Popularity drives updates at Apple. Pro stuff sells less, so it gets fewer updates, really only getting them when it’s so far behind the cheaper alternatives that no one would buy the higher cost pro version. And if you take a look at the specs, it’s not as clear cut as it seems. The Studio has way more memory bandwidth and lacks some other bottlenecks that the minis have in their M4 architecture. The M4 that would make it to the Studio would be fundamentally different from the consumer Mini.
With the mini? What advantage to a standard figure-8 power cord?
What about the Mac Tini?
Precisely. The natural approach would be to release them at the same time, even if the Ultra is released in summer (they prefer to release all the Studio models together, which is not necessary at all). With the current nonsense dates, there are people who will buy a high spec Mini just because there’s no M4 Studio yet and they have the money now.
The Samsung DeX shows this should be perfectly possible.
I know it's wishful thinking for the forseeable future.
I have a M2 Mac Studio unopened box from Costco and been waiting a week to decide whether to keep it or return it and go with the M4 Pro. I read the article and table and still don't know that it matters which way I go.
In 2023, Apple updated the Mac Studio with the M2 Max and M2 Ultra chips. Apple has now refreshed the Mac mini with the M4 and M4 Pro chips, meaning that the Mac Studio faces a formidable competitor that offers "Pro" capabilities at a substantially lower price point.
There are now two desktop Macs and four Apple silicon chip options for users who do not need the expandability of the Mac Pro. The Mac Studio starts at $1,999, overshadowing the $599 starting price of the M4 Mac mini and even the $1,399 starting price of the M4 Pro Mac mini, so do you need the performance of the Mac Studio, or is the humble Mac mini sufficient for your needs? Our guide helps to answer the question of how to decide which of these two desktop Macs is best for you.
The Mac mini and the Mac Studio share some fundamental features, including a familiar, boxy silver aluminum design, two front-facing USB-C ports along with HDMI and ethernet on the rear, and Apple silicon chipsets. That being said, the two machines have much more in contrast than they do in common, including different chip options, memory capacities, ports, and external display support capabilities.
Mac mini (2024) Mac Studio (2023) M4 or M4 Pro chip (made with TSMC's enhanced 3nm (N3E) process) M2 Max or M2 Ultra chip (made with TSMC's enhanced 5nm (N5P) process) 4.30 GHz maximum CPU clock speed 3.50 GHz maximum CPU clock speed M4: 10-core CPU (4 performance cores + 6 efficiency cores)
M4 Pro: 12- or 14-core CPU (8 or 10 performance cores + 4 efficiency cores)M2 Max: 12-core CPU (8 performance cores + 4 efficiency cores)
M2 Ultra: 24-core CPU (16 performance cores + 8 efficiency cores)M4: 10-core GPU
M4 Pro: 16- or 20‑core GPUM2 Max: 30- or 38-core GPU
M2 Ultra: 60‑ or 76-core GPUUpdated GPU architecture with improved efficiency Hardware-accelerated ray-tracing Dynamic caching LPDDR5X memory LPDDR5 memory M4: 120GB/s memory bandwidth
M4 Pro: 273GB/s memory bandwidthM2 Max: 400GB/s memory bandwidth
M2 Ultra: 800GB/s memory bandwidthM4: 16GB, 24GB, or 32GB unified memory
M4 Pro: 24GB, 48GB, or 64GB unified memoryM2 Max: 32GB, 64GB, or 96GB unified memory
M2 Ultra: 64GB, 128GB, or 192GB unified memoryM4: 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB storage
M4 Pro: 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB storageM2 Max: 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB storage
M2 Ultra: 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB storage16-core Neural Engine, 38 trillion operations per second M2 Max: 16-core Neural Engine, 15.8 trillion operations per second
M2 Ultra: 32-core Neural Engine, 31.6 trillion operations per secondVideo decode engine, video encode engine, and ProRes encode and decode engine M2 Max: Video decode engine, two video encode engines, and two ProRes encode and decode engines
M2 Ultra: Two video decode engines, four video encode engines, and four ProRes encode and decode enginesAV1 decode Dedicated display engine Support for up to three external displays M2 Max: Support for up to five external displays
M2 Ultra: Support for up to eight external displaysM4: Three rear Thunderbolt 4 ports
M4 Pro: Three rear Thunderbolt 5 portsFour rear Thunderbolt 4 ports Two front USB-C ports M2 Max: Two front USB-C ports
M2 Ultra: Two front Thunderbolt 4 portsTwo rear USB-A ports Gigabit Ethernet or 10Gb Ethernet port 10Gb Ethernet port SDXC card slot (UHS-II) Bottom power button Rear power button M4: Starts at $599
M4 Pro: Starts at $1,399M2 Max: Starts at $1,999
M2 Ultra: Starts at $3,999
Following the Mac mini's redesign this year, the dimensions of the two devices are now radically different, with the Mac Studio dwarfing the Mac mini in every way.
Mac mini Mac Studio Height 2.0 inches (5.0 cm) 3.7 inches (9.5 cm) Width 5.0 inches (12.7 cm) 7.7 inches (19.7 cm) Depth 5.0 inches (12.7 cm) 7.7 inches (19.7 cm) Weight M4: 1.5 pounds (0.67 kg)
M4 Pro: 1.6 pounds (0.73 kg)M2 Max: 5.9 pounds (2.7 kg)
M2 Ultra: 7.9 pounds (3.6 kg)
To some extent, purchasing decisions should be driven by budget, but it is worth bearing in mind that any savings on the desktop computer itself can be put toward a good external display such as Apple's Studio Display, which starts from $1,599. For example, an M4 Pro Mac mini paired with a Studio Display comes to $2,898, which is just $899 more than a lone base model Mac Studio and $1,101 less than the M2 Ultra Mac Studio with no display.
You should only consider the Mac Studio if you have a professional workflow that can leverage the extreme power of the M2 Max or M2 Ultra, as well as its additional ports and memory options. If you need the Mac Studio, you will likely know that you are looking for a highly powerful machine that is capable of supporting specific intense workflows. Most customers should choose the M4 Pro Mac mini over the M2 Max Mac Studio, saving $700 when looking at the base models. There will likely still be substantial savings when it comes to custom configurations.
The Mac mini is also a better choice for most users at the current ti... Click here to read rest of article
Article Link: Mac Mini vs. Mac Studio Buyer's Guide: 25+ Differences Compared
Yeah, the timing isn't great. My 2018 Intel Mini has been a great machine but it just doesn't have it for Logic Pro any longer. I could return the M2 Studio and save about $400 in the difference and be in a better position to flip it for a Studio next year. This isn't life or death, lol, I better just make the decision and move along.
HDMI 2.1 ????
In 2023, Apple updated the Mac Studio with the M2 Max and M2 Ultra chips. Apple has now refreshed the Mac mini with the M4 and M4 Pro chips, meaning that the Mac Studio faces a formidable competitor that offers "Pro" capabilities at a substantially lower price point.
There are now two desktop Macs and four Apple silicon chip options for users who do not need the expandability of the Mac Pro. The Mac Studio starts at $1,999, overshadowing the $599 starting price of the M4 Mac mini and even the $1,399 starting price of the M4 Pro Mac mini, so do you need the performance of the Mac Studio, or is the humble Mac mini sufficient for your needs? Our guide helps to answer the question of how to decide which of these two desktop Macs is best for you.
The Mac mini and the Mac Studio share some fundamental features, including a familiar, boxy silver aluminum design, two front-facing USB-C ports along with HDMI and ethernet on the rear, and Apple silicon chipsets. That being said, the two machines have much more in contrast than they do in common, including different chip options, memory capacities, ports, and external display support capabilities.
Mac mini (2024) Mac Studio (2023) M4 or M4 Pro chip (made with TSMC's enhanced 3nm (N3E) process) M2 Max or M2 Ultra chip (made with TSMC's enhanced 5nm (N5P) process) 4.30 GHz maximum CPU clock speed 3.50 GHz maximum CPU clock speed M4: 10-core CPU (4 performance cores + 6 efficiency cores)
M4 Pro: 12- or 14-core CPU (8 or 10 performance cores + 4 efficiency cores)M2 Max: 12-core CPU (8 performance cores + 4 efficiency cores)
M2 Ultra: 24-core CPU (16 performance cores + 8 efficiency cores)M4: 10-core GPU
M4 Pro: 16- or 20‑core GPUM2 Max: 30- or 38-core GPU
M2 Ultra: 60‑ or 76-core GPUUpdated GPU architecture with improved efficiency Hardware-accelerated ray-tracing Dynamic caching LPDDR5X memory LPDDR5 memory M4: 120GB/s memory bandwidth
M4 Pro: 273GB/s memory bandwidthM2 Max: 400GB/s memory bandwidth
M2 Ultra: 800GB/s memory bandwidthM4: 16GB, 24GB, or 32GB unified memory
M4 Pro: 24GB, 48GB, or 64GB unified memoryM2 Max: 32GB, 64GB, or 96GB unified memory
M2 Ultra: 64GB, 128GB, or 192GB unified memoryM4: 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB storage
M4 Pro: 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB storageM2 Max: 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB storage
M2 Ultra: 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB storage16-core Neural Engine, 38 trillion operations per second M2 Max: 16-core Neural Engine, 15.8 trillion operations per second
M2 Ultra: 32-core Neural Engine, 31.6 trillion operations per secondVideo decode engine, video encode engine, and ProRes encode and decode engine M2 Max: Video decode engine, two video encode engines, and two ProRes encode and decode engines
M2 Ultra: Two video decode engines, four video encode engines, and four ProRes encode and decode enginesAV1 decode Dedicated display engine Support for up to three external displays M2 Max: Support for up to five external displays
M2 Ultra: Support for up to eight external displaysM4: Three rear Thunderbolt 4 ports
M4 Pro: Three rear Thunderbolt 5 portsFour rear Thunderbolt 4 ports Two front USB-C ports M2 Max: Two front USB-C ports
M2 Ultra: Two front Thunderbolt 4 portsTwo rear USB-A ports Gigabit Ethernet or 10Gb Ethernet port 10Gb Ethernet port SDXC card slot (UHS-II) Bottom power button Rear power button M4: Starts at $599
M4 Pro: Starts at $1,399M2 Max: Starts at $1,999
M2 Ultra: Starts at $3,999
Following the Mac mini's redesign this year, the dimensions of the two devices are now radically different, with the Mac Studio dwarfing the Mac mini in every way.
Mac mini Mac Studio Height 2.0 inches (5.0 cm) 3.7 inches (9.5 cm) Width 5.0 inches (12.7 cm) 7.7 inches (19.7 cm) Depth 5.0 inches (12.7 cm) 7.7 inches (19.7 cm) Weight M4: 1.5 pounds (0.67 kg)
M4 Pro: 1.6 pounds (0.73 kg)M2 Max: 5.9 pounds (2.7 kg)
M2 Ultra: 7.9 pounds (3.6 kg)
To some extent, purchasing decisions should be driven by budget, but it is worth bearing in mind that any savings on the desktop computer itself can be put toward a good external display such as Apple's Studio Display, which starts from $1,599. For example, an M4 Pro Mac mini paired with a Studio Display comes to $2,898, which is just $899 more than a lone base model Mac Studio and $1,101 less than the M2 Ultra Mac Studio with no display.
You should only consider the Mac Studio if you have a professional workflow that can leverage the extreme power of the M2 Max or M2 Ultra, as well as its additional ports and memory options. If you need the Mac Studio, you will likely know that you are looking for a highly powerful machine that is capable of supporting specific intense workflows. Most customers should choose the M4 Pro Mac mini over the M2 Max Mac Studio, saving $700 when looking at the base models. There will likely still be substantial savings when it comes to custom configurations.
The Mac mini is also a better choice for most users at the current ti... Click here to read rest of article
Article Link: Mac Mini vs. Mac Studio Buyer's Guide: 25+ Differences Compared
I know you are joking. But, this isn't an awful idea. You can hide all of your dongles, docks, and external ssds in there.
