Psystar looks to grab its 16th minute of fame with its new Xserve clones
Oh Psystar, you incorrigible little rascal of a company! Despite largely unfavorable reviews of its Open Computer desktop which runs a hacked version of OS X Leopard, Psystar has decided to bring it special brand of loud and unreliable hacked Mac clones to the workplace. Behold the OpenServ 1100 and OpenServ 2400.
Like Psystar’s $400 desktop offering, the OpenServ 1100 ($1599.99) and OpenServ 2400 ($1999.99) offer slightly better tech specs than Apple’s current server offerings as well as more customization options, all for a lower price. Of course, the catch is once again the hardware comes with a quirky, hacked together version of OS X Leopard that may cause more trouble than the savings are worth.
Still, if you are one of those people who is so against Apple’s insistence on controlling both the hardware and software in its offerings that you would risk losing countless frustrating hours trying to get little things (like sound to play or updates to install) just to save a few bucks, these may be just the thing.
That’s funny, I was just talking about psystar to my friend. we were wondering what happened to them. why didn’t Apple ever sue them? I guess ’cause their stuff isn’t all that threatening?
Apple Legal is letting Psystar get famous, but soon will crush the hopes and dreams of the two people who actually bought it’s products… The CEO and his mom…
-But seriously, I would find it hard to believe that Apple Legal is not watching Psystar right now and getting ready to strike…
Apple’s lawyers could have them down in 10 mins… and castrate the CEO and throw him in jail if they wanted to. Question is, why haven’t they?
I highly doubt Apple is reconsidering cloning, but Psystar has an interesting product mix, and maybe Apple is watching closely to see if there’s any market interest in a cheap upgradable mac mini-tower.
It’s Mac market research done for free and at the expense of someone else.
Doc, as you can see, Psystar tried to copy even the reflection on the promotional pic. The results are quite explicative of Psystar aptitudes.
The reason Apple Legal hasn’t come down on them is obvious… nothing is better publicity to Apple or its plan’s on retaining control of hardware quality than a subpar flaky 3rd party hacked together system that barely runs the mail.app. The only proof needed that Apple is doing the RIGHT thing by retaining control of hardware is Psystar.
lol, so you think they’ll just let Prystar tread the waters of cheaper, more customizable Macs, and if they’re successful Apple Legal will shoot them down and Apple will start a new product line of what the Psystar promises to be?
Unfortunately, this article is as ill-informed as the subsequent commentary.
First, the open computer does not run a “hacked together” version of OSX, it runs the retail version. Nothing is hacked about it. What IS hacked is the EFI emulator. Seriously, just a few seconds of research would have made this clear.
Second, this rampant speculation about why Apple isn’t suing is absurd, No one here has any empirical evidence to support their views. In fact, past history shows that Apple will be mostly unconcerned about Psystar until it makes some form of headway in the market, because they do no wish to have to have their EULA held to legal scrutiny unless absolutely necessary.
Third, there is no need for APple to do “market research” to see if a mid-priced mac tower would sell. They know full well that it will. The problem is that it would sell to the people who currently buy the mac pro, thus undercutting their own market, and significantly reducing profits. This is why the original clones were discontinued, as Jobs saw that it was only taking machine sales away from the high end.