Verdict
The Apple Mac Studio ( 2023 ) is a fantastic machine that offer far more power , ports and upgradability than the cheaper Mac Mini , while making the far pricier Mac Pro ( 2023 ) severely to urge for the majority of professionals .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
The Mac Studio ( 2023 ) is Apple ’s late desktop machine , shoot for at those who need deal of performance but do n’t want to fatten for the MacBook Pro .
While its comparatively diminutive size might give the impression this is a basic auto , the Mac Studio does in fact have the voltage to be one of Apple ’s most powerful Macs .
It is a fantastic choice for professionals who need more performance and versatility than theMac Minior do n’t call for the portability of aMacBook Pro . In most ways , it ’s a in force overall product ( for more people ) than theMac Pro ( 2023)that was unveiled at the same time .
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What the Mac Studio ( 2023 ) is n’t though is a big reinvention of the originalMac StudioI look back last yr . This is very much a spec bump , with a smattering of connectivity improvements thrown in for good mensuration .
Design
The Mac Studio 2023 is visually exactly the same as the interpretation announced in 2022 . That ’s no risky thing , as the Studio is a pat automobile that can well be invest into existing setup without demand anywhere near the space required for the far larger Mac Pro . I previously draw the Mac Studio as bet like a duo of Mac Minis stack on top of each other , and that doctrine of analogy is very much still true ,
Unlike the Mac Mini , the front of the Mac Studio have a few port making it a lot more practical . TheM2 Maxversion offers twoUSB - Cports ( bear out speeds up to 10Gb / s ) , whereas theM2 Ultraswaps them for twoThunderbolt 4ports .
Although it may seem like a simple addition , get a few easily accessible ports importantly raise the casual useableness of the Mac Studio .
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The most useful front embrasure though is the SDXC poster expansion slot , letting you import footage and photograph very easily without having to make aimlessly around the back . The USB larboard on the front are ready to hand , but having an Coyote State card slot always visible is a feature film I never knew I would use so much .
The back of the Mac Studio offers a generous selection of port , including four Thunderbolt 4 ports , 10Gb Ethernet for gamy - speed wired connections , HDMI , a 3.5 millimeter headphone jack , and two USB - A ports . The Thunderbolt 4 port support speeds of up to 40Gb / sand are also compatible withDisplayPort .
You will observe an outside utterer around the back and this is o.k. for alerts , canonic television playback and podcasts .
Similar to the Mac Mini , the Mac Studio does not come compact with a admonisher or any accouterment . You ’ll have to allow your own keyboard and mouse , along with a monitor . Monitors can be connected either via HDMI or USB - C , and Apple predictably would wish you to pair the Mac Studio with either theStudio Displayor the Pro Display XDR . You ’ll feel more affordable options , some with more lineament , in our stave - up of thebest monitor .
Performance
The Apple Mac Studio comes in two principal configurations – one with an M2 Max chip , and the other with the new M2 Ultra . consider the power and monetary value difference of opinion between the two , the M2 Ultra could be date as the ‘ Pro ’ model – even though both are supremely capable machines .
The base M2 Ultra has a 12 - coreCPU , 30 - coreGPUplus 32GBunified memoryand a 512GBSSD . This retails for £ 2099/$1999 . The base M2 Max ups the stakes well , doubling both the CPU nub depend to 24 and GPU count to 60 . There ’s also 64 GB memory , and 1 TB of SSD space . All that will set you back £ 4199/$3999 .
If buy through Apple verbatim , there are a number of pricey customisable aspect . As with other M - series Macs , persona ca n’t be customised after leverage – the memory in part of the chipset , so up this with a cheaper , third - company choice is n’t possible – so pick out wisely . The M2 Max manakin can be equipped with up to a 32 - essence GPU and 96 GB memory , while the Ultra goes up to a 76 - sum GPU and 192 GB memory . The internal SSD can also be bumped up to 8 TB .
Aside from the 8 TB max SSD , all other area have ameliorate , on theme at least , when compare to the Mac Studio from 2022 . There ’s also now put up for up to eight 4 K video display , six 6 K displays or three 8 K displays .
The terminal big upgrades make out with connectivity . Bluetooth has been bumped up from 5 to 5.3 , while Wi - Fi is now 6E – up from 6 . Great if you have a router that tolerate it .
With all the spec and upgrades covered , let ’s get down to how much of a carrying out boost this fresh model offers . For the use of this recap , I was sent a Mac Studio with the following spec : Apple M2 Ultra silicon chip with 24‑core CPU , 76‑core GPU , 128 GB , 4 TB SSD . This is a motorcar costing around £ 7000/$6799 , meaning it ’s for a specific type of user .
It ’s an impressive performing artist no doubt , especially when the lilliputian size of it is get hold of into report .
In the CPU - focussed Geekbench 5 test , our recap Mac Studio scored 2079 and 28324 in the single - core and multi - core trial severally . That ’s a illustrious multi - core improvement over the Intel Core i9 - 13900 K which had a slightly better single - core score ( 2181 ) but fell short in the multi - core with 16491 .
Compared to theRazer Blade 16 – a £ 4500 laptop aim at creatives and gamers with an Intel Core i9 - 13950HX – the Mac Studio score high in the PugetBench for Adobe Premiere Pro test with a score of 981 as counterbalance to a still very impressive 601 .
Moving over to Cinebench R23 , the 28880 musical score pick up by the Mac Studio was slightly higher than the 27528 from a machine be given anAMD Ryzen 9 7900X. A political machine power by the Intel Core i9 - 13900 K , however , nonplus the Mac Studio with a score of 38088 .
you may also see how well the Mac Studio compares to a excerption of other M - series Apple machines below – these trial run really show how the Studio ups the performance in multi gist tasks .
Performance is very good , but the Mac Studio ( 2023 ) also stays very cool and astonishingly quiet even under heavy loudly . The machine ’s lover birl up a little during multiple hour of benchmarking trial yet during literal - earth tests – including rendering and exporting large HDR 4 K data file in both Final Cut and Premiere Pro – it was mute most of the time .
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Should you buy it?
The Mac Studio ( 2023 ) performs incredibly well in synthetic tests and real - world utilization and is a not bad selection for professionals depend for a reliable desktop ma machine .
There are n’t many rationality to pump for the far pricey , far large Mac Pro machine away from its ability to patronize via PCIe enlargement . If this is important , the Mac Studio is n’t the best choice .
Final Thoughts
The Apple Mac Studio ( 2023 ) is a fantastic political machine that offers far more top executive , ports and upgradability than the cheaperMac Mini , while making the far pricierMac Pro ( 2023)hard to recommend for the bulk of master .
Of course , some specific use case will only be catered by the expandable PCIe slot Apple had added to its first high mallow - grater M - series Pro machine but for most pro user the Mac Studio is the smarter , better bargain .
The wealthiness of inner options useable will beseem those with varying motive and the compact nature of the Mac Studio have in mind it can well slot into existing workspaces or even on smaller desks . There really is n’t anything on the market place quite like this , and it ’s one of Apple ’s most impressive computing merchandise .
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How we test
Every PC we review survive through a series of undifferentiated check design to gauge key aspects including build quality , performance , and accessibility .
These include courtly synthetic benchmarks and written trial run , plus a serial publication of real - world checks .
FAQs
There ’s a exclusive ash gray colour useable , just like the original Mac Studio .
The only one let in is a mogul cable .
Test Data
Full Specs
