[slessardjr]

I've seen this discussion go way in the wrong direction. You guys know how apple is, their way or no way or we don't support it. Thats exactly how they work. Thats why you can't customize it to your EXACT SPECIFICATIONS. They make the best software to hardware experience that I've seen and they've only gotten better than their competition (vista). With apple you get what you paid for. Afraid of the monitor crapping out on the iMac get the applecare, it cost about as much if not cheaper than a comparable screen, not a cheap 17" that will get the job done. All in all be happy with the macs, they wouldn't work so well if they didn't know what they were doing

[palane]

"Thats why you can't customize it to your EXACT SPECIFICATIONS. "
Speaking of over the top... The clamor for a midi-Mac is not just coming from folks asking who demand complete customization. Rather, looking for a machine that means specific needs and has a definite niche. Apple has built such a machine for many years, dating back to the IIci.
You're wrong on a second count. The release of an SDK for the iPhone/iTouch was in direct response to the iPhone being jailbroken. A significant number of mini-towers running hacked OS X will get Apple's attention. If building a mini-tower costs Apple profits from other computesr, they won't build it. If the lack of a mini-tower costs Apple sales, market share, and profits, they might. In that context, MacWorld has done us a public service by exploring the FrankenMac and Open Computer.
BB

[macnuke]

well... they thunk different.... I'll give 'em that much.

[slessardjr]

Ok yes you do have a good point, but the SDK, in my opinion, was aimed at the iphone enterprise and only opened it up to the app store when they saw whats going on with all the jailbroken devices. But thats a difference topic. but in response to you, think on the business sense. There is a market for the mac midi-tower, and the Psystar shows it. The question here is are there enough buyers to make enough profit to develop a new tower design and make it available cheap enough for the average consumer. With oil at the price it is I would think not. Macworld even says in the end it ended up costing ~$700-800. If that option was available when you needed to put in your GPIB card, or would you still have bought that $400-500 dell

[aceshelman]

I'm quite tempted to put a second HD in my PC and see if I can get a FrankenMac system running. If I did that I could just let the old G5 (screeching power supply and all) gather more dust while I wait for apple to make a computer I need/want to buy from them.

[bastion]

palane said:

The release of an SDK for the iPhone/iTouch was in direct response to the iPhone being jailbroken.

Do you actually have an iota of evidence for that claim? There was only a little more than a calendar quarter between the release of the iPhone and the announcement of the iPhone SDK. Less than a quarter if you start counting from the first successful jailbreak. That's an improbably short window for the SDK to be a "direct response" to that event rather than something that was planned from the start.

[aceshelman]

bastion: Were there not 2 very different versions of that SDK? The initial weakling "web" SDK which pleased very few; and now the much more powerful "open" SDK? That SDK upgrade looks a lot like a reaction to the clamor for more, and more capable, 3rd party apps.

[tony_d]

Just my two cents. I think Apple is taking a wait and see approach here.Think of it as free market research, they don't have to shell out a dime. I find it strange that they haven't shut them down yet. If Psystar sells a boat load of these things then we'll see Apple's response. First if they can't shut them down legally, then they'll just buy it. Then maybe we'll see a "mid range" Mac, from Apple. I wouldn't be surprised if the next generation of the mini has a replaceable video card (who knows maybe the iMac could too) and more FW ports for external drives. It might be a bit taller and bigger than it is now but I'm sure it be better than a clone.

[203115]

"The third reason is with the OC, you can put up to 4 gigs of ram in it, whereas you're limited to 2 with the Mini."

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

You CAN put 4 GB of RAM into a Mac mini. I have done it. It can only recognise 3 GB of that though.

[Grapho]

What all in favor of the Psystar computer don't seem to understand is that Apple is all about a whole solution, these Paystar folks at best can only give you a half of a half-baked solution. Large demand? Do you think these guys can even put out one single spot commercial with a "Get an Open Computer" campaign. If they advertise, I doubt they can afford a national large publication that is read by Mac users or potential switchers. The only people that know of this company is us die hard Mac geeks and then again, we obviously know that the Apple experience is not just the software, but the ENTEIR solution.

I am sure these folks at Psystar will have a bit of demand, but at the end, they are only selling cheep-ass computers that will give you nothing but trouble with NO Apple support, they are simply setting them selves for a in house support nightmare, particularly if they do sell a lot of them initially.

[Archiform_3D]

I emailed them about an option for a rackmount - these would make wonderful 3D render cows! They never got back to me. But what does look interesting is the frankenmac idea.

Apple has no good render farm option and these machines could fill a big hole in their lineup for 3D creative professionals. We dont need nice boxes, cool, video - just RAM and CPU power!!!!!

Steve Bell
Archiform 3D Art

[palane]

The development team refused my request to sit in on their meetings, so direct evidence is hard to come by. Of course, there was a development kit from the beginning. How do you think Apple developed its apps? My belief in a causal relationship is based on the following:

(1) Apple publicly stated that web apps were the way for users to run software that didn't come installed. If the SDK was planned all along, this was deliberately deceptive to users. Apple may be secretive (see the Intel switch), but not mendacious.

(2) Jail breaking had become extremely popular. Even worse, actual and potential users were upset by iPhones being bricked by the software update. The current strategy was hurting Apple's reputation while being unsuccessful.

(3) The actual SDK announcement was indicative of an evolving strategy, including an enterprise push. It was far more than just an SDK.

Incidentally, I think the approach to bringing apps to the iPhone is suggestive of a middle way. This isn't a case of installing any app willy nilly. It goes through the store. Users have the opportunity to get external apps with some level of QC. The mid-range Mac isn't a case of wanting any semi-random combination of processor, memory, video card, & hard drive. A limited number of options, as is the case for both the iMac and the Mac Pro, will do.

BB

[palane]

slessardjw - you make some good points. I fully concede it could have been a push to the enterprise all along, though I think a causal relationship can be inferred between jail-breaking and apps for all.

With regards to that Dell I bought for the lab, it ran closer to $1500. Once you spec a decent mid-range system using current component, Dell's not that cheap. So, there is the market that I think Apple can target. Not for the pennies on the dollar profit margin; a well-designed system that will last for years.I do think that the Mac Pros and the iMacs are fully worth the money. It's just that the buy-in is a bit too dear for the former and the latter won't meet the needs of a big chunk of the market.

BB

[slessardjr]

haha i'm glad we are agreeing and not butting heads, thats the first thing. I, myself haven't followed Apple for very long because of my age, but I have done my homework. It seems that the apple logo, after the success of iTunes +iPod, will sell almost any product. I will agree with you and say there is money there in the mid-range tower market, but they sold millions of iPhones and it didn't even have 3G capabilities, not even through a firmware update, and consumers still bought it. Granted everything that I say is opinionated, I just don't see apple caring; not unless it cuts into their profits.