Psystar planning Mac OS-based notebook
Psystar is working on a Mac OS-based notebook that will round out its Mac clone product line.
Mac clone maker Psystar will soon have a Mac OS X-based notebook to join its desktop products, such as the Open Computer seen here.
(Credit: Psystar)A company representative confirmed a message sent to an AppleInsider reader indicating that a Psystar notebook using Mac OS is in development, although it's not clear when it will arrive. Psystar has of course been selling Mac OS X desktops for over six months, much to the chagrin of Apple's lawyers.
Building a notebook, however, is a very different undertaking than a desktop. The average person reading this article could slap together a desktop PC while watching a football game on a Saturday afternoon, using off-the-shelf parts from an electronics store like Fry's. And there has always been a thriving market for so-called "white box" desktops built by local shops such as Psystar and distributed to small businesses.
A comparable market does not exist for notebooks. Most notebooks are almost completely assembled by system builders in China or Taiwan, and then distributed by big companies once the final build is complete. Some places sell so-called "barebones" notebooks, but very few people seem to be interested in building their own notebooks.
However, PC companies sure are. It's an old story that virtually all the growth in that market has come from notebooks over the past two or three years, and just this week IDC announced that notebook shipments have overtaken desktops in the U.S. market for the first time in the history of the industry.
I e-mailed Psystar CEO Rudy Pedraza wondering if the company is assembling a notebook in-house or whether they have struck up a relationship with one of the big contract manufacturers in Asia. I didn't hear back immediately, but I'll update this post when and if he returns the message.
Tom Krazit writes about the ever-expanding world of Internet search, including Google, Yahoo, online advertising, and portals, as well as the evolution of mobile computing. He has written about traditional PC companies, chip manufacturers, and mobile computers, spending the last three years covering Apple. E-mail Tom. 
No thanks, I will stick with something that I KNOW someone has taken great care in building, and supporting.
If that's the sort of computing experience you want, you are welcome to it. But that's the sort of computing experience Apple tries to avoid with their machines.
"Dunno about you, but my Hackintosh is running just fine. Of course, I built it to my own specifications, but still, it has run without a hitch since I installed it roughly six months ago. "
I rebuilt an engine for my pickup last year and it's running just fine. I'm just saying this because it has as much to do with the subject as your post does.
Did you have anything to say about Psystar notebooks?
As mentioned by foresmac1, Psystar appears to have lacked a bit in the quality control department. Funny thing is, I was able to build a far higher-spec machine at a lower overall price, yet get the full OSX experience.
IOW, OSX itself is pretty awesome w/o the need for Apple-blessed hardware.
"Nice one, Dan, but actually, the relevance is there. Just because one person cannot get OSX to run well on a non-Apple PC does not immediately mean that OSX is somehow lacking. "
Why didn't you say that instead? That's a much more reasonable and less insulting comment than the one you posted earlier.
I'm glad to see Psystar is still alive. There's a company by the name of Axiotron that sells a Mac tablet: http://www.axiotron.com/index.php?id=modbook. I suppose Apple is leaving them alone since they are buying Macbooks (paying the Apple tax) and then modifying them. I'd love to see the Macs go the OEM route and drive the prices down.
I'll take the bait. Would you care to provide examples to back up your assertions, such as the first "cheap shot?" I'm actually using Psystar's product to leave this comment, and have covered them pretty extensively since they surfaced.
Cool, once Psystar loses their case, and their ass for that matter, this posting will allow Apple to come and confiscate your illegal piece of equipment. Now maybe you can go buy some marijuana to try out or a counterfeiting machine and make some money too and try it out.
At worst, Apple will simply get Psystar to stop making/selling the boxes, then recover whatever monetary damages they can. After that, the buck stops cold. Psystar owners would simply be left without support, but can still run/keep their machines.
/P
"At worst, Apple will simply get Psystar to stop making/selling the boxes, then recover whatever monetary damages they can. After that, the buck stops cold. Psystar owners would simply be left without support, but can still run/keep their machines. "
And yet even after Apple and Psystar have met initially and agreed to settle this issue out of court where all details will be private, Psystar has not only ceased production of their products, but is in fact expanding them now to include a notebook.
That doesn't sound like Apple is doing much to shut them down. It looks more like they are permitting it and that may set a bad precedent for any further challenges.
That is the point here.
It is apparent that senior staff continue to see "talk" as qualifications rather than being computer editors and checking on story validity and qualifications.
Why am I a rant about this? Because Apple hardware is only as complicated as generic PC makers. This applies to cases and/or laptops. Apple is a little better at laptops because they actually deal with the "case" bit of the hardware.
But other than an EFI emulator, the hardware is the same.
And if anyone has dealt with Apple's plastic cheap white laptops before, the bar isn't that high for Psystar to achieve a decent clone knock-off.
Making a desktop is far easier, which is probably why Psystar started with that. Making a notebook is far more complicated, and design and style is crucial. I didn't say Psystar was incapable of doing so, and since we don't know if they have a relationship with an ODM or whether they are going alone, it's hard to know what they have planned. But this is certainly more difficult than building a desktop.
Tom is talking about the much broader commitment that you need to make in order to mass produce laptops and not the complexity (or lack thereof) of building a single laptop that is capable of running OSX.
I wish commentators such as yourself would only be as qualified as Tom.
Your rants are categorically wrong, especially in regards to notebook designs. If our assertions were true, Apple wouldn't consistently be winning awards and accolades for their designs. They wold just be another POS computer that no one gives a crap about.
Yes, Apple's machines now use the same x86-based platform as other PC makers, but that it no way mean the hardware is "the same." Apple may choose to use some of the same components, but the mobos, the choice of components, the custom cases, all that is different than the majority of commodity PCs.
Tom Krazit
and
kojacked
Please open a MAC laptop case - look inside - there should be a label somewhere that reads "Taiwan".
Reports from this october show that about 90% of the world's laptops are made in Taiwan yet alone adding that from China.
The only challenge is finding a factory that will produce (in mass) to your specs and tolerations.
This is also where Apple makes most of it's laptops.
http://apple20.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2008/10/09/apples-new-macbooks-spy-photos-from-taiwan/
Again reporting and facts, go the way of those that live by propaganda instead.
So, the level of complexity is *much* higher, exactly as Krazit says it is. The fact that there are a few off the shelf components in a given laptop has nothing to do with it.
Krazit's piece is correct.
Cnet.com is one of the most commonly visited websites on the entirety of the internet, if not THE most commonly sought after site for technology information.
I think I trust their judgement on any matters regarding this issue as WELL as their judgement in whom to employ.
Sod off.
Its a site. if you like it visit it, if you dont ..... DONT
Otherwise, just buy a legal Mac if you want Mac. It's kinda like people who dream about owning a ferrari, and then buy kits that make it look like you have a ferrari, but it is a fake and everyone knows it.
Very interesting indeed. I really wish we could find out what that agreement turns out to be.
Yeah I can believe that part.....but I don't believe you.....cite your source.
I appreciate that you want to question the source of the information. That shows that you're not just a sheep following the rest of the flock and know when to ask questions. Asking questions reasonably will get a better response and I think your request is very much justifiable.
DrtyDogg:
Thanks for link in the CNET article for the source.
Foresmac1:
They have until January 31st, 2009 to *start* their sessions officially, and those will be a matter of public record. Until then, everything is off the books so to speak.
In a ComputerWorld interview, Psystar's lawyer stated that no settlement will occur and that there's no reason to bother with the mediation (known as "Alternative Dispute Resolution" in CA courts). He also stated, "Apple is simply wrong" and that Psystar is going to win both lawsuits (Psystar's lawsuit and Apple's counter-suit) easily.
From those statements, it doesn't sound to me like there will be an out-of-court settlement between Apple and Psystar. If anything, it sounds like they're willing to follow this thing through to the bitter end. Also, for their part, Apple hasn't budged from their original stance (i.e. that Psystar's lawsuit has no merit). So, they probably won't wait for the January 2009 deadline to hold the ADR session. From what the lawyer has said, it seems likely that the case will proceed on November 6, the original date set for the parties to argue Apple's motion to dismiss Psystar's lawsuit.
https://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9117641
I think everyone in the tech industry *except* those with EULA's that are a bit too draconic are rooting for Psystar at this point if only to finally clarify what in a EULA can be enforced. Apple is very much playing Goliath in this situation and it's not a positiion they are familiar with nor one they want from a PR perspective.
I want Apple to defend their stand. I want Psystar to defend theirs. Mostly I want some sort of answer to these questions which have up until now been largely untested.
For good or bad, let's at least get this into the courts to get a decision.
When did this happen? They are supposed to meet in some sort of non-binding arbitration and I don't that has yet happened.
Good catch on that one. I should have phrased it better.
Thanks.
Frankly I think Apple has a perfect opportunity to buy this company or at least invest in it. Allowing a avenue to introduce a affordable line of computers that run OS X. They could allow Psystar to run as a separate company and maintain the updates as such for their computer models. As a crude example it would be like Toyota/ Lexus.
Remove OSX retail copies and only allow authorized purchases by either mailing the CD's to legitimate users tied to the unique serial# of their Mac. This is only an option but with Snow Leopard coming soon, your POS OSX clone would effectively be stuck at 10.5.x and lose all future updates. And serves those buyers well too.
Frankly I think Apple has a perfect opportunity to buy this company or at least invest in it. Allowing a avenue to introduce a affordable line of computers that run OS X. They could allow Psystar to run as a separate company and maintain the updates as such for their computer models. As a crude example it would be like Toyota/ Lexus."
A win-win would be for Apple to allow Pystar to become an authorized Apple reseller, but to stop selling Mac clones of any sort. As to cheap computers running OSX Apple will probably not allow Pystar, or anyone else, sell any Mac not designed by Apple.
Also assuming that Psystar stays in business, people who are price aware (and who isn't in this economy) will look at the price of a Psystar product and an Apple product for hundreds if not a thousand dollars or more for what they perceive as the same thing- a laptop running OS X. That will make it nearly impossible for Apple to justify their high prices to the public's mindset. Regardless of the validity of the brand, people do not think that way.
Now whether or not what they are doing is legal is an entirely separate issue.
After Apple worked so hard to kill off most of the independent Apple resellers? Not a chance.
Remove OSX retail copies and only allow authorized purchases by either mailing the CD's to legitimate users tied to the unique serial# of their Mac."
Remember those Proof-of-Purchase coupons we used to get with the Mac OS package? I don't think that Apple ever used them for an upgrade, but something like that may work.
It's tricky in the wording, but it is one of the points that Apple is using to defeat Psystar.
Since I clearly stated that I don't own a Psystar machine, but work closely in my business with two people who DID buy them, NO, I do not have one. Nor do I want one. 50% of my business depends on uninterrupted productivity. The other 50% depends on the creativity of my designers. With that in mind, I keep 7 Macs and 1 Windows PC up and running at all times. Only one of those machines has issues, and I don't have to say which one it is. I didn't mess with it, I didn't add anything to it, it just is a piece of garbage.
How's this one for you...
I have both Macs and PCs. I have 4 Macs that predate the Intel switch and have had zero issues with them other than once in a blue moon quirk (which is expected with any computer). One of my PCs however has had just about all the components replaced due to hardware failures, which I don't mind one bit since it's (well they are) my hobby machine. The average PC is not comparable in quality to the average Mac and I have worked enough on both to say that without thinking twice about it.
Sure it probably doesnt have Apple's refinement, but then does it carry the Apple tag at any point. No isnt that the point that you should bare in mind.
.......You get what you pay for
I think "Your Frustration, Our Fault" is the Microsoft motto :-)
The web is full of wikis and how-tos on using Mac OS X on Thinkpads, MSI Winds, and just about any hardware with a compatible processor and chipset.
I'd imagine they'd choose from a catalog of models by some asian manufacturer and stick their name on it.
I can understand why Apple is not opening up OS X to just any computer hardware.
Apple maintains a good computer experience because it controls so much of it. From design to hardware selection to limiting upgrades. Yes, this does get expensive doing it this way for the consumer. I myself was hoping for a Apple laptop in the $750 or so range. I continue to think Apple has made a mistakes not offering a more affordable laptop. This is almost as bad as the iPhone being limited to At&T in the US. It just takes prospective buyer's off the table from the get go. I admire Psystar for trying to change this. But probably not in the right way.
- by FCBarca October 30, 2008 12:10 PM PDT
- I love the idea
- Like this Reply to this comment
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