Currently, Mac Pro is the only product in the Mac lineup which not been upgraded to Apple Silicon yet. But we know it is coming.
At the “Peek Performance” in March, Apple senior vice president of Hardware Engineering John Ternus said that a Mac Pro with Apple Silicon would complete the transition of the entire Mac line from Intel processors to Apple Silicon.
“New Mac Studio and Studio Display join the rest of incredible Mac lineup with Apple Silicon, making our transition nearly complete with just one more product to go, Mac Pro but that’s for another day.”
As announced in 2020, the 2-year transition period is set to expire at the end of 2022. Maybe, the tech giant will launch the next-generation Mac Pro sooner than later. Here is everything we know about the upcoming desktop computer.
New Mac Pro might be powered by M2 Ultra and M2 Extreme chips
According to industry reports, Apple had the Mac Pro with an M1 chip “ready to go” but the company did not release it because began developing an “M2 Extreme” variant.
The M1 series includes four builds: M1, M1 Pro, M1 Max, and M1 Ultra chips. The M1 Ultra was introduced in Mac Studio earlier this year which completes the M1 series of chips. Therefore, it is likely that Apple wanted to launch its expensive desktop computer with a much more powerful chip than the M1 which is slower than M1 Ultra to justify the high price tag and the long wait.
Recently, Mark Gurman from Bloomberg stated that the next-generation Mac Pro would be launched with M2 Ultra and M2 Extreme chips.
Apple launched M2 chip in new 13-inch MacBook Air and MacBook Pro (entry-level model) in March this year. Previously, Gurman claimed that the M2 series of chips will have four builds: M2, M2 Pro, M2 Max, M2 Ultra and M2 Extreme which would power the following new devices:
- M2 Mac mini
- M2 Pro Mac mini
- M2 Pro and M2 Max 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros
- M2 Ultra and M2 Extreme Mac Pro
Configuration
And based on the builds of M1 series of chips, it can be assumed that M2 Extreme will be much more powerful than Apple Silicon Ultra will have the following specs:
- M2 Ultra
- 20-core CPU with 16 high-performance cores and 4 high-efficiency cores
- Up to 64-core GPU
- 32-core Neural Engine
- Up to 128GB unified memory
- M2 Extreme
- 40- core CPU with 32 high-performance cores and 8 high-efficiency cores
- Up to 128 GPU cores
- 64-core Neural Engine
- Up to 256GB unified memory
Design
Before the launch of Mac Studio, it was reported that Apple will launch a smaller version of Mac Pro but now it seems like the company will continue with the larger size of the computer. It may be updated with flat edge designed language to match the new design of lastest Mac models.
Compatible monitor
It is also reported that Apple is developing a 27-inch Studio Display Pro model with mini-LED screen. It is likely that the new monitor and computer are launched at the same time to be marketed as the most compatible pair like the Mac Studio and Studio Display.
Price
Currently, Mac Pro tower starts from $5,999 and rack starts from $6,499. It is likely that with M2 Ultra and M2 Extreme chip, the new model will also be the same price or higher.
