Will Lenovo / IBM make OSX Thinkpads?

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#1 Post by **daeojkim** » Thu Jun 09, 2005 4:22 pm

So we all know now that Apple is going to switch to Intel x86 processors. Possibly to dual core Yonah platform next year.

Then the question arose about whether OSX will be able to be installed in any x86 platforms. I don't think that will be the case. We are talking about only the CPU, there are many other components in a computer than CPU that the drivers will be required to funtion correctly. It is speculated that Apple will use Intel CPU but OSX may support only specific components used in their Powerbooks.

Now would it be possible, that Lenovo will work with Apple so that OSX will work on Thinkpads? Even though Apple has given up on PowerPC processors, would it be possible that Apple and Lenovo may work together in the future?

I think this may be a gain for both Lenovo and Apple. Lenovo will be able to reach more customers that use OSX, and it may also help Apple to take some market share from Windows. This way, Apple will not have to rely heavily on hardware sales but have a balance between hardware and software. If this is in fact becomes a reality, a Thinkpad owner could use Windows, OSX, and/or Linux OS on one hardware and make Thinkpads the most versatile machine.

#2 Post by **K. Eng** » Thu Jun 09, 2005 6:03 pm

The answer is probably no.

Apple executives said that while they will not hinder an Intel Mac's ability to run Windows, they will not license OS X to other OEMs. This doesn't mean that someone won't hack a standard PC to run OS X for Intel platforms, but it does mean that Lenovo will probably never have a machine that runs OS X.

#3 Post by **BillMorrow** » Fri Jun 10, 2005 12:40 am

apparently, intel will make a special cpu for apple that will lock OS X to it, alone..

this means no OS X for x86 cpu's..

too bad.. it would be nice to have an alternative to XP..

so linux is in no danger from OS X..

#4 Post by **AlphaKilo470** » Fri Jun 10, 2005 2:44 am

If there is a lockout device and/or code, I'm pretty sure it could be hacked by some really really smart guy unless Intel shifts around the x8 architecture significantly in the chips made for Apple.

You know, on a slightly off topic though, it puzzles me why Apple has to have MacOS to themselves and why they ditched the early betas of OSX (then called rhapsody if my information is correct) for the Pentium platform. It's their software to do what they want with but I'm pretty sure if they market it properly, they could make some money off the PC market.

rideDPU · #5 Post by **rideDPU** » Fri Jun 10, 2005 8:58 am

I don't know that they have completely ditched "Rhapsody"...Jobs ran his keynote presentation from a Pentium IV computer...therefore, OS X.4 (Tiger) has been compiled to run on x86...It does seem though that we can't have our cake (Thinkpad hardware) and eat it too (OS X software)

Mark

slagmi · #6 Post by **slagmi** » Fri Jun 10, 2005 9:22 am

there are hacks already to load OSX on x86
but it is such a hassle most people won't bother

benz · #7 Post by **benz** » Fri Jun 10, 2005 11:46 am

From what I have heard (various sources over time including interviews, leaks, insider info from Apple employees, etc) Apple has been running special builds of OSX on x86 architecture (like Dell boxes) internally for nearly 5 years. They say it runs just as fast as the PowerPC equivalent, and there is no 'hack' or emulator loaded....it's simply a matter of a few lines of code being changed and recomplied. So it exists, just hasn't been leaked to the public (yet

)

#8 Post by **daeojkim** » Fri Jun 10, 2005 12:56 pm

I heard the same things that benz has talked about.

I guess that the competition that they would encounter with Windows by releasing full blown version of OSX for x8 platforms would be a huge gamble for them. With the loss of profit from drop in hardware sales, the biggest question is, would they be able to sell enough softwares to make up for the hardware sales loss.

#9 Post by **K. Eng** » Sat Jun 11, 2005 5:32 pm

According to my sources there will be no special CPUs for Apple. Special CPUs are exactly what Apple is trying to get away from because their development time is typically longer than stock x86/x64 products. Apple would likely fall behind if it used special CPUs because economies of scale and R&D dollars would not be on their side.

What Apple will do is use their own firmware or BIOS to make sure that OS X runs only on authorized Apple systems. However, I believe it is only a matter of time before there's a workaround.

BillMorrow wrote:apparently, intel will make a special cpu for apple that will lock OS X to it, alone..

this means no OS X for x86 cpu's..

too bad.. it would be nice to have an alternative to XP..

so linux is in no danger from OS X..

#10 Post by **daeojkim** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 12:09 pm

This is an intereting article about DELL wanting to sell PCs with OSX.

http://www.fortune.com/fortune/fastforw ... romoid=cnn

beeblebrox · #11 Post by **beeblebrox** » Sun Jan 22, 2006 9:13 am

Check this on Engadget.com this week:

http://www.engadget.com/2006/01/16/vide ... /#comments

does anyone know, how to get this OSX developer version?

I might want to use a second HDD with OSX in the ultrabay for using the iLife software from Apple.

Will Lenovo / IBM make OSX Thinkpads?

Will Lenovo / IBM make OSX Thinkpads?

Apple OSX is [censored] fast on ThinkPads!!!

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