Despite Apple’s recent surge of product releases and refreshes, Apple has yet to refresh their Mac Pro with new Sandy Bridge processors and high-speed Thunderbolt I/O ports. Judging by hardware availability, however, it seems we could see one in the 4th quarter.
The reason for Apple’s lack of refreshed Mac Pros, as it turns out, may be the lack of available and suitable Sandy Bridge processors to put in them, despite Rumors that Apple might be using a custom-built Intel processor for the new machines.. The Sandy Bridge-E processor that is expected to be used in the new Mac Pros was rumored to possibly be released early for Apple’s benefit, but unfortunately these rumors didn’t pan out. Intel now suggests that the new processors should be ready for mass distribution in Q4 2011 – potentially only a couple of months away.
There have been a number of rumors circulating surrounding the Mac Pro. The Mac Pro has been due for an update for some while now – and many thought it would be refreshed alongside the recently updated Mac Minis. Rumors have suggested that new Mac Pros might get a new 16-core processor option, and a possible redesign of the case to make it rack-mountable.
Personally, I’m banking on a completely redesigned new Mac Pro – the current Mac Pro has a ton of wasted space, and also includes available slots for 4 optical drives (or 5.25-inch drives), which is simply no longer necessary (if it ever was).
