Apple has unveiled the new Mac Studio, featuring two powerful configurations: one with the M4 Max chip and another with the new M3 Ultra chip. Here’s a comparison of these two models to help you understand the differences between the M4 Max vs M3 Ultra.
Mac Studio with M4 Max
- Features up to 16-core CPU and 40-core GPU
- Offers over half a terabyte per second of unified memory bandwidth
- Neural Engine is over 3x faster than M1 Max
- Starts with 36GB of unified memory, configurable up to 128GB
- Up to 3.5x faster than Mac Studio with M1 Max
- Includes two ProRes accelerators for video processing
Mac Studio with M3 Ultra
- Features up to 32-core CPU with 24 performance cores
- Offers up to 80-core GPU
- Delivers over 800GB/s of unified memory bandwidth
- Starts with 96GB of unified memory, configurable up to 512GB
- Up to 2.6x faster than Mac Studio with M1 Ultra
- Supports up to 16TB of ultrafast SSD storage
Performance Comparison
- M3 Ultra delivers nearly 2x faster performance than M4 Max in workloads that take advantage of high CPU and GPU core counts
- M3 Ultra is up to 6.4x faster than the 16-core Intel Xeon W-based Mac Pro
- M3 Ultra enables up to 16.9x faster token generation using large language models compared to M1 Ultra
Which one is better?
The Mac Studio with M3 Ultra is the more powerful option, offering higher performance capabilities, especially for demanding workloads that require massive amounts of unified memory and high core counts. However, the choice between M4 Max and M3 Ultra depends on the user’s specific needs and budget. The M4 Max is still a highly capable chip that outperforms its predecessor and may be sufficient for many professional users, while the M3 Ultra represents the pinnacle of performance for the most demanding tasks.
More here.