History of Mac Pro in Timeline

The Mac Pro is Apple's high-end workstation and server computer, positioned as the most powerful Mac available. Introduced in 2006, it is one of four desktop computers in Apple's current Mac lineup, offering significantly more performance than the Mac Mini, iMac, and Mac Studio. It caters to professionals requiring substantial computing power for demanding tasks.

June 2005: Release of the Developer Transition Kit

In June 2005, Apple released the Developer Transition Kit, which was a prototype Intel Pentium 4 Prescott–based Mac housed in a Power Mac G5 case. This was a temporary solution made available to developers.

January 2006: Transition to Intel-Based Architecture Begins

Starting in January 2006, Apple began transitioning other Mac products to an Intel-based architecture, including the iMac, Mac Mini, MacBook, and MacBook Pro. This left the Power Mac G5 as the only Mac still based on the PowerPC architecture.

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August 7, 2006: Mac Pro Formally Announced at WWDC

On August 7, 2006, the Mac Pro was formally announced at the annual Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). It was presented as an Intel-based replacement for the PowerPC-based Power Mac G5 machines.

August 2006: Introduction of the Intel-Based Mac Pro

In August 2006, Apple introduced the Mac Pro, an Intel-based replacement for the Power Mac line. The new Mac Pro featured two dual-core Xeon Woodcrest processors and retained the rectangular tower case from the Power Mac G5.

August 2006: Mac Pro Series Launch

In August 2006, Apple launched the Mac Pro, a series of workstations and servers for professionals. The Mac Pro was the most powerful computer offered by Apple at the time, positioned alongside the Mac Mini, iMac, and Mac Studio.

August 2006: PCIe Bandwidth Allocation Configuration

On the August 2006 Mac Pro, the PCIe slots' bandwidth allocation could be configured via the Expansion Slot Utility included with Mac OS X.

August 2006: Original Mac Pro PCIe Configuration

The original Mac Pro, which was introduced in August 2006, featured PCIe slots that could be individually configured to give more bandwidth to devices that required it. This provided a total of 40 "lanes" or 13 GB/s of throughput.

2006: Mac Pro Exterior Design

From 2006, the exterior design of the Mac Pro's aluminum case was very similar to that of the Power Mac G5.

2006: Mac Pro External Connectivity

In 2006, the Mac Pro included five USB 2.0 ports, two FireWire 400 and two FireWire 800 ports. Networking was supported with two built-in Gigabit Ethernet ports. 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi support required an optional module, and Bluetooth also required an optional module.

2006: Mac Pro Socket Type

The Mac Pro models introduced in 2006 used the LGA 771 socket for their CPUs.

April 4, 2007: Mac Pro Updated with Dual Quad-Core Xeon Clovertown

On April 4, 2007, the Mac Pro was updated with a dual quad-core Xeon Clovertown processor model, enhancing its processing capabilities.

April 2007: Mac Pro Refresh PCIe Configuration

The Mac Pro refresh in April 2007 featured PCIe slots that could be individually configured to give more bandwidth to devices that required it. This provided a total of 40 "lanes" or 13 GB/s of throughput.

2007: PCIe Bandwidth Allocation Configuration

On the 2007 Mac Pro refresh, the PCIe slots' bandwidth allocation could be configured via the Expansion Slot Utility included with Mac OS X.

January 8, 2008: Mac Pro Updated with Dual Quad-Core Xeon Harpertown

On January 8, 2008, Apple updated the Mac Pro with a dual quad-core Xeon Harpertown processor model.

2008: Hardwired PCIe Slots

From the Early-2008 Mac Pros onwards, the PCIe slots were hardwired with a set configuration, in contrast to the earlier models where bandwidth allocation could be configured.

2008: SATA Ports Configuration

In 2008 and earlier models, the Mac Pro had a total of six SATA ports, with four connected to the system's drive bays and two unconnected.

2008: Mac Pro Expansion Slots

In 2008, the Mac Pro featured two PCI Express (PCIe) 2.0 expansion slots and two PCI Express 1.1 slots, which provided up to 300 W of power in total.

2008: Mac Pro External Connectivity

In the Early 2008 Mac Pro, external connectivity included five USB 2.0 ports, two FireWire 400 and two FireWire 800 ports. Networking was supported with two built-in Gigabit Ethernet ports. 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi support required an optional module, but Bluetooth was standard.

2008: Mac Pro Memory Specifications

The Early 2008 Mac Pro model utilized 800 MHz ECC DDR2 FB-DIMMS for its main memory.

2008: Mac Pro Socket Type

The Mac Pro models introduced in 2008 used the LGA 771 socket for their CPUs.

2009: UATA Port Removal

In 2009, Apple removed the Ultra ATA/100 (UATA) port from the Mac Pro models. These ports were originally included in the optical drive bays.

2009: Mac Pro External Connectivity

In the Early 2009 Mac Pro, external connectivity included five USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 ports. Networking was supported with two built-in Gigabit Ethernet ports. 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi support required an optional module, and Bluetooth was standard.

2009: Mac Pro Memory Specifications

The 2009 Mac Pro and later models used 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC DIMMs for the standard models, with 1333 MHz DDR3 ECC DIMMs for systems configured with 2.66 GHz or faster CPUs.

2009: Mac Pro Socket Type

The Early 2009 Mac Pro models used the LGA 1366 socket, allowing for CPU upgrades with compatible 64-bit Intel Xeon CPUs.

2010: SSD Support via Adapters

From mid-2010, Mac Pro models and later began supporting Serial ATA solid-state drives (SSD) in the 4 hard drive bays via an SSD-to-hard drive sled adapter.

2010: Mac Pro 2010 Core Configuration Example

In 2010, the 8-core standard Mac Pro configuration used two 4-core Intel Xeon E5620 CPUs at 2.4 GHz, with an option to upgrade to two 6-core Intel Xeon X5670 CPUs at 2.93 GHz.

2010: Mac Pro Revision with Intel Xeon Processors

In 2010, the Mac Pro underwent a revision incorporating Nehalem-EP/Westmere-EP architecture Intel Xeon processors.

2010: Mac Pro External Connectivity

In the 2010 Mac Pro model, external connectivity included five USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 ports. Networking was supported with two built-in Gigabit Ethernet ports. Wi-Fi was standard.

2012: Mac Pro Core Configurations

As of 2012, Mac Pro models had been sold with 2, 4, 6, 8, or 12 cores, offering a range of processing power options.

2012: Incremental Upgrade and Criticism

Following the 2012 WWDC conference, Apple received criticism for an incremental upgrade to the Mac Pro line. The line received more default memory and increased processor speed but still used older Intel Westmere-EP processors and lacked current technologies like SATA III, USB 3, and Thunderbolt.

2012: Mac Pro Revision with Intel Xeon Processors

In 2012, the Mac Pro underwent another revision featuring Nehalem-EP/Westmere-EP architecture Intel Xeon processors.

2012: Mac Pro External Connectivity

In the Mid 2012 Mac Pro, external connectivity included five USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 ports. Networking was supported with two built-in Gigabit Ethernet ports. Wi-Fi was standard.

2012: Mac Pro Exterior Design

Through 2012, the exterior of the Mac Pro's aluminum case remained very similar to that of the Power Mac G5, with minor variations like an additional optical drive bay and I/O port arrangements.

March 1, 2013: First-Generation Mac Pro Discontinued in Europe

On March 1, 2013, Apple stopped shipping the first-generation Mac Pro in Europe due to non-compliance with an amended safety regulation. February 18, 2013, was the last day to order.

October 22, 2013: Removal of First-Generation Mac Pro from Online Store

On October 22, 2013, following the unveiling of the redesigned cylindrical Mac Pro at a media event, the first-generation Mac Pro was removed from Apple's online store.

December 2013: Release of the Cylindrical Mac Pro

In December 2013, Apple released a new cylindrical Mac Pro, often called the "trash can Mac Pro". It featured up to a 12-core Xeon E5 processor, dual AMD FirePro D series GPUs, PCIe-based flash storage, and an HDMI port. It also supported six Thunderbolt Displays through Thunderbolt 2 ports. The design, however, lacked PCIe expansion slots.

2013: Promise of a Significant Update

In 2013, Apple CEO Tim Cook promised a more significant update to the Mac Pro line in response to criticism over the incremental upgrade in 2012.

2019: Mac Pro Returns to Tower Form Factor

In 2019, the Mac Pro returned to a tower design, similar to the first-generation model, but with enhanced air cooling. It included up to a 28-core Xeon-W processor, eight PCIe slots, AMD Radeon Pro Vega GPUs, and primarily used USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 ports.

June 2020: Announcement of Mac Transition to Apple Silicon

In June 2020, Apple announced its transition from Intel processors to Apple silicon for the Mac line, a process that began in November of the same year and culminated with the 2023 Mac Pro.

2023: Mac Pro Based on Apple M2 Ultra Chip

In 2023, the Mac Pro model carried over the 2019 design and was based on the Apple M2 Ultra chip, becoming the only model with Apple silicon. Its introduction completed the Mac transition from Intel to Apple processors.