Monday, April 15, 2013

Mac Pros? More like Mac Woes

It has been three years since Apple has given any sort of major overhaul to the Mac Pro line. Given Apple's current fiasco with Final Cut X (replacing the industry-standard Final Cut with some iMovie / Final Cut hybrid update that completely lost their market share and gave it directly to Avid), a lack of an update on this line of computers seems like another step away from catering to their professional creative demographic.

In an email response from Apple CEO Tim Cook, he confirms a major update to the line of Mac Pros this 2013, saying not to worry, and that "we're working on something really great for next year". One is led to believe that it is a major update and not a minor hardware update because he specifically mentions the small spec bump the line received last year, and then goes on to mention "something really great" in typical Steve Jobs fashion.

Rumors are swirling about when the release of the new update will be and when it will be announced. MacDailyNews, a source with a hit-and-miss track record when it comes to confirmed rumors, announced that one of its sources claimed that Apple will be announcing the update during the month of April. Don't hold your breath.

An update at this time would be a much-needed reassurance in the direction Apple is taking as a company. With so many studios and production companies using only Macs in-house (and many still using outdated versions of Final Cut), people are looking for any way to avoid having to restructure their entire corporate workflow. A renovated line of Mac Pros would show that Apple still cares about the prosumer and the professional, and maintain their relationship with their customers that has been very tenuous as of late.

With Apple's extreme push towards the casual consumer, with the user-friendly (to a fault) iOS, the beautiful yet impossible to open new iMac, and the absolute maiming of Final Cut Pro, Apple needs to remember what market stayed with them in the beginning and pushed their brand for all of these years.

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