The M5 family is missing one member that’ll eventually power the updated Mac Studio’s innards, and that’s the M5 Ultra. With the launch expected later this year, Apple will finally bring its most powerful workstation-class silicon to the masses, and even though it won’t be cheap, we’re looking forward to its release. Unfortunately, as far as design changes go, the new Mac Studio will look similar to its predecessors, but Apple won’t keep this trend going with the M7 Ultra, as the latter’s higher power requirements will necessitate a major change.
Internal upgrades, such as a bigger heatsink is expected in the M7 Ultra-powered Mac Studio, allowing for higher sustained performance when running AI workloads
With the M6 Pro, M6 Max, and M6 Ultra out of the picture, Apple will only introduce the higher-tier M7 Pro, M7 Max, and M7 Ultra, with the last SoC expected sometime in 2028, according to Mark Gurman’s ‘Power On’ newsletter. No specifications of the powerful silicon have been mentioned, though we have reported that the base M7 will feature 240GB/s of unified memory bandwidth, making it 56 percent higher than the M5’s.
Given that the M7 will be intended to boost AI-related workloads, the M7 Ultra could be another beast altogether and will require beefier cooling. The report states that the internal changes to the 2028 Mac Studio include a larger solution, but it doesn’t specifically mention whether the compact workstation will sport any external design changes to accommodate the larger heatsink.
What we do know is that the more robust cooling will enable the M7 Ultra to handle the most demanding of on-device AI workloads, not to mention being able to play those high visual fidelity games at maximum settings. Sadly, only a modicum of consumers can become the proud owners of the M7 Ultra Mac Studio, as Apple has raised the prices of its machines to unfathomable levels.
The most expensive Mac available on Apple’s website is the M3 Ultra-powered Mac Studio, and with its 96GB of unified memory, it costs an eye-watering $14,299. Since the Cupertino firm will have to bear the skyrocketing DRAM costs, the M7 Ultra will be out of reach for the majority of buyers, but it’ll still be interesting to see what kind of numbers it can crunch.
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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