Thank you to all readers of Engadget in Japanese for your patronage.
Of course, I share my true intentions in all media, but I think Engadget’s manuscript is the most unpretentious. In retrospect, it was probably a very rare approach, it was a very rare place where different opinions would gather around the same product, it was a place where culture was fostered outside of the media. I can do it.
It’s a pain to say goodbye to everyone, but in a short period of time, the latest Apple devices, the Mac Studio and Studio Display, and the blackened Magic Keyboard, including a little Mirai’s story, I’d like to share.
First, let’s talk about two of Apple’s most recent products, the Mac Studio and the Studio Display.
Introducing Mac Studio
The product, called Mac Studio, is only available in a lineup that includes both the M1 Max and M1 Ultra chips. The M1 Max overlaps with the MacBook Pro, but the M1 Pro is not available. Oddly enough, the M1 Pro is now a dedicated chip for the MacBook Pro.
The unique feature of the M1 Ultra is that it uses a connector called UltraFusion that has been prepared in the M1 Max to connect two M1 Max at a transfer rate of 2.5TB/s, acting as “one chip”. No software or application optimization required, just maximum performance.
Another interesting part of Apple is that it takes care of app developers with these fairly classic techniques. Apple has gone through three transitions, PowerPC, Intel, and Apple Silicon, and I think such considerations will continue to increase when developing chips in the future.
On the front of the Mac mini elevated case, there are two USB-C ports for the M1 Max model, two Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports for the M1 Ultra model, an SDXC card reader, and one port on the back. large numbers. As a heat dissipation design, we have adopted a mechanism that sucks in from the bottom and exhausts from the back. The M1 Ultra uses copper heat sinks, which generate a lot of heat, and the weight difference is 900g compared to the M1 Max model with aluminum heat sinks.
The design of the case is so simple that this introduction will suffice. If you connect your monitor to this using USB-C or Thunderbolt, and prepare a keyboard and mouse with Bluetooth, you can start using it as a computer right away.
Why the M1 Ultra is less regrettable
Even with this product, I personally stand by the conclusion that “Apple Silicon generation computers will continue to be the right choice for laptops”.
I’m not saying I picked the 14″ MacBook Pro coming in October 2021, I’m disappointed because the desktop is later (about 1mm though).
It depends on your work style. I use my Mac in three “workplaces”: home, college, and on the go. Of course, if you have machines all over the place, it’s enough to carry an iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard with you, but amazingly, in college, you can be in labs, classrooms, conference rooms, and even in different Place to use Mac.
Therefore, “one host to carry everywhere” is the optimal solution, instead of having to place independent computers in every place, but to connect peripheral devices such as the monitor of the host.
In that sense, this time I want to buy two Studio Displays and deploy them at home and at university, but it’s hard to do for about 200,000 yen. I want to keep it at home, but I’ll talk about that later.
Who needs the performance of the M1 Ultra? There is a problem here. If you post the Geekbench 5 score for reference, the CPU multi-core is around 24000 and the GPU metal is around 103500. The CPU is 3 times that of M1 and 2 times that of M1 Pro / M1 Max. The GPU is 5 times the M1 scale, 2.5 times the M1 Pro scale, and 1.5 times the M1 Max scale.
In one demo, Apple was a creative professional running a graphics project in the order of tens of gigabytes, smoothly finding and playing 18 4K ProRes videos side-by-side, and playing a music project with over 400 tracks. I am copying the site. On the other hand, the M1 Ultra’s Mac Studio is for those who do that much.
What’s more, the demo at about half the scale above is a MacBook Pro with M1 Max, so how many people will be editing 9 4K videos at the same time? Speaking of which, even the M1 Max Mac Stduio is overkill for most people.
Anyway, the M1 has a strong image of a MacBook Air and is available in the low 100k yen range, so the more models above, the more low-spec I feel, but Premiere and Final Cut Pro 4K video as long as I’m working on editing, I can use it without stress, so I think the conclusion that the MacBook Air is high enough will probably hold for the next five years.
Unique studio showcase
This time it’s Studio Display that comes with Mac Studio. This is truly unique. Just half a year ago, the author who was seriously worried about a 27-inch monitor thought it was too late!
In Japan, it costs about 200,000 yen and comes with a mid-frame compatible webcam. High-quality speakers that also support spatial audio, and further tweaked from the iMac, the combination of the A13 Bionic and iOS to control these is a luxury.
These qualities can be improved with a software update, so I’d like it to be either Hey Siri compatible alone or able to play Apple Music, but that’s difficult because Wi-Fi isn’t included.
Even minus the display, webcam and speakers, A13 Bionic, etc., it still has a very unique part as a product. As mentioned above, when considering a 27-inch monitor, I can’t find an equivalent to the Studio Display as a spec for the monitor itself.
The 27-inch display is a relatively large size, but Full HD and 4K are mainstream, and the only 5K resolution products are the ones LG sells at the Apple Store.
Plus, it’s hard to find anything brighter than 400 nits, including this LG monitor. Sure, there was something called the 600 Nito on the LG panel, but stock was unstable and I gave up.
The 27-inch, 5K resolution, and 600-nit specs alone make it hard to choose, and seeing a display with a webcam and speakers is pretty unique.
The appeal of the Mac Studio footprint
I usually mount LG’s 27″ 4K monitor on my desk with a monitor arm, and then use a cable to connect it to the 14″ MacBook Pro I brought back. The performance is adequate, and as mentioned, the movement between the phone and the desktop is smooth, a perfect style.
However, when I compared my style to the Mac Studio combined with the Studio Display, the desktop footprint was quite different. Likewise, the MacBook Pro insists on a 14-inch bottom area on a desktop unless it fits in a vertical stand.
The reason standing upright is difficult is that if you are standing with the lid closed, you will have the problem of not having a webcam when joining a web meeting. After all, to open the lid, it will inevitably take up 14 inches of bottom area. In this regard, with the advent of the Studio Display, even when the MacBook Pro is mounted on a vertical stand, it is possible to take part in a web meeting normally in the itch.
However, if you’re using it as a desktop, Mac Studio will also help minimize the footprint. With a height of less than 20cm and a height of less than 10cm, it fits the normal stand of the Studio Display, and even a narrow table with a width of 70cm and a depth of 40cm can fit a keyboard and mouse.
The compactness of Mac Studio makes it attractive if you’re using it as a stationary desktop.
Transfer plan from 27-inch iMac
He mentioned that the Mac Pro will be released at another time. Therefore, Mac Studio is recommended for users of high-end models of Mac mini, iMac 27-inch, iMac Pro, and existing Mac Pro desktop models.
With the introduction of Studio Display, I also see a good chance that we will no longer be making 27-inch integrated desktops. Get them separately and keep using the monitor while you update your Mac. As such, it will ship with the A13 Bionic and iOS, ready for future software enhancements. This kind of thinking can be seen through.
However, Mac Studio + Studio Display is just a suggestion, the host part can be a combination of MacBook Pro and Mac mini, and an integrated iMac is also an option. The idea is to choose a combination of host and display based on the application and desired performance. Four modes are envisaged, including iMac.
If so, I have to point out that the lineup is half. The high-end models of the Mac mini are still Intel chips, and the integrated 24-inch iMac is only the M1 model. If the Mac Studio is the M1 Max line, then you should have a higher-end model that lists the M1 Pro on the Mac mini and iMac.
Personally, I think some people may think that the Mac mini and iMac models equipped with the M1 Pro are quite good. I think it is a line that I hope to see in the future.
Think again, the future of computers
The iPad Air, released with Mac Studio, has the M1 chip. What a surprise. Like the iPad mini, I thought it would have the same A15 Bionic as the latest iPhone, but it’s actually the same M1 as the iPad Pro.
What will you do with the iPad Pro when this happens? The problem arises. From a power saving point of view, it is not a good idea to install an M1 Pro with the same product name and chip name. In that case, this M1 iPad Air can be considered a preparation for the iPad Pro to be equipped with the M2 chip that will appear in 2022.
The M1 came out in the fall of 2020, so it’s been about two years. Chip updates have been slow, but the M1-equipped MacBook Air isn’t out of date. Its battery life is so good that humans broke it first, and it still handles most processing (including 4K video) just fine.
So, even if the M2 comes out, there’s no need to rush into a machine with an M1-type chip. First of all, M2 is aimed at 5nm+, which is an evolution of the 5nm process. It is said that it can achieve a small improvement in processing performance and a large reduction in power consumption without changing the design.
In addition, TSMC, which is responsible for making Apple Silicon, plans to miniaturize to 4nm and 3nm. If you’re going to update every two years, you can think that at the chip level, you’re upgrading the product and replacing the M-series chips until about 6 years from now.
Most importantly, should we reconsider, for example, will the same computing environment continue as it is now six years from now? is the problem.
Of course, for business, education or creators, it is natural to assume that existing methods of work and production will continue to exist. But when I look at more advanced computing, I’m not very confident if I’m still worried about the computer monitor on my desk, or if I’m still talking about the performance of the computer alone or the battery…
I missed the Engadget article, but soon I’ll be getting AR glasses (or sunglasses with a display) called the Nreal Air. Just put on your sunglasses and you’ll see a 100″ HD screen in front of you, no need to think about a 27″ monitor on your desk.
I’m considering using it with an iPad Air + Magic Keyboard with M1 for work and play on the go. By then, the always-connected, touch- and keyboard-enabled iPad will be more competitive than a Mac with a large screen, and the value of installing the M1 will likely increase. The challenge now is to find a slightly jerky USB-C cable to connect your face to your iPad.
Apple, which purely developed some fixed computing, and a new company that challenged unprecedented devices and interfaces, such as external stimuli. In doing so, Apple will find the “right answer” to achieve it with enormous financial and organizational power, and increase enterprise value. On the other hand, I think Apple’s such a good device is a prerequisite for opening up new computing.
In the future, I would like to continue pursuing this field while deepening my perspective to prepare for Mirai. We look forward to working with our readers and Engadgets again.
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