technology which has reached a dead end by
now, but from the Pentium M which demonstrated it was possible to
create something powerful without an extreme increase of
frequency."
More Mac News
PowerBook, iBook, and other portable computing news is covered
in The 'Book Review. General
Apple and Mac desktop news is covered in The Mac News Review. iPod news is
covered in The iNews
Review.
