Apple unveils new Mac Studio featuring the groundbreaking M5 Ultra chip.

Apple has unveiled new models of the Mac Studio, now featuring the existing M5 Max and a brand-new M5 Ultra chip. This consolidation under a single chip generation comes over a year after Apple awkwardly divided the Studio lineup between M4 Max and M3 Ultra options. Interestingly, the older-sounding M3 Ultra was actually the more powerful variant, and there was never an M4 Ultra chip. The new Mac Studios maintain the same sleek design introduced in 2022, complete with the familiar small form factor and USB-A ports on the back, but they house Apple’s most advanced SoCs yet.

The updated Mac Studio equipped with the M5 Max chip starts at $2,499, offering 36GB of unified memory and 512GB of storage. This aligns with the previous starting price of the M4 Max model after its $500 price increase in June. The new M5 Ultra model, priced at $5,499, comes with a hefty 96GB of memory and 1TB of storage. This is just $200 more than the outgoing M3 Ultra model’s starting price, but it’s worth noting that the M3 Ultra debuted at a significantly lower price of $3,999 last year.

These new models will launch with macOS 27 Golden Gate on September 22nd, alongside the new Mac Minis. However, the top-tier M5 Ultra configuration, boasting an impressive 512GB of memory, is expected to arrive in late October, with pricing still to be determined—so prepare for potential sticker shock.

While these updates primarily involve chip enhancements, they are substantial. Although the RAM and storage capacities remain the same as their predecessors, the new Mac Studios feature storage that is twice as fast, similar to recent MacBooks. Apple touts the new Studios as “a monumental step for AI,” claiming the M5 Ultra can deliver up to 4.3 times faster AI compute performance. In terms of raw CPU and GPU capabilities, the M5 Ultra, with its up to 36-core CPU and 80-core GPU, is said to provide up to 1.8 times faster graphics and 1.3 times faster CPU speeds compared to the M3 Ultra. The memory bandwidth of the M5 Ultra has also seen a significant boost, reaching up to 1.2TB per second—an impressive upgrade from the M3 Ultra’s 819GB per second.

Apple achieved these advancements in the M5 Ultra by utilizing its next-gen UltraFusion technology, which combines two dual-die M5 Max chips into a quad-die architecture. This is why Apple confidently markets the M5 Ultra as “the most powerful chip ever.” Additionally, the Mac Studios come with a more practical upgrade: support for Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.

With the recent discontinuation of the Mac Pro line, these Mac Studios represent the pinnacle of Apple’s desktop power. They are compact enough to fit neatly under your monitor or can support up to four of Apple’s 5K / 120Hz Studio Display XDR monitors at full resolution. However, due to rising costs, Apple’s most powerful chip and fastest Macs are now significantly pricier than their predecessors were not long ago.