The Mac Pro’s history has excellent high points, as well as challenges that had to be dealt with. When Apple replaced the Power Mac G5 with the Mac Pro, the switch to Intel chips made the future look bright while at the same time, users had to deal with the technology transition. In 2013, Apple proved it could think differently about its flagship Mac, with a cylindrical design that morphed our notion of what defines the Mac Pro. But the “trash can” Mac suffered much criticism for its lack of upgradability and reliance on external devices. The 2019 Mac Pro brought back the tower that users demanded, but Apple had to win back a lot of customers.
Good or bad, the release of the new Mac Pro was an exciting time that allowed us to witness how far Apple can push the envelope for its flagship system. This time, however, the release of the 2023 Mac Pro feels different, because pros have another choice in the M2 Ultra Mac Studio–it’s not a second-rate choice, either. It offers the same exact performance as the M2 Ultra Mac Pro–the Mac Pro traditionally is the uncontested champion. That’s not true anymore.
Now the question isn’t “What does Apple have in store for us?” but instead it’s “Should I buy a Mac Pro or Mac Studio?” I’ve long been using the 2019 Intel Mac Pro–it’s the best workstation I have ever owned. Parking an M2 Ultra Mac Studio next to it has had me asking if it’s finally time to move on. There’s a lot to consider: price, performance, and what you may lose when ditching the Mac Pro. This small enclosure offers tremendous performance, but it also carries some compromises with it. Let’s take a closer look at what’s at stake.
Mac Pro vs Mac Studio: Price
A decked-out M2 Ultra Mac Pro is much cheaper than the 2019 Intel Mac Pro. Likewise, the 2023 Mac Studio is cheaper than the 2023 Mac Pro, by about $3,000 for the same high-end hardware specifications.
From a price/performance standpoint, the Mac Studio has an edge.
Thiago Trevisan
What do you get with that extra three grand? Gen 4 PCIe slots, to start. No need for pricey external Thunderbolt devices–or, at least, it can cut down your need for them. The Mac Pro also has two more Thunderbolt 4 ports and an extra USB port. The case itself is an absolute work of art and engineering that certainly has some extra value.
The benefits stop there, however. Since you can spec out the Mac Studio’s M2 Ultra System on a Chip equal to the specs for the Mac Pro, the consideration quickly becomes a question of how many external devices you’re willing to put up with. The neatness of having it everything integrated into the Mac Pro’s case is worth some of that extra cost, to a lot of customers.
But for others, the extra cost simply is not worth it. The “performance carrot” usually dangled in front of high-end users to entice them to spend on a Mac Pro is missing. The Mac Studio is a quiet, capable, little (maybe even portable) machine that has the best performance Apple can offer. That’s hard to beat–you’d need to really want those PCIe slots.
Chip upgradability is a big issue with either machine–you can’t do it. This worsens the long-term value of either Mac (though Macs overall tend to hold their value longer than Windows PCs). That’s a big change from the Intel-based 2019 Mac Pro–you can breathe new life into it for a long time by upgrading its CPU, GPU, and RAM.
A lot of the functionality that was provided by PCIe cards in the Intel Mac Pro is now built into Apple’s System on a Chip.
Thiago Trevisan
Setting aside the obvious price difference, there are some users who will absolutely still love the 2023 Mac Pro. They will make use of their PCie slots making for a much more tidy workflow–the cost of external devices and the hassle of managing them will convince some users that the Mac Pro is the way to go.
Mac Pro vs Mac Studio: Performance
Performance is a tough metric to use for comparison because they’re nearly identical when comparing the M2 Ultra models with the same specs. Maybe there’s a chance that the Mac Pro’s larger chassis would affect the chip’s operational thermals and give it a chance at an advantage, but in real-world testing, the results are eerily similar.
The much more interesting performance comparison is with either M2 Ultra Macs against the older 2019 Intel Mac Pro. Here’s one real-world example: I took a 20-minute clip of R3D Raw 6K video and exported it to ProRes 422 HQ. The 2019 Intel Mac Pro with a 28-core CPU and the Radeon Pro W6800X Duo graphics had the same speed as the M2 Ultra with a 76-core GPU. Upgrading the Mac Pro with two AMD 6900 XT GPUs resulted in a 16 percent boost over the Mac Pro, but since the AMD upgrade is the top of the line, that’s the best that the Intel Mac Pro can do.
How about gaming? This can showcase some of the brute GPU power on tap. In Rise of the Tomb Raider in 4K, the M2 Ultra did surprisingly well, reaching framerates of 73 fps, which was three fps faster than the much more expensive Intel Mac Pro with the Radeon Pro W6800x Duo graphics–with games, only one of the two GPUs is used. Upgrading the Mac Pro with the AMD 6900 XT GPU pushed its framerate to 85 fps. Very impressive that it can match these high-end GPUs from only the last generation.
R3D Raw 6K video export to ProRes 422HQ
Results are time in seconds. Lower results/shorter bars are faster.
Rise of the Tomb Raider 4K framerates
Results are frames per second. Higher results/longer bars are faster.
Performance results compared to the 2019 Mac Pro can vary wildly, from the discreet GPUs such as the W6800x that are still faster in some tasks, to the M2 Ultra using its built-in capabilities; encoders and decoders in the new hardware can often completely outclass even the Mac Pro’s Afterburner card. When considering Pro Res, for example, the Mac Studio with M2 Ultra is far ahead of anything the older 2019 Mac Pro can do.
Mac Pro vs Mac Studio: Daily usability
For this consideration, let’s turn our attention back to the M2 Ultra flavors of the Mac Pro and Mac Studio. Since the performance of these two Macs is a wash, usability becomes emphasized as a priority. To see how these Macs stack up, I’ve been using the Mac Studio with my everyday workflow. I mainly edit using Final Cut Pro, with some DaVinci Resolve, and R3D Raw footage from Red cameras. Here are some pros and cons for each.
Mac Studio: Pros
- Compact footprint: It’s really small and easy to fit on a desk or move around without much effort. It’s convenient to swing around to access ports, too.
- Powerful for its size: The performance is stunning in such as small package. It’s literally a Mac Pro mini!
Mac Studio: Cons
- No internal expansion: Nothing can be put inside it. Anything you want to add must be external. I rocked a PCIe NVME card with 8TB of Raid 0 on the Mac Pro’s internal PCIe, but for the Mac Studio, I had to get an external OWC NVME device. Speeds were slower, and the fan was much noisier, needing some custom tweaking.
- No chip upgradability: This is a no-go for many pros. You can’t touch the memory, SSD, or CPU/GPU for an upgrade years from now. It’s basically stuck as is forever, which is very “not Pro.”
See all these cables and connectors? Some pro users want to avoid this, which is why they want a Mac Pro.
Thiago Trevisan
Mac Pro: Pros
- PCIe expandability: This is the main reason why you get a Mac Pro. You can not only fit tons of different cards in there but also storage becomes easier to manage. There are so many PCIe cards on the market that make it neater, faster, and better integrated.
- SSD upgradeable: You can’t upgrade the CPU, GPU, or memory on the 2023 Mac Pro. However, you can upgrade the SSD, such as going from 1TB to 8TB down the road. Technically, the PCIe slots do make it more versatile and internally upgradable than the Mac Studio. It’s a tiny victory, though.
Mac Pro: Cons
- No CPU/GPU advantage: the M2 Ultra in the Mac Studio and the Mac Pro are the same. The Mac Pro isn’t faster than the Mac Studio.
Which is the better pro Mac?
There is no doubt that the small size, ample performance, and cheaper price of the Mac Studio with M2 Ultra make it hard to beat. If you don’t need PCIe slots or expandable storage, everything else is a wash. The same will likely be true when the M3 models launch—Apple hasn’t separated these models by much when it comes to performance.
The 2023 Mac Pro with M2 Ultra is a mixed bag. The only net positive here is the PCIe slots. This is huge for anyone who wants a neat workspace with internal storage, and external Thunderbolt devices can be bulky and make fan noise. This is a very reasonable approach for some. (Thunderbolt enclosures are also not cheap, often costing hundreds.) The extra $3,000 cost can somewhat be justified by this all-encompassing, gorgeous Mac Pro chassis.
Apple Mac Pro (M2 Ultra, 2023)
Apple Mac Studio (M2 Ultra, 2023)
