It was a bit of a surprise in the Mac world today as Apple has introduced new Mac Studios with M5 Ultra and M5 Pro chips, along with an updated Mac mini with M5 Pro and M6 chips. I only pay attention to the rumor mills in passing and didn’t think we’d see new Mac minis anytime soon (especially considering how scarce they have been), much less a new Mac Studio, but those rumor mills were wrong!
But what we have are refreshed versions of both the Mac Studio and Mac mini, and the headline for both is a lot about AI: a huge jump in on-device AI power. Preorders are open now, with both machines shipping September 22.
Mac Studio: M5 Max and M5 Ultra
Much like in the past, the Mac Studio will come in two flavors: M5 Max and the M5 Ultra. The M4 Ultra Mac Studio was skipped entirely (PVC reviewed the M3 Ultra Mac Studio for video editors). Apple is calling it the most powerful Mac it’s ever made and that makes sense considering just how good the M-series of chips has been for demanding tasks like video editing, photography, music production, 3D/motion work and overall post-production tasks. Apple says, it delivers up to 4.3x faster AI performance, 2x faster storage, and 1.8x faster graphics than the previous generation.
- M5 Max: 18-core CPU, up to 40-core GPU, up to 128GB unified memory
- M5 Ultra: up to 36-core CPU, up to 80-core GPU, and a massive 512GB unified memory
- Multiple Mac Studios can be linked together over Thunderbolt 5 for up to 3x faster AI inference across a cluster
It’s worth noting that the M5 Max and M5 Ultra Mac Studios start with 36 GB and 96 GB of RAM, respectively. For the Ultra, that’s a great base RAM configuration for video work. That base M5 Ultra machine will cost around $5,500 but will last for years. For the M5 Max Mac Studio, the base RAM configuration is 36 GB. To go beyond that you have to bump up to a 40-core GPU so a respectable M5 Max Mac Studio will start around $3,800 for 64 GBs of RAM and a 1 TB hard drive.
One option for purchasing these days is the new Apple Upgrade program, which is basically a lease on any number of Apple products. This might make sense for many folks, but for something like a Mac Studio, you can get so many years out of one of these computers, carefully consider whether a lease or a purchase might be best over time.
Both models add Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 for the first time, plus Thunderbolt 5, faster PCIe Gen 6 storage. The Mac Studio also “enables genlock over USB-C for precise synchronization between a display and professional camera capture like iPhone 17 Pro.” That’s interesting.
Mac mini: M6 and M5 Pro
The Mac mini gets the same AI-focused treatment in the great Mac mini form factor. The standard model now uses Apple’s new M6 chip, M5 Pro being the more powerful upgrade option.
- M6 model: 12-core CPU, 12-core GPU with Neural Accelerators, 16GB memory (up to 32GB) so up to 4x faster AI performance and 2x faster graphics than the M4 mini
- M5 Pro model: up to 18-core CPU, 20-core GPU, up to 64GB memory, aimed at video editing, 3D work, and running larger local AI models
- Both add Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and 2.5Gb Ethernet (10Gb optional)
The M6 mini keeps Thunderbolt 4, while the M5 Pro version steps up to Thunderbolt 5, which also supports genlock over USB-C for camera-to-display sync.
Apple’s new M6 and M5 Ultra chips are built around faster on-device AI and more capable pro workflows. M6 is Apple’s first 2nm chip, bringing a 12-core CPU, 12-core GPU with Neural Accelerators, and a Dual 16-core Neural Engine to the Mac mini. The M5 Ultra uses Apple’s first quad-die design to deliver up to a 36-core CPU, 80-core GPU, 512GB of unified memory, and 1.2TB/s of memory bandwidth in the Mac Studio.
Both machines lean hard into “agentic AI” and running large language models locally rather than in the cloud, which means more privacy and no per-token costs. That’s especially evident if you scroll through both the Mac Studio and Mac mini website as there are specific sections on AI. For anyone doing video editing, color grading, or 3D work, the memory bandwidth and Neural Accelerator gains should translate directly into faster renders and smoother real-time playback.
Apple also has a nice comparison site that will let you see model specs side by side.
You can pre-order both the Mac Studio and Mac mini today, with availability starting September 22nd. As popular as these machines have been for running AI agents and local models, they’ll probably sell out rather fast. Apple had to raise prices on Macs across the board as no one is safe from the AI RAM price increases, and that continues today. The good thing about these Macs, especially a Mac Studio, is that you can get years of use out of these machines for video editing and post-production. And if you want to run some AI agent when you’re not editing, you have a machine that can do it.