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April 28, 2008

hardware

Hey, neat: Open Computer is actually real

Posted Apr. 28, ’08, 1:15 PM PT by Dan Pourhadi
Category | Hardware

OpenComp1.jpgWe’ve written a lot about Psystar’s Open Computer Mac clone. I’d venture so far as to say we’ve written about it way too freakin’ much.

But I figure it scores pretty high on the “potentially interesting” meter, so it’s worth mentioning that the Open Computer may actually be a real, booting-and-computing machine that Pystar is actually selling and actually shipping.

Gizmodo seems to have video proof:

It’s alive. Reader Patrick (Whiskeyfrown) is lucky enough to be using one of the few Psystar Open Computing machines that have made it into the wild, and he was generous enough to make a video showing the machine (including the connections in the back to the monitor to show that it’s legit). The thing boots up and runs pretty damn fast, says Patrick, but Software Update won’t recognize it so you won’t be able to patch. System Profiler thinks that it’s a Mac Pro.

Obviously, the lack of a working Software Update means the machine is nowhere near “average consumer” class, but it still may be a viable inexpensive alternative to Apple-made Macs for serious hobbyists and technophiles. And who knows where the advent of the Open Computer may lead in terms of Mac clones.

The best thing about all this? I can hassle Derik for this post. Thank you, Psystar!


3 Comments

Jas said:

Forget whether it's vaporware or not -- isn't this the moral equivalent of saying "I'll sell you this generic cable descrambler, and I'll sell you the card you need to decode all the pay per view you want. And I'll even put it all together in a package so all you have to do is hook it up to your TV." -- aren't both buyer and seller on the hook for breaking the law?

April 28, 2008 1:47 PM
fletcher Author Profile Page said:

As a buyer I wouldn't be worried so much about legality as just the bad idea of buying a white box computer with no warranty and no official OS support to save a couple hundred bucks. If you have the ability to build and fix such a computer you can build one yourself for cheaper. If you don't have the ability to build and fix such a computer you'll do yourself a favor by buying a computer from a major manufacturer with a warranty and a support line.

A friend of mine was somewhat pissed when an Apple store refused to even look at his HP iPod, like he'd asked them to fix a Zune or something. I can just imagine how delighted the geniuses will be to get their hands on a broken Psystar.

It is good that they are shipping product rather than just ripping everybody off, but that still doesn't make the machine much of a deal.

April 28, 2008 2:36 PM
mcsey Author Profile Page said:

Can't run Software Update and can't be updated aren't the same thing. Psystar is now in the business of the impossible -- unnerfing their hardware when Apple intentionally breaks with 10.5.4.

This is a problem for Apple that is easier to design away than it is to sue away. Personally, I dig the idea, its not, not, the hardware that makes an Apple better. It's the OS, and the cheaper I can put a seat of it out, the better for me as an admin with a limited budget. However, I ain't touching these things with a long pole. Just remember the old M$ adage, "It ain't done till Novell don't run." That's 10.5.4 and Psystar.

But Steve, please buddy, can I get a CRT based Intel emac. You don't have to tell people about it. Just give me a $600 CRT based eMac. It's not sexy, but I need them to be able to poo-poo the $450 PCs I could be deploying.

April 28, 2008 2:56 PM

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