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Why wouldn't they? If a Sun Blade 100 is a workstation and I can do the same tasks faster on a Mac mini or Mac Pro why wouldn't they be workstations. Don't get

Why wouldn't they? If a Sun Blade 100 is a workstation and I can do the same tasks faster on a Mac mini or Mac Pro why wouldn't they be workstations. Don't get too hung up on labels they can distract from what is front of you. If Apple Silicon actually is an entire motherboard shrunk to die size the shrunken die motherboard will be faster. Place that chip onto a larger motherboard and you get real efficiencies that are hard to compare. Why worry it someone calls it a workstation. That has to be one of the world's most boring technical arguments.

wkat4242 3y ago
Well, workstation implies a lot. And the price. It's not just a marketing term. It implies more PCIe lanes than a normal desktop (which in this case is not being realised) and better graphics capability for intensive tasks. The latter is up for debate. I'd imagine a 4090 equipped HEDT still kicks its ass in most workstation-type workloads. The unified memory is great for LLM style tasks of course and it's one of the few ways to get a GPU setup with over 100GB for less than $100k. PS Not sure how the comparison with a 20 year old system applies though ;)
- detourdog 3y ago
  I think you are making up your own yardstick and claiming it’s universally accepted. One instance is that PCI lanes didn't exist when the term was conjured up therefore can’t be part of inherent definition. The mac pro has 64 lanes acroos 6 slots. PCI-e external expansion is another 8 ports of expansion limited to 40 GB/s. Unfortunately the concept of lanes doesn't seem to exist for external PCI-e ports so its hard to judge if those would count as more lanes than a normal desktop. The 20 year old workstation is to demonstrate that the slab form factor has been called a workstation from the beginning.
  - wkat4242 3y ago
    It's because the term itself has changed. Not every PC is a workstation. These days we call it that if it has at least HEDT or server hardware. More PCIe lanes than desktops comes with that. Even Apple's previous Mac Pros have been matching that definition.
    - detourdog 3y ago
      Which standard body is that we? It's has always been a subjective term and I believe it has more to do with output than consumption of resources during a compute cycle. There is no reason to try to dispute some claim to the term.

wkat4242 3y ago

Well, workstation implies a lot. And the price. It's not just a marketing term. It implies more PCIe lanes than a normal desktop (which in this case is not being realised) and better graphics capability for intensive tasks. The latter is up for debate. I'd imagine a 4090 equipped HEDT still kicks its ass in most workstation-type workloads. The unified memory is great for LLM style tasks of course and it's one of the few ways to get a GPU setup with over 100GB for less than $100k. PS Not sure how the comparison with a 20 year old system applies though ;)

detourdog 3y ago
I think you are making up your own yardstick and claiming it’s universally accepted. One instance is that PCI lanes didn't exist when the term was conjured up therefore can’t be part of inherent definition. The mac pro has 64 lanes acroos 6 slots. PCI-e external expansion is another 8 ports of expansion limited to 40 GB/s. Unfortunately the concept of lanes doesn't seem to exist for external PCI-e ports so its hard to judge if those would count as more lanes than a normal desktop. The 20 year old workstation is to demonstrate that the slab form factor has been called a workstation from the beginning.
- wkat4242 3y ago
  It's because the term itself has changed. Not every PC is a workstation. These days we call it that if it has at least HEDT or server hardware. More PCIe lanes than desktops comes with that. Even Apple's previous Mac Pros have been matching that definition.
  - detourdog 3y ago
    Which standard body is that we? It's has always been a subjective term and I believe it has more to do with output than consumption of resources during a compute cycle. There is no reason to try to dispute some claim to the term.