UltraFusion

Discover the high-speed secret behind Apple's latest M3 Ultra chip

- CLIFF JOSEPH

YOU WILL LEARN

How UltraFusion combines two M3 Max chips to create the M3 Ultra

KEY FACT

Memory is a key factor for high-end graphics and video work. The M4 Max starts with 36GB memory, going up to a maximum of 128GB, while the M3 Ultra starts at 96GB, with a maximum of 512GB. Apple charges a fortune for its memory upgrades, so it might actually be worth opting for the base M3 Ultra version of the Mac Studio just to get that extra memory.

APPLE'S RECENT FLURRY of product launches has left a few people wondering about the logic of the various product upgrades, but none as much as the launch of the new Mac Studio. The 2025 update for the Mac Studio is now available with two main options that use either an M4 Max or M3 Ultra chip. Now, we all know that each new generation of Apple silicon processor is faster than its predecessors, so logic might suggest that the fourth—generation M4 Max would be faster than the third—gen M3 Ultra. However, the price of the Mac Studio tells a different story, as the M4 Max option starts at $1,999, while the M3 Ultra is twice that, weighing in at a whopping $3,999. But as always, the devil is in the detail — not least of which is the fact that the M3 Ultra version of the Mac Studio also includes some seriously expensive memory and storage upgrades. However, the technical details of the two different chips are also important. A quick look at the web page for the Mac Studio tells us that the less expensive M4 Max chip provides 14 CPU cores, 32 GPU cores for video and graphics work, and a 16-core Neural Engine that will — one day — handle all that newfangled Apple Intelligence stuff. In contrast, the more expensive M3 Ultra provides 28 CPU cores, a whopping 60 GPU cores, and 32 cores for the Neural Engine.