I'm planning on buying a new Mac (in late 2007?), and though my old laptop has been great, it's been too limited for too long (the nature of laptops), so when Apple comes out with its' Quad (or better) Intel machine that is what I will probably get. I do have a wish list for it that I think that the timing of the purchase might allow for;
-Running Windows natively (from MicroSoft, as opposed to being a software hack)
-socketed CPU's for upgrade path
Also I've been hearing that the Playstation3 will have 9 processor cores (!!!), while Powermac's have advanced with 4 cores last year, does anyone think that we might see more? 6 cores, 8 cores, or maybe processor specific expansion designed in?
Mutant_Pie
http://www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp
Its about time! the ability to buy one computer and have two OS's on it! im soooo saving for an intel imac now. and i believe this way is legal
If it's not, we should see Apple sued in 3...2...1....
Nope? Excellent.
The main thing preventing booting on Core Macs before the new software was little or no support for EFI in the main x86 OS market, not through any actually enforced restrictions by Apple.
Apple can't be blamed for MS not supporting EFI in WinXP.
As for future CPUs, there's a clear roadmap for the Intel Core Processor.
Just because the PS3 is going to many (very speciallized) cores should we assume the same to desktop CPUs. Multi-core is great, but not in every situation, as software must be designed to work with it in multi-threaded or SMP designs. In any single threaded app or process, you'll still be limited to the speed of a single core, and even memory bandwidth and disk speed. Disk bound apps (booting, loading software, etc) will get little benifit from multi-core setups. There is much more to the computer than the CPU. The PS3 is highly specialized in what it can do with all those cores.
And, as for usign two OSs on a Mac, well, you could dual boot all the way back in System 6... One can setup dual boot on nearly any Mac.
oh i guess ive known you can dual boot for a while, but i mean OSX and win xp. i use both on a daily basis, its nice to be able to have one machine to do alll the dirty work ya know?
. . . what about buying a PowerMac, and then upgrading the CPU by swapping it out (if it is socketed, and there is a newer faster version in the same line, as has been observed here with the MacMini Intels )?
Mutant_Pie
P.S. With fast turn around times for my wishes, like the one for sanctioned Windows operation on the Mac. . . what else should I ask the Universe for? Winning lotto number? Extremely healthy/long life? A free PowerMac OctaCore computer? HexaCore?
It's likely that several of the models of Core coming up should use the same socket. It's already been demostrated that the CPU in the new Intel based Minis is socketed. The problem with upgrading the CPU is the cost. By the time you buy a new Mac and a faster CPU, it might have been cheaper to buy the mac with the fastest factory CPU it ships with. As for down the road, we don't really know what CPU prices are going to do but it seems that the days to the uber-expensive Pentium D Extreme Edition Hyperthreaded Dual Core blah blah blah the sell fro more than a complete lowened system may be going by the wayside. I know of very few people willing to pay the kind of premiums of price for one of thoe, over the performance of a lower end chip.
Microsoft would not care what machines their os runs on. They still get paid.
I think posting a link to a rumor site would be a no no... and I'm trying to be good so...
Is it alright if I just say check out Mac Rumors today?