M3/M4 Mac Studio: Everything you need to know

The M2 Max and Ultra Mac Studio were released at WWDC23 last June, and the M3 era of Apple’s System on a Chip started last November. So, with WWDC24 creeping up on us, it’s time to start looking forward to the next Mac Studio.

The rumors will start to increase as June 2024 approaches, and whatever is reported now can change (and likely will) before the new Mac Studio is released. We’ll keep track of what’s being said in this article. 

Update 5/20/24: Apple does not have the Mac Studio scheduled for release in 2024, which could mean Apple will skip the M3 series and deliver an M4-series Mac Studio in 2025..

M3/M4 Mac Studio: Release date

We’ve had two generations of Mac Studio. The first gen (M1 Max and Ultra) was released in March of 2022. The second-gen (M2 Max and Ultra) was revealed at WWDC23 in June 2023. Apple will likely continue with a March or June timeframe for the next Mac Studio.

In April, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman said in the paid version of his Power On newsletter that the next Mac Studio could launch in the second half of 2024, which likely means a WWDC release. ICsmart reports that the new Mac Studio could arrive in the middle of this year as well. Since Apple doesn’t traditionally hold standalone events during the summer months, WWDC is a safe bet.

In May, Mark Gurman reported that the Mac Studio is not on the schedule of Apple releases for 2024. It doesn’t appear until mid 2025. If that’s the case, then Apple will likely skip the M3 series chips and release the 2025 Mac Studio with an M4 Max and M4 Ultra.

Roman Loyola/IDG

Roman Loyola/IDG

Roman Loyola/IDG

While the price of the Mac Studio has already increased outside of the U.S. (it was originally £1,999 in the U.K.), prices did not change in the U.S. when Apple upgraded from the M1 to the M2 chips, and prices could stay the same with an M3/M4 upgrade. But when Apple released the M3 Pro and Max MacBook Pros, the price for the standard configuration M3 Max model increased by $100, so there’s a good possibility that the Mac Studio prices go up.

M3/M4 Mac Studio: Design

No reports about design changes to the Mac Studio have been made. The current design works well and is going on its third year, so Apple likely isn’t going to change it. The only possible exception is a new space black color option to match the MacBook Pro.

M3/M4 Mac Studio: Specs and features

The main (and likely only) change that will happen with the upcoming Mac Studio is with its SoC. The Mac Studio should continue to have the Max and Ultra versions of its M-series chips, so the new chips we will see are the M3/M4 Max and M3/M4 Ultra.

The current M3 Max MacBook Pro is available with a 14-core CPU/30-core GPU or a 16-core CPU/38-core GPU, so if Apple does go with an M3 Max for the Mac Studio, it may have similar specs.

Roman Loyola/IDG

Roman Loyola/IDG

Roman Loyola/IDG

Apple’s Ultra chips have doubled the CPU and GPU cores of the Max. In January 2024 Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported in the paid version of his Power On newsletter that this should continue, with the M3 Ultra featuring up to 32 CPU cores and 40 GPU cores. Also in January, a report by The Elect stated that the M3 Ultra will be manufactured using an enhanced 3nm process.

In April 2024, Mark Gurman reported that “Apple is testing versions with both a still-unreleased M3-era chip and a variation of the M4 Brava processor.” As for the “M4 Brava,” Gurman states that Apple is working on AI-enhanced M4 chips that could find their way into the Mac Studio in 2025.

However, in May Mark Gurman reported that the Mac Studio won’t be updated until 2025, probably at WWDC25. If that’s the case, then the Mac Studio will have M4-series chips, and the specs for the M4 Max and Ultra will be very different from the M2 Max and Ultra and what was projected with the M3 Max and Ultra.

The other features of the Mac Studio should remain the same. That means no changes to the ports, connectivity, speaker, SSD sizes, or display support.