Apple Announces M1 Ultra CPU, Mac Studio and Studio Display

[astrobruin]

Kind'uv torn. I've been holding out for an iMac 27". But it's anybody's guess if or when that will come out.

Now I'm wondering if I should consider the Mac Studio.

I do a lot of photo editing and some gaming. I have an i7-4770k 3.49 GHz Hackintosh with a Radeon Rx580, 16GB RAM, and an old 24" Dell Ultrafine Monitor 1920x1080 which is slowly dying.

Is Mac Studio enough of an upgrade to justify the cost?

The Mac Studio costs:
$2400 for a decent rig: 1TB SSD & 32GB RAM.
+ $1600 for a new monitor = $4000 + tax.

Not sure if there's enough of a performance improvement to justify the cost. But I haven't seen many good side by side comparisons.

(I've seen a few videos of the MacBook Pro with M1 Max; it does a very good job with most games thrown at it, given its size. But my impression is that it's not better than a good gaming rig. And may not be much better than my current setup)

Any thoughts? Better off waiting for M2? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

---

P.S. A nice plus for Mac Studio: I could keep my Dell monitor as a 2nd monitor. (Love the all-in-in iMac, but hate the idea of replacing the monitor when the computer is replaced. AFAIK the current iMacs can't be used as a 2nd monitor).

 

[trs96]

Not sure if there's enough of a performance improvement to justify the cost. But I haven't seen many good side by side comparisons.

There will be plenty of these the last two weeks of March, on Apple focused Youtube channels.

 

[CaseySJ]

Kind'uv torn. I've been holding out for an iMac 27". But it's anybody's guess if or when that will come out.

Now I'm wondering if I should consider the Mac Studio.

I do a lot of photo editing and some gaming. I have an i7-4770k 3.49 GHz Hackintosh with a Radeon Rx580, 16GB RAM, and an old 24" Dell Ultrafine Monitor 1920x1080 which is slowly dying.

Is Mac Studio enough of an upgrade to justify the cost?

The Mac Studio costs:
$2400 for a decent rig: 1TB SSD & 32GB RAM.
+ $1600 for a new monitor = $4000 + tax.

Not sure if there's enough of a performance improvement to justify the cost. But I haven't seen many good side by side comparisons.

(I've seen a few videos of the MacBook Pro with M1 Max; it does a very good job with most games thrown at it, given its size. But my impression is that it's not better than a good gaming rig. And may not be much better than my current setup)

Any thoughts? Better off waiting for M2? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

---

P.S. A nice plus for Mac Studio: I could keep my Dell monitor as a 2nd monitor. (Love the all-in-in iMac, but hate the idea of replacing the monitor when the computer is replaced. AFAIK the current iMacs can't be used as a 2nd monitor).

The Studio Display is not required. Any monitor will work with the Mac Studio so the price to consider is $2400. At this time we do not believe that there will be any 27-inch iMacs.

Mac Studio provides all the power -- and appears to have the requisite cooling capacity -- to serve the needs of (a) high-end desktop and (b) workstation class users.

The M1 Max version starting at $1999 is an appealing entry point for a high-end desktop.

The M1 Ultra version starting at $3999 is geared for workstation class users.

And we can bring our own monitor -- and change the monitor at any time.

 

[Middleman]

Kind'uv torn. I've been holding out for an iMac 27". But it's anybody's guess if or when that will come out.

Now I'm wondering if I should consider the Mac Studio.

I do a lot of photo editing and some gaming. I have an i7-4770k 3.49 GHz Hackintosh with a Radeon Rx580, 16GB RAM, and an old 24" Dell Ultrafine Monitor 1920x1080 which is slowly dying.

Is Mac Studio enough of an upgrade to justify the cost?

The Mac Studio costs:
$2400 for a decent rig: 1TB SSD & 32GB RAM.
+ $1600 for a new monitor = $4000 + tax.

Not sure if there's enough of a performance improvement to justify the cost. But I haven't seen many good side by side comparisons.

(I've seen a few videos of the MacBook Pro with M1 Max; it does a very good job with most games thrown at it, given its size. But my impression is that it's not better than a good gaming rig. And may not be much better than my current setup)

Any thoughts? Better off waiting for M2? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

---

P.S. A nice plus for Mac Studio: I could keep my Dell monitor as a 2nd monitor. (Love the all-in-in iMac, but hate the idea of replacing the monitor when the computer is replaced. AFAIK the current iMacs can't be used as a 2nd monitor).

I'd say the Mac Studio is definitely worth considering. The M1 Ultra will certainly be way more powerful and have far more performance than you'll ever need (for editing photos - I know because I do that too for my business). It's performance would likely be several times quicker than your current setup (with the data and I/O throughput). But at $4K for the M1 Ultra Mac Studio package alone (and privilege), it's a price that for many will feel is pretty high unless their level of work justifies it.

The unfortunate side of going with Apple is that while it will be very fast, cutting edge, have good ongoing software support (particularly for macOS and Adobe) and great for your photo editing work, it won't be for games or Windows usage (no matter what Apple says). Gaming is still relegated mainly to either the PC space or dedicated consoles (for many). If its gaming you're after, you ideally need an Intel-based setup or better.

What you could do is this. Go with a Mac Studio M1 Max. Go with the base model with 512GB SSD 32GB RAM, run it off your current screen and drive setup (until its replaced with a new 4K like LG) and with the spare cash get a separate gaming console (PS5/Steam deck etc). That would make better use of your cash (imo).

 

[trs96]

An article from theverge.com came out today and does a good job of explaining what Apple's new strategy is.

TL;DR "There was a time not long ago when it seemed like Apple spent more time telling its customers what they wanted rather than just giving it to them."

This is why yesterday they showed us the Mac Studio for $1999. Something between the Mac mini and Mac Pro with all the ports (I/O) they could ever use. Even three in the front ! What people have been asking for since about 2013. They even kept the headphone jack, two USB type A ports and an HDMI 2.0 port for those that might connect this to a 4K TV.

The iMac Pro was an attempt at this but it was too expensive for most, starting at $4,999. If you have your own Display/Keyboard/Mouse to use with M1 Max Mac Studio it's going to serve you well for many years. If you buy a Studio display it's also going to last a very long time. Looks great alongside the M1 Max/Ultra Studio too.

Apple’s new strategy is to give — not tell — users what they want

After years of bold, unpopular decisions

www.theverge.com

 

[pastrychef]

An article from theverge.com came out today and does a good job of explaining what Apple's new strategy is.

TL;DR "There was a time not long ago when it seemed like Apple spent more time telling its customers what they wanted rather than just giving it to them."

This is why yesterday they showed us the Mac Studio for $1999. Something between the Mac mini and Mac Pro with all the ports/I/O they could ever use. Even three in the front ! What people have been asking for since about 2013. The iMac Pro was an attempt at this but it was too expensive for most. If you have your own Display/Keyboard/Mouse to use with M1 Max Mac Studio it's going to serve you well for many years.

Apple’s new strategy is to give — not tell — users what they want

After years of bold, unpopular decisions

www.theverge.com

I used to have a 27" 4K display and found it just a bit too small to use at native resolution comfortably. I switched to a 31.5" 4K display and have been very happy with it. For my eyes, native 4K res on 31.5-32" is the sweet spot. Having just 24" or 27" options meant that iMacs were not even a consideration for me.

 

[c-o-pr]

Apple still murders customers on storage prices...

But the Studio Ultra redefines price/performance by any measure. It's another breakthrough.

(The following thoughts are my opinions and I'm happy to hear I am completely wrong. But these opinions are something like informed, not just mouthing off...)

This is the best value Apple has ever offered and it knocks PCs upside the head. No hack can touch the Ultra on value. While you can hack something together sort of comparable based on price, any real advantage — if you can find any at all — will assume your time is worth nothing, or even has negative value.

The Studio Max (vs The Studio Ultra) is unlike previous Mac lower-end offerings in that it is not a cost/performance compromise at all.

Unless you do hi-res pro video, systems development or science, the Ultra is excessive.

IOW, the Ultra should only be pursued if you know exactly why you need it, and if you know this then there's no cost-performance tradeoff to be considered.

The Ultra slams the 2019 Mac Pro into the ground. There are still some very narrow reasons why the Xeon Mac Pro still means something to certain class of buyer, but no such buyer ever chimes in on these forums. I think the most significant of these narrow cases is ECC RAM — I believe the M1 is not ECC RAM, but I'm happy to find out I'm wrong 'cause if it is, it just increases its value over 2019 Mac Pro.

For the Studio Max, there's horsepower to spare for anyone doing DTP / photo and many other common workloads, with lots of room to grow into new styles of work. The Studio Max encourages wasteful approaches to work because there's so much power. The Ultra is just gilding the lily.

For 98.9% of buyers, get the Max and put the $2K towards something else, like Studio display, storage, etc.

(I'll say it again, these are opinions and I'm not intending to beat anyone over the head. Looking forward to hearing a contrary view)

 

[pastrychef]

Apple still murders customers on storage prices...

But the Studio Ultra redefines price/performance by any measure. It's another breakthrough.

(The following thoughts are my opinions and I'm happy to hear I am completely wrong. But these opinions are something like informed, not just mouthing off...)

This is the best value Apple has ever offered and it knocks PCs upside the head. No hack can touch the Ultra on value. While you can hack something together sort of comparable based on price, any real advantage — if you can find any at all — will assume your time is worth nothing, or even has negative value.

The Studio Max (vs The Studio Ultra) is unlike previous Mac lower-end offerings in that it is not a cost/performance compromise at all.

Unless you do hi-res pro video, systems development or science, the Ultra is excessive.

IOW, the Ultra should only be pursued if you know exactly why you need it, and if you know this then there's no cost-performance tradeoff to be considered.

The Ultra slams the 2019 Mac Pro into the ground. There are still some very narrow reasons why the Xeon Mac Pro still means something to certain class of buyer, but no such buyer ever chimes in on these forums. I think the most significant of these narrow cases is ECC RAM — I believe the M1 is not ECC RAM, but I'm happy to find out I'm wrong 'cause if it is, it just increases its value over 2019 Mac Pro.

For the Studio Max, there's horsepower to spare for anyone doing DTP / photo and many other common workloads, with lots of room to grow into new styles of work. The Studio Max encourages wasteful approaches to work because there's so much power. The Ultra is just gilding the lily.

For 98.9% of buyers, get the Max and put the $2K towards something else, like Studio display, storage, etc.

(I'll say it again, these are opinions and I'm not intending to beat anyone over the head. Looking forward to hearing a contrary view)

I couldn't have said it better myself. I've also decided on the M1 Max for myself.

 

[pastrychef]

The unfortunate side of going with Apple is that while it will be very fast, cutting edge, have good ongoing software support (particularly for macOS and Adobe) and great for your photo editing work, it won't be for games or Windows usage (no matter what Apple says). Gaming is still relegated mainly to either the PC space or dedicated consoles (for many). If its gaming you're after, you ideally need an Intel-based setup or better.

Over the last few years, I have found myself playing old console games via emulators more often than I like to admit. Fortunately, lots of emulators are already running great on Apple Silicon.

Here's a video of of RPCS3 (PS3 emulator) running on an M1 MacBook Air.

 

[wstrohm]

Here's a video of of RPCS3 (PS3 emulator) running on an M1 MacBook Air.

I'd like to see Cyan's "Obduction" on any of the M1 machines. That game really spins up my RX 580's fans!