The M3 Ultra getting announced exclusively for the updated Mac Studio was the ultimate sign that Apple had little to no interest in keeping the Mac Pro a part of its lineup, and just a few days ago, the company admitted that no more models of the tower workstation will launch in the future.
Even though the Cupertino firm confirmed its plans to several media outlets, the machine’s slow demise began in 2022, according to the latest report. The Intel-powered model offered flexibility with its expansion slots, but the Apple Silicon Mac Pro had this functionality removed, not to mention that a cheaper Mac Studio was the final nail in the coffin.
The M2 Ultra Mac Pro only allowed for audio and networking card expansion, which are additions that are pretty much meaningless to the majority of buyers
In the latest edition of Mark Gurman’s‘ Power On’ newsletter, the Bloomberg correspondent reports that the Mac Pro’s deficiencies had become impossible to ignore.’ Its major selling point was the expansion slots that allowed for unique customizations, but Apple severed the majority of the functionality when it launched the M2 Ultra version, allowing for only audio and networking cards.
A large percentage of buyers would benefit from additional GPU card installations, PCIe cards with NVMe SSD expansion, and lastly, RAM upgrades, which were exclusive to the Intel Mac Pro. With these options removed, consumers see little point in upgrading to the larger workstation, especially when it’s significantly bulkier and more expensive than the Mac Studio.
“The Mac Pro was a hard sell in other ways too. It was roughly three times larger in volume than the Mac Studio and cost $3,000 more — starting at a whopping $6,999. The approach to expansion also felt stuck in another era: There were PCIe slots for networking and audio cards, but no support for upgrading the components that matter most in modern workflows, like memory and graphics.
By last year, these deficiencies had become impossible to ignore. The Mac Studio with the M3 Ultra pulled further ahead — thanks to better performance, greater memory capacity and significantly higher storage ceilings. Notably, the Mac Pro wasn’t updated at all. Merely swapping in new chips (something Apple seems to do 10 times a year across other product lines) was apparently too heavy a lift.”
Apple was previously reported to have ‘largely written off’ the Mac Pro, with the Mac Studio internally referred to as the new tower workstation, meaning that the M5 Ultra will only be found in the compact computer. As for the upcoming chipset’s launch, it’s expected to arrive in the first half of 2026, so we will keep our readers updated.
News Source: Bloomberg
About the author: Omar Sohail is a reporter and analyst for Wccftech's mobile section, specializing in the technology and business of the mobile industry. His expertise lies in the intricate hardware supply chain, covering developments in semiconductor manufacturing, chip lithography, and camera sensor technology.
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