At its Worldwide Developer Conference today, Apple announced plans to deliver models of its Macintosh computers using Intel microprocessors by this time next year, and to transition all of its Macs to using Intel microprocessors by the end of 2007.
Apple previewed a version of its critically acclaimed operating system, Mac OS X Tiger, running on an Intel-based Mac to the over 3,800 developers attending CEO Steve Jobs’ keynote address. Apple also announced the availability of a Developer Transition Kit, consisting of an Intel-based Mac development system (3.6GHz Pentium 4-based) along with preview versions of Apple’s software, which will allow developers to prepare versions of their applications which will run on both PowerPC and Intel-based Macs.
“Our goal is to provide our customers with the best personal computers in the world, and looking ahead Intel has the strongest processor roadmap by far,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO in the press release. “It’s been ten years since our transition to the PowerPC, and we think Intel’s technology will help us create the best personal computers for the next ten years.”
“We are thrilled to have the world’s most innovative personal computer company as a customer,” said Paul Otellini, president and CEO of Intel in the press release. “Apple helped found the PC industry and throughout the years has been known for fresh ideas and new approaches. We look forward to providing advanced chip technologies, and to collaborating on new initiatives, to help Apple continue to deliver innovative products for years to come.”
“We plan to create future versions of Microsoft Office for the Mac that support both PowerPC and Intel processors,” said Roz Ho, general manager of Microsoft’s Macintosh Business Unit in the press release. “We have a strong relationship with Apple and will work closely with them to continue our long tradition of making great applications for a great platform.”
“We think this is a really smart move on Apple’s part and plan to create future versions of our Creative Suite for Macintosh that support both PowerPC and Intel processors,” said Bruce Chizen, CEO of Adobe.
The Developer Transition Kit is available starting today for $999 to all Apple Developer Connection Select and Premier members. Further information for Apple Developer Connection members is available at developer.apple.com
Intel plans to provide industry leading development tools support for Apple later this year, including the Intel C/C++ Compiler for Apple, Intel Fortran Compiler for Apple, Intel Math Kernel Libraries for Apple and Intel Integrated Performance Primitives for Apple.
Just sold all my apple stock. It’s downhill from now on. Nobody’s going to buy Macs until the transition and developers are not going to be happy. Steve finally blew it, I’m afraid.
All you guys STOP FLAME BAITING and STOP BEING BITTER. I know this is a Huge shock, but if you read carefully there is NO PROBLEM WITH BUYING A PPC MAC NOW as the programmes for at least leapord and beyond will run on BOTH INTEL and PPC thanks to transitive. So relax, by a mac, use OS X and enjoy the revolution that apple has adopted with cross architeture computing.
I know this would have been a disaster if it broke all legacy apps but THAT IS NOT THE CASE. So don’t be bitter and say bye to apple, remember all the good times you have had with it in the past. The future is bright, and apple is thinking different ™ which is a good thing.
Just my 2 great britain pence
gruchy
This, this, is the greatest day of my life. LOL
I am gonna buy a Dual G5 asap and keep it as long as possible. The Xcode developer tools will support PPC for a very long time. We know that Video 2000 and Betamax lost against an inferior VHS, it is too painful to see it happen again. As a Mac user this is the ultimate humiliation.
Ya know, the funny thing is that a few years back, I, as a PC user was Pi**ed with Apple for buying Emagic (Logic Audio). I LOVED that app and used it extensively on my PC. Apple bought Emagic and stopped all development on x86. Had to go out and buy a PowerMac. NOW they want me go out and buy another Intel Mac. SCREW THEM.
I have been wondering how Apple would add PCIe to Macs. More recently, I wondered how Apple would add WiMAX. It looks like Apple can work both of those in by switching over to Intel CPU’s at the same time. Do I feel betrayed? Sort of…After all, we suffered through years of Motorola 68030 and 68040 development lethargy before the AIM alliance and the PowerPC. Then it got stuck on 500MHz and did not evolve past the G4 until AIM split and Apple jumped on board with IBM and the G5. The promise of a true workstation-derived CPU with a great growth plan withered over the past 18 months, leaving us back in the Motorola 68040 boat. IBM appeared to spend a lot more effort on processors for the Xbox 360 and PS3 than the Mac.
I applaud the fact that Apple has had the foresight to maintain a PPC backout plan over the past five years. I must assume that going to Intel is the best move for Apple. Steve would not have made this move on a whim. However, I do see a lot of potential danger for Apple during this transition over the next two years. I sincerely hope that Apple weathers this transition as well as it did the mid-90’s transition to the PPC.
To answer the question if we’ll see cheaper Macs on Intel, I believe it’s a resounding YES. Imagine the average computer buyer at the computer store. They see Mac and Windows PCs with essentially the same hardware but the PC is $300 less. What will the average lemming buy?
I’m surprised that Apple has chosen to jump into a pool of price wars and cut-throat competition. Apple must be betting on increased market-share to compensate for decreased margins. I do hope this gamble works out.
OK, the biggest problem I have with this is waiting. I like to buy a new Mac ever year, and now I have this paradigm shift screwing up my plans. The Intel switch could not happen fast enough for me. 2007 is NOT acceptable. I want things NOW!!! FREAKING NOW I SAY!!! I just hope iMacs will transition sooner than later. If this switch means more software titles, I’m all for it. I’ve always found OSX sluggish compared to Windows. I can’t imagine the switch would do anything but speed things up.
Watch out Longhorn! The Mac is Back! And better than ever. Just as MS thought they’d won The Mac is coming back and going to show how things should be done.
This is the time to do it (the shift) just as MS is at its weakest – technology wise. Now all pc mags will be able to compare both systems on a level platform.
The Mac is back! May the battle begin!
No viruses and ease of use is available for Intel chips too! You don’t need to get Linux!
My God, are there enough crows on earth to feed all of the mac loyalists today? Boy, bet we’ll see some REALLY cheap iMac G5’s over the next year–how about three for $20?
Hank –
“Its not that Intel´s roadmap looks so good, it is that IBMs looks so bad. Jobs had no choice but to go INtel.”
Agree with you there. But, Steve has clearly seen at least the possibility of the IBM disaster looming for a long time and has planned accordingly. OS X on Intel for 5 years! – they’ve been considering alternatives for a long time. I don’t think we’re going to get stuck with 32-bit P4s.
As for the hysteria about Macs turning into crappy virus-ridden generic PC boxes overnight – were PowerPC Macs any less Mac-like just because they didn’t have 68xxx CPUs in ’em? No. So, why does another CPU switch change anything? Macs will continue to be Macs.
But they might be Macs that can also run Windows natively. Personally, I wouldn’t touch Windows with a 10-foot nuclear cattle prod. But, a lot of current Windows users might be interested in a dual-platform box.
You people are over-reacting. Two things to remember:
1. Steve Jobs knows a heck of a lot more about where the Intel roadmap is leading than anyone here. It will most certainly not be 32 bit. Trust him. He didn’t bring Apple back from the brink of death for nothing. Keep in mind that NeXT dumped the PowerPC and went to Intel too.
2. IBM was once the “enemy” too. Intel has a new CEO who is, reportedly, a very good friend of Steve Jobs. The Intel of the past is not necessarily the Intel of the future.
For those of you saying you won’t buy a new computer now because of what will be available in two years, that’s ridiculous. You might be in the same boat if they stayed with IBM too. Who’s to say in that same time frame, they might come out with a G6 that totally smashed the G5. As for third party software, I think it’ll be more than two years before developers switch completely to Intel based Mac only versions.
I’ll admit that I was dubious about this when the rumors started to grow but I actually feel rather excited about the possibilities now. It forces us to realize that many of our perceptions about Intel were formed by their association with Microsoft. I’m eager to see how OS X does on another chip. And I say this as the very happy owner of a dual 2.5ghz G5. It’s the fastest computer I’ve ever used, even compared to high speed Pentiums and Xeons, but it’s incredibly hot! My office is 5 to 10 degrees hotter than the rest of the house. If IBM can’t make further strides with it and Intel can offer something better, OK. The OS is still the most important thing.
For all you future ex-Apple customers. Since the transistion is nearly a year away, Intel and Apple will have designed a 64 bit chip that will work on Mactel systems. This maybe a different then a Pentium 4 which even Intel has confirmed has reached the end of its design life.
Look at the advantage of it. Game companies will have an easier time porting games to the new platform at a fraction of the cost and we will see games being released for both Mac OS X and Windows at the same time.
PowerPC will still be supported for at least 2-3 years, but I do see less native software being released in the during that time. By then I maybe ready to upgrade. Will it be a Mac? You bet. It’s the OS stupid. I think it’s a good design move for Apple.
For average Mac users like my wife and my son, they couldn’t care less about what kind of CUP inside. In fact, they don’t know what kind of CUP inside, but they are very happy using their Mac everyday with iTune and every software that came with the Mac. They will continue to use Mac for years to come. For more knowledgeable users like me, the implication is the following: Up to date, no matter how Apple trying to dispute the MHz myth, there are people who believe that Intel chips are superior, MHz for MHz. Now the playing field has been leveled. It boils down to who can write better OS source codes than Microsoft? Who can design and built better hardware than Dell, HP? The answer is obvious. So Mac fans, clam down and may all of us live in exciting times!!
Mmmmm….crow.
The funniest thing in my opinion will be to hear the forthcoming logical contortions from the blind zealots who were dissing Intel up until this morning. Now they’re going to be saying that Megahertz does matter, and that the PowerPC sucks.
The big questions for me are which processor exactly we can expect the Mac to adopt, and if there will be a Velocity Engine analog. Also, where does this leave portables, especially since Intel doesn’t (yet) produce a chip with better power characteristics than the PowerPC.
You people act as if you know nothing of Apple’s product line. It all begins with the Mac Mini!!!! Hello-The Mac Mini is 32 bit and will remain 32 bit because it is not a top of the line Mac. In 2007 they will role out the rest of the line and I garuntee you it will be 64 bit. Apple will not be going backwards with the Mac.
Read Majikthize’s post. He’s the only one keeping his head about all of this and making any sense.
What the heck happened to new product announcements?
Does all this Intel news mean nothing new for now?
How interesting, choose a company that has never produced a single CPU that is not a bad joke.
I wont be able to buy a new Mac in the next ten years after this switch.
Depressing
mw ‘anti’ go figure
He had Microsoft by the short hairs and he pulls this. Why didn’t he just bring out OS X for Intel machines and do Windows apps in emulation? Just drop hardware and go for the jugular. Does he take his orders from Redmond?
Here’s a prediction. Longhorn will be fully implemented and widely accepted before the switch to Intel, hardware and apps, is complete.
Anyone who buys Apple hardware before the switch deserves what they get. Anyone who waits will have a choice between a finished Longhorn and Tiger. There won’t be much difference.
As for me, I’ll be using old Macs and new WinTel machines between now and 2008.
Give me a call when the switch is over.
Stan the man posted “This, this, is the greatest day of my life. LOL”
What a pointless and pathetic life you must have then.
The word of the day is value, as in you have no. That must be very sad.
I had $2,000 set aside for a new G5 iMac. I’m going to hold off on that purchase until I figure out what this really means. I
I posted earlier on another thread but felt the need to reassure Mac users in this thread as well.
DO NOT FRET. What we are working on for Apple will be fantastic. When Steve visited (multiple times, I might add, over the last year plus) he was given the keys to everything we had. He inspected us in and out and we showed him our cloak room and all that we have to offer. Face it, IBM was hitting a dead end. Apple had no choice but to shift gears because IBM was not responsive to Apple concerns and also because IBM could no longer efficiently plan ahead for the G5’s development.
Please be patient – the new prototypes of the mobile gear that Apple is planning is going to be amazing.
This is a brave new era for Apple and it will succeed. Steve has been planning this for awhile. He has known for quite some time that IBM could not manage improvement to the G5 spec work set.
Intel was the correct answer.
Speaking impartially…this is going to reap dividends.
Wait till you see the ‘mid ’06 powerbooks!!!
Something I haven’t heard mentioned as of yet:
With Intel (and AMD) including virtualization technology on the next generation chips, how cool would it be to have OSX and Windows (Longhorn?) running SIMULTANEOULSY on the same computer? And NATIVELY to top it off!!!
That would rock.
Viridian,
Hopefully, when the transition takes place, Intel will have cpu’s with comparable power characteristics as today’s PowerPC. This, by no stretch of the imagination, means that PowerPC sucks. It just means that Intel has a better road map. Furthermore, Intel has hardware based DRM that Apple is interested in.
There will be trade offs with the switch but in the long run, I’m sure SJ knows what he’s doing.
What compelling reason is there for me to buy a PPC mac now? I’d be better off buying a cheap windows laptop with a plan to wait a couple of years. But then, I may never go back. Linux and KDE is looking better all the time.