The new Mac mini debuts the M6 chip while the Mac Studio reaches 512 GB of memory
Apple has renewed two of its most compact desktop computers with the premiere of the M6 chip in the Mac mini and the arrival of the M5 Max and M5 Ultra to the Mac Studio. There also comes a Mac mini with M5 Proalong with updated connectivity and official prices for Spain.
The Reservations are open from August 25 and the first units will arrive on September 22. In our country, the Mac mini starts at 1,069 euros with M6 and 2,019 euros with M5 Pro. The Mac Studio starts at 3,029 euros with M5 Max, while the configuration with M5 Ultra raises the starting price to 6,649 euros.
The M6 debuts in a Mac mini with 12-core CPU and GPU
The Mac mini with M6 features a 12-core CPU and a 12-core GPUtwo more in both cases than in the previous generation. The graphics cores incorporate Neural Accelerators and the dual Neural Engine has 16 cores. The device maintains 16 GB of unified memory in its basic configuration, supports up to 32 GB and reaches a bandwidth of 170 GB/s.
Compared to the Mac mini with M4, Apple estimates the improvement at up to 40% for the CPUtwice the graphics performance and up to twice the speed for storage. Performance in artificial intelligence loads can be multiplied by four, although these comparisons come from tests carried out by the company itself with specific applications and configurations.
The alternative with M5 Pro is aimed at more demanding professional loads. This chip can be configured with a CPU of up to 18 cores and a GPU of up to 20 cores, accompanied by 64 GB of unified memory and 307 GB/s of bandwidth. Apple proposes its use for application development, video rendering, scientific simulations and local execution of diffusion models.
Mac Studio supports up to 512GB with the M5 Ultra
The new Mac Studio is offered first with the M5 Maxequipped with an 18-core CPU and a GPU that can reach 40 cores, all with Neural Accelerators. The unified memory reaches 128 GB with a maximum bandwidth of 614 GB/s. The entry configuration combines 36 GB of memory with a 512 GB SSD.
For the most intensive loads there is the M5 Ultrawith a CPU of up to 36 cores, a GPU of up to 80 cores and a maximum of 512 GB of unified memory. Bandwidth reaches 1.2 TB/s, 50% more than the M3 Ultra. This capability allows large language models and data sets to be maintained within system memory.
The figures published by the company speak of a Up to 4.3x higher AI performance than M3 Ultra, up to 1.8x faster graphics, and up to 1.3x improved multi-threading. Its multimedia engine allows up to 33 ProRes 422 sequences to be played simultaneously in 8K and 30 frames per second. These features direct the team towards editing, visual effects, research and local model development.
WiFi 7, 2.5 Gb Ethernet and Thunderbolt 5
Both Mac minis feature WiFi 7, Bluetooth 6, and 2.5GB Ethernet, with a configurable 10GB option. On the front they retain two USB-C with USB 3 and the headphone jack. The M6 version includes three Thunderbolt 4 connections on the back, while the model with M5 Pro uses three Thunderbolt 5 ports along with HDMI and Ethernet.
Mac Studio combines up to six Thunderbolt 5 ports with transfers of up to 120 Gb/s, WiFi 7, Bluetooth 6 and PCIe 6.0-based storage with performance that can double that of the previous generation. It can control up to eight monitors or four Studio Display XDRs at 5K resolution and 120 Hz.
Thunderbolt 5 and RDMA also allow multiple Mac Studio to be grouped together to share memory and distribute inference tasks. Apple indicates that a set of four computers can achieve up to three times the performance of a single unit under these loads. Both Mac mini and Mac Studio will arrive with macOS 27 Golden Gate and new Apple Intelligence and Siri AI features.
Official prices in Spain and availability
He Mac mini with M6 costs from 1,069 eurosor 949 euros with the educational discount. The version with M5 Pro starts at 2,019 euroswith an educational price of 1,899 euros. In it Mac Studio, the M5 Max starts at 3,029 euros and drops to 2,789 euros for education, while the M5 Ultra starts at 6,649 euros or 6,169 euros with that discount.
All models can be reserved from August 25 and will be available in the Apple Store and authorized resellers from September 22. The only reported exception is the Mac Studio configuration with 512 GB of unified memory, which is scheduled to arrive at the end of October.
