Apple Macworld Announcements

[Nowhere]

Other than a speed boost, what other benefits do Intel MACs have? I mean, what will get the masses to switch? I've always been interested in getting a MAC, but like everyone else, It didn't seem feasible. So I am interested in hearing what you all think now that MACs will be based on Intel chips? Does this change the playing field enough?

As I hinted above, I hope that low-end Macs will get cheaper thanks to this. Up to this point Apple had to use separate GFX chip and memory for it, perhaps even some chips for audio or fireware, etc. (I don't know really - but chipsets for PPC aren't as nice for desktop/laptop use as x86 ones). Now they can use very integrated solution. And perhaps for buying everything in one place, and for publicity, Intel gave some discounts, who knows?

[mmp121]

I heard on TV today that you can install Windows on the intel macs, is that true?

Some more hard facts on what you heard:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10794396/from/RS.3/

SEATTLE - Apple Computer Inc. won't thwart users from loading Microsoft's Windows operating system onto its new Intel-based Macintosh computers _ but don't expect Apple to start offering a Mac running Windows.

Phil Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, said in an interview Tuesday that the company won't sell or support Windows itself, but also hasn't done anything to preclude people from loading Windows onto the machines themselves.

Makes perfect sense to me. Give those who want to dable with OS X the comfort of being able to also dual/triple - boot into Windows/Linux. Smart move on their part. I would think that this move alone will allow Apple to get more "converts". Good for them.

[Jessterw]

Those same facts were around months ago, it's nothing new. What is new(er) is that the Intel boards have a non-traditonal BIOS, EFI.

http://www.intel.com/technology/efi/

So Windows XP isn't going to run, out of the box, on a Intel Mac system. I would assume Vista will support EFI given there are some DRM features inherently possible.

[Nowhere]

What about Windows 2003?

[Marshmallowman]

I heard about EFI quite a while ago(posted here), I was wondering when we would see the first implementation of it.
Kind of looks like apple will be grabbing the latest and greatest from the x86 world without the legacy crap...except maybe intels current half arsed emt64 may be a step backwards

[Wombat]

I heard about EFI quite a while ago(posted here), I was wondering when we would see the first implementation of it.

The first implementation was out years ago. All IA-64 machines run EFI, and some x86 servers.