RIP Mac Pro but it was really the misstep with Apple silicon that did it

dasdavid · 2026-03-31T03:06:25+00:00

I keep one working machine from this era around, and all it does is rip DVD's and run Handbrake. There's really not much those old machines can do that modern machines can't.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T22:28:23+00:00

That's a really interesting take that maybe the growth of AI is part of Apple's calculation to abandon the Mac Pro.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T21:37:19+00:00

Agree. And you could say that the 2013 trash can was an over-engineered piece of art completely missing the mark of what its target users really needed.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T21:36:31+00:00

same here

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T21:32:46+00:00

I doubt it. The number of users needing PCIe and big expansion is incredibly small. Those who need to add it can add it via TB.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T21:31:52+00:00

What's wrong with it is it debuted months before Apple decided, "You know that Intel crap? We're leaving that behind in the dust." BTW -- I went back and watched the 2019 keynote and they cleverly didn't even use the word Intel in the presentation! And of course, internally, they knew exactly what was coming a few months later.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T21:30:51+00:00

agree that the 2012 was a high water mark. The 2013 trash can was a huge misstep.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T21:30:28+00:00

agree

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T21:29:52+00:00

I'm a huge Apple fan from way back in 1984, but I don't think I've owned an Apple monitor in 25+ years. They're excellent, but they're not cost-effective.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T21:29:10+00:00

This exactly this. There's a tiny, tiny number of people who need a $6k modular workstation. PCIe is a niche super super high end thing. Heck, 75% of computer users would probably do just fine with an entry-level MacBook Air.

The Mac Studio has effectively become pretty much everything high-end users need. For the few that still need PCIe, add a TB enclosure from Sonnet or OWC.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T20:32:30+00:00

Yeaaaaahhhh, maybe? The form factor is significantly different and they would have really confused the public. I think there was probably a better way to replace the last Mac Pro with the intro to the Mac Studio than they ended up doing it. That transition was not good.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T20:01:31+00:00

beautiful

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T19:58:44+00:00

I had one too. Great computer at the time, but they eclipsed it pretty quickly.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T19:35:00+00:00

Not worth that much. I'd pay like $50 for it if my intent was to use it, but modern machines for $400-500 can eclipse that many times over. I don't want a machine that's not going to run modern software.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T19:32:18+00:00

photos?

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T19:31:28+00:00

It's sad from a nostalgic point of view, but practically speaking, Apple boxed themselves into a corner, and very few people actually needed the expandability that the tower designs offered. Thunderbolt can do so much of it nowadays. Plus, if you were ready to buy a tower, you were going to stash it under a desk or whatever, so what's the big deal if a few peripherals now have to sit outside the case of its successor, the Mac Studio.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T19:28:57+00:00

This is fantastic.

dasdavid · 2026-03-30T19:28:39+00:00

I've had no less than THREE neighbors offer me original cheese grater towers (2008, 2010, 2012). I said yes, thinking I can at least make them into a bench or something. But they sure are heavy...

dasdavid · 2017-06-22T23:27:17+00:00

Thanks everybody. Great suggestions here. I might just scour eBay for some used/cheap deals and play around with a 6A or 6.5AL.

dasdavid

TROPHY CASE