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Apple to Halt Mac Pro Sales in Europe Effective March 1 Over Regulatory Requirements
Apple today issued a notice to European distributors indicating that it will halt sales of the Mac Pro in Europe and select other countries as of March 1 due to new regulatory requirements going into effect on that date. The move will affect all European Union countries, as well as EU candidate countries and the four European Free Trade Association countries: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.
It is currently unclear exactly what aspect of the regulation the current Mac Pro will fail to meet.
Apple has uncharacteristically announced that a redesigned Mac Pro is due in 2013 after a lackluster update in June 2012 that included still-outdated processors and no other seemingly obvious improvements like USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt.
Update 10:17 AM: Macworld provides a bit more detail on where the current Mac Pro fails to meet the new regulation.
As of March 1, 2013, Apple will no longer sell Mac Pro in EU, EU candidate and EFTA countries because these systems are not compliant with Amendment 1 of regulation IEC 60950-1, Second Edition which becomes effective on this date. Apple resellers can continue to sell any remaining inventory of Mac Pro after March 1.
Apple will take final orders for Mac Pro from resellers up until February 18th for shipment before March 1, 2013.
Countries outside of the EU are not impacted and Mac Pro will continue to be available in those areas.
It is currently unclear exactly what aspect of the regulation the current Mac Pro will fail to meet.
Apple has uncharacteristically announced that a redesigned Mac Pro is due in 2013 after a lackluster update in June 2012 that included still-outdated processors and no other seemingly obvious improvements like USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt.
Update 10:17 AM: Macworld provides a bit more detail on where the current Mac Pro fails to meet the new regulation.
[U]nfortunately for EU customers, the Mac Pro does not comply with this standard, due to issues with power provided to its I/O ports and the placement of its fan guards. The Pro is the sole Apple product to fall under this ruling, likely due to its build - the desktop computer hasn’t had an overhaul since 2010, with a minor speed bump last June.Update 10:21 AM: Apple has issued a statement to The Loop confirming the halt for Mac Pro sales, but not offering any additional detail on the situation.
"Due to evolving regulatory requirements, Apple will stop selling Mac Pro in EU, EU candidate and EFTA countries on March 1, 2013," an Apple representative told The Loop. "After that date, resellers can sell existing inventory but Apple will no longer ship Mac Pro in those countries."Update 10:24 AM: Macworld UK has even more on the issue:
"The Mac Pro met the previous standards prior to the amendment 1 addition. Obviously it's a very safe and very reliable product," added the company.Apple representatives also confirmed to Macworld UK that the company will continue supporting existing Mac Pro machines after March 1, including replacement parts.
At issue are the large fans within the Mac Pro. Since they are unprotected, it would be possible to touch the fan blades.
"The new requirements necessitate fan guards and some increased protection on the ports on the electrical system," explained Apple.
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Top Rated Comments
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68 months ago
A company sitting on over $130B in cash and who just posted record year-over-year sales and profits (over $13B) should be ashamed of themselves for not updating their flagship product. You can't tell me that Apple hasn't made a conscious decision to let this product die. Apple is such a large company and they can't update the Mac Pro to current industry specs for over two years? Something doesn't sound right...
68 months ago
You realize this is something Apple has no control over right? This is a government regulation.
You realize this is because apple has not updated their outdated product to keep up with regulations?
68 months ago
We've all known Mac Pros are radioactive for years, just nobody wants to talk about it. :D
This opens the door for the new Mac Pro which will be 2mm thick and use SD cards (soldered to the logic board) for mass storage...
This opens the door for the new Mac Pro which will be 2mm thick and use SD cards (soldered to the logic board) for mass storage...
68 months ago
First the Java blocking debacle, now this. This is one big FU today from Apple to business/enterprise customers.
Remember that Tim Cook only promised new MacPros for "later in 2013", this could leave Europe without a stock of MacPros for a few months.
Exact quote:
Does sound like third or fourth calendar quarter 2013 to me. Not good if you need a new professional Mac this spring or summer in Europa. High and dry. Ebay might be your last resort.
All iToys all the time. Full steam ahead.
You realize this is something Apple has no control over right? This is a government regulation.
68 months ago
For the first time, I'm genuinely starting to worry.
I work in pro audio and *really* need a new Mac Pro, because my aging 1st generation quad-core no longer has the horsepower required to run modern audio plugins the way I need to.
I would be rushing to the Apple Store tomorrow, debit card in hand, if all Apple did was release exactly the same Mac Pro as they have now, but with up-to-date processor architecture and a couple of Thunderbolt connectors.
I'm all for a redesign, but only as long as Apple doesn't do one of those redesigns that entails deleting a bunch of features it thinks people no longer need. Because I'm people, and I do!
I need a minimum of three PCIe slots for Pro Tools HD, UAD2 DSP, RME MADI interfaces, etc.
I need Firewire 800. Several expensive external devices I depend on use Firewire only.
I need that built-in optical TOS-link audio output (even though I have very expensive external interfaces as well)
I need to be able to run three monitors simultaneously.
I need lots of fast, cheap, internal storage.
I realise that's a lot of "I need, I need..." But as far as my work is concerned, it really is all about me. I know more about what I need to do my job than Apple do. Apple could of course ask me...
And if anyone suggests that you can do all your expansion externally these days - even if all these devices were available as external Thunderbolt devices, which they're not - a smaller computer with half a dozen extra boxes and their power supplies all hanging off the Thunderbolt bus is in no way a more convenient or elegant solution than housing them inside the computer. My studio is enough of a tangled mess already thank you very much.
I've been an Mac owner and user since the late eighties. I still have the IIcx that I spent my life savings on in 1988 in the loft. If this European ban does turn out to be a subtle excuse for cancelling the Mac Pro line later on, then it's the end of a long happy road for me and Apple. I'm not confident that I can reliably do everything I do now on a Windows system. Plus I detest Windows. I only use Windows if someone holds a metaphorical gun to my head. I'd basically be sitting there in my studio all day, mixing with one hand and metaphorically blowing my own brains out with the other.
I hope Apple remember that it was the loyalty of professional creative arts users kept them in business thru all those difficult years. Some loyalty in return would be nice. After all, it's not as if they sell Mac Pros at a loss...
I work in pro audio and *really* need a new Mac Pro, because my aging 1st generation quad-core no longer has the horsepower required to run modern audio plugins the way I need to.
I would be rushing to the Apple Store tomorrow, debit card in hand, if all Apple did was release exactly the same Mac Pro as they have now, but with up-to-date processor architecture and a couple of Thunderbolt connectors.
I'm all for a redesign, but only as long as Apple doesn't do one of those redesigns that entails deleting a bunch of features it thinks people no longer need. Because I'm people, and I do!
I need a minimum of three PCIe slots for Pro Tools HD, UAD2 DSP, RME MADI interfaces, etc.
I need Firewire 800. Several expensive external devices I depend on use Firewire only.
I need that built-in optical TOS-link audio output (even though I have very expensive external interfaces as well)
I need to be able to run three monitors simultaneously.
I need lots of fast, cheap, internal storage.
I realise that's a lot of "I need, I need..." But as far as my work is concerned, it really is all about me. I know more about what I need to do my job than Apple do. Apple could of course ask me...
And if anyone suggests that you can do all your expansion externally these days - even if all these devices were available as external Thunderbolt devices, which they're not - a smaller computer with half a dozen extra boxes and their power supplies all hanging off the Thunderbolt bus is in no way a more convenient or elegant solution than housing them inside the computer. My studio is enough of a tangled mess already thank you very much.
I've been an Mac owner and user since the late eighties. I still have the IIcx that I spent my life savings on in 1988 in the loft. If this European ban does turn out to be a subtle excuse for cancelling the Mac Pro line later on, then it's the end of a long happy road for me and Apple. I'm not confident that I can reliably do everything I do now on a Windows system. Plus I detest Windows. I only use Windows if someone holds a metaphorical gun to my head. I'd basically be sitting there in my studio all day, mixing with one hand and metaphorically blowing my own brains out with the other.
I hope Apple remember that it was the loyalty of professional creative arts users kept them in business thru all those difficult years. Some loyalty in return would be nice. After all, it's not as if they sell Mac Pros at a loss...
68 months ago
First the Java blocking debacle, now this. This is one big FU today from Apple to business/enterprise customers.
Remember that Tim Cook only promised new MacPros for "later in 2013", this could leave Europe without a stock of MacPros for a few months.
Exact quote:
Does sound like third or fourth calendar quarter 2013 to me. Not good if you need a new professional Mac this spring or summer in Europa. High and dry. Ebay might be your last resort.
All iToys all the time. Full steam ahead.
Remember that Tim Cook only promised new MacPros for "later in 2013", this could leave Europe without a stock of MacPros for a few months.
Exact quote:
Although we didn’t have a chance to talk about a new Mac Pro at today’s event, don’t worry as we’re working on something really great for later next year.
Does sound like third or fourth calendar quarter 2013 to me. Not good if you need a new professional Mac this spring or summer in Europa. High and dry. Ebay might be your last resort.
All iToys all the time. Full steam ahead.
68 months ago
More bad news for our beloved Mac Pro.
I hope apple doesn't use this as an excuse to discontinue the Mac Pro altogether that would be a very sad day.
I hope apple doesn't use this as an excuse to discontinue the Mac Pro altogether that would be a very sad day.
68 months ago
"It is currently unclear exactly what aspect of the regulation the current Mac Pro will fail to meet."
Would be very interested to know what this is.
A failure to be competitive in a market segment most likely.
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