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June 09, 2004
Speedbumped G5s, no 3fer.
Most of the online Mac press leads with Apple's release of speed-bumped PowerMac G5s running at 1.8GHz, 2GHz, and 2.5GHz. All three updated models feature dual G5 CPUs using the 90nm process (smaller, cooler, less power consumption) - but things are still warm enough that the 2.5GHz model has a liquid cooling system. Much sexier (and quieter) than the ear-blasting fans of the original Xserve G4.
The good news (first update for the 11-month old G5 line) comes on the heels of Monday's well-received AirPort Express announcement - a tiny 802.11g access point that supports 10 computers, acts as a network print server for your USB printer, and (here's the kicker) allows you to stream iTunes directly to your stereo via a technology dubbed AirTunes.
Mac wags are still expecting an updated iTunes (4.6 to support AirTunes) later this week, and updated displays are thought to be on the horizon. The AirPort Express and 2.5Ghz G5 aren't expected to ship until July - then again, the Xserve G5 was announced in January and was supposed to ship in February. Yet the much-ballyhooed Virginia Tech Terascale Cluster (a mondo cluster of G5s) is still offline waiting for their Xserve G5 upgrades.
Getting just as much play is what we won't see soon - 3GHz G5s. When Steve jobs got up on stage at last year's WWDC to deliver the keynote, he stated unequivocally that Apple would reach 3Ghz on the IBM-manufactured G5 "within 12 months". A bold promise, and perhaps ill-considered given Apple's earlier problems with Motorola. When speedbumps to the PowerMac G5s didn't show in January, and the Xserve G5 was slow out the gate, people started to doubt. Sure enough, one of The Steve's minions - Tom Boger, Apple's Director of Power Mac Product Marketing - said that Apple is "[...] not getting to 3GHz anytime soon."
Boger's other "not-see" - no PowerBook G5 in 2004 - isn't surprising to anyone who's seen the heatsink on a PowerMac G5, despite the blue-skying that the Mac rumor sites have continued to bandy about the hope of one. (And I'd like a pony).
I was at WWDC last year, in the crowd bathing in Reality Distortion Field when Jobs announced the G5 and made the 3GHz promise. He's delivering this year's keynote as well - wonder if he'll do a mea culpa? Nah - more likely I'll get that pony.
Posted by jim at June 9, 2004 09:13 AM