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Announced in 2023 during a summer presentation, the M2 Ultra chip became the company’s most powerful computing solution. Of course, it would be strange to present such a solution and not use it. It was the M2 Ultra chip that received the updated Mac Studio computer. This is already his second generation. The predecessor pleasantly surprised us with its high performance, compactness and wide possibilities for interaction with different interfaces. What the 2023 Mac Studio is, and what the transition to a new chip gave it, we will look at in this material.
Mac Studio Design 2023
Apple has managed to create a truly fantastic device. The Mac Studio is similar in size to a pair of Mac Minis stacked on top of each other, but offers disproportionate power. The top side of the device is a square with rounded corners and the signature black apple logo on it. The width of each side of the computer is 19.7 cm, in other words, this is both the length and width of the device. And its height is only 9.5 cm. The computer cannot be called heavy – it weighs only 2.7 kg in the version with the M2 Max processor and 3.6 kg in the version with the M2 Ultra processor.
The side edges of the computer also received curves. The lower base is a mesh trapezoid, its smaller side is the support of the device. Inside the compact design is a revolutionary ventilation system specifically designed to allow the M2 Max or M2 Ultra to handle heavy loads at extremely high speeds and remain silent.
Mac Studio has a silver color, traditional for Apple technology, and the body is made from 100% recycled aluminum.
At the bottom of the front side there are three connectors and a power indicator. The back part is more than half given over to the ventilation mesh; below it are the remaining ports and connectors, as well as the power button. The case is non-separable – it is not possible to make any upgrades or repairs yourself.
The design of the device can no longer be called new – last year’s model looked exactly the same. Then Apple engineers were able to create a desktop solution, compact and as silent as possible, equipped with all the necessary ports. And it is logical to maintain continuity in this matter.
Mac Studio 2023 performance
It is already becoming a tradition to release Mac Studio in two configurations. The first is based on the M2 Max chip, and the second uses the top-end and just presented M2 Ultra. It is actually a pair of M2 Max processors connected by UltraFusion architecture. Both processors are manufactured on the 5nm process by Taiwanese manufacturer TSMC. The architecture used in the first generation of the Ultra chip makes it possible to provide enormous data speed on the internal bus with minimal latency and minimal power consumption. The second generation chip received 134 billion transistors, which is 20 billion more than the previous top solution, M1 Ultra.
The version with M2 Max is in itself a productive solution that can cope with any tasks offered to the computer. Mac Studio can easily work in parallel with several applications, process media content, record and mix music, and calculate complex processes. A 12-core central processor, 30 or 38 graphics cores and a 16-core neural processor are responsible for performance. The computer received 32 GB of unified memory (there are options with 64 and 96 GB) and an SSD drive with a capacity of 512 GB to 8 TB. Memory bandwidth reaches 400 Gbit/s.
The chip has 69 billion transistors and can reproduce up to 10 ProRes streams in 8K resolution, performs up to 15.8 trillion operations per second, supports up to 5 displays, hardware encoding/decoding of HEVC, ProRes and H.264.
The M2 Ultra-based computer version is a much more productive solution. Here the processor already has 24 cores, 60 or 76 graphics cores and 32 neural processor cores. The volume of unified memory ranges from 64 to 192 GB. The minimum capacity of an SSD drive is 1 TB, and the maximum is the same 8 TB. Memory bandwidth reaches 800 Gbit/s. According to Apple, the M2 Ultra is generally 20% faster than the M1 Ultra, and in graphics the superiority can reach 30%.
This chip is capable of playing up to 22 ProRes streams in 8K resolution, performs up to 31.6 trillion operations per second, supports up to 8 displays, hardware encoding/decoding of HEVC, ProRes and H.264.
And there are already real tests of the new Mac Studio. It is logical that this computer is compared with last year’s brother based on the M1 Ultra and top-end PCs. In the Cinebench R23 test using the Maxon Cinema 4D engine to test multi-core and multi-threaded processing, the new M2 Ultra was 18% ahead of the M1 Ultra, but almost half as bad as the 64-core Ryzen 5995WX. The specificity of the test is demanding on the number of cores.
The Geekbench 5.4.1 Pro test simulates the performance of popular applications, from PDF rendering and speech recognition to machine learning. The new Mac Studio showed an advantage of 17% and 27%, respectively, in the multi-core and single-core tests over last year’s model. The HandBrake 1.4 test involved converting a 12-minute 4K video to 1080p resolution.
In browser tests, performance also increased from 15 to 30% relative to the previous Mac Studio model.
In graphics and gaming tests, the advantage of Apple products becomes even more obvious, here’s what GFXBench 5.0 showed when processing a 1440p scene:
Can I play Mac Studio with M2 Ultra? The computer rendered Rise of the Tomb Raider at 1080p at 170 frames per second on high settings. A modern Mac Studio is the best Mac for gaming, so Game Mode in macOS Sonoma can come in handy.
Mac Studio 2023 ports
Mac Studio lets you create the studio of your dreams with a true array of 12 high-speed ports. They are capable of performing various tasks: transferring photos and videos using SDXC, connecting to TVs or high-definition displays, and working with data storage devices. The computer works with wireless accessories using Bluetooth 5.3 and makes the most of the high throughput of Wi-Fi 6E.
On the front panel at the bottom left there are three ports: a pair of USB-C with speeds up to 10 Gbps for the M2 Max or a pair of Thunderbolt 4 for the M2 Ultra, speeds up to 40 Gbps. To the right of them is an SDXC slot with a UHS-II bus.
The back part is already much more functional, but it is hidden from the user’s eyes so as not to spoil the illusion of Apple minimalism. Below the ventilation mesh from left to right there are 4 Thunderbolt 4 ports. They support both Thunderbolt 4 itself with speeds of up to 40 Gbps, as well as DisplayPort, USB 4 (up to 40 Gbps), USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10 Gbps). This is followed by a 10-gigabit Ethernet connector, a power connector, two USB-A ports (up to 5 Gbps), an HDMI port with support for multi-channel audio, and a 3.5 mm headphone jack. Closing this row on the right is a small round power button.
These ports allow you to connect up to four Pro Display XDR monitors and one 4K TV.
The audio jack supports high-impedance headphones and can also act as a line-out for amplified speakers. The gradually aging Ethernet and USB-A ports have not gone away. And although they have already been abandoned in the MacBook Pro, the studio computer also offers such communication capabilities.
Mac Studio 2023 pricing
You probably shouldn’t expect this powerful computer to appear in official Russian retail stores in the near future. In the American App Store the prices are as follows:
- Mac Studio with M2 Max chip, 12 CPU cores, 30 graphics cores, 16 Neural Engine cores – $1,999
- Mac Studio with M2 Max chip, 12 CPU cores, 38 graphics cores, 16 Neural Engine cores – $2,199
- Mac Studio with M2 Ultra chip, 24 CPU cores, 60 graphics cores, 32 Neural Engine cores – $3,999
- Mac Studio with M2 Ultra chip, 24 CPU cores, 76 graphics cores, 32 Neural Engine cores – $4,999
Unified Memory Expansion:
- From 32 GB to 64 GB (for model with M2 Max) – $400
- From 64 GB to 128 GB (for model with M2 Ultra) – $800
Increasing SSD storage capacity:
- Up to 1 TB – $200
- Up to 2 TB – $600
- Up to 4 TB – $1,200
- Up to 8 TB – $2,400
Thus, in the minimum configuration the computer will cost $1,999, while in the maximum configuration it will cost $8,799. The price range is wide, but the performance of the options varies greatly.
Conclusion
Apple has decided to please its fans with an annual update of high-performance solutions – the Mac Studio series is proof of this. The 2023 model is noticeably superior to last year’s counterpart in all respects, and it is also so powerful that even the Mac Pro cannot beat it. But on its side are dimensions, therefore better heat dissipation. At its top-end configuration, the $9,000 Mac Studio outperforms the $17,000 top-end PC in almost every scenario. A Mac Studio computer in your home is not just stylish, but also a cost-effective, ultra-productive solution.
🔥 See also:
- 50 macOS Finder shortcuts every Mac user should know.
- How to select or move items on Mac without pressing the trackpad. Try it, it’s very convenient.
- Launchpad in macOS: what it is and how to configure it correctly so that you want to use it.
