Mac Pro has gone without a technology update for nearly two years now. While there was speculation that Apple would announce an update to the computers at this year's WWDC, it did not happen. Instead, Apple informed customers on its website that the Mac Pro could be now bought with a faster processor and tagged it 'new'. But, when the customers realized the new processors belong to Intel's Westmere series, which was launched in 2010, and backlash began, Apple removed the 'new' tag.
Mac Pro computers are mostly used by people who produce multimedia content to earn their living. For the last few months, these users are clamouring for better hardware, including the current-generation processors and better graphics cards, in Mac Pro. There is even a group called We Want New Mac Pro on Facebook, which has received over 18,000 likes so far.
"Hello Apple. We are the creative community and we are looking for a little clarity on one of our favorite products. The Mac Pro tower. Is that too much to ask?" the group creator Lou Borella says on the Facebook page.
The processors used in the current generation Mac Pro are based on Nehalem architecture that was released by Intel in 2008. Similarly, it has graphics cards like HD 5770 and HD 5870, which were released by AMD in 2010, and are not even sold by the company in the retail market anymore. The current Mac Pros also lack features like Thunderbolt and USB 3.0 that can help professional users move data between devices faster. Incidentally, the new MacBook Pro laptops have these features.
After the WWDC two days ago Andy Hertzfeld, a computer engineer who was part of the team that worked original Mac computer in the late 1970s, blasted Apple for neglecting Mac Pro. Hertzfeld, who now works for Google, wrote on his Google+ page, "The specifications for the 'new' Mac Pro had hardly changed, except for a tiny, inconsequential processor clock bump. Still no Thunderbolt, still no USB 3.0, no SATA III or RAM speed improvements -- it seems like it's stuck in time in 2010. The only thing that's still high-end about it is the bloated price."
While some Mac Pro users have migrated to Windows computers, for many that is not an option. Most of the professional users buy Mac Pro because they work with Apple programs like Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro, which are considered best in the industry. "Final Cut Pro 8 and (new) Mac Pro please! I really don't want to move to Windows and ( Adobe) Premier," a Mac Pro user recently wrote at the We Want New Mac Pro page.
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