Apple's new M3 Ultra Mac Studio is not for the faint of heart, or light of wallet. Starting at $3,999, and soaring to a mind-boggling $14,099 when fully specced out with 512GB of unified memory, this machine is aimed squarely at professionals who demand uncompromising performance.
But is it really worth it?
Chris Welch of The Verge spent a weekend putting this powerhouse through its paces. Here's a sneak peek at his initial impressions.
Welch acknowledges that the M3 Ultra Mac Studio is overkill for most users. He suggests that the M4 Mac Mini is a more sensible choice for everyday tasks, and the M4 Pro version is sufficient for even demanding photography workflows. Videographers and 3D artists might consider the M4 Max edition of the new Studio, which offers blistering performance at a more reasonable $1,999 starting price.
But who wouldn't want to play with such a powerful machine? Apple sent Welch an $8,099 configuration, featuring a 32-core CPU, an 80-core GPU, 4TB of storage, and 256GB of unified memory.
One key difference between the M3 Ultra and M4 Max Mac Studio models is the inclusion of Thunderbolt 5 ports on the front of the Ultra. These ports theoretically offer data transfer speeds of up to 120Gb/s. The M4 Max, in contrast, features standard 10Gb/s USB 3 ports.
However, Welch notes that the M4 Max outpaces the M3 Ultra in single-core performance, which is crucial for the responsiveness of everyday applications.
Aside from multi-core performance, the M3 Ultra offers significant I/O advantages. While both models include four Thunderbolt 5 ports on the rear, the front ports on the Ultra provide peak performance. Additionally, the Ultra Studio supports up to eight external displays, compared to the M4 Max's limit of five.
The M3 Ultra Studio is noticeably heavier than the M4 Max version, weighing in at 8 pounds compared to 6.1 pounds. This is due to its larger copper cooling module, designed to handle the increased heat output of the Ultra chip.
Here's a glimpse at how the M3 Ultra Mac Studio stacks up against its predecessors and competitors in various benchmarks:
| System | Cinebench 2024 Single | Cinebench 2024 Multi | Geekbench 6 CPU Single | Geekbench 6 CPU Multi | | ----------------------------- | --------------------- | --------------------- | ---------------------- | ---------------------- | | Mac Studio M3 Ultra | 150 | 3057 | 3246 | 28376 | | MacBook Pro 16-inch M4 Max | 182 | 2043 | 4011 | 26422 | | Mac Studio M2 Ultra | Not tested | Not tested | 2623 | 21397 |
Key Takeaways:
Despite its raw power, the M3 Ultra Mac Studio remains remarkably quiet. Welch notes that during his testing, the machine effortlessly handled demanding tasks without producing any noticeable fan noise.
Welch concludes that the M3 Ultra is overkill for most users. It's designed for professionals in fields like:
If you need this level of power, you already know it.
Welch plans to continue testing the Mac Studio, focusing on LLM test cases and gathering feedback from experts in various fields. He encourages readers to share their ideas and suggestions in the comments.