Apple Unveils M3 Ultra Chip: A Powerhouse for AI and Professional Computing

Meet the M3 Ultra: Apple's most powerful chip yet offers big leaps in performance

Apple has revealed a new processor that it is calling "the highest-performing chip it has ever created." Already powering the new Mac Studio, the M3 Ultra chip offers 1.5 times the performance of the M2 Ultra. Add in Thunderbolt 5 connectivity and support for more than half a terabyte of unified memory, and the processor packs a lot of power into one package. Also: The new iPad Air with M3 is here - with an updated Magic Keyboard to match "M3 Ultra is the pinnacle of our scalable system-on-a-chip architecture, aimed specifically at users who run the most heavily threaded and bandwidth-intensive applications," Johny Srouji, Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies, said in a news release. "Thanks to its 32-core CPU, massive GPU, support for the most unified memory ever in a personal computer, Thunderbolt 5 connectivity, and industry-leading power efficiency, there is no other chip like the M3 Ultra." As for the tech specs, the M3 Ultra contains a 32-core CPU with 24 performance cores and eight efficiency cores. It is also home to the largest GPU in any Apple chip, with up to 80 graphics cores, delivering twice the performance of the GPU in the M2 Ultra. Apple designed the M3 Ultra with its UltraFusion packaging architecture, which links two M3 Max dies over 10,000 high-speed connections to offer low latency and higher bandwidth, and encompasses a whopping 184 billion transistors. Also: M3 MacBook Air vs. M2 MacBook Air: Which Apple laptop should you buy? Powering the Apple Intelligence AI on the new Mac Studio, the chip's 32-core Neural Engine is geared for AI and machine learning. To carry out AI tasks, the M3 Ultra takes advantage of its ML accelerators, the powerful GPU, the Neural Engine, and more than 800GB per second of memory bandwidth. AI professionals can use the Mac Studio to run large language models (LLMs) with more than 600 billion parameters directly on the device. One of the outstanding features of the M3 Ultra is the support for up to half a gigabyte of memory. Apple calls this memory architecture "the most high-bandwidth, low-latency memory ever available in a personal computer." Depending on your needs, you can outfit an M3 Ultra-powered Mac Studio with as little as 96GB and as much as 512GB of RAM -- ideal for memory-intensive tasks like 3D rendering, visual effects, and AI. Also: Apple's new MacBook Air M4 will likely be announced this week - here's what we know With the M3 Ultra comes Thunderbolt 5, providing transfer speeds as fast as 120 gigabits per second, more than double what Thunderbolt 4 offers. Geared for the Mac Studio, each Thunderbolt 5 port uses its own custom-designed controller on the chip, thus taking advantage of its own dedicated bandwidth. The new version of Thunderbolt also lets you connect multiple Mac Studio computers together for even greater performance. With the M3 Ultra onboard, the new Mac Studio is now up for pre-order and will be available starting Wednesday, March 12.

Apple's M3 Ultra unlocks next-level power for AI, graphics & 3D rendering

Apple's M3 Ultra is its most powerful chip yet, delivering speed, advanced AI capabilities, and efficiency. Here's how it breaks down. The M3 Ultra is built using Apple's UltraFusion architecture, which links two M3 Max dies over 10,000 high-speed connections. The design allows the chip to operate as a single unit, delivering performance while maintaining energy efficiency. With a 32-core CPU, 80-core GPU, and double the Neural Engine cores, the M3 Ultra is designed to handle demanding tasks. According to Apple, the chip delivers 1.5 times the performance of the M2 Ultra and up to 2.6 times that of the M1 Ultra. The new GPU features dynamic caching, hardware-accelerated mesh shading, and ray tracing, making it well-suited for graphics-intensive tasks like 3D rendering and gaming. Time will tell, of course. We're expecting to see benchmarks of the new chip within a week. Apple designed the M3 Ultra, like its other recent chips, with artificial intelligence in mind. Its 32-core Neural Engine accelerates machine learning and AI workloads, making it capable of running large language models with over 600 billion parameters directly on a Mac. The chip also supports up to 512GB of unified memory, surpassing workstation graphics cards in capacity. This eliminates bottlenecks for professionals working on AI development, video editing, and high-end 3D modeling. With the introduction of Thunderbolt 5, the M3 Ultra enables data transfer speeds of up to 120 gigabits per second, more than double the bandwidth of Thunderbolt 4. Each Thunderbolt 5 port is backed by a custom controller, ensuring dedicated bandwidth for high-performance workflows. With Thunderbolt 5, the Mac Studio is ready for high-performance workflows, allowing pros to move massive files and power external displays. Apple continues its emphasis on security with the M3 Ultra, featuring an advanced Secure Enclave and hardware-verified secure boot. The chip also integrates dedicated video encoding engines, supporting multiple 8K ProRes video streams simultaneously. Despite its power, the M3 Ultra maintains Apple's energy efficiency standards. The company aims for carbon neutrality across its entire footprint by 2030, and the energy-efficient design of the M3 Ultra contributes to reducing the overall environmental impact of Apple's devices. Apple's M3 Ultra sets a new benchmark for personal computing, offering extreme performance for AI, creative workflows, and high-bandwidth tasks. With its advanced architecture, massive memory support, and Thunderbolt 5, it further cements Apple Silicon as the leader in desktop computing. Apple's M2 Ultra, introduced in June 2023, represented a significant advancement in the company's silicon lineup. Built using TSMC's 5-nanometer process, the M2 Ultra featured a 24-core CPU, comprising 16 performance cores and eight efficiency cores, and a GPU configurable up to 76 cores. The M2 Ultra also included a 32-core Neural Engine capable of 31.6 trillion operations per second, delivering 40% faster performance than its predecessor, the M1 Ultra. Looking ahead, Apple hasn't officially announced an M4 Ultra, but the M4 chip is expected to arrive in future Mac products later in 2025. If Apple follows its usual pattern, M4 Ultra will likely arrive in 2026, featuring an even more advanced neural engine, improved efficiency, and possibly support for faster on-device AI models. It's also a possibility for Apple to differentiate an expected Mac Pro from the Mac Studio. If the M4 Ultra is only available in that Mac Pro, that drives purchasers to that unit, more than for just PCI-E. With M3 Ultra, Apple has solidified its lead in workstation-class computing, setting the stage for what's next. M4 Ultra will bring another leap in AI performance and will include greater power efficiency.

This is the most powerful Mac Studio Apple has made, but I expected more | Stuff

The new Mac Studio is crazy fast, but I can't help feel like Apple is holding back by not releasing an M4 Ultra chipset Apple has just unleashed the new Mac Studio - my favourite desktop Mac. It's incredibly powerful, now packing the M4 Max and M3 Ultra chips, but I can't help feeling like I expected more. Where is the M4 Ultra chip? This desktop is aimed squarely at pros who need ridiculous amounts of power, and it seems Apple could have offered more. The M4 Max version of the Mac Studio comes with a 16-core CPU, a 40-core GPU, and support for up to 128GB of unified memory. Apple is claiming performance boosts of up to 3.5 times over the M1 Max version. Since this is my machine, it's a tasty upgrade - but note there is an M2 version already out. It's also 6.1 times faster than the Intel-based 27-inch iMac. Meanwhile, the M3 Ultra Mac Studio variant cranks things up even further with a 32-core CPU, an 80-core GPU, and the option to configure up to a frankly absurd 512GB of unified memory. If you're into AI development, Apple claims it can run large language models with over 600 billion parameters entirely in memory. Basically, if you need a desktop that can outthink you, this is it. Connectivity gets a big upgrade too, with Thunderbolt 5 ports offering up to 120Gb/s transfer speeds - triple what Thunderbolt 4 managed. M3 Ultra models can now drive up to eight Pro Display XDRs at full 6K resolution. There's also Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a 10Gbit Ethernet port, HDMI, and an SD card slot for good measure. It's all still housed in the same compact, desk-friendly design that we love from the Mac Studio. For those itching to get their hands on one, the new Mac Studio is available to pre-order now and ships from March 12. Prices start at $1999/£2099 for the M4 Max model, while the M3 Ultra version starts at $3999. If you're planning on maxing out the specs with 512GB of memory and 16TB of storage, you might want to brace yourself before checking the final price.

M1 Max, M2 Max, M4 Max compared - how Apple Silicon has evolved

With every generation, Apple's Max-series chips have pushed the boundaries of performance, and M4 Max in the new Mac Studio delivers the most significant leap yet in performance. Apple's custom silicon has evolved dramatically, with each new generation improving performance, efficiency, and capability. The M1 Max, M2 Max, and M4 Max represent three iterations of Apple's most powerful chips for MacBook Pro, each refining the balance between speed and power consumption. While the M1 Max was a game-changer when it launched in 2021, the M2 Max built on its foundation with modest but meaningful improvements in 2023. The latest M4 Max delivers the biggest leap yet, expanding memory support, adding AI-driven optimizations, and enhancing graphics performance. The M1 Max launched with a 10-core CPU, featuring eight performance cores and two efficiency cores. The M2 Max expanded that to 12 cores, doubling the number of efficiency cores to improve background tasks and battery life. The M4 Max offers two CPU variants -- a 14-core version with 10 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores and a 16-core version with even more performance power. It delivers higher multi-core performance, with Apple claiming improved power efficiency. Apple's performance claims hold up in Geekbench 6 benchmarks, which highlight just how much faster the M4 Max is compared to earlier Max chips. The M2 Max in a later Mac Studio, showed modest but meaningful improvements, reaching a single-core score of 2,782 and a multi-core score of 14,978. The 15% increase in multi-core performance boosted demanding workloads, but the gap between the M1 Max and M2 Max was minimal. The real game-changer is the M4 Max, which delivers a single-core score of 3,875 and a multi-core score of 24,928 in the MacBook Pro. The M4 Max boasts nearly double the multi-core performance of the M1 Max and a significant 60% increase over the M2 Max, marking the biggest generational leap in Apple's high-end Mac chips. Apple's M1 Max, introduced in 2021, featured a 10-core CPU with eight performance cores and two efficiency cores. This setup balanced power and efficiency, making it good for demanding tasks like video editing and software development. However, with only two efficiency cores, background processes had less dedicated support. The M2 Max, released in 2023, doubled efficiency cores from two to four while keeping eight performance cores. These efficiency cores improved multitasking and battery life by offloading background tasks. However, while more efficient, the overall performance gain over the M1 Max was moderate. The M4 Max pushes further with 14-core and 16-core CPU configurations. The 14-core variant has 10 performance cores and four efficiency cores, while the 16-core version adds even more processing power. Built on a 3-nanometer process, the M4 Max delivers faster speeds, better efficiency, and stronger performance in multi-threaded applications. Apple's unified memory architecture lets the CPU, GPU, and Neural Engine share the same high-speed memory, eliminating bottlenecks and improving efficiency. Unlike traditional PCs, where memory is split between components, UMA allows access to more memory when needed, boosting multitasking, graphics performance, and AI workloads. Apple's M1 Max introduced unified memory, allowing the CPU, GPU, and Neural Engine to share up to 64GB of RAM. It featured 400GB/s memory bandwidth for high-speed data transfer. The chip setup provided significant performance improvements over Intel-based Macs but had limitations for users needing even more memory. The M2 Max expanded maximum memory capacity to 96GB while maintaining the same 400GB/s bandwidth. The expanded memory allowed for larger datasets and better performance in memory-intensive apps. While the bandwidth remained unchanged, the increased RAM options gave users more flexibility for complex workloads. Apple raised memory support to 128GB and increased bandwidth to 410GB/s for the 14-core M4 Max and 546GB/s for the 16-core model. It improves access to large datasets and efficiency in AI, machine learning, and media processing. Combined with Apple's 3-nanometer process, the M4 Max maximizes performance while keeping power consumption in check. Apple introduced a dedicated media engine with the M1 Max, significantly improving hardware-accelerated ProRes, H.264, and HEVC performance. The media engine allowed for faster video editing and rendering. The M2 Max refined this feature with greater efficiency, though it did not introduce major new capabilities. With the M4 Max, Apple has added AI-driven enhancements to the media engine, likely improving real-time rendering, encoding, and decoding efficiency. While Apple hasn't disclosed specifics, it's expected to outperform the M1 Max and M2 Max in professional video workloads. The M1 Max and M2 Max supported up to four external displays, which was already a huge leap over standard M-series chips. On MacBook Pro models, the M4 Max can drive four external displays alongside the built-in screen. However, the Mac Studio version supports up to five external displays, including multiple 8K monitors at high refresh rates. Thunderbolt 5 connectivity further improves display bandwidth, allowing for smoother multi-screen workflows and higher refresh rates for pro users. Both the M1 Max and M2 Max featured Thunderbolt 4, delivering 40Gbps speeds for high-performance peripherals and external drives. The M4 Max upgrades this to Thunderbolt 5, boosting data transfer speeds and daisy-chaining capabilities. This makes it particularly useful for external GPUs, ultra-fast SSDs, and high-resolution multi-monitor setups. Choosing a MacBook Pro depends on workflow, budget, and performance needs. Each chip delivers solid power, but the right choice depends on performance requirements and upgrade worthiness. M1 Max users who primarily use professional apps may find their current machine sufficient. The M2 Max introduced modest improvements, making the M4 Max a more compelling upgrade for significant boosts. With double multi-core performance, expanded memory, enhanced AI and video processing, the M4 Max is ideal for heavy computational workloads. It's the first major leap for M2 Max owners, improving CPU and GPU efficiency, increasing memory capacity, adding better external display support, and integrating AI-driven enhancements. Users with 8K video, large-scale 3D rendering, machine learning models, or multi-monitor setups benefit most from the upgrade. Lighter workloads like photo editing, web development, or office work may find the M2 Max sufficient. For first-time MacBook Pro buyers seeking top-tier performance, the M4 Max is best. It delivers the biggest performance leap in Apple's Max-series chips, includes Thunderbolt 5, and greater efficiency for demanding tasks. Future-proofing is crucial for high-end MacBooks, and the M4 Max ensures access to the latest architecture with the longest usability. While the M4 Max is top-tier, the M1 Max and M2 Max still offer excellent value, especially when discounted. Users who don't require cutting-edge performance or additional memory may find sticking with an earlier Max chip cost-effective and capable.

Apple introduces Mac Studio with M4 chip & the new M3 Ultra. Know about the price & specs here

Apple has introduced the new Mac Studio, featuring M4 Max and the new M3 Ultra chip, making it the most powerful Mac to date. Designed for professional workloads, it offers high performance, expanded connectivity with Thunderbolt 5, and a compact, quiet design suited for any workspace. With a powerful CPU, advanced graphics, higher unified memory capacity, ultrafast SSD storage, and an improved Neural Engine, Mac Studio delivers a significant performance boost over previous models. It is also optimized for AI tasks, capable of running large language models with over 600 billion parameters entirely in memory, thanks to its advanced GPU and up to 512GB of unified memory with M3 Ultra -- the highest ever in a personal computer. Additionally, it supports Apple Intelligence, enhancing productivity and creativity while maintaining strong privacy protections. Mac Studio starts at INR 214900, with a special price of INR 194900 for education. Custom configuration options are available at Apples website. The new Mac Studio with M4 Max is designed for professionals handling demanding workflows, from video editing to AI processing. With an up to 16-core CPU, 40-core GPU, and over 500GB/s memory bandwidth, it delivers exceptional single and multithreaded performance. It's up to 3.5x faster than the M1 Max model and up to 6.1x faster than the most powerful Intel-based 27-inch iMac. The M4 Max GPU introduces Apple's advanced graphics architecture, including dynamic caching, hardware-accelerated mesh shading, and a second-gen ray-tracing engine for smoother content creation and gaming. Starting with 36GB of unified memory and expandable to 128GB, it handles complex projects effortlessly. The enhanced Media Engine also boosts video workflows with two ProRes accelerators. * Adobe Photoshop: Up to 1.6x faster than M1 Max, 2.9x faster than Intel iMac * Xcode build times: Up to 2.1x faster than M1 Max, 3.1x faster than Intel iMac * ProRes transcode in Compressor: Up to 1.2x faster than M1 Max, 2.8x faster than Intel iMac * Video processing in Topaz Video AI: Up to 1.6x faster than M1 Max, 5x faster than Intel iMac Mac Studio with M3 Ultra takes performance to the next level, nearly doubling M4 Max in CPU- and GPU-intensive tasks. It's up to 2.6x faster than M1 Ultra and 6.4x faster than the Intel-based Mac Pro. The M3 Ultra features a 32-core CPU with 24 performance cores -- the most ever in a Mac -- along with an 80-core GPU, a 32-core Neural Engine, and over 800GB/s of unified memory bandwidth. Starting with 96GB of unified memory, configurable up to 512GB, it offers the highest memory capacity in a personal computer. With up to 16TB of SSD storage, users can keep large files and projects locally. The advanced graphics architecture supports Dynamic Caching, mesh shading, and ray tracing, making GPU-based rendering 2.6x faster than M1 Ultra. * LLM token generation in LM Studio: Up to 16.9x faster than M1 Ultra * Scene rendering in Maxon Redshift: Up to 2.6x faster than M1 Ultra, 6.4x faster than Intel Mac Pro * DNA sequencing in Oxford Nanopore MinKNOW: Up to 1.1x faster than M1 Ultra, 21.1x faster than Intel Mac Pro * 8K video rendering in Final Cut Pro: Up to 1.4x faster than M1 Ultra, 4x faster than Intel Mac Pro The new Mac Studio includes Thunderbolt 5 ports, delivering transfer speeds up to 120 Gb/s -- up to three times faster than before. This allows for quicker external storage, expansion chassis, and high-performance hubs. For users who rely on PCIe expansion cards, Thunderbolt 5 provides higher bandwidth and lower latency for seamless connectivity. With M3 Ultra, Mac Studio can now support up to eight Pro Display XDRs at full 6K resolution. It also features a range of ports, including 10Gb Ethernet, HDMI, an SDXC card slot for quick media imports, and built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Mac Studio boosts pro workflows, with Apple Intelligence enhancing productivity. Writing Tools assist with editing and summarizing, while Priority Notifications and live transcription in Notes minimize distractions and streamline meetings. Siri now offers step-by-step guidance, and integrated ChatGPT support helps users complete tasks efficiently while maintaining control over data sharing. Image Playground enables easy visual creation for projects. Apple Intelligence ensures privacy with on-device processing, and Private Cloud Compute keeps complex requests secure without storing or sharing data. Mac Studio and Studio Display provide a complete creative workstation. Studio Display features a 27-inch 5K Retina screen, a 12MP Center Stage camera, studio-quality mics, and a six-speaker system with Spatial Audio. For HDR workflows, Pro Display XDR offers a 32-inch 6K Retina display with up to 1600 nits of brightness. Matching Magic accessories, including Magic Keyboard with Touch ID, Magic Trackpad, and Magic Mouse, complement the sleek design. MacOS Sequoia enhances the Mac Studio experience with features like iPhone Mirroring, allowing seamless interaction with iPhone apps and notifications. Users can easily drag and drop files between iPhone and Mac, organise windows more efficiently, and access stored credentials with the new Passwords app. Video calls get a visual upgrade with built-in backgrounds, and Safari introduces Highlights, a redesigned Reader, and Distraction Control. Gaming is more immersive with Personalised Spatial Audio and Game Mode improvements, featuring titles like Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition and Assassin's Creed Shadows. Next month, macOS Sequoia 15.4 will simplify setup by letting users sign in to their Apple Account just by bringing their iPhone close to their Mac Studio.

M3 Ultra Runs DeepSeek R1 With 671 Billion Parameters Using 448GB Of Unified Memory, Delivering High Bandwidth Performance At Under 200W Power Consumption, With No Need For A Multi-GPU Setup

Apple launched the new Mac Studio earlier this week, housing its most powerful M3 Ultra chip that broke the company's own performance benchmarks. The chip comes with up to a 32-core CPU and up to an 80-core GPU, which will deliver enhanced computational and graphical performance compared to the M2 Ultra chip. The M3 Ultra chip has also proven itself quite capable when running the DeepSeek R1 model, a massive 671-billion-parameter model, compared to prior iterations of Apple silicon. The DeepSeek R1 model with 671 billion parameters weighs in at a hefty 404GB and demands high-bandwidth memory, which is something reserved for GPU VRAM. Thanks to Apple's unified memory architecture, the M3 Ultra chip offers a unique advantage in the segment, showcasing impressive results with minimal power usage. The details were shared by the YouTube channel Dave2D, which compared the performance of the chip with respect to the DeepSeek R1 model against prior Apple chips. Given the sheer size of the R1 model, powerful GPU setups with a significant amount of VRAM are required to run efficiently. A conventional PC setup would require multiple GPUs, driving power consumption to extreme levels, but the M3 Ultra chip managed to run the model far more efficiently. The unified memory architecture of the M3 Ultra chip provides a shared pool of high-bandwidth memory, which allows AI models to make use of resources similar to VRAM. Take note that the smaller AI models run consistently and smoothly without using the full resources, but the DeepSeek R1 model with 671 billion parameters requires Apple's highest configuration of the M3 Ultra chip - a whopping 512GB. However, macOS imposes a limitation on VRAM allocation by default, and Dave Lee had to increase the limit manually through the Terminal, bumping it up to 448GB. The DeepSeek R1 model ran successfully and smoothly on the M3 Ultra Mac Studio, and even though it is a 4-bit quantized version that sacrifices precision, the model still retained its 671 billion parameters and performed surprisingly well. While the competition can achieve the same performance with multiple GPUs, the M3 Ultra chip has the upper hand when it comes to power consumption. The entire system drew less than 200W while running the hefty DeepSeek R1 model. The power consumption is a fraction of what PCs with comparable performance would have used to achieve similar results. Dave mentions that the traditional multi-GPU configuration would have required 10 times more power than the M3 Ultra chip. Surprisingly, the R1 model with 671 billion parameters performed better than the smaller 70-billion-parameter version, which could be due to architectural efficiencies. All in all, Apple's new M3 Ultra chip can run models well above its weight. We will share more details on the chip's performance and efficiency, so be sure to keep an eye out.

Apple updates Mac Studio with M3 Ultra and M4 Max chips

Apple today introduced the M3 Ultra, calling it the "highest-performing chip" ever created by the company. It features the most powerful CPU and GPU in any Mac, doubles the Neural Engine cores, and offers the largest unified memory in a personal computer. Alongside this, Apple launched the new Mac Studio, featuring M4 Max and M3 Ultra chips. Apple said the M3 Ultra delivers unmatched performance while maintaining Apple silicon's energy efficiency. It features a 32-core CPU (24 performance cores, 8 efficiency cores), offering 1.5x faster performance than the M2 Ultra and 1.8x faster than the M1 Ultra. The 80-core GPU delivers 2x faster graphics than the M2 Ultra and 2.6x faster than the M1 Ultra. The chip's advanced graphics architecture includes dynamic caching, mesh shading, and ray tracing, enhancing content creation and gaming. A 32-core Neural Engine powers AI tasks, driving Apple Intelligence, Apple's personal AI system. Built for AI, the M3 Ultra integrates ML accelerators, a high-performance GPU, and 800GB/s memory bandwidth, enabling professionals to run LLMs with over 600 billion parameters directly on the device. Apple calls the new Mac Studio the most powerful Mac ever, offering M4 Max and M3 Ultra chip options. It delivers a major performance leap over the previous generation and older Macs. Designed for video editors, developers, and creative professionals, the M4 Max features a 16-core CPU, 40-core GPU, and 500GB/s memory bandwidth. Its Neural Engine is 3x faster than the M1 Max, enabling rapid AI tasks. Apple claims it's 3.5x faster than M1 Max Mac Studio and 6.1x faster than an Intel-based 27-inch iMac. The M4 Max GPU includes dynamic caching, mesh shading, and second-gen ray tracing for smooth content creation. Memory starts at 36GB, expandable to 128GB, enabling real-time image editing, music production, and 3D modeling. The media engine with two ProRes accelerators handles multiple 4K ProRes streams effortlessly. Performance Highlights: Apple calls this the pinnacle of pro performance, delivering nearly 2x the speed of M4 Max in high-core-count tasks. It's 2.6x faster than M1 Ultra Mac Studio and 6.4x faster than an Intel Xeon W-based Mac Pro. The M3 Ultra includes a 32-core CPU (24 performance, 8 efficiency cores), 80-core GPU, 32-core Neural Engine, and 800GB/s memory bandwidth. Memory starts at 96GB, expandable to 512GB, with 16TB SSD storage, enough for 12+ hours of 8K ProRes video. Both models feature Thunderbolt 5 ports with 120 Gb/s speeds -- 3x faster than the prior generation. The M3 Ultra model supports up to eight 6K Pro Display XDRs. Other ports include 10Gb Ethernet, HDMI, front SDXC slot, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth. Apple Intelligence boosts productivity with Writing Tools, Priority Notifications, live transcription in Notes, and improved Siri. Optional ChatGPT integration gives users control over data sharing. Image Playground allows for AI-generated visuals in projects. On-device Private Cloud Compute ensures privacy, as data is used only for requests and never stored. The macOS Sequoia update introduces iPhone Mirroring, window tiling, a Passwords app, and Safari upgrades. Gaming enhancements include Personalized Spatial Audio. Next month's 15.4 update simplifies setup with an iPhone. The Mac Studio pairs with: Apple stated the M3 Ultra's efficiency supports its Apple 2030 goal to be carbon neutral by decade's end. The Mac Studio uses over 30% recycled materials (100% recycled aluminum enclosure, 100% recycled rare earth elements), operates on renewable energy, and avoids mercury, brominated flame retardants, and PVC. Packaging is 100% fiber-based, aiming for zero plastic by 2025. All Apple facilities run on 100% renewable electricity. The new Mac Studio is available for pre-order today, with pricing as follows: Configure-to-order options are available at apple.com/in/store. Pre-orders are open in 28 countries, with in-store availability at Apple Stores and Authorized Resellers from March 12.

Apple's new Mac Studio sports the M3 Ultra, the mightiest chip in its range

Summary M3 Ultra chip offers double the resources of M3 Max with powerful media capabilities. Mac Studio, claimed as the most powerful Mac ever, offers a choice between M3 Ultra and M4 Max chips. Mac Studio excels in CPU tasks, video processing, and AI, with advanced GPU and up to 512GB unified memory. Apple fans have been eating well this past week, and it's only Tuesday. Yesterday, the Cupertino giant got things started with the news of a brand new iPad Air, which is twice as fast as the previous M1 model. Now, the company has announced both a brand new M3 Ultra chip and a shiny Mac Studio to put it in. Related MacBook Pro 16 (2024, M4 Pro) review: The first Mac worth upgrading to from an M1-series chip The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2024, M4 Pro) is the best laptop that I've ever used. And if you were using M1 before, it might even be worth upgrading. Posts The M3 Ultra is the ultimate version of the chip's range Before we hop into the Mac Studio, let's take a look at what's powering it. On the Apple Newsroom, the company reveals what we can expect from the M3 Ultra. It has double the Neutral Engine cores, and what Apple claims will be "the most unified memory ever in a personal computer" with up to 512GB. Its infrastructure includes two M3 Max dies linked up to provide over 10,000 connections, so you know it's going to be powerful. Apple claims that the chips perform especially well when crunching media: With 2x the resources of M3 Max, the media engine within M3 Ultra is capable of far more concurrent video processing. The chip offers dedicated, hardware-enabled H.264, HEVC, and four ProRes encode and decode engines, allowing M3 Ultra to play back up to 22 streams of 8K ProRes 422 video. Even at a base level, the M3 Ultra looks like a solid upgrade. It's a 32-core CPU with 24 performance cores and eight efficiency cores, with Apple claiming that it's 50% faster than the previous M2 Ultra. The new Mac Studio comes with your choice of an M3 Ultra or an M4 Max Now that we know what's at the heart of the Mac Studio, it's time to take a closer look at the unit itself. As announced on the Apple Newsroom, the company starts its announcement with a real haymaker, claiming that the device is "the most powerful Mac ever made." And it's easy to see why; you get to choose between the M3 Ultra or the M4 Max when you grab one. It's hard to find something that the Mac Studio can't do. Its powerful hardware lets it breeze through intensive CPU tasks and video processing, and it can render 3D graphics just fine. There's also a strong emphasis on AI with this new model: Mac Studio is a powerhouse for AI, capable of running large language models (LLMs) with over 600 billion parameters entirely in memory, thanks to its advanced GPU and up to 512GB of unified memory with M3 Ultra -- the most ever in a personal computer. You can preorder your own Mac Studio starting at $1,999 from today on the Apple store. Mac Studio (2024) $1999.99 at Apple

Apple M3 Ultra: Performance +80% and Connectivity Features Explained

Apple announced its new M3 Ultra chip, which is now powering the latest Mac Studio. The chip is built using two interconnected M3 Max units that are linked through a special UltraFusion connection made up of over 10,000 links. This setup provides a data throughput of 2.5 TB/s, and the chip is manufactured using TSMC's 3nm process with around 184 billion transistors. In the M3 Ultra, the CPU comes with 24 performance cores and eight efficiency cores, which means it works significantly faster than the older M2 Ultra chip. The GPU now includes 80 cores, offering twice the performance of the previous generation, and the Neural Engine has been updated to 32 cores to handle more advanced AI tasks. Memory options start at 96 GB and can go up to 512 GB, with a memory bandwidth of 800 GB/s to keep everything running smoothly. In the new Mac Studio, the M3 Ultra also brings enhanced connectivity features. With support for Thunderbolt 5, the chip enables fast data transfers of up to 80 Gbit/s per port. This means that you can link several Mac Studios together if needed, which might be really useful for boosting overall performance. The improved display engine is capable of running eight Pro Display XDR monitors simultaneously, making it a solid option for users who need multiple high-resolution displays. Plus, the media engine has been tuned to handle 22 streams of 8K ProRes-422 video at the same time, making it a strong choice for professionals who work with high-quality video content. Apart from these improvements, the M3 Ultra chip is a clear example of Apple's focus on integrating advanced processing capabilities into a single unit. By combining a high-performance CPU, a robust GPU, and a powerful Neural Engine, the chip offers a well-rounded solution for intensive computing tasks. The new Mac Studio is designed to meet the needs of tech gurus who require reliable performance for demanding applications. source: apple

Apple M3 Ultra Mac Studio arrives with 32 CPU, 80 GPU cores

Desktop family gets chip boost as MacBook Air bags an M4 upgrade, more memory, price cut Apple's newly refreshed Mac Studio has arrived bristling with up to 32 CPU and 80 GPU cores, and as much as 512GB of unified memory on board. Interestingly, Apple's top-specced Macintosh to date isn't packing the iGiant's home-grown Arm-compatible M4 processor -- you only get that in the base model Mac Studio. Instead, the latest top-end Mac Studio features the long-awaited M3 Ultra. Similar to the M1 and M2 Ultra, the new M3 Ultra is essentially two M3 Max processors that have been stitched together using TSMC's advanced packaging tech -- or as Apple prefers to call it, "UltraFusion" -- into a single logical chip with 184 billion transistors in total. Compared to its predecessor, the M3 Ultra offers a substantial upgrade. The processor can now be configured with up to 32 cores (24 performance and eight efficiency) versus the M2 Ultra's 24 (16 performance, eight efficiency). According to Apple this translates to a 50 percent performance uplift over the M2 Ultra and an 80 percent increase over the original M1 Ultra powered Mac Studio. The GPU has also been upgraded from a max of 76 cores to 80 this generation. That might not sound like much of an upgrade compared to the M3 Ultra's CPU count jump, but, as you might recall from Apple's "Scary Fast" event all the way back in October 2023, most of the graphics improvements are actually under the hood, within the graphics cores rather than from upping the number of cores. Apple has previously claimed the M3 GPU cores are about 80 percent faster than the M2's, thanks in part to the hardware-accelerated mesh shading and ray tracing. Add in the extra cores on the M3 Ultra and Apple says the GPU is roughly twice as fast in graphics workloads compared to the previous generation. The GPU is complemented by a 32-core Neural Engine to accelerate all those Apple Intelligence features that are now turned on by default in macOS. Speaking of AI, Apple is keen to tout the M3 Ultra's memory capacity which can be specced up to 512 GB, providing adequate space for "LLMs with over 600 billion parameters." This might seem like a weird flex, but Apple's Mac Studio has become quite popular among AI researchers and enthusiasts as it's one of the cheapest platforms for running high-parameter-count large language models, aka LLMs. And with 800 GB/s of memory bandwidth running something like DeepSeek R1 at home is totally feasible, at 4-bit precision at least. With 671 billion parameters, it'll eat up a little over 400GB of your memory, but because it uses a mixture of experts architecture, only 37 billion parameters are active at any given point. This means generation rates, potentially as high as 20 to 30 tokens a second, should be achievable by our estimation. With that said, a Mac Studio capable of running such a model won't be cheap. Upgrading to 512GB will cost you an extra $5,500 over the standard M3 Ultra-toting Mac Studio, bringing the total to $9,499 before you even upgrade the storage. Fully maxed out, an M3 Ultra Mac Studio with 16TB of SSD storage, will run you a cool $14,099. While Apple's top-specced Mac Studio gets the M3 Ultra, the base model comes equipped with the same M4 Max that's powered its MacBook Pros since last fall. That chip can be equipped with up to 16 CPU cores (12 performance, four efficiency), a 40-core GPU, and up to 128GB of unified memory. Additionally, storage is capped at a max of 8TB, though given the rather sizable premium Apple charges for storage, and the fact this thing will be sitting on a desk most of the time, we suggest investing in external USB4 or Thunderbolt storage, instead. The M4 arrives on the MacBook Air Alongside the Mac Studio, the venerable MacBook Air is also getting an Apple Silicon refresh. The passively cooled notebook is now available with an M4 processor and twice the starting memory while coming in $100 cheaper than the previous gen at $999. As we discussed last year, the M4 offers a couple of notable advantages over its predecessors, but in the case of the MacBook Air, one of the most obvious is support for multiple monitors. Unlike the M4 MacBook Pro launched last fall, the base model 13-inch Air comes equipped with a slightly cut-down version of the chip. Instead of the 10 CPU and 10 GPU core version that comes standard on the Pro, the base model Air's GPU features two fewer cores. While the base SoC may have been cut down in terms of compute, its memory has been doubled to 16GB over the M3 Air's 8GB, though the minuscule 256GB SSD remains. Stepping up to a 10-core GPU and 512GB of RAM will push the price to $1,199. The 15-inch model, meanwhile, starts at $1,199 and comes standard with the 10-core GPU, 10-core GPU-equipped M4, and 16GB of RAM, but just 256GB of storage. While Apple may have slashed the starting prices for the M4 Air, just like any other Mac, once you start upgrading the memory or storage -- remember they're soldered down -- they can get pretty expensive in a hurry. (There's a reason why we used to call it the Cupertino idiot-tax operation.) A maxed-out 15-inch Air with 32GB of RAM, and 2TB of storage will set you back $2,400, at which point you're well into MacBook Pro territory. Both the refreshed MacBook Airs and Mac Studios are available for preorder now and will hit store shelves on March 12. ®

Apple Refreshes Mac Studio With M4 Max and M3 Ultra Chips

The new Mac Studio is offered with M4 Max or M3 Ultra SoC options Its price in India starts at Rs. 2,14,900 for the base 16GB+512GB variant Apple says it can run on-device LLMs with 600 billion parameters Apple launched a new Mac Studio with refreshed chipset options on Wednesday (March 5). When buying the small-form-factor workstation, customers can choose between either the M4 Max or the newly launched M3 Ultra SoCs. The company says it is positioned above the Mac mini and is built for Apple Intelligence -- its suite of artificial intelligence (AI) features. It is capable of running large language models (LLMs) with over 600 billion parameters. The desktop also gets improved connectivity options with the inclusion of new Thunderbolt 5 ports. Mac Studio price in India starts at Rs. 2,14,900 for the base variant that comes with the M4 Max SoC, 36GB of unified memory and 512GB of SSD storage. If you want the higher-spec M3 Ultra variant with 96GB of unified memory and 1TB of SSD storage, it will set you back Rs. 4,29,900. The new Mac Studio can be pre-ordered right now in 28 countries and shipping will commence starting March 12. Buyers can also configure the Mac Studio with to-order options on the Apple website. Apple says Mac Studio with the M4 Max chip is up to three and a half times faster than its M1 Max equivalent. It is powered by up to a 16-core CPU and up to a 40-core GPU. The desktop can be configured with up to 128GB of unified memory and up to 8TB of SSD storage. The company says it can run on-device AI models and Apple Intelligence features, leveraging a 16-core neural engine. For content creation and gaming, the device features advanced graphics architecture including dynamic caching, hardware-accelerated mesh shading, and a second-generation ray-tracing engine. It can work with multiple streams of 4K ProRes courtesy of the Media Engine with two ProRes accelerators. Meanwhile, the Mac Studio with Apple's new M3 Ultra chipset comes with up to 512GB of unified memory and up to 16TB of SSD storage, with the latter capable of storing up to 12 hours of 8K ProRes video. The SoC comprises a 32-core CPU with 24 performance cores and an 80-core GPU. Its 32-core neural engine helps it run on-device AI and machine learning (ML). Apple says it has a high-bandwidth memory architecture that delivers over 800GB per second of unified memory bandwidth. Courtesy of the M3 Ultra chip, the new Mac Studio is claimed to be up to 2.6 times faster than Mac Studio with M1 Ultra SoC. Taking advantage of the same advanced graphics architecture as the M4 Max variant, the desktop delivers GPU-based renderers up to 2.6 times faster than Mac Studio with M1 Ultra. Both models retain a similar design as their predecessor. The Mac Studio is constructed out of aluminium and features the Apple logo on top, as well as USB Type-C or Thunderbolt ports and an SDXC card slot on the front. What's new is the inclusion of Thunderbolt 5 ports at the back which deliver data transfer speeds up to 120 Gb/s, translating into an improvement of up to three times compared to its predecessor. Further, customers can connect an external expansion chassis with higher bandwidth and lower latency. Leveraging the new ports, the Mac Studio can now run eight Pro Display XDRs at the full 6K resolution. The device also includes an array of ports at the rear including 10Gb Ethernet, HDMI, Thunderbolt 5, and USB-A ports. There is also a 3.5mm headphone jack along with Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity options.

The $3,999 M3 Ultra Mac Studio barely beats the $1,999 M4 Max in leaked benchmark

Apple recently announced its new Mac Studio with M4 Max and M3 Ultra, with the latter now being touted as offering "the most powerful CPU and GPU in a Mac." Thanks to a new benchmark leak, this looks to be the case -- but the results aren't exactly straightforward. As spotted by @jimmyjames_tech on X (via MacRumors), the M3 Ultra has shown up on Geekbench with a multi-core score of 27,749. This makes it Apple's fastest-performing chip in a Mac, outperforming the M4 Max in multi-core performance, which achieved an average of 24,445 on Geekbench. The M3 Ultra packs a 32-core CPU with 24 performance cores (the most cores in a Mac), along with an 80-core GPU, 32-core Neural Engine and 96GB of unified memory. Compared to the M4 Max chip, with its 16-core CPU, up to a 40-core GPU and up to 128GB, it's clear the M3 Ultra has the advantage. However, there's one area the M3 Ultra appears to fall behind in this alleged benchmark: single-core performance. According to the benchmark on Geekbench, the M3 Ultra scores 3,221 in single-core performance, while the M4 Max score 3,884. Single-score performance measures the processing power of a CPU using just one core, rating how well it can handle tasks that rely on one core. Since the result is based on one sample, and we have yet to see the M3 Ultra in action, it's worth taking those numbers with a pinch of salt. Still, considering the price difference, the M3 Ultra doesn't appear to blow away the M4 Max (for now). Apple's latest M3 Ultra has been a long time coming, but it now arrives on the Mac Studio with prices starting at $3,999. It may seem strange to see an M3 Ultra now that we're in the era of M4, but during our first look at the processors, Apple claimed the M3 Ultra delivers nearly 2x faster performance than the M4 Max and up to 2.5x the performance of the M1 Ultra. This doesn't appear to be the case in the recent benchmark. The M4 Max starts from $1,999, and the performance gap isn't nearly as big as the Cupertino tech giant claims it to be. All this being said, the M3 Ultra is set to be for professionals and power users, leveraging the insane 32-core CPU, 80-core GPU and 96GB of unified memory for AI tasks and graphics. For example, by leveraging LLM Studio (creating large language models), it could help the user code a Python script of an object for a game, copy and paste it into Cinema 4D, and render the object in seconds. Not hours, seconds. It could also offer up Cyberpunk 2077 (coming to Mac later this year) in all of its glory. While it's aimed at power users, will it offer enough performance gains to justify its $3,999 starting price, especially over the $1,999 M4 Max and its impressive power? This remains to be seen, as the M3 Ultra still needs more testing (and real-world testing) to reveal its true power. If you're after something a tad more portable (and affordable), the MacBook Air M4 is already looking to be the laptop of the year.

What is M3 Ultra? Learn about Apple's new silicone

Apple has unveiled the M3 Ultra with Mac Studio. The M3 Ultra improves efficiency over the M3. Mac Studio's form factor is built for creators. Apple has officially introduced the M3 Ultra, its most powerful chip yet, alongside the latest Mac Studio. The new chip builds on the foundation of the M3, promising better efficiency and performance for demanding workflows. With the Mac Studio's compact design tailored for creators, the addition of the M3 Ultra aims to push the limits of video editing, 3D rendering, and other intensive tasks. This launch reinforces Apple's focus on high-performance computing in a form factor designed for professionals. The M3 Ultra pushes Mac performance further while maintaining the power efficiency Apple silicon is known for. It comes with a 32-core CPU, including 24 performance cores and eight efficiency cores, delivering significant speed gains -- up to 1.5 times faster than the M2 Ultra and 1.8 times faster than the M1 Ultra. The chip also features Apple's largest 80-core GPU, offering up to twice the graphics performance of the M2 Ultra and 2.6 times that of the M1 Ultra. The M3 Ultra introduces an advanced graphics architecture with dynamic caching, hardware-accelerated mesh shading, and ray tracing, enhancing both content creation and gaming performance. A 32-core Neural Engine accelerates AI and machine learning tasks, powering Apple Intelligence, the company's new generative AI system. With over 800GB/s of memory bandwidth and dedicated ML accelerators, the Mac Studio with M3 Ultra is capable of running large language models (LLMs) with more than 600 billion parameters directly on the device -- positioning it as a powerful tool for AI developers and creative professionals alike. The M3 Ultra features a unified memory architecture designed for high bandwidth and low latency, making it one of the most advanced memory systems in a personal computer. With a base configuration of 96GB and the option to expand up to 512GB, it surpasses the memory capacity of many high-end workstation GPUs. This allows professionals working with 3D rendering, visual effects, and AI to handle massive datasets and complex workflows without the usual memory constraints. The M3 Ultra introduces Thunderbolt 5 to the Mac Studio, delivering data transfer speeds of up to 120 Gb/s -- more than twice the speed of Thunderbolt 4. Each Thunderbolt 5 port is powered by a dedicated, custom-designed controller on the chip, ensuring consistent high-speed performance across all connections. For professionals working with high-speed storage, docking stations, and expansion hubs, this upgrade significantly improves workflow efficiency. Thunderbolt 5 also allows multiple Mac Studio systems to be linked together, opening new possibilities for large-scale content creation and computational research. We will also soon do a comparison with M4 and M3 Ultra for users, stay tuned.

M3 Ultra exposed: Inside Apple's hybrid chip powerful enough to take on Nvidia

Apple's newest powerhouse processor is a cross between an M3 and an M4 -- and is made for the most demanding users. Just when we thought the M3 was in the ground and Apple had rapidly moved every single Mac model over to the fresh and new M4 processor, in rolls the high-end Mac Studio, equipped with the impossible-to-predict, never-before-seen M3 Ultra processor. That's right-in March 2025, a full 16 months after the M3 Pro and M3 Max chips arrived on the scene, Apple introduced a new chip in the old, nearly retired family. And it means that the new Mac Studio comes simultaneously in M3 and M4 varieties-with the M3 model being the high-end configuration So confusing. I admit to being a bit baffled when I heard the news, too. But the more I think about it, the more I have come to grips with the fact that Apple's chip strategy isn't quite as straightforward as it would like us to believe. What if I told you that the M3 Ultra isn't quite an M3 or an M4 chip? Follow me, friend, and let's see how deep this rabbit hole goes. Here's the story as we know it: Apple and its chipmaker, TSMC, were rightly proud when the M3 and A17 Pro chips arrived in 2023 as the first chips made by a new, state-of-the-art 3nm fabrication process. But as it turns out, TSMC was already working on a more efficient and economical second-generation 3nm process, making that first generation a bit of an architectural dead end. Therefore, everyone expected Apple and TSMC to rapidly turn from the M3 to the M4, which is based on the second-generation process and more efficient all around. That's why Apple has spent the last few months updating almost every Mac from M3 to M4. Except... there's still the M3 iPad Air and the A17 Pro iPad mini, both of which use cut-rate versions of that older process. Nobody outside Apple and TSMC seems to know whether there are still portions of the old process running somewhere or if there's a big bin of M3 and A17 parts that Apple knows will be enough to meet any demand for devices with the older chip architecture. That was all weird enough, but the announcement of the M3 Ultra is something else. It's a new chip, not some relic of the past. It's a whole generation out of step with Apple's current strategy, thawed out and dropped on an unsuspecting public like some sort of silicon Austin Powers. Or at least that's what you might believe if all you see is the big number 3 next to the capital M. But when you look closer at the M3 Ultra, you start to realize that all is not as it seems. The M1 Ultra and M2 Ultra chips were essentially just two M1 Max and M2 Max processors, respectively, stuck together with Apple's UltraFusion technology. Their specs were simply doubles of the smaller chips: twice the CPU cores, twice the GPU cores, twice the neural engines, and twice the maximum RAM. But that's not the case with the M3 Ultra, which is probably why it took Apple so much longer to release it than its sibling chips. (The M2 Ultra followed the M2 Pro and Max after just a few months, so 16 months is quite a wait.) The M3 Ultra chip is very much modeled on the M3 Max and offers twice as many CPU and GPU cores, Neural Engine cores, and the like. But look closer: The M3 Ultra offers a maximum of 512GB of RAM, four times the maximum 128GB of the M3 Max. And the M3 Ultra supports the faster Thunderbolt 5 specification, not the older Thunderbolt 4 of the rest of the family. That means the M3 Ultra is an in-between chip, mostly based on the older M3 generation, but with a few high-end additions that push it up toward the M4 in terms of capability. In my conversations with Apple representatives, I've gotten the impression that these changes, including the upgrade to Thunderbolt 5, had an impact on the release date of the chip. So why call it an M3 and not an M4? I think Apple has some pretty strict internal rules that determine chip naming, and they probably start with the design of the CPU cores. One look at the single-core performance of the M3 Ultra and you'll see it performs more or less like any other M3 chip. Of course, you would never buy an M3 Ultra and use just a single processor core-the whole point is that you've got 20 or 24 of them, and 60 or 80 GPU cores, too. Speaking of maxing things out, that's what the M3 Ultra is designed to do. Because it's mostly from the previous-generation chip architecture, each part is slower-but if you load up all those CPU and GPU cores and take advantage of an enormous heap of RAM and the high bandwidth of Thunderbolt 5, the M3 Ultra Mac Studio will run rings around an M4 Max Mac Studio. It's a faster chip-when it's used to its fullest. That's why the M3 Ultra Mac Studio really is a product designed for a relatively small audience. Even most professional users will find it hard to make the M4 Max chip feel slow, but for certain applications-video, rendering, science, and AI-the enormity of the M3 Ultra's spec sheet will make it worth its very high price tag. As Ben Thompson pointed out this week, an M3 Ultra Mac Studio with 512GB of RAM could run the four-bit quantized version of the state-of-the-art DeepSeek R1 model on device. Even at a price tag of tens of thousands of dollars, the highest-end M3 Ultra Mac Studio might be a bargain compared to expensive Nvidia arrays-if you find yourself in need of running an enormous AI model locally. Almost nobody wants that... but if you're an AI researcher, you sure might. Still, the M3 Ultra's arrival is weird enough to make it feel like we're all missing part of the bigger picture. If there's no other shoe to drop, why did the M2 Ultra-based Mac Pro not get its own M3 Ultra chip bump? Sure, it might mean the Mac Pro is just a laggard, and it's going to show up in June with the same chip inside. Or it might mean that Apple doesn't care about the Mac Pro and it's pining for the fjords. But consider this: Apple has suggested that there won't necessarily be an Ultra chip in every M-series chip generation. Okay, but... what if there's something else? A few years ago, there were rumors of an even higher-end chip destined for the Mac Pro, but it was reportedly canceled. I wonder if maybe the future of the Mac Pro is hiding in plain sight, and the M3 Ultra is what it is because Apple's going to use its high-end chip design bandwidth in the M4 or M5 generation for something a little larger, designed just for the Mac Pro. (A chip that huge would almost certainly need to be inside the Mac Pro, because I doubt the Mac Studio enclosure and its cooling system would be capable of handling a chip that large and hot.) I don't know if a fancy ultra-high-end chip for the Mac Pro is in the cards, in this generation or any other. But if the M3 Ultra Mac Studio already has some intriguing implications for running enormous AI models locally, imagine what might be enabled by an even larger chip with even more onboard memory. It would be a feature set worthy of the name Mac Pro.