“The new [Apple] Mac Pro is here,” Andrew Gruen blogs for CNET.
Gruen reports, “At the WWDC keynote, Phil Shiller, Apple’s senior VP of marketing, told us that the ‘standard’ Mac Pro configuration is about $1,000 less than a similarly configured Dell. A Mac Pro with dual 2.6GHz Xeons, 1GB of 667MHz RAM, a 250GB hard drive spinning at 7,200rpm, and an Nvidia GeForce 7300GT video card with 256MB of dedicated video memory is $2,499 on Apple’s site, as promised. A Dell Precision 690 workstation with the same specs except for an Nvidia Quadro NVS 285 video card will run you $3,709. An HP Workstation xw8400 with that same Quadro NVS 285 hits $3,791.”
“So if our elementary-school arithmetic is correct, the Mac Pro is $1,210 less than the Dell and $1,292 less than the HP. With Apple’s free Boot Camp utility that lets you run Windows on a Mac, it’s easy to imagine folks opting for the Mac Pro even if they never plan to use Mac OS X. Obviously, Apple hopes that the price differential will get more power users onto the Mac platform to at least give OS X a spin,” Gruen reports.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Getting a Mac Pro solely to run Windows on it is akin to getting a Lamborghini and filling its gas tank with equal parts sawdust and water. God help anybody who actually tries to consign a beautiful Mac Pro to such a living death. Not to mention that we will hunt you down.
So, do everyone a favor: forget about the whole stupid idea right now. Go the usual route: go get your Dell or HP, mail in your rebates (you’re such a smart shopper), install your ancient copy of XP, download several hundred critical updates, fire up that AV suite, try to defend against spyware / other assorted malware, patch patches that patch patches, do everything upside-down, backwards and ugly, and continue to wait and wait and wait for Nothing Special, er… Windows Vista.
Related articles:
Smart companies should consider Apple Macs to cut IT costs – June 06, 2006
Analyst: Apple Macs cost less than most people think – May 16, 2006
Confused columnist on Apple’s 17” MacBook Pro: ‘you can get a couple of decent Dells’ for that price – April 26, 2006
Dude, you got a Dell? What are you, stupid? Only Apple Macs run both Mac OS X and Windows! – April 05, 2006
Pfeiffer Consulting: Mac vs Windows: Total Cost of Ownership, Productivity and Return on Investment – March 30, 2006
Apple Macintosh simply does more and costs less than Windows PCs – February 14, 2006
Windows to Mac switchers: recommendations and Total Cost of Ownership analysis – September 29, 2005
Windows users who try Apple’s Mac OS X Tiger might not want to go back – June 07, 2005
Apple Macs are far easier, cost less to manage than Windows boxes – March 02, 2005
Apple Macs now cost less and run faster than Wintel PCs – September 30, 2004
I know this is off-topic, but some of you are going to LOVE this story:
AOL “accidentally” releases massive amounts search query data:
http://www.techcrunch.com/2006/08/06/aol-proudly-releases-massive-amounts-of-user-search-data/
Originally they had the data posted with actual user (handle) names!!!! Later they changed it to random numbers, but used the same random number for the corresponding handle. This is a huge story. AOL has taken down the link and claims it was a mistake.
You can still get the data from mirror sites here (439MB – uncompresses to 2 gigs):
http://www.gregsadetsky.com/aol-data/
WARNING: THIS DATA CONTAINS EXPLICIT, I REPEAT EXPLICIT SEARCH INQUIRES, INCLUDING ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES SEARCHING AND SEXUALLY EXPLICIT MATERIAL
Here’s a YouTube Vid of a guy that just wanted to cancel his AOL account. Frustrating? You bet:
And here’s the latest story of a lady that was trying for 9 months to cancel her deceased fathers account:
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/business/columnists.nsf/techtalk/story/A0F7FD49EFA6565A862571BF006C005A?OpenDocument
God bless AOL!
Hunt me down.
^^^^ Related Ars article here:
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060807-7433.html
I’ve found this to be true for many years, though I always need a top-spec machine.
It seems to be the lower end where Dell scores, with base-model machines coming in very cheap indeed. Of course, by the time you’ve added some RAM etc …
coolfactor,
Classic is still in Tiger. I have to use it to run my Stedman’s Medical Dictionary which is still waiting to be ported over to OS X. Stedman’s, hurry up already!!!!
and soon they will not even good to play games either
This must be the horrible alternative universe.
How is it possible that Mac Pro is THOUSANDS of €uros cheaper than the Dell????
Same specs or Mac Pro better.
OMG. What has Steve done! I can´t buy Mac Pro because it so cheap. I can´t have machine that is cheaper than Dell. OMG. What do I do? 16 gigs of ram cost at the Dell over 8000€ and at Apple over 5000€. HELP! I can´t handel situations like this!!
Mac is seriously cheaper than Dell. Dell is so going out of business. We have to help them and buy more of their expensive hardware!! OMG! *PANICS*
This must be the horrible alternative universe.
How is it possible that Mac Pro is THOUSANDS of €uros cheaper than the Dell????
Same specs or Mac Pro better.
OMG. What has Steve done! I can´t buy Mac Pro because it so cheap. I can´t have machine that is cheaper than Dell. OMG. What do I do? 16 gigs of ram cost at the Dell over 8000€ and at Apple over 5000€. HELP! I can´t handel situations like this!!
Mac is seriously cheaper than Dell. Dell is so going out of business. We have to help them and buy more of their expensive hardware!! OMG! *PANICS*
Ronin,
YOU add no value whatsoever. Bye.
You must have had OS 9 already present on your pre-intel system for that or have the OS 9 disk available. In addition to that, you cannot use Mac OS 9 applications on Intel-based Macintosh computers because the Classic environment is not supported.
See http://www.apple.com/support/tiger/classic/
MDN take: “Getting a Mac Pro solely to run Windows on it is akin to getting a Lamborghini and filling its gas tank with equal parts sawdust and water.”
Well that is just stupid, MDN. If one put that in a Lamborghini it would not start.
So are you saying that if one uses Bootcamp on a Mac to run Windows the Apple computer won´t start?
Wow – That ought to convince Windows owners to buy a Mac. LOL. MDN you guys are ignorant, uneducated, uncultured tools.
Waiting until Leopard comes out before buying.
Cheaper or not, I know very few “Real PC” people who spend more than $600.00 on a computer, ocassionally $800.00, but take crap for it. Build to own is what most of them live by, frankenstein computing is the norm. Dell is not considered a good computer by most PC users buying new for school, HP is rocking the world right now.
MDN will hunt them down? OMG NO!!!!!
MDN is retarded. Apple is a business that makes money from hardware sales. As a stockholder, I could care less what OS someone wants to throw on their Mac Pro as long as they are buying Macs and not PCs.
It’s terribly unfortunate that these moronic opinions have now become representative of the Mac community as a whole, even if most of us are actually level headed and humble. Apple’s master stroke was to make Macs bootable into windows, but now we’re going to denigrate Mac owners for choosing to use a different OS after we afford them that very opportunity. It’s not good enough that they’re buying Macs and supporting Apple with the real $$$. No, they MUST use OS X or they’re not “real” Mac people.
We’re turning on our own. Freedom of choice is paramount, and we should be embracing as many Mac consumers as possible, regardless of which OS they choose to use. Believe it or not, some people use Windows and not only do they prefer it, but they enjoy it. It’s not up to the crackpots scattered about within the larger Mac community to determine what is enjoyable computing and what isn’t. Give them a break, and give them a pat on the back for buying a Mac.
Karl b,
No, the analogy was meant to illustrate that putting Windows on a Mac and Sawdust/water in a Lamborghini are the same because you’re putting CRAP into something magnificent!
You know darned well what he was trying to say with that quote. Either you intentionally played some shell game with his analogy or YOU are the one who is a ignorant, undeducated tool.
Smoke on that B@tch!
“YOU add no value whatsoever. Bye.”
You going somewhere Majikthize? We’ll miss you.
Cpt. Obvious,
I think you are taking MDN and
YOURSELF a little too seriously.
Go take your meds. MDN has been
touting the “embrace and extinguish”
ideology since Boot Camp was released
(beta). Part of that strategy includes
running Windows on Mac (at least for a bit).
Why is it that whenever people disagree with MDN around here they’re told to get lost or take their meds? Are you guys so focused on being as high handed and sarcastic as you can be that you’re completely unwilling to entertain rational dissent?
There’s some of us that continue to post a lot of dislikes with MDN not because we’re haters, but because not so long ago MDN was an excellent source for Mac news. They didn’t bait the likes of you reactionary folks with silly and snobby takes. They didn’t encourage the pervasive juvenile mentality that is the new norm here. Some of us kind of liked having intelligent and mature discussions about Mac news.
Yes MDN has embraced Bootcamp. And then they turn around and insult the intelligence of any consumer who chooses to use it. It’s hypocritical, but you guys just eat that shit up. Because it’s all about conflict with you folks.
Cpt. Obvious — and if it wasn’t about conflict for you, you wouldn’t flame/troll/spew on the site. Your preoccupation with dissent and acceptance is typical of the whiners-r-us crowd. What, are you a leftist or something?
Ronin — see Cpt. Obvious. You are another prissy-britches who feeds on the inane commentary because it allows you to break your arm patting yourself on the back about how awesome you are.
It’s no coincidence that these two showed up at the same time.
I’m here for the entertainment. If I run across useful news or reviews, it’s a nice bonus.
Good point. My preoccupation with dissent has now led me to post 3 times in the last 4 or 5 months. I really need to look into that. Consider my skull busted. Well done!
Cpt. Obvious,
My point was that I think
MDN “we will hunt you down”
was just a freakin’ joke!!
If you are going to go on a
rampage, pick something with
a little more meat. Your last
comment helped prove my point,
you are taking it too seriously.
“usually smart people build their OWN pc from parts, who needs a warranty, thats for babies!!”
then a bit later
“leopard might be sweet, but not as sweet as vista, vista has some see-thru parts that will make you say WOW!”
I think that was sorta like an oxymoron.
7up: some of us don’t actually want to tool around building a machine before getting the chance to use it. If you get really new hardware, you can spend weeks stuffing around with drivers, and if you get older, more accepted stuff, then you’re stuck with the choices of others anyway.
I am a developer, I program stuff, I’m not really into screwdrivers, boards and cases, perhaps you should expand your view point a little. This could include waiting until the respective OS are actually released before trying to compare them. Who knows, you may have reached puberty by then.
And you overlooked my entire point and focused on one line. So bugger off.
Tell me Mac users, why are you so arrogant and disconnected from reality?
First of all very few “PC” users buy a computer over $800. Most of the people that buy computers over $1000 are either gamers or are running servers.
Second, most people use Windows because they are familiar with it and can find help and an abundant amount of software with no effort. You can find Windows machines anywhere, without even looking for them. You don’t have to look for some obscure store that may be hours away from where you live.
Third, only the least knowledgeable “PC” users buy Dell, Gateway, or HP because they are crap. Most “PC” users that aren’t complete idiots or noobs either have a custom machine built or build it themselves.
Fourth, Windows is far from the the only OS available on the “PC” or more accurate the IBM clone format. Which is funny because all of you Mac users refuse to admit and fervently deny that Mac is also an IBM Clone PC. The only differences being the plastic case, the motherboard, and until recently the processor.
Many of you Mac users claim that Mac OS X can not be installed on a PC. Most of you even continue to make this claim even after being shown numerous sites where people not only claim to have done it but even include instructions how.
I hear Mac users constantly claim that Macs can’t get viruses. When told that is a load of BS, they show statistics that Macs can only get 3% of viruses. Most Mac users aren’t even smart enough to figure out they just proved my point.
I hear Mac users say Mac is better than Windows because it is Unix based. Well Linux is Unix based too. In fact Mac OS X is based off a Linux like OS called FreeBSD. I can hear all of you stupid Mac users denying that little fact right now because you are all too stupid to read and think for yourselves. Apple’s own web page subtlety acknowledges this by posting a little devil which is the FreeBSD logo on it’s web site here: http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/unix/
and it even says it is it is built on mach and FreeBSD here: http://www.apple.com/macosx/overview/advancedtechnology.html
You claim Windows users don’t know anything about having choices. Pull your head out of your Mac! I use Debian GNU/Linux, you know nothing about choices. I can configure EVERY aspect of my system to my desire, I can install my OS on Macs, PCs, Playstations, Sparcs, and Xboxes. The only limitations to what I can do is the knowledge I have.
I would never buy a Mac because the attitudes of Mac users pisses me off.