Apple slips out G5 chip details

Daily Newsletters

Topics

NEWS

Apple Computer appears to have let the cat out of the bag regarding its forthcoming line of desktop Power Macs. The Mac maker posted specifications for a new line of Power Macs powered by a G5 processor, according to a number of reports. The machines run far faster than Apple's current lineup, which tops out at 1.42Ghz, the reports said. According to screen shots taken by enthusiast sites including MacMinute, the new Macs range in speed from 1.6GHz to a dual 2GHz, all using a new G5 processor. The machines also were touted as having up to 8GB of memory, a 1GHz processor bus, Serial ATA disk drives, AGP 8x Pro graphics from either ATI or Nvidia and three PCI or PCI-X expansion slots. The machines were also said to come with three USB 2.0 ports, one Firewire 800 port and two FireWire 400 ports as well as optical and analogue audio in and out ports. Apple has been widely expected to introduce new Power Macs running IBM's faster 970 processor at Monday's Worldwide Developer Conference, however the accuracy of the Apple Store posting could not be independently verified. An Apple representative declined to comment on the posting. The information was reported to have been briefly posted on the existing Power Mac G4 page of the Apple Store. According to enthusiast site MacNN, the Apple store was then briefly unavailable and when it came back, the G5 information was removed. The apparent lapse in security is unusual for Apple, which keeps its new products a tightly guarded secret. The company has been particularly aggressive in trying to keep a lid on information regarding its new chip architecture. IBM announced plans for the chip last October. At the time sources close to IBM indicated the chip would be used by Apple, but the chipmaker has said little on the fate of the 970 processor since then. Several Mac enthusiast sites that have posted alleged details on the G5-based Power Macs, including AppleInsider, say they were forced to take down their articles by Apple's legal department.

See Chips Central for the latest headlines on processors and semiconductors. To find out more about the computers and hardware that these chips are being used in, see ZDNet UK's Hardware News Section. Let the Chips Central editor know what you think by email. And sign up for the weekly Chips Central newsletter.

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in.

You can also log in with Facebook. Log in or create your ZDNet UK account below

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy. Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Community FAQ

ZDNet UK Live

For Gnome 2 die-hards, it is possible to add icons to the bottom panel (or top top panel, if you prefer) which provide the exact Gnome 2...

28 minutes ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

Your comments would seem pretty naive and immature. Your 'solution' appears to be, "gee, let's all just give in to the hackers and give them...

41 minutes ago by ramwellian on Cloud computing security: no more oxymoron?

"Interesting thought ... If you installed Win7 as a dual boot on a machine that previously only had Linux, and it wrecked your Linux installation,...

60 minutes ago by BugStalker on Windows 7 Declares War on GRUB

This is an excellent summary of Ubuntu and Mint and the interface differences between them. Most such articles take a very partisan position for...

1 hour ago by whs001 on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

@ewallace. Not so clear. Anyone can obtain the text, for example from here http://www.ustr.gov/webfm_send/2379. I support ACTA so long as it and...

1 hour ago by Moley on ACTA: Facts, misconceptions and questions

I think WinRT is fantastic. I just wish it was an option for people that didn't want to go through Microsoft's App Store with its attendant...

4 hours ago by 45283 on Why Windows 8 needs architectural hygiene for WOA

Nine people? £30m? Who's back pocket is that lot going in? And IF they say it is for new buildings, what about all the ones the government has...

6 hours ago by Burn-IT on Police set to launch three £30m e-crime hubs

Just to be clear, nobody knows what is in the text of ACTA, here is a photograph of the text of ACTA http://twitpic.com/8h9iju as submitted to the...

6 hours ago by ewallace on ACTA: Facts, misconceptions and questions

Unfortunately main issue is that ASUS is refusing to accept that they make some mistake on this version of asus Transformer prime. 1 - GPS sensor...

7 hours ago by fgvrg56 on Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime Wi-Fi & GPS problems?

@Marcus A fair question. Just talked with Archos which said it was working on an announcement for next week....

8 hours ago by Ben Woods on Archos confirms G9 Ice Cream Sandwich update schedule

Any update on this, considering the claimed "first week of February"?

9 hours ago by via Facebook on Archos confirms G9 Ice Cream Sandwich update schedule

Bill Goodrich : Just as al_langevin pointed out, with Windows Server 2008 there is no Services for Macintosh anymore. It's gone, not available....

17 hours ago by apexwm on Windows Server 2008 drops the ball for Mac compatibility

Replying to an old topic that I'm currently facing with my CEO (who is on a Mac). Our servers are primarily Windows Servers, office is about...

24 hours ago by txtrainguy on Windows Server 2008 drops the ball for Mac compatibility

Sure, that makes perfect sense. Pay wrong-doers money and thank them for breaching your security and pointing out your flaws, that would surely...

1 day ago by k0tcs3 on US indicts Romanian over NASA climate change hack

I think he's referring specifically to Android apps, as Apple do regulate their App Store, but Google seem to let any old crap onto the Android store!

1 day ago by Random_Error on RIM: BlackBerry will keep 'garbage' apps out of store