In new allegations, Psystar claims Apple uses so-called stealthware to protect what Psystar claims is an illegal monopoly in the Mac computing market. Specifically, Psystar contends that OS X runs a startup routine that checks whether the host computer is running on Intel dual core processors, which are included in genuine Macs. Psystar claims that if the OS discovers unapproved hardware, it shuts down. “The check stops the execution of the Mac OS on any computer that is not an Apple-Labeled Computer Hardware System,” Psystar states in court papers filed Monday in U.S. District Court in San Francisco. If that is the case, how come I can run Leopard on my sweet $359 HP Mini 1000? How does the Hackintosh movement even exist?
Psystar maintains that less-expensive chips and hardware are fully capable of running Leopard. The allegations echo charges that Apple has used embedded code to brick iPhones running nonapproved applications. They should know, they make the less expensive devices. But they work? So have the Hackintosh crowd figured out a way around the embedded code? Is it that hard? Will Apple keep making it more difficult? This is all very strange. We still don’t get what Psystar hopes to gain with all of this. Even if they win, Dell and HP will destroy them. Or who is behind it and what is their motives?
