The Last Mac Pro
The 2013 Mac Pro has been a disaster. After 1,056 days since its last update, Apple has proven they are no longer interested in making a computer for the high-end professional.
While the iMac has always been the computer for the rest of us, the Mac Pro has always been the computer for the professional. Free from self-imposed restrictions on size, weight, and power, the Mac Pro allowed the rest of Apple’s products to appeal to the masses while specializing in the needs of professionals who value performance first.
Introduced under the battle-cry “can’t innovate anymore my ass,” the revolutionary 2013 Mac Pro upset the balance. Innovating in a new direction few professionals wanted to go.
The 2013 Mac Pro was introduced with a substantial price increase, far less internal expansion, fewer and more expensive processor options, and a forced dual-workstation-GPU configuration even for buyers who would’ve been fine with a single GPU. Then it was abandoned for three years, during which 5K displays finally came to market, but without a good option for Mac Pro buyers.
The 2013 Mac Pro was a victim of limited configuration options in a market that values versatility and edge-case handling, poor timing behind the 5K transition, and years-long neglect. A 2017 Mac Pro need not suffer from the same issues, and could sell far better.
He’s hoping Apple gives the Mac Pro a second-chance. I think it is too late.
The 2013 Mac Pro, is the Power Mac G4 Cube of its age. An expensive concept computer with an appealing aesthetic, but limited market appeal. The difference is unlike the Cube, that got put on ice mere months after its initial release, the Mac Pro wastes away in silence.
Apple should give their pro users an olive branch here. If the Mac Pro is going to stick around, then the company should have an answer to Marco’s complaints. If there is something in the pipeline, the company should tip its hand a little. I can’t imagine sales of the Mac Pro are good anymore, so I don’t this would be a big hit on the bottom line.
A word on a future product would be more than a nice gesture, though. It would bring professional nerds — the Mac’s biggest fans — back away from the ledge a little bit.
Apple could say something, but even if they did is it worth waiting for the next generation of Xeon processors and Thunderbolt 3? Is updated I/O and the opportunity to buy a third-party 5K display enough to sell us on a future Mac Pro?
Apple is not going back to the cheese grater design from 2003. And after three years without an update, it is hard to believe Apple still has their heart in a new Mac Pro at all. Tim Cook is running the Mac Pro product line until it fails to make a profit. Then it is time to shut it down.