What the hell is Apple thinking re: stale desktops ?

Deschodt · 03-30-2017, 01:16 PM

Leaving aside ipads, iphones, magical airpods and laptops...

If you want a new desktop "chez apple", your choice are as follows:

- A geriatric iMac (released Oct 2015)
- A senile Mac mini (Oct 2014)
- A dementia suffering Mac pro (Dec 2013!!!!)

Not discounted either, "Welcome Sir, please pay full price for a totally outdated 2y old hardware set".

What the hell is going on? If apple means to get out of the desktop market and wants us all to get laptops, it would be nice if they came out with it publicly, and/or at least provide a nice docking solution. How can they get away with it ? Is anyone here working at the mothership able to give us a clue if desktops are *over* ? That's not a normal product cycle... Porsche has probably released several new cars and 24 declinations of those in the same time period ;-)

flipper35 · flipper35's Garage

As far as graphics cards, Apple has always been behind by a generation or two.

motion · 03-30-2017, 01:23 PM

Its weird.... they have tens of thousands of people working there and they can't even refresh, much less innovate. Its a different company these days. I have a relative that worked with Johnny Ive in design. The stories he tells...

Gogar · 03-30-2017, 03:44 PM

+1million

IMO if they did a juicy new mac mini it would sell like hotcakes.

Cajundaddy · Cajundaddy's Garage

For Apple I think the desktop is a dinosaur looking for a tar pit. I personally don't see the attraction either. With my Macbook pro I can put up as many large HD screens as I want, remote keyboard, mouse, whatever. At the end of the day I can unplug the stuff and take my laptop home or wherever.

There will probably always be desktop users somewhere, I am not one of them.

masraum · 03-30-2017, 05:57 PM

I hope it doesn't die. I want a 27" 5k iMac, but I'm waiting for my current PC to die and it won't.

Tervuren · Tervuren's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cajundaddy

For Apple I think the desktop is a dinosaur looking for a tar pit. I personally don't see the attraction either. With my Macbook pro I can put up as many large HD screens as I want, remote keyboard, mouse, whatever. At the end of the day I can unplug the stuff and take my laptop home or wherever.

There will probably always be desktop users somewhere, I am not one of them.

Cooling, when you run at 100% for sustained periods, the laps get issues.

There are super duper uper expensive laptops, but you can get the same sustained performance from a cheaper desktop.

I guess it depends on what kind of work/play you do with a computer.

For most its just streaming entertainment I suppose.

HardDrive · 03-30-2017, 06:10 PM

Other than gaming or uber high end graphics applications, there is simply no reason for a desktop. And Apple has nothing in the gaming space.

berettafan · 03-30-2017, 06:18 PM

I like my iMac. Big pretty screen and a photo app that makes me feel smarter than an apple designer.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

masraum · 03-30-2017, 06:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HardDrive

Other than gaming or uber high end graphics applications, there is simply no reason for a desktop. And Apple has nothing in the gaming space.

Because a laptop with a 27" screen is a real ***** to lug around.

Sure, you can buy a 27" screen and ron the laptop out to that, but then why have both if you can have just 1. I've NEVER owned my own laptop. I've been issued one at about half of my jobs, but I still mostly used my personal desktop unless I was travelling. These days, if I travel for personal reasons, I take my iPad and phone, of course.

I've just never had a reason to buy a laptop that probably won't give me the options that a desktop will.

varmint · 03-30-2017, 06:27 PM

I do fairly high end graphics. And I've been an apple user since 93.

But the surface studio is damn interesting.

rusnak · 03-30-2017, 06:27 PM

What happened to the Mac Pro?

Ayles · 03-30-2017, 06:54 PM

Just got my first mac book pro... work had a stack of them they were tossing. 500gb hd and 8gb of ram. Definitely a decent machine for the cost. Likely has only done desk duty with an external monitor since new.

unclebilly · unclebilly's Garage

Ummm, will any of these run Solidworks or Inventor?

Mark Henry · 03-30-2017, 10:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by masraum

Because a laptop with a 27" screen is a real ***** to lug around.

Try lugging around two 27" screens, I still like my desktop with two monitors and it works pretty well seamless with my laptop.

jyl · jyl's Garage

Intel's rate of improvement in its mainstream desktop processors has slowed so much that a 2016 isn't significantly better than a 2015, unless you're a spec geek. iMacs aren't gaming machines so the latest video processor doesn't matter. Basically, the technology of desktop PCs is pretty stagnant, so there isn't much reason to crank out a new desktop iMac every year. I'm not sure mainstream PC makers are doing that either; if they are, it sure isn't helping them grow revenues.

The Mac Mini is, I think, deliberately being ignored because it represents an alternative to the iMac that is less profitable for Apple.

I'm not sure about the Mac Pro. Its unit sales are so tiny that it may be hardly worth updating, but it represents Apple's commitment to a certain type of creative pro, which is being questioned, so Apple probably should be spending the money. I personally prefer the previous roomy tower to the current tightly packed cylinder.

Basically, laptops are where it's at so Apple is going to keep those fresher.

RKDinOKC · RKDinOKC's Garage

Been using a 15in Macbook Pro for years plugged into a 27" monitor. Take the laptop to have my stuff with me when on vacation. Have a couple of Mac minis I run as servers and one that is a media player for my big TV.

Haven't used or seen the need for a tower for a very long time. Think the last one was a G3. A laptop worked great to lug back and forth to work. Had monitor, keyboard, etc. set up at both places. Now I work from home. Nice to have a laptop so I can work from where ever I am. Especially with iPhone's personal hot-spot.

Deschodt · 07:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jyl

Intel's rate of improvement in its mainstream desktop processors has slowed so much that a 2016 isn't significantly better than a 2015, unless you're a spec geek. Basically, laptops are where it's at so Apple is going to keep those fresher.

I get what you're saying, but by the same token it's a little cheeky to offer 2y old (or more) tech as a new machine. The obsolescence is built in already, it's like buying a new 2014 model car today - except a car dealer would heavily discount it, Apple does not !!! and they have a track record for releasing new models 2 weeks after you buy the "old" one because they are so secretive ;-)

If as you say laptops is where it's at, I wish they'd just come out with it and stop yanking our chain with announcements every 6 months that "they have cool stuff in the pipeline for desktop users" - they've been doing that for 2+ years andd nothing came out. I know a ton of people in small business, or larger ones using Pros and minis (or Imacs but less so because if the screen breaks you got a boat anchor and business like the modular form factor apparently), and they are wondering what Apple is waiting for...

A laptop doesn't work for me, they cost way more (for features like portability which I do not need) and even more so if you load them with SSD (because small laptop drives are slower) all the more so because Apple does not offer an elegant docking solutions... I don't need the portability and extra cost, I enjoy a large monitor, accessories, and an external power button + large keyboard and a real mouse ;-) All things that would clutter a desk if you slap a laptop in the middle in clamshell mode, if I had to plug them all in.... Anyway that's not the point, maybe there's no market for desktops anymore (I don't know - but I doubt it, I'm surrounded by them at work) but in any case I wish they'd take a stance on it... With each OSX release those minis and Imacs are getting slower...

impactbumper · 03-31-2017, 07:50 AM

I have a 2014 imac pro that does nothing to me, if anyone wants it I am open to sell. Pristine condition. I have not even watched a single porn video on it. That clean...

Apple is good for iPhone.

Craig T · 03-31-2017, 08:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by masraum

Because a laptop with a 27" screen is a real ***** to lug around.

Sure, you can buy a 27" screen and ron the laptop out to that, but then why have both if you can have just 1. I've NEVER owned my own laptop. I've been issued one at about half of my jobs, but I still mostly used my personal desktop unless I was travelling. These days, if I travel for personal reasons, I take my iPad and phone, of course.

I've just never had a reason to buy a laptop that probably won't give me the options that a desktop will.

This is me exactly^^^. I've worked with three laptops over my lifetime and all three were company issued. I hated docking in and out everyday on my last corporate gig, and seriously hated lugging it around on business travel. Once wifi became ubiquitous, and DropBox and other VDR's became cheap and easy to access, my iPad became an easy and capable replacement. My last big due diligence meeting was in a K&L Gates law office conference room. Of the 15 people in the room, there might have been four or five laptops. The rest were iPads reviewing documents in the cloud.

I bought a new 27‑inch iMac with Retina 5K display thee fonts ago and it's sitting on my desk in the home office. I love it. Great for streaming Moto-GP and F1 races, music, photos, etc. I'm retired now, so it's mostly for entertainment, but I have ZERO interest in owning a laptop.