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Company selling pre-built Hackintosh


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A company called Psystar has started advertising a $399 computer called "OpenMac" which claims to be a Leopard compatible Mac built from standard PC-parts. For $399, you get a tower computer with the following specs:

 

- 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo

- 2GB of DDR2 667 memory

- Integrated Intel GMA 950 Graphics

- 20x DVD+/-R Drive

- 4 USB Ports

- 250GB 7200RPM Drive

 

Many of the components can be upgraded, however. For example, the graphics card can be updated to a GeForce 8600GT 512MB for $155 more.

 

Psystar is marketing this as a cheaper and more expandable alternative to a true Apple Mac. When comparing base configurations, the Mac Mini costs 150% of the price of the OpenMac while offering poorer performance, smaller storage space, and RAM. Not only that but the Mac Mini doesn't have the option for an nVidia GeForce 8600 video card like the OpenMac does so playing games on it is a lost cause.

 

 

The company claims that the machine is Leopard compatible with some "minimal patching" but does offer Leopard pre-installed. This is reportedly accomplished by using parts that are known to be compatible with Mac OS X Leopard, as well as the use of an EFI emulator. With the EFI V8 emulator it is possible to install Leopard's kernel straight from the DVD that you purchased at the Apple store barring the addition of a few drivers to ensure that everything boots and runs smoothly.

 

Readers should note that these claims have not been independently verified, so this should not seen as an endorsement of this product. However, the technology appears to be derived from the osx86project, which has allowed hobbyists to install Mac OS X on their non-Apple PCs.

 

The concept is an interesting possibility, and will certainly draw the attention of Apple. The use of Leopard on non Apple-branded hardware is a violation of its End User License Agreement (EULA) and is specifically prohibited.

 

 

Copied from macrumors

http://www.macrumors.com/2008/04/14/openma...not-from-apple/

 

looks like hacking the mac is going to be harder from now on with things like that on the market.

I wonder how the support works?

 

openmac.jpg

We'll know the site is gone when this picture no longer loads.

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Probably not the hacking gets harder, but this company will probably get sued their rears off from apple.

In addition their "OpenMac" doesn't come in an enclosure as small as the mac mini, so imho there is no comparison.

 

Btw., their FAQ explicitly links to this forum for information about upgrades and stuff like that.

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I wonder, is it illegal to have build a so called mac ready machine for sell without the OS in it...They should donate some $ to this site for every machine they sell if they want to link this site as reference.

 

What do you think?I hate the idea overall though.

We do this because we love the macs, we own macs and this is just for the fun of it, but to make money out of other hard work is just wrong. In my opinion.

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This is one of the most entertaining news. I know that I will enjoy watching this development. :) I know this has to happen. It's unfortunate that the company psystar refers to our forum though. Hope nothing is gonna happen to this community. :censored2:

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I think what they are doing is good, it will probably be short lived but it brings attention to the demand of a regular tower without pointless Xeons. I dont see them "cashing in" on anything, just look at the price, they are probably making barely any money from these machines and they dont pretend like they invented OS X on a PC. They dont mean to rip anybody off.

It's unfortunate that the company psystar refers to our forum though. Hope nothing is gonna happen to this community. :)

Why? You think Apple doesnt know about this site? I can assure you they are very aware. This site is legal and is in no danger. Its been around for a long time and is probably the biggest mac forum on the net, bigger than macrumors, its not a well kept secret among "insiders"

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Apple is so gonna fry their ass.

 

I argree :)

 

They sure will but I hope someone at Apple's will think of building a headless Mac without the Mac Pro price-tag.

 

Argee x2

 

Hope nothing is gonna happen to this community. :(

 

I think it's maybe time for making the forum a password protected forum...

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Why? You think Apple doesnt know about this site? I can assure you they are very aware. This site is legal and is in no danger. Its been around for a long time and is probably the biggest mac forum on the net, bigger than macrumors, its not a well kept secret among "insiders"

Hi idividebyzero,

 

Well, I didn't say Apple does not know the existence of this forum or what we are doing here. Why did you think that I am assuming that Apple doesn't know the existence of this forum anyway? Just curious.

 

And "Its been around for a long time and is probably the biggest mac forum on the net, bigger than macrumors, its not a well kept secret among "insiders"" does not support your argument, "... and is in no danger".

 

I really want to see Apple's end-user license agreement to be tried in the court of law because it dictates what software cannot be installed on my machine even if I paid for the software. In U.S. this dictation was never tried as far as I know. But at the same time, since what we all are doing here is never tried in the court of law, I am just worrying about that. With this incident, Apple might think that their revenue is being threatened. So if Apple try what we are doing in this forum based on their license agreement regardless of right or wrong, we need money to fight with Apple in the court, but hey, we just don't have that kind of money. In that sense, I simply wished nothing happens to this forum while Apple and Psystar are doing their business in (or out of) the court.

 

Best wishes,

Stravaganza

 

P.S. I agree with your argument "This site is legal" (as long as someone pays the bills to the company which hosts this website, and we don't deliver big-time secrets to space aliens or whatever to sell our nations or countries). But I know that we are breaking one of Apple's end-user license agreement clauses, about Leopard being installed on Apple-brand computer only. I, however, believe this is an unfair practice. And want to see what the court has to say about this practice.

 

I dont see them "cashing in" on anything, just look at the price, they are probably making barely any money from these machines and they dont pretend like they invented OS X on a PC. They dont mean to rip anybody off.

P.P.S. Each and every one of us has been spending non-negligible money and time to make his hackintosh machine as a hobby. Psystar tries to make money and run business out of our accumulated knowledge. (I am not just talking about their charge for OpenMac machines. I am talking about free publicity, consumer awareness of the company, and the synergy to other sections of their business. Yesterday, I didn't know about Psystar. Today I am writing about them. It's working. If they really started OpenMac to "help" people, they could put in their mission statement such intention. Well, they didn't. Look at the upgrade prices, Leopard DVD price that they are selling, and shipping and handling fees. They are in this for money.) This is not acceptable because it's not ethical; I am not their workhorse.

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I think what they are doing is good, it will probably be short lived but it brings attention to the demand of a regular tower without pointless Xeons. I dont see them "cashing in" on anything, just look at the price, they are probably making barely any money from these machines and they dont pretend like they invented OS X on a PC. They dont mean to rip anybody off.

 

Why? You think Apple doesnt know about this site? I can assure you they are very aware. This site is legal and is in no danger. Its been around for a long time and is probably the biggest mac forum on the net, bigger than macrumors, its not a well kept secret among "insiders"

 

In my opinion, This site maybe well known but let's say for a new person, it is not that easy to build a hackintosh. You need to find the right compatible parts, the os, or even hack the os, and patch and setting and a lot more. Even after all of that you are not guaranty a well build or so called 99% perfect build hack. If these guys is gonna build it for you and even install it, updates and service, the number of hack will be big and it is not just a regular hobby project anymore. It might start to hurt the mac market. Thurs this site might no longer be in the corner but in center of their eyes.

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I hope this will not have consequences for the OSx86 scene.

 

Maybe this would make Apple consider introducing some kind of stupid serial codes or make them develop mechanisms that will make installing OSX (which is a wonderful OS) much harder on vanilla x86 systems.

 

What do you think, will the next version be better protected?!?

 

I really hope that the things will stay this way because I'm using my Hackintosh exclusively since a few month, and I would really not like to go back to the M$-Hell ;-)

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yea i am worried too that they shouldnt have bothered godzilla (apple) and that way osx86 was much under radar, for the hobbyists like us.

 

but this company is smart. see the amount of press attention they have got. once apple sends them cease and desist, they will stop the pre-installed option and may be tweak a name little bit (OpenMc or something), they can see to those who are looking to try and give it a shot of themselves. many noobies that you find in this forum asking for what hardware, could go ahead and buy that and install it. The company would have never gotten that attention otherwise.

 

but apple may not act bastardly and make hacking harder, not to mention though that they have smarter people on other side of the fence also (remember iPhone story)

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