The Mac Studio just got its first update, and it’s a screamer.
The desktop machine now comes with Apple’s new M2 Ultra chip — the “most powerful chip ever created for a personal computer,” according to Apple.
The new chip, based on Apple silicon, triples the performance of the previous M1 machine.
The M2 Ultra Mac Studio
Photo: Apple
The new machine is a welcome update to the Mac Studio, which Apple first introduced in March 2022 as a modular, expandable computer for “studio” professionals. Although not as upgradeable as some customers might like, the machine has generally been very well-received. Reviewers praised its power, speed, quiet operation, and good connectivity options. There have been some complaints of noise issues, but it’s a popular choice for a lot of setups.
M2 Ultra Mac Studio specs
The new Mac Studio retains the previous design, but now comes with M2 Max or M2 Ultra chips. The M2 Ultra effectively doubles the M2 Max chip, and the new machine is up to three-times faster than the older M1-based Mac Studio.
Apple touted the new machine’s “incredible” performance and connectivity. Based on the M2 Ultra chip, the new machine runs rings around its predecessors.
The new chip features a 24-core CPU; a 76-core GPU; and a 32-core neural engine. It can support and a whopping 192-Gbytes of unified memory.
“It’s the most powerful chip ever created for a personal computer,” said Apple’s Jennifer Munn, Director, Engineering Program Management, referring to the new M2 Ultra chip.
“It is a monster of a chip,” said added.
The new Mac Studio now features a higher-bandwidth HDMI port that can run an 8K display at 240Hz. On the back are four Thunderbolt 4 ports, a 10 Gigabit Ethernet port, HDMI, and two USB-A ports. On the front, it has two USB-C ports and an SD card slot.
Mac Studio availability
The M2 Max Mac Studio starts at $1,999 ($1,799 for education), the same pricing as its predecessor. The M2 Ultra Mac Studio starts at $3,999. Both versions are available to order today from Apple’s website. They will be available in Apple’s retail store and authorized resellers next week, beginning Tuesday, June 13.
Leander Kahney is the editor and publisher of Cult of Mac.
Leander is a longtime technology reporter and the author of six acclaimed books about Apple, including two New York Times bestsellers: Jony Ive: The Genius Behind Apple’s Greatest Products and Inside Steve’s Brain, a biography of Steve Jobs.
He’s also written a top-selling biography of Apple CEO Tim Cook and authored Cult of Mac and Cult of iPod, which both won prestigious design awards. Most recently, he was co-author of Cult of Mac, 2nd Edition.
Leander has been reporting about Apple and technology for nearly 30 years.
Before founding Cult of Mac as an independent publication, Leander was news editor at Wired.com, where he was responsible for the day-to-day running of the Wired.com website. He headed up a team of six section editors, a dozen reporters and a large pool of freelancers. Together the team produced a daily digest of stories about the impact of science and technology, and won several awards, including several Webby Awards, 2X Knight-Batten Awards for Innovation in Journalism and the 2010 MIN (Magazine Industry Newsletter) award for best blog, among others.
Before being promoted to news editor, Leander was Wired.com’s senior reporter, primarily covering Apple. During that time, Leander published a ton of scoops, including the first in-depth report about the development of the iPod. Leander attended almost every keynote speech and special product launch presented by Steve Jobs, including the historic launches of the iPhone and iPad. He also reported from almost every Macworld Expo in the late ’90s and early ‘2000s, including, sadly, the last shows in Boston, San Francisco and Tokyo. His reporting for Wired.com formed the basis of the first Cult of Mac book, and subsequently this website.
Before joining Wired, Leander was a senior reporter at the legendary MacWeek, the storied and long-running weekly that documented Apple and its community in the 1980s and ’90s.
Leander has written for Wired magazine (including the Issue 16.04 cover story about Steve Jobs’ leadership at Apple, entitled Evil/Genius), Scientific American, The Guardian, The Observer, The San Francisco Chronicle and many other publications.
Leander is an expert on:
Apple and Apple history
Steve Jobs, Jony Ive, Tim Cook and Apple leadership
Apple community
iPhone and iOS
iPad and iPadOS
Mac and macOS
Apple Watch and watchOS
Apple TV and tvOS
AirPods
Leander has a postgrad diploma in artificial intelligence from the University of Aberdeen, and a BSc (Hons) in experimental psychology from the University of Sussex.
He has a diploma in journalism from the UK’s National Council for the Training of Journalists.
Leander lives in San Francisco, California, and is married with four children. He’s an avid biker and has ridden in many long-distance bike events, including California’s legendary Death Ride.
You can find out more about Leander on LinkedIn and Facebook. You can follow him on X at @lkahney or Instagram.
