An Apple silicon Mac Pro is expected to launch in 2023. While pro users are eager to get their hands on a modular Mac with a custom processor, Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, in his Power On newsletter, points out that those who like the Mac Studio brand won’t have another iteration to get in the foreseeable future due to similarities between these two products.
Gurman writes:
I wouldn’t anticipate the introduction of a Mac Studio in the near future. The upcoming Mac Pro is very similar in functionality to the Mac Studio — and adds the M2 Ultra chip rather than the M1 Ultra. So it wouldn’t make sense for Apple to offer an M2 Ultra Mac Studio and M2 Ultra Mac Pro at the same time. It’s more likely that Apple either never updates the Mac Studio or holds off until the M3 or M4 generation. At that point, the company may be able to better differentiate the Mac Studio from the Mac Pro.
Currently, the Mac Studio offers the M1 Max and M1 Ultra processors. Since the new Mac Pro is expected to feature the M2 Max and M2 Ultra chips, it wouldn’t make sense for Apple to offer similar configurations with a huge price difference. Previously, the Apple silicon Mac Pro would have an M2 Extreme processor, combining two M2 Ultra, but this idea was scrapped.
Gurman already reported that this custom Mac Pro wouldn’t feature an upgradeable RAM, another feature of the 2019 model that users loved. That said, it makes sense why Apple would want to wait a few more years to launch another Mac Studio.
Who will buy the Apple silicon Mac Pro? And the Mac Studio?
The upcoming Apple silicon Mac Pro will be focused on really demanding users that need a better cooling system and some specifications maxed out to handle graphic tasks. Apart from that, the M1 Ultra Mac Studio – or even the new generation M2 and M2 Pro Mac mini are more than enough for 98% of Apple users.
It’s important to note that the Apple silicon Mac Pro will feature a similar look to the 2019 model, expandable SSD size, GPU, and networking capabilities.
