A Mac Pro user has initiated a petition on Facebook, currently with 3,550 “likes.”
Hello Apple. Remember me? I’m one of your loyal users. I’m one of the guys who has owned 2 MacPros [sic], a G5, a G4, 4 laptops, one iMac, 4 iPods, one MacMini [sic], 4 iPhones and a bevy of other peripherals and software packages over the last 10 years.
I’m looking for a little clarity.
Can you please let me and the other people on in this group know what is going on with the MacPro? Its been neglected for far too long. We realize all the success of the iPad and iPhone and we’re really happy with our new toys. But unfortunately many of us need to make decisions on hardware for professional uses that allow us to make a living.
We have no desire to go the Dark Side and buy a Windows machine. And while the Hackintosh community has made great strides its not a viable option for a professional environment. Unfortunately you haven’t left us much choice!! The professional software applications like CS6, AVID, Protools, Smoke and others require the most powerful hardware available. The ability to configure systems with specific hardware is essential for our businesses. The iMac is not the answer for these situations. (Not to mention that I already have 54 total inches of professional monitors sitting on my desk!!!)
We’ve held out as long as we can. Many of us will never get the hint that you’ve discontinued the MacPro lineup. So I am asking directly.
Can you please let us know what your plans are?
Is the MacPro officially dead?
Are you going to license OSX to another hardware manufacturer to build powerful desktops?
You have the best OS on the market. Please let us put it to good use!!!
We have waited patiently. We are only asking for a little insight. A timeframe would really go a long way in this relationship. Please, either set us free and tell us that the hardware is dead or give us a little peak behind the curtain. Its not too much to ask. We cannot wait any longer and its really not fair to string us along like this.
Sincerely
Lou Borella and the Creative Community
Read more: http://www.facebook.com/MacProsPlease.
[Attribution: MacBidouille. Thanks to MacDailyNews readers too numerous to mention individually for the heads up.]
Amen!
You took the works from my mouth… so, double Amen!
Only one problem:
I don’t do Facebook and have no intention of doing so in the future.
As for me, it’s either a new Mac Pro or a Hackintosh. I’m running an early 2009 Mac Pro and it’s past time for a refresh. 3 years is an eternity at the top of the market.
It’s coming up on 2 years since the last refresh
His actions are stupid and pointless.
I think their point was clear: creative professionals want to know what the future holds for the MacPro. Apple has devoted a lot of time and resource to the latest gadgets, what about us? The long time, big money spenders with your company. They need powerful tools, and want you to continue making them.
What is so stupid about people banding together to have their voices amplified? Sounds like free speech to me.
Oh, wait. i forgot, you are a neocon, in your world we are slaves to the corporations and should keep our mouths shut and fit in, is that about right?
Isn’t the point to ensure that they (the professional users of the Mac Pro) don’t make business decisions based on hardware that won’t be updated to accommodate new/upgraded software?
No they aren’t. We’re talking about it. Other Mac news sites will also be talking about, and Apple will hear about it. Apple needs to hear this sentiment.
I feel really sorry for people doing high-end content creation that need a machine with tons of RAM, lots of cores, and high-end video. As somebody who used high-end Macs like this earlier in my career, Apple needs to get its shit together at this end of the market.
I’m a LONG-time Apple fan (think 80’s), but they need to crap or get off the pot. Either update the product, or publicly discontinue it and cut people loose so they can (reluctantly, I’m sure) move on.
NO, your words are and insensitive to the lot of the pro who depends on this stuff. This guys was polite, respectful and spot on. It’s great that your needs are being met but there are many who are not being met. I own a G5 and Intel Mac Pro’s both long in the tooth as well. And neither are upgradeable to Mountain Lion. Time for Apple to do or not do and let us know. If so they need to include things like USB 3 and other pro options. For a mere fraction of the resources they have they can continue to make Mac Pro’s and support the pro market.
Stupid!
like Apple really gives a shit about a page like this. They are selling Macs like hotcakes. The iMac has filled the void for all but a small minority of their user base.
Apple likely wouldn’t have made it through the 90’s without the Mac Pro. It was the only compelling reason to buy a Mac for work. The pro users are a dedicated base and endured ridicule and long software update cycles out of principle. There is a place for the Mac Pro, and the people in that market have lots and lots of money to spend. Until there is a thriving thunderbolt market, the iMac just doesn’t cut it for serious professional use (science and arts).
Sure, i agree about the 90’s, but it’s not the 90’s anymore. If it makes good business sense and there is a big enough market I’m sure Apple will continue the Mac Pro.. If not, those users will have to adapt or go elsewhere. A childish FB rant is not going to influence Apple’s decision.
Perhaps it won’t influence the decision about whether to offer the product or not. But, it could influence whether they get off their ass and say whether they’re discontinuing the product or not.
See, Apple is dicking around with people’s livelihoods here, so they simply need to make a decision one way or the other. Either bring something to market, or let everybody know you’re getting out of that market segment so they can move on. It’s bullshit.
So far, i see 3500 followers on that page and right now Apple is selling about 15-20 million Macs per year.. Just sayin.
Your original comment was a childish rant. It’s even more silly than doing it on Facebook because fewer people will see it.
Mac Pro sales have probably slowed a bit but you can’t blame professionals for not buying a “top of the line” product that hasn’t been updated in almost 2 years, yet still costs the same as it did when it was first released.
Even if raw unit sales remained constant, over 2 years they will be unfairly dwarfed by unit sales and revenue from iPhones, iPads, and consumer Macs.
It would therefore not be “good business sense” to base a decision on an entire product’s future based on what *percentage* of sales/revenue a product line brings in.
M, very good post. I totally agree with you.
Boy oh boy, i hope Tim Cook and company are going to heed the need to keep providing more powerful work stations. If Apple cannot be bothered to serve the needs of this portion of their market it would be a sad milestone in Mac history.
“Liked”
me too
Dear Spark,
me too…!!!
‘ little peak behind the curtain.’ That would be Slick Willy standing too close to the curtain.
Try peeking, peek and you will find.
Dear Lou,
Here’s the thing. There’s a new sheriff in town now and he wears an operations hat. We don’t need no stinking vision thing, we just need to push up production volume. Looking at the demand curve for the Mac Pro, we see that there was a production run of 50,000 units the previous quarter, which is really below our optimal cost of production.
We don’t really want to run too many lines. It messes with our overheads and my Numbers spreadsheets show we’re behind the curve in terms of economic reorder quantity for the Mac Pro.
Tell you what I’m going to do. I’m going to shut down the Mac Pro production line for good. That way you can bug Ballmer if he doesn’t do what you want.
Sincerely yours,
Tim
“Looking at the demand curve for the Mac Pro, we see that there was a production run of 50,000 units the previous quarter”
—–
If Mac Pro sales are falling quarter over quarter, this is a big fat “Duh!”
Would YOU buy a computer with 2-year old specs, for the same price as when it was first introduced? Would you buy a 2010 iPad today for $499?
No? Then why do you expect high-end professionals, who actually NEED (not just want) the latest and greatest, to do so?
On the bitching side:
Please, please, PLEASE bring back the old Exposé look and feel as an option! It was much more convenient, at least for me. It was faster to switch between screens. I remember when I saw Microsoft implementation, I mocked it as non efficient for stacking windows, and now I got that on the new Mission Control. Don’t change it. Just add the option.
Is it too much ot ask?
has intel even released a new low end Xeon recently?
Sounds like a whiner.
If the MacPro was officially dead, you wouldn’t be able to buy it at the Apple store right? So,let’s say you go and buy the equipment you want and the next day it is discontinued. Does that mean you can’t do your work anymore?
Sigh.
So, by your post, I can only assume if you needed a pro machine, you’d be happy as a lark to go plunk down three-grand or so on a piece of hardware that hasn’t been updated or refreshed in almost TWO YEARS.
Yeah, I didn’t think so. Sigh is right.
What would a Mac Pro with a touch faster processor or added cores really perform all that much better than the current model? My guess is, probably not
The new Xeon E5-2600 processors are a loot more than a “touch” faster.
According to benchmarks at Tom’s Hardware for these processors, for real world work, you will see differences, but its not going to knock one’s socks off.. You can listen to Intel say its a big jump in performance, you have to look at reality.
A futile effort. Apple’s production goals and design plans are not influenced by whining, griping, or complaining. Still, I feel ya, bro.
Yes, but their communication strategy (or in this case, the complete and utter lack of one) could be influenced. It’s happened many times.
Uh right….I recall Apple making some serious U turns once the Final Cut Pro X fiasco was in full swing.
Yeah, but Apple was actively working on the next version of Final Cut, it seems that Apple has forgotten the Mac Pro.
Apple NEVER gives out its secrets or plans. I’m astounded the dedicated Mac user isn’t aware of this. His begging and pleading is nothing compared to the billions of dollars Apple could make by releasing a sneak peak.
Of course, that’s absurd because Apple already is their competitions R&D department. What level of insanity would make them give up secrets before their own product is launched?
They are going to either continue the Server-to-Mac Pro downsizing of their product line, leaving the iMac’s future in doubt -or- they are going to hit the world with something spectacular and it ain’t no lame TV.
If they do discontinue the Mac Pro and make a lame TV, I’m donating my Mac mini to my nephew, then I’ll take up horseback riding as a new hobby, because at that point, home computers are dead.
buy an imac
cd in austin: “I need a 4×4 for hauling stuff for heavy construction work”
Me: “Buy a sports car.”
Yeah, your comment was about as dumb as that.
This is the dumbest thing I’ve heard of. Apple will make new Mac Pros. When?
When they get around to it.
Go back to work now.
… PROTEST
I don’t do the Facebook fad, but I would like a new Mac Pro and a GTX 680 card for my 2010 Mac Pro please.
Keeping it on a professional level and not insulting Apple or anyone else while expressing his (our) frustrations.
Well done!
To everyone who loves MacPros as I do:
Just take a deep breath and remember that most of the nonbelievers here are the same people who will bitch for weeks if the next iPhone is a week late in its presumed release date.
I’m sure the author of this Facebook page is well aware that Apple never discloses plans for future products. However, he argues a valid point.
When a Windows user is put in a similar (albeit hypothetical) situation (no Windows PC maker has ever kept future products secret; quite the opposite), he can always buy from a brand that has put out a ten-year road map for their hardware.
Professional users who buy $$$ worth of Apple hardware every three years must be able to make strategic plans regarding their tools of the trade. That Apple hardware also determines specific software purchases (also in $$$s). When Dell announces bankruptcy, a professional Windows user can simply change strategic hardware plans and go with HP or Lenovo. When Apple doesn’t do anything with their professional hardware for two years, and doesn’t even say whether they intend to do anything for the next two years (while other hardware makers refresh their models every six to nine months), it is perfectly natural to hear the frustration from such users.
I have no doubt that Apple has very valid economic reasons for not investing much R&D into the MacPro line. After all, that is probably the least popular Mac (by unit sales, and probably even by sales volume). However, since vast majority of purchasers are those who depend on them for their livelihood, there is disproportionate level of responsibility related to this line of Macs.
The guy is absolutely right to publicly express his frustration.
A two or three year upgrade cycle works for me. I typically upgrade every two and a half years. I’ll wager everyone else does too.
With a cycle like that, Apple sells Mac Pros in the gazillions for 6 to 9 months, every 30 months, the rest of the time not so much.
Who cares how much you’ve spent on previous Powermac’s or MacPro’s? Apple owes you something because of it? Does BMW owe me a test drive at the international auto show because i bought 3 in 15 years?? The logic is ridiculos. Every “creative pro” in audio, video, or photography has no clue what actual hardware specs. really mean or how it may relate to work flow. I’m a system engineer and have set up plenty of workstations in my day. The best places putting out award winning work don’t even think about upgrading their anything (hardware, software, etc) for at least 5 years unless something is invented that is a game changer (maybe Thunderbolt now). The current MacPro SCREAMS with the right config and really knowing your software. I’m tired of idiots thinking their answer to a lack of talent is always bigger, faster, stronger when it comes to computers. Grammy winning studios use G4’s still and Pro Tools 7. Animation studios use G5’s still and they are productive. I’ve been all over and systems I put in place 7 years ago are running great.
If you want new MacPro’s I want every piece of software you use to be 64-bit, optimized for multi-threading, running off of openCL…I could go on. 3 versions of Creative Suite could have been skipped by “creative pro’s” for how shitty they were-no hardware upgrade at those times would have mattered…
If you need 4 HD bays, 2 optical drives, multiple ports, a lot of RAM, possible native RAID, multiple GPU’s etc, go buy a freaking MacPro today and shut up. The next 5 years of operating systems will run on it. Will your next 5 versions of software though run on that operating system in 5 years? Get my point? What you need now is what you need. Just because it’s the same cost as 2 years ago doesn’t mean anything.
“The next 5 years of operating systems will run on it. Will your next 5 versions of software though run on that operating system in 5 years? Get my point? What you need now is what you need. Just because it’s the same cost as 2 years ago doesn’t mean anything.”
—-
Mountain Lion, expected release in 2012. Requirements:
iMac (Late 2007 or newer)
Mac Mini (Early 2009 or newer)
Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer)
MacBook (Late 2008 or newer)
MacBook Pro (Mid 2007 or newer)
MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer)
What do these have in common? Their immediate predecessors were all still “new” 4 years ago but will not be supported by the next Mac OS X.
So no, “The next 5 years of operating systems will run on it” is NOT a sure thing.
And “Just because it’s the same cost as 2 years ago doesn’t mean anything”? I sure don’t want you making purchasing decisions at my company.
He’d never be in purchasing for me either. I wonder if this systems engineer is smart enough to ever wonder why new, never sold cars on dealer lots are sold at fire sale prices when the new model year versions arrive?
I guess you missed the point.
The currently selling Mac Pro is the same model from July 2010.
2. Years. Old.
We start looking at replacing the high end Macs at 2-3 years.
Why would I replace 3 year old Mac Pros with 2 year old specs?
I would love an 8 core Mac Pro with current processors.
@Anon:
Unfortunately, Apple’s “5 years” policy doesn’t apply to Software/OSs … simply look at Apple’s latest sets of OS Security Patches for that last Malware: Sure, Lion and Snow Leopard got patched … but where was the patch for Leopard (superseded a mere ~2.7 years ago)?
Delayed for a few additional weeks … until there was pointed criticism on the net that Apple’s two patches meant that 20% of their installed base was still potentially vulnerable and being ignored.
-hh
fully support Lou Borella.
Apple owes us pros a lot.
we supported it through thick & thin.
we even put up with Spindler’s shit as CEO and through suffocation in mid 1990s just to support Apple to survive, until SJ returned but all the incredible phoenix rising success in the last decade has not served the pros well, with too little MacPro attention.
if the MacPro disappears, the Dark Side is nigh, & us pros would rather give up our careers than work on Windows/Linux PCs.
so Apple, please don’t take this lightly. we did not defect a decade ago, we stuck with you. you owe us. we owns many Apple products, we even helped convert Windows users to switch. everything we buy is Apple. please reciprocate.
we’re never ungrateful for all the other Apple products, but it comes down to power use for us – the iMac is too weak. we do not need a traditional tower pc, as long as it’s an expandable & max power Mac Pro.
it does not seem like the Revolutionary 2012 Apple product that Tim Cook + Philippe Starck + Jony Ive promised is a Mac Pro, so please give us a clue: we must know if you discontinued this product as we must prepare ourselves to a career without it. the least you can do is respect us & tell us, yes or no.
thanks
I’m genuinely disappointed in the tone of the comments here.
I don’t rely on my iPhone to run my business, a flip phone would do the job. I wouldn’t have the luxury of carrying out business on the go, big deal. Take a notepad and head back at the office.
To a creative pro the stakes are *much* higher.
The possibilities are only two:
– Apple intends to update the Mac Pro any day now. This is the best case scenario. Mountain Lion would run quite sweetly on the new hardware and give us all another 3 years of Mac loveliness to enjoy.
– Apple is just going to let the Mac Pro fade away without a word. This would be nothing short of a catastrophe for a large number of pros. You people who do your work on a MBP, imagine being told you have to get some Dull Craptop next week. Life would not be so rosy would it?
All that said, it is even sadder perhaps that Apple has abandoned the creative pro to go after the mobile market. Forsaking core users when you have $100 billion in the bank is a little hard to swallow considering that these are the most dedicated and loyal of your fanbase.
Read the AppleInsider article, “Despite new CPU options, Apple reportedly questioning future of Mac Pro”. It has over 600 comments. Folks, this stuff matters to people, telling pros to ‘stop whining’ is a callous slap in our fellow Mac users’ faces.
I intend to Like Mr. Borella’s FB page.
Anybody remember the mom and pop authorized Apple resellers? Exactly!
Not saying it’s right, but Apple has shown in the past, when their strategy changes, what happens to the little gut on the wrong side of the road… They get run over!
Good luck you few, you proud, the professionals!