# Apple leaves older Mac Pro users in the dust
**URL:** https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076
**Category:** NYSpeed Off Topic
**Created:** [January 18, 2008, 1:25pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076 "2008-01-18T13:25:35Z")
**Posts on this page:** 13
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Dr.Stevil](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Dr.Stevil)
#### Post date: [January 18, 2008, 1:25pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/1 "2008-01-18T13:25:35Z")
if they want to upgrade their video cards atleast. “It just works”, huh?
> **[GeForce 8800 GT upgrade causes headaches for some Mac Pro users](https://www.engadget.com/2008/01/18/geforce-8800-gt-upgrade-causes-headaches-for-some-mac-pro-users/)**
>
> It looks like Mac Pro users wanting to get in on some of the latest and greatest action without ditching their old system altogether are still out of luck, des...
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### Author:  [@Violator](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Violator)
#### Post date: [January 18, 2008, 4:10pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/2 "2008-01-18T16:10:26Z")
Andrew
@ Jan 18th 2008 12:11PM
So Apple pointed out that it wouldn’t work on older machines and
people ASSUMED it would work so they bought it anyway and now they
are upset?
WTF is wrong with you Engadget - report on news - dont spread FUD
Why would people assume that just because a card slot is backwards
compatible that a high end power hungry video card will work in that
old slot?
Yeah you can upgrade old machinnes but not mix and match components. If you want a video card for your old Mac Pro get a compatible card. If you want the latest and greatest well then backwards compatibility is going to get broken as brand new cutting edge components are added to new Macs.
This is an upgrade package for machines with compatible card slots - not for any PC you can physically stuff this video card into.
The upgrade even states that it will NOT work with older machines because they do not have card slots capable of working with this video card - PC users should know all about this especially gamers.
This is the equivalent of getting upset your power hungry USB 2.0. device doesn’t work in a USB 1.0 slot.
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### Author:  [@FightinMike](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/FightinMike)
#### Post date: [January 18, 2008, 6:35pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/3 "2008-01-18T18:35:23Z")
I honestly think people are being pouty and stupid about this. There is perhaps one segment of the market that has a reason to complain, and they are the mac pro buyers of very recent 2007.
Reading on the mac forums there are users bitching with single processor machines, that means they were at the earliest bought in 2006! How Dare apple not plan on supporting a card that didnt exist yet!
Furthermore, the official line from apple is that there is a firmware incompatibility that wont let users upgrade. The upshot is, firmware can be updated, just like the 6 or 7 different firmware upgrades that have happened on my macbook since I bought it. Apple is very good about keeping up on that stuff.
Thirdly, The goddamn card isnt even available in the US yet. These assholes are paying $470 to have it shipped from portugal, and over $300 to get it from the UK.
Lastly, it clearly states on the product webpage:
> System Requirements
> ```
> * Requires Mac Pro with double-wide PCI-Express 2.0 slot or two standard PCI-Express 2.0 slots.
>
> ```
Which are ONLY mac pro’s with 8 cores, released quite recently.
Yes, i agree that it sucks you cant update your very expensive machine, this very second, but how about some bloody patience. Every single time something like this happens everyone goes absolutely batshit about it. They post petitions, and get every blog on the net all worked up about it. But what happens every fucking time?
Apple responds to their user base. The iphone price drops, they offer a $200 credit, they couldve said “fuck you” and everyone still wouldve bought the damn things.
This turned into quite the rant, sorry, you dont have to read it all.
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### Author:  [@dmoffitt](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/dmoffitt)
#### Post date: [January 18, 2008, 8:31pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/4 "2008-01-18T20:31:06Z")
a Dell would have the same problems. or an HP, or a Compaq. or a home-built that also had a non-compatible EFI/BIOS/firmware/whatever.
I like apple stuff but will be the first to admit they fuck up here and there. This is not the case, this is whiney users assuming they could just drop something in and have it work, mac or not, that isn’t always the case when upgrading HARDWARE.
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### Author:  [@dmoffitt](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/dmoffitt)
#### Post date: [January 19, 2008, 9:37pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/5 "2008-01-19T21:37:19Z")
> **[NVIDIA 8800GT Option for Older Mac Pros Soon?](https://www.macrumors.com/2008/01/19/nvidia-8800gt-option-for-older-mac-pros-soon/)**
>
> With the release of the Penryn-based Mac Pros only two weeks ago, Apple introduced a new video card option for the Mac Pros -- the NVIDIA GeForce...
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### Author:  [@FightinMike](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/FightinMike)
#### Post date: [January 19, 2008, 9:49pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/6 "2008-01-19T21:49:53Z")
haha, I love Jobs’ response to nerd rage.
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### Author:  [@Violator](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Violator)
#### Post date: [January 20, 2008, 3:02am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/7 "2008-01-20T03:02:46Z")
lol @ nerd rage
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### Author:  [@Dr.Stevil](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Dr.Stevil)
#### Post date: [January 20, 2008, 4:17am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/8 "2008-01-20T04:17:46Z")
thats good to hear… I’m still shocked that it didn’t work in the first place. PCI-e 2.0 and v1 were both designed to play nice with each other (ie. you can use a 2.0 card in a 1 slot, and vice versa)
at least they’re correcting the issue
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### Author:  [@brent\_strong](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/brent_strong)
#### Post date: [January 20, 2008, 6:21am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/9 "2008-01-20T06:21:50Z")
Eh, at least Apple is being held to a higher standard. If it didn’t work in a Windows machine, everyone would just accept it and move on with their life. :lol:
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### Author:  [@Dr.Stevil](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Dr.Stevil)
#### Post date: [January 20, 2008, 7:28am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/10 "2008-01-20T07:28:52Z")
intel apple = a windows machine running osx
my 8800GT worked fine 🙂
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### Author:  [@brent\_strong](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/brent_strong)
#### Post date: [January 20, 2008, 7:32am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/11 "2008-01-20T07:32:39Z")
Naw, really?
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### Author:  [@Dr.Stevil](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Dr.Stevil)
#### Post date: [January 20, 2008, 7:38am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/12 "2008-01-20T07:38:42Z")
> [@brent\_strong](#):
>
> Eh, at least Apple is being held to a higher standard. If it didn’t work in a Windows machine, everyone would just accept it and move on with their life. :lol:
> [@dr.stevil](#):
>
> ```
> intel apple = a windows machine running osx
>
> ```
>
> my 8800GT worked fine 🙂
> [@brent\_strong](#):
>
> ```
> Naw, really?
>
> ```
👏 :funny:
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### Author:  [@brent\_strong](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/brent_strong)
#### Post date: [January 20, 2008, 7:50am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/apple-leaves-older-mac-pro-users-in-the-dust/42076/13 "2008-01-20T07:50:19Z")
And Apple is being pressured to support it…